Selworthy Beacon is a hill and Marilyn of Exmoor in Somerset , England . It lies within the boundaries of Exmoor National Park , to the north of the village of Selworthy and northwest of Minehead . A road leads to the top, where there is a National Trust plaque and a view of the south coast of Wales across the Bristol Channel .[ 1] The South West Coast Path also climbs the hill and ends slightly shy of the summit.[ 2] [ 3]
Geography
Selworthy Beacon is located in northern Somerset in southwestern England, about 4 miles (6 km) northwest of Minehead , north of the village of Selworthy .[ 4] Selworthy Beacon is one of three peaks in Somerset, the other two being Dunkery Beacon and Periton Hill .[ 5] Its elevation is 1,013 feet (309 m).[ 6] Behind the hill, there are precipitous cliffs.[ 7] Selworthy Beacon is situated within the National Trust-owned Holnicote Estate . Nearby are the Macmillan Way , Coleridge Way , and a fourteenth-century tithe barn . A signposted walking route to the hill goes through a wooded area of Allerford and Holnicote Plantations,[ 6] [ 8] and is 2 miles (3 km) northeast of Porlock .[ 5]
History
Acland memorial cross
Wind and Weather Hut erected in 1878 by John Barton Arundel Acland for use by the Acland Family on Sunday walks
Near the summit are a series of cairns , thought to be the remains of round barrows ,[ 9] and the British Iron Age Bury Castle .[ 10] The round cairns have been designated as a scheduled monument .[ 11] In the sixteenth century, Selworthy Beacon was (as its name implies) the site of a beacon to warn of impending invasions.[ 2] The mausoleum of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland is located about 0.25 miles (400 m) from Selworthy Beacon.[ 4]
Wildlife
Typical coastal plants are present, such as Sea Campion and Thrift (Armeria maritima ), as well as gorse and heather (Calluna vulgaris ).[ 2]
References
^ "Selworthy Beacon" . BBC . 17 August 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2013 .
^ a b c "Walk — Selworthy Beacon" . Retrieved 4 May 2013 .
^ "Walk 1221 - Selworthy Beacon & North Hill from Bossington" . Walking Britain. Retrieved 4 May 2013 .
^ a b Ward, Charles Slegg (1897). North Devon Including West Somerset and North Cornwall from Exmoor to the Scilly Isles: With a Description of the Various Approaches (Public domain ed.). Dulau. pp. 51–.
^ a b Turnbull, Ronald (9 September 2010). Three Peaks, Ten Tors: And other challenging walks in the UK . Cicerone Press Limited. pp. 98–. ISBN 978-1-84965-147-9 .
^ a b James Roberts (1 January 1997). Walking in Somerset . Cicerone Press Limited. pp. 75–. ISBN 978-1-85284-253-6 . Retrieved 5 May 2013 .
^ Hancock, Frederick (1897). The Parish of Selworthy in the County of Somerset: Some Notes on Its History (Public domain ed.). Barnicott and Pearce. pp. 7 –.
^ Drew, Keith; Andrews, Robert (1 March 2012). The Rough Guide to Bath, Bristol & Somerset: Includes Salisbury and Stonehenge . Rough Guides. pp. 268–. ISBN 978-1-4053-9381-2 .
^ Adkins, Lesley; Adkins, Roy (1992). A Field Guide to Somerset Archaeology . Wimborne, Dorset: Dovecote Press. p. 101. ISBN 0-946159-94-7 .
^ Dunning, Robert (1980). Somerset and Avon . Edinburgh: John Bartholomew & Son. p. 125. ISBN 0-7028-8380-8 .
^ Historic England . "Round cairn cemetery, 570m east of Selworthy Beacon (1020794)" . National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 28 February 2015 .
External links