LOOKING BACK
Saxons , spies and the odd
Horsenden Hill stands tall at the heart of our borough – our largest open space and a part of life , but it is also an ancient scheduled monument . Its past is one of spies , a Saxon legend , Dr Who , a huge reservoir and more besides . David Harvey helps us go on a tour …
The summit of the hill ( which provides excellent views across London ) was scheduled as an ancient monument in the late 1970s by English Heritage . This is because of evidence of an Iron Age ( approximately 800BC- 43AD ) settlement being discovered in archeological excavations there . Indeed ,
DID YOU KNOW ? On the hill ’ s summit is a disused , underground reservoir and in the lower field ( down the steps to the main car park entrance ) is an even larger subterranean reservoir . These were built in 1951-2 and were in use until 1966 . there is evidence of human activity on the hill for thousands of years .
Historic England ’ s website confirms the Iron Age settlement covered a semicircular area of more than 150 metres in diameter , with traces of possible defensive ditches and banks found . Pottery shards from medieval , Roman and Iron Age periods have all been recovered during digs , as has some Iron Age jewellery , a fragment of a Bronze Age blade ( approximately 2,500BC-800BC ) and a worked flint from the Neolithic period ( approximately 4,000BC-2,500BC ).
The items discovered by Wembley History Society by their excavations in the 1970s can be viewed ( by appointment ) with the archive section of Brent Libraries .
THE HILL ’ S GREAT LEGEND This historical treasure trove perhaps gives some credence to a legend around the naming of the hill which well-known local historian ( and archaeologist ) John Allen Brown recounted in his 1890 book The Chronicles of Greenford Parva . In it , he relates a legend he obtained from an 1845 work by John Farthing called Pictures of Perivale .
The legend tells the story of Horsa , a Saxon chief and son of the king of this part of Britain . He and his wife had one child , a beautiful daughter called Ealine ( or Yillinge ). The fame of her beauty and talents spread far and wide and many suitors came forward . Eventually , a neighbouring chief called Bren , who
44 around ealing Spring 2017