Old Sarum is the site of the earliest settlement of Salisbury, England, with evidence of human habitation as early as 300 BC. It sits on an Iron age hill fort about 3km (two miles) north of modern Salisbury (OS Map 184; ref SU 138327).

This impressive earthwork consists of an outer defensive wall and an inner rampart rising at an angle of over 45 degrees and measuring 40 feet from trough to top.

The fortification, named Sorviodunum in Roman times, was occupied successively by the Romans, the Saxons, the Danes, and finally by the Norman conquerors of England. Old Sarum gets its name from a corruption of Sorbiodonum, which means "gentle river fortress".

Old Sarum was the site, in 1070, where William I disbanded his conquering army after having finally subdued the country four years after the invasion of 1066.

The victorious troops were paid off in treasure, which the Normans had taken from the defeated Saxons. The construction of the royal castle (photo above), whose ruins are still visible today, had already begun under the direction of Osmund, the Conqueror's Chancellor (and, possibly, also his nephew). Around the castle and residence of King William I, a vibrant town was in the process of growing.

After the Norman Conquest, the town was renamed Salisberie after the Earl who received the area. He built a wooden castle with a ditch, and in 1067 started a cathedral. He completed it in 1092 (it burned down five days later), and in 1100 built a stone keep. A replacement cathedral was completed in 1190.

Space ran out on the hilltop, with cathedral and castle sitting cheek by jowl and their respective chiefs in regular conflict; so in 1219 the bishop started construction on a new cathedral on the banks of the Avon. A new settlement grew up around this, called New Sarum, and eventually the name of Salisbury was used only for the new town. Old Sarum was slowly abandoned and fell into ruin. Not much is still standing there, but visitors may easily trace the outlines of the old castle and cathedral.

From mediaeval times Old Sarum elected two members to the House of Commons, despite the fact that from at least the 17th century it had no resident voters at all. In 1831 it had eleven voters, all of whom were landowners who lived elsewhere. This made Old Sarum the most notorious of the rotten boroughs of the pre-1832 House of Commons. The Reform Act of that year deprived Old Sarum of both its seats. Old Sarum's long history makes it a popular location for historical reenactments.

History of Old Sarum
The ramparts were probably first constructed around 1000 BC as Bronze Age tribal groups sought to protect themselves and their cattle. In the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age the ramparts would have been strengthened and a barbican constructed outside the main gate. The fort would then have experienced little change until the invasion of the Roman Empire in AD 53.

Having subdued local resistance, the Romans brought a period of relative stability to the bulk of what is now England. At Old Sarum there is evidence by the fact that the hillfort appears to have served as little more than a garrison. The small Roman settlement established itself a few hundred yards from the fort, down at the bottom of the river valley at what is now Stratford-Sub-Castle.

It is clear that the settlement established here, although not terribly large, would have been of some importance as four main Roman roads converge on the old fort. Sorviodunum was on a crossroads of the road from Venta Belgarum/Winchester, Isca Dumnoniorum/Exeter, Durnovaria/Dorchester, Calleva/Silchester and even a fifth road to the lead mines in the Mendip Hills.

Most probably Sorviodunum/Sarum would have been the site of a regular market and other forms of trading which depended on quick efficient transport and communications. However, the signs of Roman occupation are only slight. Some coins date to the 1st and 2nd centuries, with the most coming from the 3rd and 4th. Other finds are from Stratford-sub-Castle, being the fields to the west of the fort, and from the fields to the south. There were other Roman buildings around, but no Roman town of importance has been found. The road junction itself was, strangely enough, never occupied.

Old Sarum is an extraordinary place with an extraordinary history. The English Heritage website has a complete mini-site dedicated to the Old Sarum with loads of information, history, kids zone, and a virtual tour. Old Sarum English Heritage site click here