How we Misunderstood GLASTONBURY Tor

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Welcome to this weeks video. This week we make a.... remake of a BBC Documentary I saw many years ago, plus add a few more modern bits into the mix. So credit to Professor Aubrey Manning and his doc on ths site. Glastonbury Tor is a fascinating place and one can't help let a few myths, legend and folklore creep into your mind as you scale its stunning hill. With views over the mendips, Dorset, The Somerset Levels, what more to love.
Videos To Watch Next:
• How we Misunderstood A... - How we misunderstood Avebury
• How We Misunderstood H... - How we misunderstood Hillforts.
Usual notices:
1. We are not historians. We enjoy researching and learning, and with that we enjoy sharing our journeys with you. That said, sources for information often listed below with credits.
2. Corrections. Whilst we make every attempt to not include any errors, research, and piecing stories together from dozens of sources sometimes leads to one or two. I will note here if any are found:
Errors
1. All in car footage taken by a passenger.
Credit and thanks for assets
Long UK Maps: mapswire.com/m...
Filter: Snowman Digital and Beachfront
B-Roll Maps: Google Maps and Google Earth Studio
Maps: National Library of Scotland Maps:
OS Maps. Media License.
Stock Footage: Storyblocks
Music: Storyblocks and epidemicsound
Old Map: NLS - www.nls.uk/
Drone Footage: Storyblocks paid license.
LIDAR: Environment agency
Credit for images/footage:
Thumbnail: "C Art"
Other Glastonbury Images used:
1 Mr Eugene Birchall
2 CRB Barrett
3 Pam Brophy
King Arthur: Jason Griffith
Sources:
Inspiration from: Professor Aubrey Manning
Other sources: avalonmarshes....
Geology Map: geologyviewer....
The Abbey: www.glastonbur...
www.somersethe...
research.readi...
#RealArchaeology

[@henryhay9543]

Throughout the long drought during the summer of '76 the Glastonbury landscape was spectacular: the Tor and the surrounding hills were scorched brown whereas the levels shone bright emerald because of the moisture in the peat.

[@Osoronnophris]

and if you look close, you can see the Holy Grail

[@1MrMoor]

Wow….i’m born n bred on the Somerset Levels…. 76 was the year I got married…October 2024… 48 years of being married… my dear missus never signed up to all those years of hardship married to such a grumpy old git as I. But credit to her, she stayed and still stays. We both look back to our childhoods and growing up on the Levels… Oddly enough neither of us can ever remember the moors looking green during the 76 drought. We can remember the bulrushes looking stressed and suffering. We remember reeds …dry and frizzled. Having no goodness in them. The moor grass ….growing but frizzled and frazzled. A field used to giving hay grass to make 80 bales of hay, barely able to make 45 bales. We look back…. We remember 76… it has special memories for us. But looking back, we also remember just how badly our beloved moors suffered because of the drought. In my opinion….to think our Somerset Levels did not suffer because of the 76 drought……is just unbelievable and utter nonsense.

[@dominiclester3232]

@@OsoronnophrisClosely...

[@dominiclester3232]

I don’t recall the brown grass, but I do recall grass areas having clear cracks in the ground in ‘76...

[@stephencresswell4760]

Bizarre. At the exact time you posted this video we were on the recreated Sweet Track. It’s across the field after the gate. You just needed to keep going. We then went up the Tor. You basically made a video of our day out!

[@pwhitewick]

Oh brilliant. So we got to the gate... we should have just carried on?

[@stephencresswell4760]

@@pwhitewickyep. Across a small field. Through another gate onto a track. Signpost points to the reconstructed sweet track to the right and it’s on the left.

[@gezsmith]

Unfortunately I'm not entirely sure this is an accurate representation of what happened in two regards. The first minor point is that the monks of Glastonbury Abbey didn't need to find King Arthur to bring in money. They already had a vast income from their extensive land holdings which they had been accumulating since Saxon times. Land that would also have provided them access to crops to some degree. The bigger issue though is that I believe some test pits have been dug on the contours of the Tor, and they didn't find that the earthworks dated to medieval / tudor times, from memory they were found to be earlier. There is also plenty of dry, hilly land around Glastonbury which is used for arable farming to this day. Even within the town the Tor is only one of four major hills (Chalice, Windmill and Wearyall being the others). If you look at the Tor from over by Butleigh especially, you realise it is just the final peak of what is a very large hilly island in the marsh. Indeed, why would the monks go to all of the effort to landscape the Tor to grow a relatively small amount of crops on treacherous slopes, but then at the same time abandon a large amount of drier, higher ground that they owned over at what is now the Festival site to use as a deer park? If land for growing crops was in such short supply that they needed to landscape the Tor, then the deer park makes zero sense. I do suspect a more ceremonial purpose for the Tor and its landscaping, especially given the church's specific dedication to St Michael suggests an earlier pre-christian religious use of the site.

[@Excession-h6e]

Much of his material is of a similar vein. I come here for the mistakes.

[@WolfWest-e8u]

There was a reason that is theorised in a documentary that i watched, it escentially suggested that it was to help silence the Welsh by adopting it and claiming Arthur to be English by finding him buried in England to help reinforce that idea. That was from an extensive documentary I watched on the scenario there was even a round table made from the time the story was changed to reinforce the idea that he was English Now as to why silencing the welsh was important, squashing that historical figure that was a source of strength passion that of which helped reignite rebellion. Also prevented the English from establishing dominance over Wales at the time, was the claim made in the documentary I dont know if the time frame matches if Wales was rebelling or what at the time but yeah.

[@Excession-h6e]

@@WolfWest-e8u I'm English and studied history with other English people back in the day. I have never heard, in over 50 years of an interest in the topic, anyone claim Arthur was English. Which period are you referring to? King of the Britons, certainly. Will rise to defend Britain, absolutely. English, never.

[@sureshot8399]

@@Excession-h6e Arthur was English. 🙂

[@Excession-h6e]

@sureshot8399 Ha Ha. Nice one. In that case, so was Jesus, with more claim. If he came here again with his uncle from Arimithea trading for tin, he'd get a house and citizenship upon landing. You can't say that about the ancestors of the Welsh now bach, isn't it. There's lovely for you.

[@helenamcginty4920]

I love that the Sweet track was named after the quarryman who realised that he had found something interesting so it was brought to the attention of archaeologists.

[@mikhailfranco]

I suspect he was a peat digger, not a quarryman. The peat is still extracted to this day. It is used as a nutrient-rich compost for gardening and intensive agriculture. In the past, it may also have been used as a fuel.

[@chrissinann]

Thank you for your great video. I have always lovedmythology and folklore and woeked with it for much of my adult life. I knew the Tor well, of course, but never considered the ridges on its slopes to be anything other than excellent examples of terraced farming. What a story they have to tell in themselves. Far more interesting than so-called ritual paths.

[@damianbutterworth2434]

I don`t get out of Lincolnshire very often but I have been up the Tor. Was loads of hippies playing music. Was Great.

[@crookedhands2701]

It would be cool to see Paul go to Lincolnshire and elsewhere for his videos/studies. Especially for this Yellowbelly in Spain

[@s.l.taylor4057]

I was born in Stamford, my mother always joked that there were less travel agents per head in Lincolnshire because people were so content there and felt no desire to travel.. Merry Christmas fellow Yellow Belly!

[@emm_arr]

Another good one. Well conceived. Well filmed. Well edited. This is what the internet was invented for.

[@WillN2Go1]

Great comment. KZbin at its best. I like Paul's comment at the end of the video. He's more interested in the history than the myths. I'm a traveler. I'm guessing that every traveler gets to their third or fourth new culture, country, continent and hearing about yet another giant, the maiden, the this or that... we feel our eyes begin to roll and.... Time Team show me a muddy pottery shard and say, "It's 10th or 11th century, but I have no idea what it is." All that myths and legends stuff? Usually it's just the monks still conning the pilgirms.

[@1man1guitarletsgo]

Paul's videos put mainstream producers to shame.

[@jackreacher5667]

Silly little sausage.

[@earthboy9622]

Thank you very much for the amazing tour and keeping our history alive. You do a wonderful job.

[@pwhitewick]

Our pleasure!

[@topherjb1]

@@pwhitewick You are very good storyteller and I'm glad you steer towards science while accepting mythology as a pointer

[@JackyRowe]

You were so close to the Sweet Track. After turning right into the marsh off the old railway line, as you did, basically follow the path in the same direction the whole way, over the Meare Track reconstruction, over the hump in the middle of the wood where the path crosses, out to the far end where you come to a gate at a field (comes just into view in the top right of the drone shot a 6:02), go across the field on the path following the left hand fence to the other gate, turn right after the second gate, and it's on your right. When you one day find it, you'll kick yourself!

[@CristiNeagu]

That really doesn't sound like "so close" 😂

[@theoztreecrasher2647]

@@CristiNeagu Sounds more like the directions that we always hand out to overseas tourists looking for directions to Ayre's Rock. Down that street past 3 sets of traffic lights, turn right and straight ahead. You can't miss it! If you get lost, ask the nearest kangaroo!

[@JackyRowe]

@@CristiNeagu He'd gone most of the way, probably only 100-200m away from that small field

[@dubccoverseer]

@@JackyRoweyup it’s visible from just after the end of the meare track if you know where to look - 10 mins tops

[@kaollakitten]

Randomly recommended this video and discovered your treasure trove of videos!

[@SteamCrane]

Enjoy the binge!

[@pwhitewick]

Welcome!

[@Rincypoopoo]

I live in Andalucia in the mountains. Many hills around me are terraced just like that. By the moors but also by earlier people. When I first saw the airiel footage of the tor I thought "Those look like Moorish terraces for winter wheat.

[@WolfWest-e8u]

Fascinating theory I didn't know they changed hills to accommodate for wheat! They also look similar to sort of iron age fortresses with the mounded earth although usually there is only two rings, maybe three on a tall one

[@isomeme]

​@@WolfWest-e8u, any crop that needs wet soil around its roots generally requires relatively flat ground to grow on; otherwise water in the soil drains away downhill. Terrace farming turns a hill into pieces of flat ground.

[@2adamast]

@@isomeme Not only water, once you plow the cover soil washes downhill

[@andrewgarrett7100]

Being a Somerset lad I've been there numerous times. I'd always assumed the rings were crop terraces but had never found anything to confirm or deny. As for the "little canals", there must be thousands of Rhynes on the Somerset (and North Somerset) Levels.

[@Nif339]

Anyone reading Andrews comment above, although it's spelt Rhyne (singular, plural with an s) it's pronounced reen, (us Somerset lads know this of course) 👍

[@alarichobbs9136]

@@Nif339I’m from Wells and Somerset is even my 4th name and I’ve never heard of this.😅😂

[@Demosophist]

We have those terraces in the Palouse country of northern Washington state. My grandfather, who had a cattle ranch in the area, told me that the terraces were created by "snipes," which was a bird that had one leg much longer than the other, and they walked around the hills in circles. ;)

[@isomeme]

Snipe subspecies have all kinds of interesting regional behaviors. 🙃

[@tooyoungtobeold8756]

The Haggis does a similar thing in Scotland.

[@lpeterman]

@@tooyoungtobeold8756 SAVE the Wild Haggis!

[@Eris123451]

No if ever species deserved to go extinct it's the feral Haggis, unpleasant to look at, inedible and Scottish.

[@gallermaez]

En France il existe aussi un animal asymétrique , qui vit sur les terrains en pente , on l'appelle le dahu , et des chasses au dahu sont régulièrement organisées .

[@paulapridy6804]

Your presentations are always more than worth my time. Thank your for your clear and thought provoking material.

[@helenamcginty4920]

Ive never really looked at the Tor. I read somewhere about an ancient 'ritual ' path snaking up it and switched off. But seeing your video I recognised them as terraces. The Moors here in Spain had the same problem re arable land and terraced every bit of mountain and hillside possible. They are still visible where not hidden by forrest.

[@SVWMOZ]

It looks incredible when there is a low ground mist - both from the top as it feels like you are on an island looking across the waters - With other islands around you across the landscape; and also from further afield looking across to see the island of the far across the most sea 😊❤🙏

[@steadynumber1]

If you'd like to climb up a "mini" Glastonbury Tor then visit Barrow Mump, also in Somerset. 😀👍

[@pwhitewick]

Only just learnt of this!

[@mikhailfranco]

Yes, _Burrow_ Mump at Burrowbridge. It is an example of the same geology as the Tor. You can see one from the other on a clear day. It also has remains of a St. Michael's church on top, because St. Michael has the power to expel the evil spirits of earlier pagan worship (obviously both sites had pagan religious significance before the Christian era). Burrowbridge is at the junction of Tone and Parrett rivers. Historically, it was a bridge that allowed passage from Taunton/Quantock HIlls to Street/Glastonbury/Polden Hills, which was important for Alfred's mobile defence against the Vikings, who often raided to Burrowbridge and Langport (highest tidal point). Just west of Burrowbridge is the site of Athelney ( _ney_ meaning island) which is a legendary base for Alfred, and later a large monastery, which was destroyed by Henry VIII during the Reformation. Now it is just a shallow hill of grassy soil covering the rubble of the old ruins underground. There was a Roman road from the Fosse Way along the Polden Hills to a port on the Parrett at Bawdrip-Dunball. The Romans linked this road to Glastonbury over a causeway at _Street._ In England, it is a sure sign of a Roman road, when the town name contains 'Street', 'Strete', '...-le-Street' etc.

[@LesW100]

@@pwhitewick Burrow Mump also has terraces, albeit it less of them, but then it's not as high. It also has an abandoned church on top. Lots of similarities with Glastonbury Tor.

[@dvorapa]

@steadynumber1@@pwhitewick That's another reason I love to watch Paul's videos and even read some of the comments - to get some good ideas for a hike or a trip. And I always get loads of great ones. Unfortunately I have to fly 2 hours and also sit for 4 to 5 hours in busses and trains to get there as I'm from the middle/eastern Europe. Maybe it's time to convince my employer to let me work from the UK?

[@peterskegness3204]

Remember walking up there over a decade ago when staying with a friend living in Street (you could see the Tor from his flat). He went up the path like a gazelle - I was about 20 minutes behind 😂 Will go up again when they install a lift! 😁 Edit: Walking up there on a hot summer day didn't help, but the view was worth it 😊

[@stuartbridger5177]

Fascinating content as always. Like you I have passed many and even stopped in Glastonbury a few times, but never climbed the Tor. Will have to add it to the list.

[@pwhitewick]

It's definitely worth it.

[@DeclanMBrennan]

4:08 That is a very polite, respectful and explanatory "No Dogs" sign. Sadly in the south of Wicklow, Ireland, where I live, there are a couple of ignorant signs that just say "Dogs will be shot on sight".

[@pwhitewick]

Empathy has been lacking of late

[@Milamberinx]

Earlier this year in Devon some loose dogs killed 42 sheep in a single night. If the sign “dogs will be shot on sight” reminds you of lethal consequences it’s working perfectly. I expect if you look in the archives for the area you’ll find plenty of similar examples as happened in Devon.

[@DeclanMBrennan]

@@Milamberinx I'm not a naive towny. I actually live on a farm surrounded by sheep. However I really believe signs are more effective when they explain politely. We live in a time when it's very important to keep the temperature of social interactions down. The opposite of politeness is not rudeness - it's anger, violence and mayhem.

[@Milamberinx]

@@DeclanMBrennan the problem is the people who let their dogs off lead to romp around and kill are not going to stop and read a politely written explanation, even if that explanation starts with "No dogs". No farmer wants to shoot a dog, especially sheep farmers who typically have dogs of their own. An addition to the expectation I mentioned in my previous comment: I expect there were "No dogs" signs before there were "Dogs will be shot" signs, and dogs were still killing sheep. I don't disagree with your attitude towards politeness, personally if I felt I were being forced into placing "Dogs will be shot" signs I'd want to add some smaller text explaining why, but then I wouldn't be at all surprised if that might have legal consequences.

[@davecgriffith]

Very interesting! And the drone shot at 8:10 is incredible!

[@pwhitewick]

There were some tasty ones in there!! Cheers

[@paulinehedges5088]

I love the Avalon and Arthur myths but I live archaeology and history top and these are all here ! Fascinating as always. Thank you SO MUCH. 😊😊😊

[@Kentuckytrackers7255]

The entire area is of immense interest, thank you kindly 🤝 Well done

[@pwhitewick]

Thank you

[@WC21UKProductionsLtd]

Very happy with that practical conclusion - makes sense. Quite hilarious that crop terraces end up as part of the mythology surrounding this place. The trackways were a great find and in use for such a long period of time. Cheers Paul.

[@Strangekabuki]

Thx Paul! Another fun excursion and informative ramble in the English countryside. What I really like about your work is the inclusion of when things don’t go to order. I’m so glad you didn’t edit out not finding the Sweet Trail. It makes us feel we are all along on a real adventure. If I came over from America and you were a guide and didn’t find it, it would have been great to just hit the pub and laugh and speculate over a pint!

[@isomeme]

I agree! These videos feel like going on a hike with a knowledgeable friend. Thank you for inviting us along on your explorations.

[@theoztreecrasher2647]

The Sweet Trail reconstruction had to be removed. It didn't meet the mandatory requirements for disabled access. The local Druids were getting uppity about all the wheelchairs cluttering up their Bog Burial site! 🙄

[@fabrisseterbrugghe8567]

I walked up it on my 45th birthday, nearly 20 years ago, and came away with a deeper appreciation of the region.

[@pwhitewick]

Yup. Absolutely agree

[@susantaylor927]

We sooo enjoyed this video visit!!!😊 We were saying to each other . Been there, been there,! 1978 to be precise! Thank you!

[@PhilipMurphy8]

Glastonbury looks like a totally interesting place for sure

[@pwhitewick]

Well worth a visit.

[@philipdavis7521]

Knocknarae Mountain in Sligo in Ireland was carved into terraces in the Neolithic, almost certainly for landscape reasons - its a very prominent feature in the landscape.

[@theoztreecrasher2647]

it's amazing what a liberal supply of Poitín will cause an Irishman to accomplish!

[@mikebirkett010]

We have the same type of things in Purbeck called 'Strip Lytchets'. Each one is a 'furrow long' or a furlong. Dated well back to the mid hundreds.

[@rogerphelps9939]

The rings around Glastonbury Tor are far too narrow to be strip lytchets. They are simply self organised tracks along which livestock moved. The idea is that an animal would find a short stretch of level ground to move along and graze. Over the years these would gradually extend because it is easiesy to gradually exend a level path. Each ring would provide access to a narrow strip of grass so parallel rings would be started up. It is the least energy expenditure way of grazing.

[@mikebirkett010]

@rogerphelps9939 yes, I totally agree, it's just the similarity was worth the comment, although the strip lytchets are quite narrow, but this does depend on the severity of the slope. However, looking at the overall Glasonbury Tor plan, it looks more like a Labyrinth tha fields. It would seem that the 'path' seems to be moving towards the summit.

[@lindsayheyes925]

​@@rogerphelps9939 Yes, you see that wherever sheep grazing is fenced on steep ground. The scale of these just indicates bigger beasts, grazing across a few hundred years.

[@lindsayheyes925]

​@@mikebirkett010 Definitely not a labyrinth for any historian: The Classical and Roman Labyrinth types had designs characterised by algorithms of geometry, and the Medieval type by the same type of algorithm but with an undrawn cross incorporated to fit a cruciform schema. The Hopi type is classical but modified to fit the weave of a tray made from grass, which breaks the geometry without destroying the recognisability of the design (and it has comparable mythology with the other types). There is neither evidence of geometric measurement nor any of the specific design algorithms on Glastonbury Tor, nor any history of folklore consistent with such geoglyphs. BUT... There is a modern myth that the feature is a labyrinth, a belief of adherents to modern Earth Mysteries. From a Religious Studies viewpoint, that belief is an article of faith which has the same validity as any myth or legend from any other religion. And - as with the beliefs of the Pilgrims, Brothers and Monks of Glastonbury Abbey - it brings a living to some people, so the modern myth has an economic value which sustains its promotion... just as the story of King Arthur's grave still has currency. In 1967, Timothy Leary published "Start Your Own Religion". Many people have since followed his urging, and Glastonbury Tor is a focal point for a counter-cultural movement that emerged adjacent to Earth Mysteries.

[@baarbacoa]

I was thinking that the builders had used a series of concentric fence to hold the soil in place while constructing it. But terraces for farming is a tactic used around the world, and makes a lot of sense here.

[@taffythegreat1986]

That’s the trouble, everyone always thinks things are ritual or defence. Yet it can be something more simple and practicable 👍👍

[@chrisarnold4709]

Wow - would never have known or guessed that! Knew a little of the Somerset levels story and even roman mining around the mendips with having a place near Cheddar and been to Glastonbury more times that i can remember but this was so logical!

[@lyngleed]

So nice to see a much loved spot. Love your decription about the shape of ''things'' Somerset is such a beautiful county,full of history and legend. Not that I'm biased about my home county or anything!

[@AndyJarman]

We've really very little idea what life was like even a few hundred years ago. I remember being on a cliff top outside of Salcombe and reading a sign explaining the ripples on the hillside were neolithic farming terraces, quite similar to this. There was a time when even horse drawn ploughs were technological marvels. Imagine the economic pressure that made people terrace the tor like that? It must have been worth their while, but you can't help thinking the land between the levels and the tor would have had to have been pretty heavily exploited before expending all that effort.

[@janicebrinleycodd5801]

Made a couple of visits to Glastonbury- saw the Tor (climbed up the steep slope from a friend’s garden) and visited the Abbey more recently- great couple of days out. Somerset levels are magical and beautiful…. Great video ❤

[@ianmckay1780]

I must admit Paul, that I'd never seen the Tor in such close detail before. Just seen from a distance, but my first thought was "look like the terraces you see in India and Nepal" for cultivating crops. The later in video you mentioned the monks and their shrewd ways, to make a profit! just my penny's worth, for all that entails. Love your "quickie" videos. Any chance of something a bit longer?

[@pwhitewick]

I think the length works for youtube for the time. But we are working on a project that will be around 25 mins in the coming weeks.

[@leonardjackman354]

Always look forward to Your videos on Sunday evening . Thank you

[@K1W1fly]

The terraces on the Tor are very similar to the terraces on Maori Pa (fortified settlements) in New Zealand. Terraces on Pa were used for dwellings, storage pits and garden cultivations, all surrounded by defensive palisade walls. Arable gardens on the Tor sounds plausible...

[@ClimateScepticSceptic-ub2rg]

Terraced gardens: makes perfect sense!

[@eudaenomic]

Sauron returns! Really would enjoy seeing your companion as a smooth contrast to the excitement of your voice. Maybe to voice over your place markers or information excerpts.

[@shirleylynch7529]

A beautiful place with so much history. Thank you for taking me there as I would never manage the climb. Great video as always.

[@pwhitewick]

Many thanks!

[@desmcharris]

Debunking hippie myths 😎 Just love it👍

[@pwhitewick]

Always

[@Everywhere2]

The myths predate the hippies by more than seven centuries, lol

[@isomeme]

​@@Everywhere2, the hippies have always been with us. 🙂

[@zen4men]

@@pwhitewick The Sun and the Serpent by Paul Broadhurst and Hamish Miller Well worth a read. I knew both of them. Hamish was a top dowser. A blacksmith who made his own iron rods. I dowse myself, and found water in one spot on a 4 acre field. A friend brought Hamish to the field, and challenged him to find water. He found precisely the same spot. That is about 144,000 to one. / I know the earth is full of energies, and that other beings exist. Because I experienced them. Of course, people who do not experience such things must ridicule that which appears to attack their belief system. "Normal" in this type of society. Mankind has a lot to learn! Or more accurately - unlearn! /

[@chriswhitworth7793]

Peace and love

[@GS-lu2zu]

The Sweet Track replica should still be there to see at Avalon Marshes, unless they've let the reeds grow up and cover it for a reason (maybe health and safety got too worried as people could walk on it and fall off as it leads off into reed beds and marshes itself). Otherwise, if you’ve found and seen the replica for the Meare Heath trackway, then you’ve gone past it and missed it. A good reason to go back and visit it again sometime in the future.

[@pwhitewick]

Ah thanks for this. So that's twice now I've walked past it. We even saw a couple of workers there doing a survey. We ask them and they said we were on it. (Clearly we were on the path, not the replica). Urgh

[@ZonkedCompanion]

@@pwhitewick Its probably not much longer than 20ft long. You were close. Its near "decoy" bird hide for future reference.

[@stephencresswell4760]

@@pwhitewickjust keep going. Across the field with a gate at either side. It’s a great reconstruction. About 20m long and a small platform at the end and a bell to ring. Very well maintained. Not overgrown. Get in touch if you want some recent pics (taken today).

[@malcwhite]

A friend was on an archaeological dig on the Tor in the 70s or early 80s. They found nothing to suggest that it was anything other than farming

[@meganhulatt6779]

If you pop into the Tribunal in Glastonbury which is now the museum you can see an ancient dug out canoe found in the levels and more information on the Glastonbury lake village excavation

[@DanielleWhite]

My first thought was agricultural but a little different as it reminded me of the cattle paths on the hillside of the dairy farm kid family ran

[@williamklein6749]

I just love all your videos. Thank you for all your work.

[@pwhitewick]

Thank you. A pleasure

[@colinbooth2421]

The lynchets on the tor, it's important to say, were probably not dug out, but formed like the more impressive ones a few miles north, on the slope of the Mendips. In the medieval period each man ploughs a strip. On the slope, he picks up all the stones which are revealed by the plough, and puts them on the downward side of the strip. Over time, the strip becomes more level, and the soil less stony. They are, even after centuries of erosion, dramatic features of medieval farming.

[@bath_neon_classical]

cool, great film, you never cease to enlighten me about my local area 😃

[@smallsleepyrascalcat]

Brilliant explanation! I love how this down to earth reasoning "destroys" a lot of believes some people still hold until today, regarding ancient procession routes and spirals and what else, when it was just for agriculture. And not even as old as some people want to believe. Great video as per usual Paul!

[@Kualabear02]

So we are really quite mundane as a species then after all.

[@WolfWest-e8u]

Tbf I can't say I would have been surprised either way it's not exactly out of the ordinary for these people to do things for spiritual or religous reasons they They did things that were so out of pocket realistically like bringing stones weighing Tons from Scotland to the south of England to put in a big ring lmao And if anyone says it was for cattle which could be a reason BUT that still doesn't explain why they couldn't use local stone for all of it which some of it was in fact from a forest near by stone henge i forget the name Some was even from Wales so why? BECAUSE it probably had some form of spiritual meaning to them it's not logical for survival, but for spiritual reasons it very much is logical in there minds I think one both sides logical people can't accept they did do things that were not just for survival as religion has mostly existed for every people that has agriculture, and spiritual people always think it's some religious reason, truth is both can exist an often times its sometimes abit of both.

[@Wlerin7]

... except there's no evidence the circles were using for growing crops nor that they date from the medieval period. Baseless speculation vs. beliefs based on forgotten foundations.

[@OrangeNash]

Yes, I don't believe any of the earth magic nonsense. However, all I saw was a hypothesis of farming - which does sound very possible. But unless I missed it , no actual evidence. The argument that "farmed terraces in India and Machu Pichu look the same" is dodgy ground, because it is the same argument the "Missing Ancient Global Civilisation" people use. Has there been any actual archaelogical evidence of farming there? There are plenty of definite farmed terraces marked on OS maps. I'd be curious as to how they marked all those others but missed this one out. Reason and rationality are not what you believe, but how you arrived at that belief. And speculation with no evidence can only be a "belief", not knowledge. It's not any more scientific than saying "it looks like a mystical labyrinth so must have been build by magicians to connect with alien UFOS who found the flat top a perfect landing site". Cley Hill near Warminster has similar terracing and is a prime location for UFO sightings 🙂

[@dominiclester3232]

The hill is magnificent and the tower makes the whole feature more impressive. I find it extremely odd that you would call such a much loved landmark “bizarre”! Well done promoting the terrace idea.

[@pwhitewick]

My wife is bizarre.... and I love her. 🤪

[@elliottjames8020]

Some time in the early 1980s a friend was convinced that this was a sacred labyrinth, based on a pamphlet he'd picked up in a woo-shop in town. I walked and was extremely sceptical. 40 years haven't changed my mind. The terraces are rather narrow for agriculture, so I'm still sceptical of that idea too. The orientation seems off for something like viticulture.

[@paul.Darling]

Thank you Paul for another great video, always makes my Sunday. Home turf for me nowadays 😁

[@sandrapearson728]

We moved to the area (Polden Hills) 11 years ago and are very much still learning about it. I love the view of the Tor coming back from Wells with all the little fields and hedges rather than the vast hectares back in Hampshire. I now have more information to share with visitors in future.

[@lindamccaughey6669]

Loved that thanks, love my history lessons. Thanks for share. Please take care

[@DavidCurtis-dx7zk]

Possibly the monks were using the hill as a quarry to build roads and such for their marsh draining operation.

[@007JHS]

Always interesting and informed as well as informative... Beeb documentary division could learn a thing or three.

[@PinnedonPlaces]

Oh Paul! This was an incredible episode and particularly interesting surrounding Glastonbury Tor. Such a marvellous place, we've visited Barrow Mump, which is similar to the tor but on a mini scale of course! So interesting, thank you for educating us and entertaining my evening!

[@GiacomodellaSvezia]

What a breathtakingly beautiful landscape...

[@Tuberuser187]

My only problem with this theory is that if the draining of the marshes is in the historical record you think the terraces for farming would be too, unless the Monks obfuscated it to add to the legends.

[@2adamast]

Indeed, if you can drain miles and miles of marshes, it's unlikely you will focus on a small hillside for some extra. Where on the contrary you're stuck with wet marshes, the dry hill may be an interesting opportunity, the hill terraces may be just older

[@feedogmummy496]

Monks living in uncertain times (ever present threat of weather causing crop failure and famine) would be boubd to use every inch of available land to farm. Surplus could be sold. This was part of the Benedictine rule of life that they lived under....prudent use of resources, nothing wasted.

[@hArtyTruffle]

I’ve never heard what myth and legend say about the terraces. Off to look it up. Often thought it could have been terraced to grow food myself. Thanks for the upload 👍🏼

[@crazycrochetlady8900]

Great film of one of my favourite places, thank you. Was really hoping for a sneaky shot of the old railway line!!😊

[@lainecolley1414]

I'm reminded of Maccu Piccu (sp?) and grain silos.

[@davidberlanny3308]

Hi Paul, excellent video, very thought provoking. As others have already mentioned in the comments the hills in Andalucia near me in Granada are often terraced but I think wider than at Glastonbury which also looks very very steep and perhaps there isn't much soil there? Maybe it was an elaborate water collection system? They would need water for brewing!! Bad luck not finding the Sweet track, a great excuse to go back!! All the best!!

[@pwhitewick]

The Sweet track is now becoming a personal mission I feel!

[@davie941]

hello again Paul, very interesting as always, some great views from the Tor, thank you 😊

[@pwhitewick]

Heers Davie

[@tmcb2000]

Monks ploughing up terraces for crop production is plausible but doesn't rule out their possible use as a defensive structure in pre-history, as found in many other neolithic hill forts.

[@colinhorne2437]

I've always thought that the terraces were 'strip lynchetts' designed to either grow crops on level ground or perhaps to enable muck spreading from carts.

[@heretical2botanical]

The nearest fotres in my hometown in Holland is fort Wierickeschans. Very interesting aswel.😊❤

[@juliafox7904]

Along the Cotswold Edge ( I.e. Wotton - Under - Edge) , Gloucestershire, are similar terraces. At school we were told they were vineyards to grow grapes on the southern slopes in warmer climes and also later used for sheep grazing easier to walk around the steep slopes than straight up.

[@shaunlaverick5793]

Love your little vids Paul always interesting to watch.😀👍

[@MarqEnglish]

Thanks Paul for another informative and well produced Video. I've always been really drawn to Glastonbury Tor and the surrounding Landscape and I know you like to keep things fact based {like I do most of the time}, the Town and Tor are on the famous Michael and Mary Earth Energy Serpent Current re-discovered by Hamish Miller back in the 80's. I do need to go back to Glastonbury and do some Videos as last therein 2010.

[@Hans-k9j]

Shame, no sign of the watery ladies dealing in swords. Nonetheless an excellent introduction to Somerset history. Much appreciated.

[@paulwillingham3449]

Fascinating investigation Paul! You rightly point to how the landscape was back in time and how the Tor was possibly used on a practical level. A very informative film and adds to our knowledge of this Fascinating landscape. Many thanks!

[@markquinn3478]

Back in the 60s and early 70s i used to stay with family friends in Glastonbury for two or three weeks during the school holidays. Their house backed onto the abbey so I used to get chucked over the wall and spent hours exploring the abbey. Andy and evril Bond was their name. Andy had a couple of chemist shops in Glastonbury. Great times

[@charlesachurch7265]

Thanks for another fascinating presentation. Luv to Rebecca too.

[@roowyrm9576]

As a child I spent many holidays in Glastonbury. This was in the pre-hippy days. In those days, unless you were kids like us, scrambling straight up the side of the hill, the only way to walk up was to follow the ridges which made a spiral pathway (the paved path up the long side was created later).

[@Sim0nTrains]

Those Monks had a great marketing idea back then, great video

[@Dave5843-d9m]

Medieval Warm Period 900AD to 1300AD was warmer than today. Did the monks grow vines the south facing slopes?

[@nobbyblob9906]

That was exactly my tought!

[@ZonkedCompanion]

There are still vineyards not far from the tor today

[@viking1236]

Crossed my mind too, could be the case

[@pattheplanter]

My thought too. Glastonbury Abbey had vineyards at Panborough, Pilton, and Meare.

[@mojonojo3]

Being local - i was always told they were paths worn by sheep.

[@theoztreecrasher2647]

Yep. They watch just 1 KZbin channel video and those damned sheep will always follow the same track! 😱😵‍💫

[@davidrowley-ic6dx]

Sadly, much murk in the atmosphere on the day you visited … visibility too poor to see my house from the summit!! Your theory on the terracing is in line with my own … though I pondered the slightly more exotic possibility of vineyards on the better drained sides of the tor, rather than humble turnips and leeks. There are a number of reasonably successful vineyards in the area, though more on the lower slopes of the Mendips to the east of Wells … and I always understood the planting of grapes in the area goes back to Roman times .. in keeping with the industrial activities on the Mendips, associated sea ports to the Bristol Channel and the high status village estates to the south in the Petherton area connecting via the Fosse. It appears we also had Roman activity in the Kingweston/Keinton Mandeville area of the Poldens in the quarrying of the Blue Lias for roofing slate (those that remember the Time Team Big Roman Dig may recall their findings) … the last quarry only closing a few years ago 😢. This historical continuity in the landscape has always made the place rather magical to me. Considering the gloopy nature of the landscape on the levels at the time, evidence of occupation from the Neolithic through to the Iron Age is surprisingly strong. If you take a line from the tor view the Hood Monument on the ridge of the Polden hills, this projects directly over an Iron Age hill fort (beside the Monument) to The Bronze Age hill fort of Dundon Hill (one of my favourite sites in the spring) … from which you look straight over to the next hill which is established as a Neolithic settlement. Kinda obvious really, that when the marshes are at peak gloop, you’re going to want to live on the islands of dry land and probably only venture out into the marshes when things become more accessible. It is not without reason that Somerset derives its name from “the land of the summer people”. Not far off this line is one of the old pilgrim routes to Glastonbury .. there is the remains of an old pilgrim cross (now part of a local war memorial) on the hill near Kingweston. I believe this route cuts across southwards towards Shaves Cross near the south coast (near Bridport). Like you … I’ve never managed to find the demonstration piece of Sweet Track either … though wandering the paths as you did is a wonderfully magical thing still to do .. complete with occasional vistas of the surrounding landscape across the flooded peat diggings. They used to have a short demo length of the different trackway styles at the old visitor centre, along with a demo wattle and daub roundhouse, before the centre relocated and went more “upmarket” .. I think they now sell coffee and cake. Talking of cake, perhaps we can now look forward to a future fillum on Burrow Mump (beware that the Mump is NT land and drone flying could be problematic) and the nearby site of Athelney (associated with Alfred and his culinary efforts)?

[@MarcusHughes-io4ud]

Loved visiting Glastonbury tor

[@greenr369]

Glastonbury is a wonderful place. From the myths of king arther the chalice well it's a magical place

[@OrangeNash]

The High Street is a festival of rip off junk!

[@andrewlamb8055]

Thanks Paul …. Love Glastonbury !! ⚔️⚔️👍⭐️

[@lyarrastark6254]

Thank you for another interesting video.

[@kevinu.k.7042]

Aa always interesting and great thoughts - Thanks.

[@jeanglendinning1860]

its interesting how many churches built on hills are dedicated either to saint Michael or Saint George, both who fought dragons,

[@radicalcartoons2766]

Very likely sited on existing places of worship, so the "dragon" represents the older religion.

[@barbarabauling7513]

I adore all the mystique and intrigue about all things King Arthur and all things Glastonbury Tor, and Avalon! (Even in they're not all specifically related!) It is one of the most amazing places to visit. I'd love to explore the Sweet Track, I'd never heard of it, so many thanks for posting this. I see in the comments that it's been found! Will you try it again? And maybe the Barrow Mump? Such a great sounding place!!! xxx

[@sc149]

Since we have the area pollen work to show historical tree cover, did they find anything in pollen or soil work ups that might suggest agriculture on any of the tor or surrounding hillsides?

[@pwhitewick]

Unfortunately I'm not sure. I think the agricultural usage was the best guess.

[@smith...1]

Thanks Paul. Great video. If pollen studies tell us that the Tor was wooded at a certain time, have any further studies found evidence to confirm that crops were grown across the terraces ? (Apologies if you mentioned that and I missed it.) Sending love from Australia 🌏

[@paulharrison6385]

"We aren't here for any of that." Excellent nod to The Tim Traveller. 😃

[@pwhitewick]

I try!

[@douglasclerk2764]

Climbed the Tor in the summer of '85 with my rather pregnant wife - thanks for filling in some of the gaps in my incomplete knowledge. (We were on a visit from South Africa.)

[@catherinebutler4819]

You managed to evulva good theory there. Geoffrey wasn't taken entirely seriously even in his own time, btw. See William of Malmesbury for more sceptical take on Arthur.

[@R08Tam]

Fantastic drone footage

[@pwhitewick]

Many thanks

[@stephendavies6949]

Odly, I've never been the least bit interested in the Tor. Until I watched your video. Good job!

[@dnavid]

inside the Tor's tower the floor is not quite original as there used to be a large concrete plug in the middle of the space which according to local lore was used to seal off a chamber or basement, for safety reasons, which led to a tunnel or labyrinth below, the reason being 2 children had entered and gotten lost, though were found. This labyrinth supposedly was used as a ceremonial space for "druid" ritual and there was supposedly an exit some distance from the Tor. Similarly the outside maze on the Tor was a ritual processional route. I don't know any archeological proof for that was found but it's possible they never studied it. Solifluction is seen by some as the reason for the terraces but locals believed it was the sheep walking around it for centuries. Go back on a nice day Paul, if you have never been before and this was a first time you are missing a lot.

[@pwhitewick]

I really do feel we were robbed of the view!!

[@rogerjoesbury9410]

David very interesting about the chamber. 🤔💯😊👍

[@rogerjoesbury9410]

David.thank you for info.

[@christina3521]

Thank you. Always great content.

[@Jimyjames73]

Very good - I've been there quite a few years ago - yes it has great views around!!! 😉🙂🚂🚂🚂

[@loke6664]

I do believe you are right, those are likely terraces for growing things. It is something the Incas did a lot too and it looks pretty similar besides the Incas adding some stonework to combat erosion on their slightly higher mountains compared to this large hill.. The monks are certainly the likeliest candidates for doing it but I wouldn't completely rule out that it was started already in Saxon times. The Saxons were also there with more then a few people and also needed food so I don't think we can rule out the possibility entirely. I doubt the Romans or earlier people did it.

[@thefishgod]

According to the Historic England archives, "It is however known that the terraces were used as lynchets as late as the 19th cebtury, and a drawing of 1670 clearly shows the lower terraces being used for cultivation where as there is a sharp contrast with the upper terraces which are much more wild." It's also thought that the upper terraces wouldn't have been suitable unless driven to it by an extreme period of hunger. The BBC website claims "The terracing on the hillside has been dated to Neolithic times, around the same time as when Stonehenge was constructed" but I can't find any evidence of this, and with very limited finds it's uncertain how this dating would have been accomplished. I see there is some evidence of a monastic community actually on the Tor in the 10th or 11th centuries, so I wonder if this would have been for their agricultural benefit. Visited Glastonbury many times, so this one was of particular interest - as usual, you didn't disappoint!