Petersfield history: Early Times

The Petersfield Area is on the eastern border of Hampshire and lies at the western end of the Sussex Weald. The Weald has a variety of rocks and soils bounded by the chalkland of the South and North Downs, and the eastern end of the Hampshire Plateau. This variety of soils enables the area to be one of outstanding natural beauty. Petersfield town did not appear until Norman times, but the first peoples came after the last ice age.

The Mesolithic hunter's tools and weapons are found on many sites in Hampshire. Local sites include Petersfield Heath, Longmoor, Sheet, Chalton and East Meon.

The Bronze Age began about 2000 B.C. The West Mark site at Sheet on a south facing slope near the River Rother was just right for a Bronze Age settlement. It was not far from grazing land on the extensive Petersfield Heath, which stretched to the Rother, and had plenty of nutritious gorse for winter grazing. In addition, both the Heath ponds and the Rother could have provided some fish and waterfowl. The Heath was also a convenient place to erect family or clan memorials as tumuli or barrows. These burial mounds, constructed of turves and soil, survive as a barrow cemetery today as listed monuments under the care of English Heritage. There are 21 barrows of four different kinds from the Bronze Age.

Hill Forts

Petersfield Heath continued to be grazed, as it did until 1950 A.D. Hill Forts developed as part of the Iron Age economic and social tribal culture. Each fort was placed on a prominent hill - Old Winchester Hill, Butser and Torberry Hill. A large area of each hill top was surrounded by defensive earthworks and entry gateways.

Butser Ancient Farm

In 1973 the Butser Iron Age Farm Project was started on Little Butser (a northern spur of Butser) to study Iron Age agriculture.

The research project continues, but the farm has been moved from the Queen Elizabeth Park to a site on the road to Chalton. Reconstructions of excavated buildings have been built and much has been learnt of the techniques whilst building a thatched Round House, with wattle and daub walls and a central hearth. Much research has been done on pottery and metal smelting.