Geology and Landscape

Around 80 - 95 million years ago, in the Cretaceous period, what are now the Dorset Downs were part of the bed of an ocean, inasmuch as Chalk, of which they are formed, is made from the fossilised remains of the bodies of countless minute marine animals. Later, during a gradual upheaval covering much of North West Europe which started approximately 75 million years ago, the Chalk was gently folded and gradually raised to the surface of the sea. What is now the Blackmore Vale would have been an area of Chalk folded higher than that around it. The falling sea attacked this higher Chalk as it was exposed, eroding it away and leaving the softer Cretaceous and Jurassic deposits below vulnerable. These eroded faster, the sea 'scooping out' the Vale and undercutting the Chalk, forming a cliff edge to the vale as it receded further. This formed the basis of the scarp slope of the downs, which is such a defining feature of this area of the Blackmore Vale. Once the sea had fully receded, fresh water took over the process, further eroding the Vale bottom, and sculpting the Chalk scarp and hills, as springs arising from it cut back their sources, forming the valleys and coombes of the downs. Many of these valleys and coombes are now dry due to changes in the water table, but the water still finds an escape in the many springs along the base of the scarp slope, where the permeable Chalk and underlying Greensand meets impermeable Gault clay, and the slow process of the erosion of the scarp continues. Chalk escarpment typical of the Blackmore Vale, showing the private chalk quarry west of Belchalwell Street In the vale bottom, the receding sea and subsequent erosion left exposed earlier rocks and deposits. In Belchalwell, these deposits are primarily Lower Greensands (predominately Gault Clay) from the early Cretaceous, mainly in the north-east of the parish, and Jurassic Kimmeridge Clay in the south-west. They are divided and disrupted by an ancient fault line, running from the vicinity of Stroud Farm in the north west, to the top of Bell Hill above Belchalwell Street in the south west. More recently, in the last half a million years or so, the landscape of the vale will have alternated between woodland and tundra, with varying water levels, as the ice ages waxed and waned. In our current warm period, the Vale should be thick woodland, as should the downs, but for the relatively recent arrival of man. Man probably first appeared in significant numbers in the parish around 8,000 BC, in the Mesolithic Period or middle stone age. Some flint tools from Bell Hill probably date from near this time. At the time when the ancient British tribes came onto the scene, the Vale of Blackmore was too swampy and too thickly wooded for settlement except perhaps on the highest ground, and they built their settlements along the chalk escarpment, better drained and offering a safe position. Certainly, by the time of the Neolithic, or new stone age (4000-2500 BC), man appears to have established himself over many of the vales surrounding hilltops, Bell Hill being no exception. Ancient field systems, some possibly dating from as far back as this time, can be found at many locations on and near the hill. Most of the flint tools found on the hill date from the Mesolithic - Neolithic period. Later, man began constructing the first notable monuments in the parish landscape, in the form of bowl barrows, and four of these were constructed on the top of Bell hill around 2,500 - 1,600 BC. Several bank and ditch arrangements on and around the hill are also prominent features, and date from a similar period. The whole relate to a prehistoric territory, encompassing much of Bell, Okeford and Shillingstone hills, defined by banks and Barrows, and perhaps last represented in the landscape by the Iron Age - Romano-British settlement of Ringmoor, just south of the parish boundary in Turnworth, a well preserved settlement and field sytem. By this time it would appear much of the high ground was stripped of forest and scrub and turned to farmland - man had made his first serious changes to the landscape. The Blackmore Vale, looking north from the top of the escarpment So for several hundred years the landscape would have remained much the same - the higher ground of the downs inhabited and farmed, with the lowlands of the vale mainly swampy, overgrown and largely inaccessible. During the iron age, some progress was made in taming the lowlands of the Blackmoor Vale, as evidenced by Banbury Hill Fort, an iron age fort to the the north of the parish, built on a low hill of well drained plateau gravel. Ringmoor Settlement and Banbury Hill Fort were almost certainly connected.  In the first century BC the Romans invaded Britain. Contrary to popular belief, resistance by the Britons was relatively subdued - I'm sure they could recognise an opponent who's arms and military prowess exceed there own manyfold, though the local iron age tribe, the Durotriges, were not one of those that embraced the Roman influx as happened in many places. Many of the hillforts appear to have surrendered with little or no sign of conflict. In several instances the Romans 'evicted' the occupying Britons to the lower lands, adapting the hillforts to their own purposes. But all was not lost for the Britons - the Romans bought with them a great deal of expertise in road building and drainage, which was always promptly deployed once an area had been conquered, primarily for their own purposes, but to the benefit of the local population to. Thus the lowlands of the Blackmore Vale started to become more open to human use and habitation. By the end of the Roman period, this clearing and drainage must have become well established, as Roman villas can be found locally, notably at Fifehead Nevillle, adjacent to Belchalwell parish, where warm springs can be found (as opposed to Belchalwells cold springs), and also at Iwerne Minster. More recently (2003), a Roman Villa site was discovered at nearby Shillingstone, on the site of a new development. There is no real evidence of Roman occupation in Belchalwell, though the name Belchalwell Street could indicate a Roman road passed through the parish, and this is further supported by examining modern maps, where an almost straight line route from Roman Dorchester, through Saxon Shaftsbury, and onward through Warminster to Cirencester, can be seen in existing roads, bridleways and footpaths. This passes along the road from Bulbarrow down to Belchalwell and on to Okeford Fitzpaine. This route would have been an important and busy link in times past, and regardless of dates, it's presence very possibly led to the formation of Belchalwell, a stopping point with fresh water at the base of the steep downs. A reference in the Domesday book to 'Beastewelle' (A watering place for animals) further supports this.  After the fall of the Roman empire in the 4th century AD, history enters the dark ages. Little is known about this period, other than it seems to have been one of much turmoil, and thus it's effects on the local landscape can only be guessed - certainly no known identifiable artifacts, monuments or records from this period relate to Belchalwell, but the same can be said of most places. Belchalwell could have had occupants during this time, and though probably few, they may have continued the lowland clearance. But equally, much previously cleared land could have reverted back to woodland through lack of use. Next came the Saxon period, and the mists begin to lift. There are many noted records of the Saxon period, and their presence in late Saxon times within the parish can be seen from the odd pottery sherds (from around a spring between the two parts of the village) and metal detecting finds (a merchants token and partial stirrup have been identified, and a very few knives and other small implements could date from this time) that that have surfaced. Once again, the clearing of encroaching forest moved forward, and faint hints of Saxon settlement and agriculture can be seen in the parish. Though finds prove the occupation of the area, the extent of it is unknown. No sites of buildings are known in the parish from this time, but again, this is not generally uncommon. Occassionally medieval churches were built on the site of previous wooden saxon churches, though the only thing that could indicate this possibility in Belchalwell is the slightly unusual alignement of the church, suggesting it could possibly have been built on the footprint of a previous building. Slowly the landscape we see today was emerging, but again we can only guess the extent of the changes. To be continued ...