ANCIENT EARTHWORKS southern side has wholly perished, owing to the graveyard of the church — at first constructed within the protection of the vallum — having outgrown its former limits. An ancient road, deeply sunken, extends towards the south-west, and various fragments of mediaeval embankments lie around the outskirts of the camp. Oakham (viii, 4). — Flitteris Park is surrounded by a double vallum and intermediate fosse ; the innermost vallum has an escarpment of 5 ft., the fosse is 3 ft. deep, and the outer vallum has a scarp from 3 ft. to 4 ft. This work is possibly of the 13th century, as in 1252 Henry III granted licence to Richard, Earl of Cornwall, 'to enclose the wood of Fliteris.' From an inqui- sition taken in 1300 it appears that there was 'a little park called Flytterys ' belonging to the demesne of the manor of Oakham, with a stockade surmount- ing the earthwork, and that, in 1372, William Flore of Oakham was allowed a sum of money by the Crown 'for the palisades of 160 acres enclosed within the park of Flyterys.' ^ The double earthwork has the appearance of greater age, while the discovery of a celt, ancient pottery, and flint flakes suggest its origin as being a settlement of an early race. RiDLiNGTON (xiii, i). — In a field west of Ridlington, 2 miles north-west from Uppingham, are the remains of an irregular oblong camp with rounded corners situated on the side of high ground sloping down to a stream on the north. A shallow trench, parallel with the road, runs in a westerly direction, with a slight vallum on its northern side ; 2 ft. is now the greatest height of the escarpment, and both vallum and fosse have been spread to an extreme width by the action of the plough. The work becomes more definite towards its western extremity, where there are traces of a bank beyond the fosse at the angle where the rampart turns towards the north and descends the hill. At the north-west the curve of the scarp is nearly 5 ft. ; on the northern side of the inclosure the scarp is 9 ft. and the counterscarp 4 ft., beyond which is a natural escarpment of nearly 10 ft. At the north-east the fosse opens into a sunk road which extends along the eastern side of the camp beneath a scarp of 9 ft. down the hill to some springs. All traces of a rampart on this side are destroyed. Whissendine (v, i). — East of the village, 4 miles north-north-west from Oakham, two sides of a strong rectangular inclosure are situated in the garden of the Manor House ; the site of the latter was evidently chosen within the protection of the ancient fort. On the eastern side the rampart is 2 ft. 3 in. high and 12 ft. wide, with a scarp of 6 ft. with a fosse 3 ft. deep. At the north-eastern angle the rampart rises to 4 ft. and has an escarpment of 12 ft. with a counterscarp of 3 ft. Slight traces of the turn of the rampart at the north-west are visible. MOUNTS (Class D) PiLTON (ix, 16). — On the west side of the road from North Luffenham to Morcott, and south of the River Chater, 3J miles north-east from Uppingham, is a mount nearly circular in plan surrounded by a fosse. ' Abbrev. Rot. Orlg. (Rec. Com.), ii, 326. 1 1 I
