Redcliff Cliff Castle

Overview

Projecting west into the Atlantic are the remains of an early Iron Age (c. 2800-2000 years ago) cliff castle. The impressive banks and rock cut ditches are the remains of two sets of ramparts enclosing a defensible crescent shaped interior, with steep cliffs on the seaward side.

These impressive defences may have originally been stone faced and the deeper ditch still has steep faces of exposed cut bedrock. It is likely that the majority of the interior of the monument has now eroded away and only the ramparts and the causeway through the centre remain.

As many as 65 possible cliff castles have been identified in Cornwall, variously interpreted as strongholds to control trade and communication routes, a seat of power for a tribal chief or as ritual spaces between the land and the sea.

Redcliff Cliff Castle was part of Cornwall National Landscape’s A Monumental Improvement Project, which aimed to ensure that 40 scheduled monuments across Cornwall National Landscape were better protected, identified and enjoyed by a wider range of people. Between 2022 – 2025, the Project delivered conservation repairs, installed new heritage interpretation signage, ran a range of community volunteering events and developed new website resources. The Project was primarily funded thanks to The National Lottery Heritage Fund, with support from our other partners – Cornwall Council, Historic England, The National Trust, Cornwall Heritage Trust and Cornwall Archaeological Society.

Historical Significance

Redcliff Cliff Castle was built over 2,000 years ago during the Iron Age when people built strong defences using earth banks and ditches. These ramparts helped protect a crescent-shaped area on the clifftop. With steep drops to the sea on one side and strong walls on the other, it would have been a great place to keep watch, stay safe and control important resources in the local area.

We’re not exactly sure what cliff castles like this were used for. Some may have been strongholds for tribal leaders, others places for trade or even for rituals linked to the land and sea. Most of the interior of Redcliff has now been lost due to coastal erosion, but the impressive defences and the causeway that once led inside still remain. They offer a glimpse into how people living in Cornwall organised themselves and adapted to living in challenging conditions over two thousand years ago.