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Shortlisted: Badbury Rings. “Badbury Rings is one of several large hill forts constructed in the first century BC by the Durotriges tribe. No one knows for sure why these Iron Age traders felt the need to erect such formidable defences; it may have been a response to the political instability resulting from the northward advance of Roman influence through Gaul (France). The Romans’ insatiable demand for slaves could well have placed the Britons at risk from raids, and these great ramparts and ditches would have deterred attacks by tribes from the east. Whatever inspired their creation, the concentric rings stand as a dramatic reminder of the wealth and power the Durotriges derived from trade with the Armoricans of Brittany, based around the harbours at nearby Hengitsbury Head. Shot at dawn using a drone, this image reveals the site in the context of its landscape. Visible on the horizon is Poole Harbour, which was a major centre for ceramics in the decades before the Roman invasion of AD43, in the wake of which Badbury was deserted”. (Photo by David Abram/Historic Photographer of the Year 2020)
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