Heydon Ditch

The Heydon Ditch is a large earthwork that runs from Heydon to Fowlmere and has been dated to Saxon times, although it may have earlier origins. If it is Saxon it was almost certainly built for defensive purposes perhaps to enclose Saxon lands.

According to local tales the ditch is said to be haunted by the phantoms of giant warriors; during excavations in the 1950s the bones of headless Saxon skeletons were found near to the ditch, suggesting an origin for the tales.

Directions: The ditch runs from Heydon to Fowlmere.