Kingley Vale National Nature Reserve

Nature reserve in the United Kingdom

The site is managed by Natural England. It has an information centre and a nature trail. There is a large area of grass downland and shrubland with a number of old yew trees. From the top there are views over Sussex and the south coast. There are a number of walks and bridleways around the NNR. The main walk (known as the "Hidden Landscape Trail") focuses on the Devil's Humps, Goosehill Camp and Auxiliary units of World War II, as well as highlighting other hidden ancient features. The reserve car park is at West Stoke about five miles northwest of Chichester, and there are footpaths leading up from the village of Stoughton. Their survival is remarkable because most ancient yew trees across Europe were felled after the 14th century, being the preferred material for the staves of English longbows. In 1472, with the increasing popularity of the longbow, the English government enacted a "yew tax" of four "bowestaffs" for every cask of wine unloaded at an English harbour. This sparked a rush for ancient yew trees across Europe, decimating the forests.

Kingley Vale has a rich and diverse heritage with remains of a Romano Celtic temple at Bow Hill. Iron Age settlement site known as Goosehill Camp, the Devil's Humps Bronze Age round barrows and prehistoric flint mines. There are also a number of unidentified archaeological remains in the form of linear earthworks, a rectangular enclosure known as Bow Hill Camp and evidence of settlement at the base of the hill.