NB: Grassland on the rings is managed by grazing livestock, accordingly dogs are not allowed on the monument.
The fortifications consist of three concentric rings of bank and ditch, the outer is much inferior to the two inner rings and is thought to have been added hurriedly when word reached Dorset of Julius Caeser's abortive invasion of 54BC. You can get a feel for the scale of the inner ditch and bank from the first photograph - the little block spots on the bank to the right are people! The defences would have been an almost impenetrable barrier to other Iron-Age warriors but they did the inhabitants little good when Badbury Rings, like all other hill forts, fell easy prey to the Romans. The organised assaults of Claudius' legions, under the command of Vespasian when he conquered the Durotriges in AD43, had been honed on the hillforts of Gaul and they new exactly how to overcome them.
In its heyday, the ditches were much deeper and the banks much higher (erosion has dumped the tops of the banks in the bottom of the ditches) and the surfaces would have been pure chalk, which can be extremely slippery, and there would have been no vegetation to provide a foothold. For a man in iron age footwear this would have been a near insurmountable obstacle. Against Roman military tactics however, the fort never sood a chance.
The Romans are thought to have built a town just outside the Rings which they called Vindocladia - The place of white walls.
For the modern visitor, Badbury Rings sits at the centre of a network of footpaths and offers superb views over the surrounding countryside.
Badbury Rings can be found about halfway along the famous Kingston Lacy Beech Avenue between Wimborne and Blandford Forum.
The rings are florally rich and are managed by grazing. Dogs are not permitted on the rings though there is plenty of space for them to run in the car park.
Parking at the rings is free except for the few days during the spring when Point-to-Point racing takes place and the organisers charge the earth to get in. Unless you like horses, I'd steer well clear on those days if I were you. Unfortunately, due to a recent upsurge in vandalism, the carpark is now locked overnight. The gates are closed from 4pm to 9am during the winter and will probably be closed 8pm to 9am during the summer. Please check the signs before leaving your car.