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St Catherine's Hill, Guildford, Surrey
22nd October 2022
St Catherine's Hill (or Drakehull - Dragon Hill as it was originally known), has seen human activity for over 10,000 years. The site was especially important in both the Mesolithic and Medieval periods.
Evidence of human activity from the Mesolithic period (around 9000BCE) has been found in this area, including the excavation of flints tools, now in the British Museum.
Below is a flint I found on laying on the surface - near the track leading up to the chapel ruins. The shaped form, worn surface on the reverse and way it can be held in the hand, suggests that this may have once been a flint tool. I found similar Neolithic examples in Guildford Museum.
Guildford was named after a crossing on the River Wey. Guilden Ford (Golden Ford), either to the golden sands of the river or the golden flowers that once grew there. The name Guildford is mentioned in 880, in the in the will of Alfred the Great.
The sacred spring at the base of the hill, is believed to be able to cure sore eyes. The hill was already a popular site, with many miracles attributed to the holy water, and may have led to the building of the chapel.
The chapel was licensed by King Edward II, and built in the 14th Century, but may be on the site of an earlier building. It was abandoned in the 17th Century when a new church was built in Guildford.
During the medieval period, pilgrims on their way between Winchester and Canterbury passed close to the hill. This route may also have been used by ancient Briton travelling between Dover and Stonehenge.
In 2020 after a landslip, a shire was found carved into the sandstone below the chapel. Although the cave is thought to be medieval, it may have earlier origins.
St Catherine's Hill is located along the A3100 in Artington, about 1 mile outside Guildford, Surrey.
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