Fort · near Sturminster Marshall · Dorset

Badbury Rings

Badbury Rings is an Iron Age hill fort in east Dorset. Head 2.8 km northeast of Sturminster Marshall to reach it. It is protected as a scheduled monument.

Photo: Badbury Rings, Simaron (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Where

2.8 km

northeast of Sturminster Marshall

Run by

National Trust

a national heritage body

How well known

Top 13%

#1,081 of 8,556 places we list

Warmest months

May–Sep

highs of 17–22°C

In brief

Fort near Sturminster Marshall

Just outside Sturminster Marshall

Badbury Rings is 2.8 km northeast of Sturminster Marshall. Towns near it ↓

Cared for by the National Trust

One of the places the National Trust looks after; members usually get in free. About ↓

Scheduled monument

On the official list of protected heritage; Sturminster Marshall has 14 listed buildings in all, on its History page. About ↓

Written from OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, the ONS built-up areas and Met Office 1991–2020 averages.

When to go

Seasons and weather

Aim for May to September, when Sturminster Marshall reaches 17–22°C.

Jan8° / 2°105 mm

Feb9° / 2°72 mm

Mar11° / 3°65 mm

Apr14° / 4°62 mm

May17° / 7°52 mm

Jun20° / 10°53 mm

Jul22° / 12°51 mm

Aug22° / 12°65 mm

Sep19° / 10°70 mm

Oct15° / 8°107 mm

Nov12° / 5°116 mm

Dec9° / 2°111 mm

Green months are the warmest. Typical afternoon highs and night lows in Sturminster Marshall, and rain in a month. Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for Sturminster Marshall. Opening times change through the year: check before you go. Sturminster Marshall’s full climate →

About

Badbury Rings

Its care is managed by the National Trust. Wikipedia covers it in 5 languages. Look also at Kingston Lacy Estate, 2.4 km away, first of 24 more within 15 km.

Sturminster Marshall’s listed buildings and monuments →

Type: Fort
Run by: National Trust
Listed: Scheduled monument
Wikipedias: Covered in 5 languages
Town: 2.8 km northeast of Sturminster Marshall
Official site: nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/dorset/badbury-rings

Facts: Wikidata (CC0) and OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors).

The map

The area around Badbury Rings

Orange is Badbury Rings; numbered in green, the places near it.

Towns near it

Towns that list Badbury Rings

The largest of the 8 towns is Wimborne Minster, with 16,629 people. The town it is in comes first, then the others whose pages list it, nearest first.

1 · 2.8 km southwest of it

Sturminster Marshall

1,504 people · 3 places to visit

2 · 3.7 km southeast of it

Stone

134 people · 6 places to visit

3 · 4.5 km west of it

Spetisbury

587 people · 6 places to visit

4 · 4.6 km southeast of it

Wimborne Minster

16,629 people · 6 places to visit

Compare the 8 towns

Town	Where Badbury Rings is	People	Places to visit
Sturminster Marshall	2.8 km southwest of it	1,504	3
Stone	3.7 km southeast of it	134	6
Spetisbury	4.5 km west of it	587	6
Wimborne Minster	4.6 km southeast of it	16,629	6
Corfe Mullen	5 km south of it	10,036	9
Charlton Marshall	6.6 km west of it	1,084	4
Holt	6.7 km east of it	323	4
Gaunt's Common	6.9 km northeast of it	336	2

Make a day of it

Beyond Badbury Rings

Within 15 km you can add 4 historic houses, 2 museums and a fort.

Historic house · National TrustKingston Lacy Estate2.4 km away 2

MuseumRoyal Signals Museum6.8 km away 3

MuseumMuseum of East Dorset5.5 km away 4

Fort · National TrustHod Hill13 km away 5AttractionAttraction · National TrustWhite Mill2.5 km away 6

Historic houseCranborne Manor14 km away 7

Historic houseSt Giles House, Wimborne St Giles11 km away 8

Historic houseEdmondsham House13 km away

Within 15 km, close and well known first. Numbers match the map.

Badbury Rings, answered

Where is Badbury Rings?

Badbury Rings is 2.8 km northeast of Sturminster Marshall, Dorset.

What is Badbury Rings?

Iron Age hill fort in east Dorset, England, UK.

Who runs Badbury Rings?

National Trust, so members usually get in free; check opening times before you go.

When is the best time to visit Badbury Rings?

May to September are the warmest months in Sturminster Marshall, with afternoon highs of 17–22°C (Met Office 1991–2020 averages).

Is Badbury Rings a listed building?

Yes: scheduled monument.

What else is there to see near Badbury Rings?

Within 15 km: Kingston Lacy Estate (2.4 km), Royal Signals Museum (6.8 km), Museum of East Dorset (5.5 km) and Hod Hill (13 km).

Places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence) and Wikidata (CC0), placed in the ONS 2022 built-up area (Open Government Licence v3.0). Visitor counts are the latest Wikidata gives, with their year.

Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).

Photo credits (8)

Badbury Rings: Simaron, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Kingston Lacy Estate: Vauxford, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Royal Signals Museum: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Museum of East Dorset: Mike Searle, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Hod Hill: Jim Champion, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Cranborne Manor: Mike Searle, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
St Giles House, Wimborne St Giles: Justin Barton, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Edmondsham House: Mike Searle, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.