Bryan O'Neil

Bryan Hugh St. John O'Neil (7 August 1905 – 24 October 1954) was a British archaeologist who became Chief Inspector of Ancient Monuments for England and Wales.

Bryan O'Neil was born in London. His father was Charles Valentine O'Neil, and his mother was Mabel Meliora (nee Rowe) He was educated at Merchant Taylor's School, at that time in London, and St John's College, Oxford. He obtained his degree in classics in 1928. He was a member of the Oxford University Archaeological Society, becoming its president in 1926. In 1939 he married Helen Donovan of Bourton-on-the-Water, daughter of Charles Donovan MD, who was noted for her work on Gloucestershire archaeology.

O'Neil was extremely active in field archaeology, publishing over 200 papers. He was noted for his expertise in the analysis of structural sequences, evident both in his work on iron-age sites in the Welsh borderland, for example Titterstone Clee Hill Fort, Breidden Hill Fort, and the Ffridd Faldwyn Camp, as well as in his work on later mediaeval stone castles, such as Dartmouth and Rushen. His interest in early artillery fortification developed, and he became a leading expert in this field. He published a study of the work of Stefan von Haschenperg, an engineer to King Henry VIII, and his book Castles and Cannon; A study of Early Artillery Fortifications in England, has become a standard work. This was published in 1960, six years after his premature death at the age of 49. Other important archaeological investigations included studies of the town layout of Llanidloes, the castle site at Castle Caereinion, and the excavations and survey of the Montgomery Town Wall. He also worked on the fortifications at Rhodes.

O'Neil wrote a series of official guide-books to ancient monuments, mostly of castles, published by H.M. Stationery Office, including: Dartmouth Castle (1934) Criccieth Castle (1934) Peveril Castle (1934) Clifford's Tower, York Castle (1936) Talley Abbey, Carmarthenshire (1938) Castle Rushen, Isle of Man (1947) Scalloway Castle, Shetland (1949) Ancient monuments of the Isles of Scilly (1949) Walmer Castle (1949) Audley End, Essex (1955) The Brochs of Mousa and Clickhimin (1950) Castle Cornet, Guernsey (1950) Caerlaverock Castle (1952) Deal Castle (1966) and also some more general introductions: Regional Guide to ancient monuments in North Wales (1939) The History of Britain in Stone (1950) Castles: An Introduction to the Castles of England and Wales (1954) and the Sproxton hoard of silver Roman coins from Sproxton, Leicestershire. Both of these collections had been discovered over a hundred years earlier. O'Neil was a member of the Cambrian Archaeological Association from 1931, later serving on its general committee. He was secretary and editor of the Congress of Archaeological Societies, predecessor of the Council for British Archaeology and from 1935 a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London of which he became Vice-President from 1947-1950.