University of Exeter Press

Landscape and Townscape in the South West

    • 195 Pages

    History develops not only from our thoughts and actions but also from the physical and cultural environment which we mould for ourselves. Six essays, displaying the combined skills of historians, archaeologists and geographers, explore the creation of the South West across many centuries. Peter Fowler examines the similarities and contrasts between the South West and the North East. Mick Aston explores the creation of the medieval settlement pattern, while Harold Fox analyzes a further period of change in the later middle ages. Michael Turner looks at urban reconstructions in the eighteenth century. Steven Pugsley reveals the importance of grand Georgian country houses and their landscaped surroundings. Finally, Mark Brayshay shows how the idea of town planning can be traced to the mid-Victorian era. Between them these essays provide not only a fascinating subject for study in their own right, but also the backcloth against which all other aspects of the region's history were worked out. 


    … a fascinating insight for historical geographers, historians and archaeologists.

    The Geographical Journal

    A good introduction to current debates, research preoccupations and methodological approaches, as well as giving the specialist much food for thought.

    Landscape History

    The Contributors
    List of Illustrations
    List of Abbreviations
    Acknowledgements
    Preface Robert Higham
    1. English Uplands, South West and North East: local history and archaeology at inter-regional level. (The Harte Lecture, 1987) Peter Fowler
    2. The development of medieval rural settlement in Somerset Michael Aston
    3. Peasant farmers, patterns of settlement and pays: transformations in the landscapes of Devon and Cornwall during the Later Middle Ages Harold Fox
    4. New towns for old? Urban reconstruction after fires in the South West: the case of Blandford Forum, Dorset, 1731 Michael Turner
    5. The Georgian landscape garden: Devon in the national context Steven Pugsley
    6. The reform of urban management and the shaping of Plymouth's mid-Victorian landscape Mark Brayshay

    Robert Higham is Senior Lecturer in Archaeology, University of Exeter. His research interests cover two broad topics relating to the medieval period: the general theme of defence, in both its military and social aspects, and the medieval archaeology of South West England. He has directed a number of excavations and published several books.

    He has particular interests in the interplay between archaeological and historical data in the medieval period. Specific areas of research include urban defence, the archaeology, social and settlement history of castles and castle-building society, and the settlement history of Greater Exmoor.