Overview

This is the first book for a generation on medieval agriculture in Wales, presenting evidence which is of considerable relevance to those studying the development of the early medieval landscapes of England and Ireland. This collection of essays confronts the paradox that, though agriculture lay at the heart of medieval society, understanding of what this meant for Wales remains limited. The papers address key questions that include: how did the agricultural systems of Wales operate between c. 400 and 1600 AD? What light do they cast on the material evidence for life in the contemporary landscape? How similar or different was Wales to other areas of Britain and Ireland? Can we identify change over time? How do we go about researching early Welsh agriculture? These issues are explored through new syntheses and case studies focused on Wales, and contextualising overviews of medieval agricultural systems in Ireland and England written by leading experts. Themes covered include the use of infield-outfield systems, seasonal land use and its impact on territorial and estate structures, and regional variation, all explored using a wide array of complementary multidisciplinary approaches. The introduction, written by the editors Rhiannon Comeau and Andy Seaman, gives context to the historiography, key debates, themes and issues surrounding this topic. The book also includes an afterword written by Professor Andrew Fleming.

Full Product Details

Author:   Rhiannon Comeau ,  Andy Seaman
Publisher:   Windgather Press
Imprint:   Windgather Press
ISBN:  

9781911188391

ISBN 10:   1911188399
Pages:   264
Publication Date:   25 July 2019
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements List of figures Contributors 1. Introduction – Rhiannon Comeau and Andy Seaman The wider picture 2. The Fields of Britannia: continuity and change within the early medieval landscape – Stephen Rippon 3. Resource management of seasonal pasture: some English/Welsh comparisons – Della Hooke 4. Changing perspectives on early medieval farming in Ireland – Meriel McClatchie, Finbar McCormick, Thomas R. Kerr and Aidan O’Sullivan Wales 5. Living off the land in medieval Welsh law – Sara Elin Roberts 6. Medieval field systems in north Wales – Bob Silvester 7. Y Filltir Sgwar: mapping the history of local land in a Welsh heartland – David Austin 8. The practice of ‘in rodwallis’: medieval Welsh agriculture in north Pembrokeshire – Rhiannon Comeau 9. Landscape, settlement and agriculture in early medieval Brycheiniog: the evidence from the Llandaff Charters – Andy Seaman 10. Culture, climate, coulter and conflict: pollen studies from early medieval Wales – Tudur Davies Moving forward 11. Welsh landscape history: notes from the edge – Andrew Fleming Glossary A general bibliography of key work on Wales Index

Reviews

This important publication is the first study of medieval agriculture in Wales to be produced in many years, and as such offers a valuable contribution to a subject that has been far less comprehensively written about than it has in England and Ireland... a detailed and informative synthesis of the recent work on a subject that very much merits such exploration. --Current Archaeology

...represents a distinct advance on the work of previous generations of scholars, and it fulfils to a marked degree the editors' hope that it will provoke further studies that challenge and overtake existing understanding . * The Medieval Review * It is an important book which makes available timely and updated results as well as significant new insights into the practice and development of Welsh agriculture in the medieval period. It will provide a solid foundation for future studies, and is welcomed as a major contribution to the subject. * Archaeologia Cambrensis - Cambrian Archaeological Association *

Author Information

Rhiannon Comeau is completing doctoral research into the early medieval Welsh landscape at UCL Institute of Archaeology. Her earlier research has been published in Medieval Archaeology, Landscape History and Archaeologia Cambrensis. She has a particular interest in interdisciplinary approaches to the estates, focal places and agricultural systems of the early medieval period. She is a committee member of the Medieval Settlement Research Group and a Trustee for the Cambrian Archaeological Association. Andy Seaman is senior lecturer in early medieval archaeology at Canterbury Christ Church University. His research focuses on Wales and western Britain, and he has particular interests in settlements and the agrarian landscape, networks of power, and the early Church. He has published widely in these areas, including major articles on Dinas Powys hillfort and the ‘multiple estate model’. He is engaged in a number of projects focused on South Wales, including the Arts and Humanities Research Council funded project Manifestations of Empire: Palaeoenvironmental Analysis and the End of Roman Britain.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions