Overview

From the author of ‘Britain BC’, ‘Britain AD’ and ‘Britain in the Middle Ages’ comes the fourth and final part in a critically acclaimed series on Britain's hidden past The relevance of archaeology to the study of the ancient world is indisputable. But, when exploring our recent past, does it have any role to play? In ‘The Birth of Modern Britain’ Francis Pryor highlights archaeology’s continued importance to the world around us. The pioneers of the Industrial Revolution were too busy innovating to record what was happening around them but fortunately the buildings and machines they left behind bring the period to life. During the Second World War, the imminent threat of invasion meant that constructing strong defences was much more important than keeping precise records. As a result, when towns were flattened, archaeology provided the only real means of discovering what had been destroyed. Surveying the whole post-medieval period, from 1550 until the present day, Francis Pryor takes us on an exhilarating journey, bringing to a gripping conclusion his illuminating study of Britain’s hidden past.

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9780007299119

Table of Contents

Reviews

'Hugely enjoyable!You will learn a lot from it -- and one of the things is how much work has gone into unearthing all this stuff. You will certainly never look at the A5 in the same way again' Daily Telegraph 'No one person has previously attempted such a journey into Britain's entire archaeological past, and this book brings the series to a successful -- and refreshingly jargon-free -- conclusion' BBC History magazine '[Pryor's] enthusiasm for getting his hands dirty is infectious' Sunday Times 'Much to admire!fascinating details' Guardian 'Immensely fascinating case histories' Daily Express Reviews for 'Britain in the Middle Ages': 'Its argument is a profound and contentious one. Hugely entertaining' Daily Telegraph 'A triumph ! gives us a much better idea of what really went on in Britain a thousand years ago than many a purely document-based history.' TLS 'Highly illuminating. Pryor has produced a very fine synthesis of the key debates in early medieval and medieval archaeology ! Anyone who isn't familiar with these themes will be much enlightened on reading this.' BBC History 'Pryor is that rare combination of a first-rate working archaeologist and a good writer with the priceless ability of being able to explain complex ideas clearly ! he leads one along the highways and byways of archaeology and history, on a sort of walking tour through the past, giving one a flavour of the times ! This is popular archaeology at its best: engaging, knowledgeable and provocative, propelled by the author's zestful, insatiable curiosity.' Times Higher Education Supplement

'Hugely enjoyable!You will learn a lot from it -- and one of the things is how much work has gone into unearthing all this stuff. You will certainly never look at the A5 in the same way again' Daily Telegraph 'No one person has previously attempted such a journey into Britain's entire archaeological past, and this book brings the series to a successful -- and refreshingly jargon-free -- conclusion' BBC History magazine '[Pryor's] enthusiasm for getting his hands dirty is infectious' Sunday Times 'Much to admire!fascinating details' Guardian 'Immensely fascinating case histories' Daily Express Reviews for 'Britain in the Middle Ages': 'Its argument is a profound and contentious one. Hugely entertaining' Daily Telegraph 'A triumph ! gives us a much better idea of what really went on in Britain a thousand years ago than many a purely document-based history.' TLS 'Highly illuminating. Pryor has produced a very fine synthesis of the key debates in early medieval and medieval archaeology ! Anyone who isn't familiar with these themes will be much enlightened on reading this.' BBC History 'Pryor is that rare combination of a first-rate working archaeologist and a good writer with the priceless ability of being able to explain complex ideas clearly ! he leads one along the highways and byways of archaeology and history, on a sort of walking tour through the past, giving one a flavour of the times ! This is popular archaeology at its best: engaging, knowledgeable and provocative, propelled by the author's zestful, insatiable curiosity.' Times Higher Education Supplement

Author Information

Francis Pryor is one of Britain's most distinguished living archaeologists, and the excavator of Flag Fen. He is the author of Home, Britain BC, Britain AD, Seahenge and The Making Of The British Landscape.

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