Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-29T12:08:02.226Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

HOW NATURAL IS NATURAL? HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES ON WILDLIFE AND THE ENVIRONMENT IN BRITAIN

Colin Matthew Memorial Lecture

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 November 2019

Tom Williamson
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This article explores some of the ways in which historians can, and should, engage with current debates about the environment. What we often think of as ‘natural’ habitats in Britain – heaths, ancient woodland, meadows and the like – are largely anthropogenic in character, and much of our most familiar wildlife, from rabbits to poppies, are alien introductions. The environments we cherish are neither natural nor timeless, but are enmeshed in human histories: even the kinds of tree most commonly found in the countryside are the consequence of human choice. The ways in which the environment was shaped by past management systems – to produce fuel, as much as food – are briefly explored; and the rise of ‘rewilding’ as a fashionable approach to nature conservation is examined, including its practical and philosophical limitations and its potential impacts on the conservation of cultural landscapes.

Type
Research Article
Information
Transactions of the Royal Historical Society , Volume 29 , December 2019 , pp. 293 - 311
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Historical Society 2019 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 Warde, P., Energy Consumption in England and Wales 1560–2000 (Naples, 2006)Google Scholar.

2 Thomas, K., Man and the Natural World: Changing Attitudes in England 1500–1800 (1983)Google Scholar.

3 Beresford, M., History on the Ground: Six Studies in Maps and Landscapes (1971)Google Scholar; Hoskins, W. G., The Making of the English Landscape (1955)Google Scholar; Hoskins, W. G., Fieldwork in Local History (1967)Google Scholar.

4 Hoskins, Making of the English Landscape, 14.

5 Taylor, C., Fieldwork in Medieval Archaeology (1974)Google Scholar; Village and Farmstead: A History of Rural Settlement in England (1983).

6 Rackham, O., Trees and Woodland in the British Landscape (1976)Google Scholar; Ancient Woodland (1980); The History of the Countryside (1986).

7 Pollard, E., Hooper, M. D. and Moore, N., Hedges (1974)Google Scholar.

8 Peterken, G., Meadows (2013)Google Scholar.

9 Webb, N., Heathlands (1986)Google Scholar; Webb, N., ‘The Traditional Management of European Heathlands’, Journal of Applied Ecology, 35 (1998), 987–90CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

10 Groves, J. A., Waller, M. P., Grant, M. J. and Schofield, J. E., ‘Long Term Development of a Cultural Landscape: The Origins and Dynamics of Lowland Heathland in Southern England’, Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 21 (2012), 453–70CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Barnes, G., Whyte, P. Dallas, H. Thompson, N. and Williamson, T., ‘Heathland and Wood Pasture in Norfolk: Ecology and Landscape History’, British Wildlife, 18 (2007), 395–403Google Scholar.

11 Lennard, T. Barrett, ‘Two Hundred Years of Estate Management at Horsford during the 17th and 18th Centuries’, Norfolk Archaeology, 20 (1921), 57–139Google Scholar.

12 Rackham, History of the Countryside, 299–303.

13 Rackham, Ancient Woodland; Barnes, G. and Williamson, T., Rethinking Ancient Woodland (Hatfield, 2015)Google Scholar.

14 Williamson, T., Barnes, G. and Pillatt, T., Trees in England: Management and Disease since 1600 (Hatfield, 2017), 81–2Google Scholar.

15 Barnes et al., Rethinking Ancient Woodland, 6–11, 122–30.

16 Doman, P., Fuller, R., Gill, R., Hooton, D. and Tabor, R., ‘Escalating Ecological Impact of Deer in Lowland Woodland’, British Wildlife, 21 (2010), 242–54Google Scholar.

17 Rackham, O., Woodlands (2011), 82–90Google Scholar; Williamson et al., Trees in England, 122.

18 Norfolk Record Office BUL 2/3, 604X7; IR 29/5816; estate survey, 1752, Boughton House archives, no catalogue number. Lowe, R., General View of the Agriculture of the County of Nottingham (London, 1794), 34, 114Google Scholar.

19 Vancouver, C., General View of the Agriculture of Hampshire (London, 1810), 297Google Scholar; Stevenson, W., General View of the Agriculture of the County of Surrey (London, 1809), 127Google Scholar.

20 Boys, J., General View of the Agriculture of the County of Kent (London, 1805), 144Google Scholar.

21 Herefordshire Archives and Records, A63/111/56/12.

22 Williamson et al., Trees in England, 128–30.

23 Vera, F., Grazing Ecology and Forest History (Wallingford, 2002)Google Scholar.

24 See, in particular, K. H. Hodder, P. C. Buckland, K. J. Kirby and J. M. Bullock, ‘Can the Pre-Neolithic Provide Suitable Models for Rewilding the Landscape in Britain?’, British Wildlife, 20, 5, 4–14; and the essays in Rotherham, I., Trees, Forested Landscape and Grazing Animals (2013)CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

25 Invasive and Introduced Plants and Animals: Human Perceptions, Attitudes and Approaches to Management, ed. I. D. Rotherham and R. A. Lambert (2011).

26 Mabey, R., Flora Britannica (1998), 138–40Google Scholar; Oswald, P., ‘The Fritillary in Britain: A Historical Perspective’, British Wildlife, 3 (1992), 200–10Google Scholar; Webb, D. A., ‘What Are the Criteria for Presuming Native Status?’, Watsonia, 15 (1985), 231–6Google Scholar; Thomas, S. and Dines, T., ‘Non-Native Invasive Plants in Britain: A Real, Not Imagined, Problem’, British Wildlife, 21 (2010), 177–83.Google Scholar

27 Yalden, D., The History of British Mammals (1999)Google Scholar; Rackham, D. J., ‘The Introduction of the Black Rat into Britain’, Antiquity, 53 (1979), 112–20CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed; Johnson, W. (ed.), Gilbert White's Journal (1931), 46Google Scholar.

28 Currie, C., ‘The Early History of Carp and Its Economic Significance in England’, Agricultural History Review, 39 (1991), 97–107Google Scholar; Liddiard, R., The Medieval Deer Park: New Perspectives (Macclesfield, 2007)Google Scholar; Sheail, J., Rabbits and Their History (1971)Google Scholar.

29 Williamson, T., Rabbits, Warrens and Archaeology (Stroud, 2007)Google Scholar.

30 Omans, C., The Great Revolt of 1381 (Oxford, 1906), 462–3Google Scholar.

31 Currie, C., ‘Fish Ponds As Garden Features’, Garden History 18 (1990), 22–33CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Williamson, Rabbits, Warrens and Archaeology, 164–75.

32 Lovegrove, R., Silent Fields: The Long Decline of a Nation's Wildlife (Oxford, 2002)Google Scholar.

33 White, G., The Natural History and Antiquities of Selbourne in the County of Southampton (London, 1813), 113Google Scholar.

34 Cowper, W., The Task (London, 1785)CrossRefGoogle Scholar, bk I, 37.

35 Gilbert, O., The Flowering of the Cities: The Natural Flora of ‘Urban Commons’ (Peterborough, 1982)Google Scholar; Gilbert, O., ‘The Ecology of an Urban River’, British Wildlife, 3 (1992), 129–36Google Scholar; Gilbert, O., The Ecology of Urban Habitats (1989)CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

36 Owen, J., Wildlife of a Garden: A Thirty Year Study (Peterborough, 2010)Google Scholar.

37 Foreman, D., Rewilding North America: A Vision for Conservation in the 21st Century (Washington, DC, 2004)Google Scholar; P. Jepson, , ‘A Rewilding Agenda for Europe: Creating a Network of Experimental Reserves’, Ecography, 36 (2015), 1–8Google Scholar; Soulé, M. and Noss, R., ‘Rewilding and Biodiversity: Complementary Goals for Continental Conservation’, Wild Earth, 8 (1998), 19–28Google Scholar; Linnell, J. D., Kaczensky, P., Wotschikowsky, U., Lescureux, N. and Boitani, L., ‘Framing the Relationship between People and Nature in the Context of European Conservation’, Conservation Biology, 29 (2015), 978–85CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed.

38 Monbiot, G., Feral: Searching for Enchantment on the Frontiers of Rewilding (2015)Google Scholar.

39 von Wehrden, H., Abson, D. J., Beckmann, M., Cord, A. and Klotz, S., ‘Realigning the Land-Sharing/Land-Sparing Debate to Match Conservation Needs: Considering Diversity Scales and Landuse History’, Landscape Ecology, 29, 941–8CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Law, E. A. and Wilson, K. A., ‘Providing Context for the Land-Sharing and Land-Sparing Debate’, Conservation Letters, 8 (2015), 404–13CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

40 For a recent audit, see the ‘State of Nature 2016’ report: www.rspb.org.uk/our-work/stateofnature2016/.

41 Board of Agriculture Returns, 1896, 36; Commission, Forestry, Forestry Statistics 2016 (Edinburgh, 2016)Google Scholar.

42 Williamson et al., Trees in England, 172–82.

43 Brasier, C. M., ‘Ophiostoma novo-ulmi sp. nov., Causative Agent of Current Dutch Elm Disease Pandemics’, Mycopathologia, 115 (1991), 151–61CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

44 Brasier, C. M., ‘The Biosecurity Threat to the UK and Global Environment from International Trade in Plants’, Plant Pathology, 57 (2008), 792–808CrossRefGoogle Scholar; R. Cheffings and C. M. Lawrence, Chalara. A Summary of the Impacts of Ash Dieback on UK Biodiversity, Including the Potential for Long Term Monitoring and Future Research on Management Scenarios, JNCC (Joint Nature Conservation Committee) Report No. 501 (Peterborough, 2014); Denman, S. and Webber, J. F., ‘Oak Declines – New Definitions and New Episodes in Britain’, Quarterly Journal of Forestry, 103 (2009), 285–90Google Scholar.

45 Northamptonshire Record Office, ZB 887; Norfolk Record Office, MS 13751, 40E3.

46 Norfolk Record Office, HNR 465/3/1.

47 Mougou, A., Dutech, C. and Desprez-Loustau, M. L., ‘New Insights into the Identity and Origins of the Causal Agent of Oak Powdery Mildew in Europe’, Forest Pathology, 38 (2014), 275–87CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

48 Ehrlich, J., ‘The Occurrence in the United States of Gryptococcus fagi (Baer) Dougl, the Insect Factor in a Menacing Disease of Beech’, Quarterly Journal of Forestry, 13 (1932), 73–80Google Scholar; Chester, K. P., ‘The Phtopthora Disease of the Culla in America’, Quarterly Journal of Forestry, 11 (1930), 169–71Google Scholar.

49 Carlton, J., Marine Propellors and Propulsion (2012)Google Scholar.

50 Blagrave, J., The Epitome of the Art of Husbandry (London, 1675), 114Google Scholar.

51 Mortimer, J., The Whole Art of Husbandry (London, 1707), 309Google Scholar.

52 Williamson et al., Trees in England, 119–22.

53 Nourse, T., Campania Felix (London, 1699), 27Google Scholar.

54 Cook, M., On the Manner of Raising, Ordering and Improving Forest-Trees (London, 1676), 171Google Scholar.

55 Fuller, R. J., Williamson, T., Barnes, G. and Dolman, P., ‘Human Activities and Biodiversity Opportunities in Pre-Industrial Cultural Landscapes: Relevance to Conservation’, Journal of Applied Ecology, 54 (2017), 459–69CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

56 Dolman, P. M., Panter, C. and Mossman, H. L., Securing Biodiversity in Breckland: Guidance for Conservation and Research. First Report of the Breckland Biodiversity Audit (Norwich, 2010)Google Scholar; Dolman, P. M., Panter, C. and Mossman, H. L., ‘The Biodiversity Audit Approach Challenges Regional Priorities and Identifies a Mismatch in Conservation’, Journal of Applied Ecology, 49 (2012), 986–97CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

57 J. Belcher, ‘“The Greatest Wealth of Our Country”: The Fold Course in East Anglia’ (Ph.D. thesis, University of East Anglia, 2016); Bailey, M., A Marginal Economy? East Anglian Breckland in the Later Middle Ages (Cambridge, 1989)CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

58 Fuller et al., ‘Human Activities and Biodiversity Opportunities’, 468–9.

59 Ibid.

60 Peterken, G. F., Natural Woodland: Ecology and Conservation in Northern Temperate Regions (Cambridge, 1996), 13Google Scholar.

61 Rotherham, I. D., ‘Rhododendron Gone Wild: Conservation Implications of Rhododendron ponticum in Britain’, Biologist, 48 (2001), 7–11Google ScholarPubMed.

62 Brown, A. G., ‘Clearances and Clearings: Deforestation in Mesolithic/Neolithic Britain’, Oxford Journal of Archaeology, 16 (1997), 133–46CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Caseldine, C. and Hatton, J., ‘The Development of High Moorland on Dartmoor: Fire and the Influence of Mesolithic Activity on Vegetation Change’, in Climate Change and Human Impact on the Landscape, ed. Chambers, F. M. (1993), 119–31Google Scholar; Innes, J. B. and Simmons, I. G., ‘Mid-Holocene Charcoal Stratigraphy, Fire History and Palaeoecology at North Gill, North York Moors, UK’, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 164 (2000), 151–65CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Lewis, H. T., ‘Fire Technology and Resource Management in Aboriginal North America and Australia’, in Resource Managers: North American and Australian Hunter-Gatherers, ed. Williams, N. M. and Hunn, E. S. (Boulder, 1982), 45–67Google Scholar; Lyons, S. K., Smith, F. A. and Brown, J. H., ‘Of Mice, Mastodons and Men: Human-Mediated Extinctions on Four Continents’, Evolutionary Ecology Research, 6 (2004), 339–58Google Scholar.

63 D. Goodhart, The Road to Somewhere: The Populist Revolt and the Future of Politics (2017).