A Social History Of The English Countryside

Traces the rise and fall of rural England from the Middle Ages to the Second World War and the nature of the changes which have occurred.

Based on the author's Slade lectures given at Oxford University in 1975-76.

Traces the rise and fall of rural England from the Middle Ages to the Second World War and the nature of the changes which have occurred.

Alun Howkins' panoramic survey is a social history of rural England and Wales in the twentieth century. He examines the impact of the First World War, the role of agriculture throughout the century, and the expectations of the countryside that modern urban people harbour. Howkins analyzes the role of rural England as a place for work as well as leisure, and the problems caused by these often conflicting roles. This overview will be welcomed by anyone interested in agricultural and social history, historical geographers, and all those interested in rural affairs.

First Published in 1991. Reshaping Rural England covers the crucial period of English rural history from the high point of Britain's agricultural power in the 1850s and 1860s through to the grim years of the inter-war period. Uncovering many of the myths of an idyllic rural England, Howkins looks in detail at the role of women, the workplace, the family and religion. Topics covered include: * the creation of a stable social order by the rural elites, concealing widespread poverty and disorder. * the economic collapse of the cereal market in the 1870s. * the emergence of trade unions and other forms of social conflict in the countryside. * changes in agricultural production and the horror of war. Alun Howkins combines the concerns of the new social history with original research to produce an accessible and coherent account of the transformation of a society.

The romantic imagery of village England and the prominence that this commands in English cultural identity is well known. Yet just how accurate is this notion of the rural idyll in which the organic nature of village life was gradually undermined, and destroyed, by social and economic factors? Trevor Wild's text explores the evolution of "village England" from the earliest times to the present. Drawing upon both contemporary accounts and scholarship, he provides an engaging and revealing account of the major transformations affecting the English village. Of particular interest is the book's coverage of the more recent past, with the whittling away of the great estates, the appearance of such institutions as the village hall, and the development of alternative systems of power such as the councils.

This book explores the significance and meaning of the countryside within mid-twentieth century youth movements. It examines the ways in which the Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, Woodcraft Folk and Young Farmers’ Club organisations employed the countryside as a space within which ‘good citizenship’ – in leisure, work, the home and the community – could be developed. Mid-century youth movements identified the ‘problem’ of modern youth as a predominantly urban and working class issue. They held that the countryside offered an effective antidote to these problems: being a ‘good citizen’ within this context necessitated a respectful and mutually beneficial relationship with the rural sphere. Avenues to good citizenship could be found through an enthusiasm for outdoor recreation, the stewardship of the countryside and work on the land. However, models of good citizenship were intrinsically gendered.