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Institute of Archaeology

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Arthur W. Starzec

Arthur W. Starzec

Regionalism and identity in the UK and France from the 17th Century through the development of transport networks

 

Email: arthur.starzec.13@ucl.ac.uk
Section: World Archaeology
Supervisors:

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Regionalism and identity in the UK and France from the 17th Century through the development of transport networks

The modern period has been described as a time of major change on the European continent. While powers like France and Britain were aggressively expanding their empires abroad, at home, new imports and the development of free market capitalism changed the way people sourced and consumed all their everyday needs. Transforming the methods in which consumers sourced their consumable products, re-orientated not only the relationship between the countryside and city, but also how individuals viewed society. This change in perception can be hypothesised to have led to the creation of regionalist identities.

 

Looking at areas in France and the UK that currently maintain some strong elements of regional identity, the project hopes to trace the development of these regional identities with shifts in products in relation to the expansion and changes to the investments of transport networks like, turnpike roads, canals, and railroads. Tracking the construction of a transport network will allow research to be undertaken on how accessibility may affect the distribution of products and identity. The project aims to digitise historical maps to supplement the already existing GIS datasets and create an accessibility map for each transport network across time. This can then be combined with personal accounts and the archaeological record to determine how shifts in capital and production may change the ways people perceive the power structures and their place in society.

Education

    • BA, Archaeology, UCL
    • MSc, Geographic Information Science, Birkbeck College, University of London