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Mother Oak: medieval transhumance in South-East England a dependency on lowland wood-pasture

29 October 2024, 6:15 pm–7:15 pm

Picture of two building porticos merged together (UCL and the British Museum)

The next event in the 2024-25 UCL Institute of Archaeology/British Museum Medieval Seminar Series, will be given by Andrew Margetts (UCL Archaeology South-East) on 29 October.

This event is free.

Event Information

Open to

All

Availability

Yes

Cost

Free

Organiser

Prof Andrew Reynolds

Location

Room 612
UCL Institute of Archaeology
31-34 Gordon Square
London
WC1H 0PY
United Kingdom

Abstract

The most important transhumance system of lowland southern England involved the seasonal movement of livestock to medieval wood-pasture commons. Wood-pastures are the product of grazing animals within historic land management regimes. They comprise a vegetation structure rather than a particular plant community and their form and ecological composition differs dependent on underlying environmental factors. Variables can include geology and climate as well as the type of grazing animals present and their stocking density in relation to available land.

In those pastures where transhumance was practised this created a co-dependent relationship, one where people and animals, and the wood-pasture itself, were reliant on a balanced arrangement. Communities and their livestock exploited the environment and in turn the characteristic vegetation structure of a wood-pasture was maintained. This situation could only persist through cyclical use as cultural grazing ground.

This paper will explore these interrelationships in areas where the bio-culture of English wood-pasture continues to be strong.  In the New Forest, the Weald and the region surrounding London, medieval transhumance left a legacy in the landscape. These traces are apparent in the physical fabric of the countryside, archaeological remains and in the palaeoenvironmental record. From shielings to road networks the paper will explore south-east England’s transhumance from its uncertain origins to its eventual demise.

The Medieval Seminar Series is sponsored by the World Archaeology Section at the UCL Institute of Archaeology and the British Museum. 

Seminar Series Convenors: