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

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. 

• The programme for the 2024-25 Institute of Archaeology/British Museum Medieval Seminar Series is available here»

Seminar Series Convenors:

• Sue Brunning (British Museum)
• Andrew Reynolds (Institute of Archaeology)

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