Agricultural History Review, Volume 56 Part 2 (2008), p. 225

This book, the Society for Post-Medieval Archaeology’s fourth monograph, consists of papers given at the Society’s Estate Landscapes Conference in April 2003 and includes work undertaken both in the British Isles and the New World. The aim of the conference, as summarized by the editors in the preface, was to ‘explore the increasing interest amongst archaeologists in the study of post-medieval landscapes in general’ and the form of the ‘estate landscape in particular’ (p.vii). Tom Williamson’s inspiring introduction whets our appetite for what we believe will surely follow. The great estates are a post-medieval phenomenon worthy of study by post-medieval archaeologists who are academically equipped to look at them in ways not previously tackled. Although new, many estate landscapes incorporated something from the past; they reflect new attitudes to property and aesthetics as well as often contradictory political, ideological, and economic motivations. ‘All papers demonstrate how understanding the landscape demands that researchers break through their own conceptual boundaries and address issues raised in agriculture, economics, literature, philosophy and politics’ (p.ix). This is great stuff, but do the papers live up to these high expectations?

Much that follows testifies to the fact that what makes a good conference presentation does not easily transfer itself to the printed page. Quite appropriately most of the papers aim to show the value of an archaeological rather than landscape-historical approach to the various features which surround the great house. This is particularly clear in Charles Orser’s contribution from Tanzyfort House in County Sligo. Here, meticulous excavation and recording of the building remains shows how an older ‘vernacular’ house was partially rebuilt to form dog kennels. While it would obviously have been easier to build from scratch, an older structure was retained to enforce the idea of stability and continuity within a later landscape. Detailed archaeological investigation is thus interpreted in the light of the known social aspirations of the time. Similarly work on the pottery kiln at Dunster is given a truly archaeological perspective by David Dawson and Oliver Kent. Although much of the paper reads like an excavation report, including cross-sections of pottery sherds, the placing of the kiln within the context of landscape design is fascinating. The kiln was located, not for the convenience of importing raw materials and exporting the product, but so that it could be seen from the castle, thus incorporating an ‘industrial’ element into the otherwise rural scene and so emphasizing the modernity of the owner. Classical archaeologists have always understood the importance of memorials to an understanding of society and collective memory and so Harold Mytum’s paper on monuments in estate landscapes is significant. Although small elements in the landscape, their symbolism is obvious. Amongst other things, they represent the continuity of land ownership, evoke memories and encourage the ethic of loyalty. All these attributes are present in his chosen areas of study at Castle Howard and Sledmere. Sir Mark Sykes’ famous memorial to the Wolds Wagoners, who were raised by Sir Mark to provide transport in a war zone during the First World War, is particularly important in linking the Sykes family with the community. So far so good; the interpretations of the archaeologist have been informed by issues from literature, philosophy and politics.

Other papers are more influenced by the approach of the landscape historian. Jonathan Finch reminds us that even in the most fashionable of landscapes – that at Castle Howard – earlier features, such as ancient woodland and medieval fish ponds, survive, while Paul Everson elegantly shows how many seventeenth-century gardens, particularly ‘fishing gardens’ when laid out by puritan gentry, were created as an aid to contemplation. Robert Silvester and Judith Alfrey describe the development and consolidation of a Welsh estate, paying particular attention to the importance of the mainly nineteenth-century built environment from the black and white traditional-style cottages and artisan’s dwellings to the smallholdings through to the gentrified farms. They point out the significance of these different types of buildings to any understanding of how the social system operated. Sam Turner describes in general terms the development of the field systems of the South-West and links this rather loosely to estate landscapes. Although enclosure was generally early, there was some reorganization in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, particularly on the larger, ‘barton’ farms of the gentry. Here ‘the reorganizing of their estates into more regular enclosures could have been a way of expressing their rights of ownership; power to alter and improve their lands might have emphasized their growing status’ (p.65).

A final section widens the subject to include colonial landscapes, often, as in the example from south-west Ireland described by Colin Breen, created not by the traditional landowning elite relying on agriculture and rents for their income, but by an entrepreneurial mercantile group. While they may have justified their actions by harping back to a classical model of colonization, dispossessing the local Gaelic-Irish and destroying their language and traditions, their motives were mainly financial. This critical shift from the practices of the past had a huge landscape impact. Unlike at Tanzyfort, there was no attempt to emphasize continuity and stability by retaining past elements in the landscape. Leech and Hicks develop this theme of the ‘archaeology of capitalism’ further in their papers on Nevis, St Kitts and the Leeward Isles. Links between landscapes of colonization in the West Indies, often master-minded by the owners and designers of the great British landed estates, are stressed by Dan Hicks, who concludes

When we consider the financial connections between the West Indian planters and British estate holders in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries … the observation that the working out of ideas of improvement in the landscapes of the Caribbean might have had a central role in influencing the ideas of improvement in Britain is still more compelling’ (p.222).

While, as Barbara Heath explains, Jefferson consciously modelled his rural retreat on classical and English models, perhaps we should also be looking for a colonial influence on English estates.

Thus, while many of these papers contain intriguing and thought-provoking material, their concentration on detail in their own chosen fields means they often read like research reports and so do not in fact ‘break through the conceptual boundaries’ that Williamson describes.

All the papers are let down by the standard of the illustrations. Too many of the maps are fuzzy and the photographs dark. We expect better of a book priced at £50.