The History of the Countryside

Fields, highways, hedgerows, fens, marshes, rivers, heaths, coasts, woods, and wood this tribute to the endlessly changing character of Britain's countryside illustrates how it developed over the centuries. Going right up to the present day, and including both natural and man-made features, it demonstrates the sometimes subtle, sometimes radical ways in which people, flora, fauna, climate, soils, and other physical conditions have played a role in shaping the landscape. "...quirky and rewarding...full of answers to questions that others have not had the wit to ask."--Economist. "One thing is no one would be wise to write further on our natural history...without thinking very hard about what is contained in these authoritative pages."--Country Life.

Dr Oliver Rackham is a botanist and a Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. An acknowledged authority on the British countryside, especially trees, woodlands and pasture. THE HISTORY OF THE COUNTRYSIDE won the 1986 Angel Literary Award, the Sir Peter Kent Conservation Prize and the Natural World Book of the Year Award.