The colonisation of uplands in medieval Britain and Ireland: Climate, agriculture and environmental adaptation

Abstract

The study of how medieval farmers colonised upland environments, and lived there on a year-round basis, can provide valuable insights on the long-term adaptability and resilience of rural communities. Yet there is a lack of clarity on the extent and chronology of this phenomenon in Britain and Ireland, and how to explain it without simplistic climate, population or market determinism. By undertaking a critical review of the evidence for upland colonisation across medieval Britain and Ireland, this article demonstrates that ‘glocal’ perspectives are crucial. Locally favourable geology, non-agrarian resources, and prior domestication of sites through prehistoric settlement and transhumance all encouraged upland colonisation. Indeed, when combined with regional socio-economic trends, these local factors sometimes overrode wider climatic conditions. As researchers look increasingly to large-scale modelling of land-use change, this article provides a reminder not to lose sight of the local landscape context and environmental knowledge of the peoples they are studying.