Abstract

Why is the countryside in some parts of England and Continental Europe dominated by large villages, while in many regions looser groupings of houses in hamlets, or isolated farms, provide the main forms of settlement? The answer lies in the period c.850-1200, when the settlement pattern which still survives was created. This volume sets out to provide explanations of the process behind that great formative movement in the fabric of our culture. Using a combination of archaeological and documentary evidence, the authors show that there is no single, easy reason for the development of villages and hamlets, but that they grew out of a complex combination of social, agricultural and political influences. The text explores the origins and developments of villages, hamlets and farms in the Middle Ages, using the landscape of four East Midland counties as a focus. It provides a basis for understanding early settlement.