history of countryside and agriculture 700ad

UK Countryside history - 700 AD

By 700 AD the countryside had changed dramatically from the Roman period. Towns had become de-populated and the majority of the population now lived in small farmsteads on a subsistence basis with scrub and woodland regeneration common.

Population
In the fifth and sixth centuries there was a massive de-population of the UK. War, disease, political upheaval and emigration all played their part so that by 700 AD the population had fallen to substantially less than 2 million.
Crops
The standard cereal crops were grown but by 700 AD the area under arable production had fallen considerably with land reverting to both pasture, scrub and woodland. Innovations in agriculture were few and it would be some time before the common field system was adopted - a change that would develop over the next two centuries and again alter the face of the countryside for generations to come.
Livestock
Livestock ranching, common in Roman times would have ceased and livestock would have generally been farmed in small numbers. Peasant farmers "churls" typically cultivated an area of land sufficient for just one or two hides (cattle). Pigs, goats and a few sheep would have been common around the small farmsteads.
Farming Systems
The trade that had driven the growth of agriculture in Roman times collapsed and Saxon farming took on a subsistence structure with small farmsteads and peasant farmers who were obligated to a succession of changing landlords. Amongst these was the church which became increasingly powerful following the conversion of the population to christianity.
Woodland & Hedges
With population decline and a fall in the intensity of agricultural production, some land reverted to scrub and eventually woodland. Hedges were common in wooded areas but less so elsewhere. Hedging enclosed fields and often defined the new boundaries created through political upheaval.
Social Economy
The trade, order and urban economy that had characterised the Roman era had been replaced by a period of political instability and subsistence agriculture. However a new socio-economic order was beginning, this being centred on the church and the monasteries.
Climate
Warmer than today with period from 800 AD through to 1300 AD (the mediaeval warm period) being significantly warmer than today.

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