Buckinghamshire is one of the smaller English counties yet is it one of the most varied and attractive, visually, and one of the most interesting, historically. It falls into two quite distinct and separate halves, on either side of the chalk scarp of the Chilterns. To the north is a rural countryside of rounded hills, clay vales and brooks, with ancient towns such as Buckingham, Olney, Newport Pagnell, Winslow and Aylesbury, together with one exciting new town, Milton Keynes. The south, on the other hand, is a series of steep sided, often dry, valleys and ridges on the dip of the Chilterns sloping down towards London and the Thames Valley. Here too are old towns like Amersham, Beaconsfield and, the largest of them, Slough, which though now, with Eton, transferred to Berkshire is still historically and spiritually, part of Buckinghamshire.
More interesting than a conventional chronological history of the county, this stimulating new book examines the factors which, over the centuries, have shaped the landscape and towns of today. The effects of fields, farms and enclosures, of roads, canals and railways, of markets and churches on the long, slow, evolution of modern Buckinghamshire are examined in detail with the help of a wealth of illustrations, many specially taken or drawn for this book. Successive generations of men and women, going about the everyday business of their lives, have created the incredibly rich historical density of the landscape and townscape we see today without ever entirely erasing the contribution of their ancestors; whereby it is possible to detect the work and ways of Buckinghamshire folk from remote prehistory. It is necessary to know what to look for and how to interpret what one sees. In this respect Professor Reed offers remarkable new insight to his readers and provides the essential visual evidence.
There can be few people who know Buckinghamshire who can fail to be intrigued, even fascinated, by the new light thrown on the past and its influence on the present in this celebration of all those who have contributed to the heritage we enjoy today. It is not just a new look at the old county, but a new way of looking at it.
Contents:
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgements
1. All the World’s a Stage
2. Prehistory
3. Roman Buckinghamshire
4. The Coming of the English
5. Place-names
6. Fields and Farms
7. Forests and Chases
8. Old Towns
9. Markets and Fairs
10. Churches and Monasteries
11. Watermills and Windmills
12. Farmhouses and Cottages
13. Schools and Almshouses
14. Country Houses
15. Parks and Gardens
16. Roads and Inns
17. Canals and Railways
18. Business and Industry
19. New Towns
20. The Twentieth Century
Bibliography
Index
