The Archaeology of Britain: An introduction from ... - waughfamily.ca

British archaeology since 1945
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and Tilley 1987, 1992; Barrett 1995). These approaches have undoubtedly influenced the writing
of some of the contributors here; this gives some indication of the competing theoretical
approaches to the subject matter and the degree to which these vary according to the data and
traditions of the periods under study.
Archaeology in the field
In terms of fieldwork, the period dominated in interpretive terms by these ‘processual’ approaches
was broadly coeval with the upsurge in ‘rescue archaeology’ (Rahtz 1974), a development spurred
by the recognition by some archaeologists of the impact of government and private sector attempts
to renew Britain’s infrastructure. Although individual government projects—such as the wartime
building of Heathrow airport and the creation of a rocket range on the Outer Hebrides in the
1950s—had been preceded by systematic salvage excavation, this was the exception rather than
the rule. Urban renewal projects, especially in the cores of London and some historic cities in
England, and the building of the motorway network, were major spurs to the case being accepted
for increased state support for preliminary archaeological work, and many large-scale field projects
were undertaken because of such perceived threats. It is arguable that the scale of change in the
urban cores of many British towns and cites is unlikely to be repeated for many years into the
future, with concomitant effects on the range of opportunities for urban archaeology (Figure
1.3). Much of what we know of medieval towns stems from the opportunity presented by this
urban regeneration (see Chapter 12). Much new information was generated, but its assimilation
into wider syntheses was not, in many instances, accorded high priority.
Figure 1.3 Urban archaeology developed rapidly under the ‘rescue’ banner of the 1970s and early 1980s
and provided the basis for much of our knowledge of medieval towns. Excavation at Long Causeway,
Peterborough.
Source: Birmingham University Field Archaeology Unit