Chester Society for Landscape History
Main image: The upper storeys of Chester’s iconic Rows. Although the structures date from the Middle Ages, the one on this corner was restyled by T.M. Lockwood for Chester City Council in 1888. Above: Dating from around 1600, the Red Lion in Northgate Street is one of Chester’s oldest pubs.
(Photographs: Vanessa Greatorex)
Forthcoming Events
MEMBERS ONLY
Saturday 26 September 2026, 10am-4.30pm (doors open 9.30am):
Celebrating 40 years of Chester Society for Landscape History:
Exhibition, bookstall, refreshments, talks.
Venue: St Columba’s Church Hall, Plas Newton Lane, Chester, CH2 1SA
Provisional programme:
10am: Welcome from Chair (Diane Johnson) and brief history of Chester Society for Landscape History (Professor Graeme White)
10.20 am: Discovering the Huxley Hoard of Viking Silver (William Hargreaves, Lune Valley Metal Detecting Society)
11.00 am: Coffee/tea break
11.30 am: Sutton Weaver Swing Bridge (Malcolm Verity, CLSH)
11.50am: Markets of Medieval Cheshire (Dr Alan Crosby, British Association for Local History)
12.45pm: Lunch
1.40pm: Historic Towns Map of Chester (Dr Tom Pickles & Professor Katherine Wilson, University of Chester/Historic Towns Trust)
2.30pm: Comfort break
2.40pm: West Park, Macclesfield: A Victorian People’s Park (Dr Sarah Griffiths, University of Chester Press & CSLH)
3.00pm: 1066 and All That: A Hoard of Silver Pennies Minted during the Reign of Harold II (Harold Gaskell & William Hargreaves, Lune Valley Metal Detecting Club)
3.45pm: Talk (title tbc) and closing remarks (Diane Johnson, Chair, CSLH)
4.00pm: Tea
Events open to non-members resume in October. Please see our Lectures page for details.
What is Landscape History?
Landscape History is the study of how people have altered the landscape through time.
It seeks to explain the historical significance of the buildings, earthworks, flora and other physical features which are our common heritage. It embraces aspects of history, archaeology, architecture, geography, geology, botany and other disciplines.
“The English landscape itself, to those who know how to read it aright, is the richest historical record we possess.” – W.G. Hoskins, The Making of the English Landscape (1955).
Picks of the Week
Here are some links to online landscape history resources recently recommended by our Information Officer and other members:
The Medieval Climate Anomaly
Climate change is nothing new: higher temperatures, volcanic eruptions, water shortages and, conversely, months of unrelenting rain contributed to poor harvests, famine, deforestation, wildfires and pandemics in the Middle Ages, but also to periods of agricultural expansion and population growth.
https://theconversation.com/drought-water-shortages-and-crop-failures-how-does-the-medieval-warm-period-compare-with-today-287416?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=How%20medieval%20monks%20chronicled%20a%2013th-century%20heatwave%20-%203882139524&utm_content=How%20medieval%20monks%20chronicled%20a%2013th-century%20heatwave%20-%203882139524+CID_89609696c0e87d2c19af9bc40e6028f2&utm_source=campaign_monitor_uk&utm_term=Drought%20water%20shortages%20and%20crop%20failures%20how%20does%20the%20medieval%20warm%20period%20compare%20with%20today
Heatwaves reveal new archaeological sites in Wales
Parch marks visible from the air as a result of summer 2026’s heatwaves and minimal rainfall have revealed the existence of several previously unknown archaeological features in Wales, including a Neolithic long barrow near Welshpool in Powys, a Romano-British double-ditched farmstead near Llandysul in Ceredigion, additional buildings at Caerhun Roman fort near Conwy, and First World War practice trenches beneath a golf course in Deganwy.
https://www.gbnews.com/news/archaeology-breakthrough-heatwaves-expose-sites-wales
Click on the blue text at the end of this sentence for links to previously recommended Online Resources or for links to specific topics, including: Directories/Databases/Aerial Photographs, Geology, Ecosystems, Prehistory, Roman, Anglo-Saxon, Viking, Medieval, Tudor and Stuart, Castles, Churches/Cathedrals/Shrines, Industrial, Cheshire, Wales, Other Locations.