Prehistoric Britain has been a transient home to various human species for nearly a million years. The earliest known human presence dates back to approximately 900,000 years ago at Happisburgh in Norfolk, evidenced by stone tools and footprints likely left by Homo antecessor.
The oldest discovered human fossils in Britain, about 500,000 years old, belong to Homo heidelbergensis and were found at Boxgrove in Sussex.
Until around 425,000 years ago, during the Anglian Glaciation, Britain remained physically connected to the European continent via the Weald-Artois Anticline, a natural chalk ridge linking South East England with northern France.
A catastrophic megaflood breached this ridge, and subsequent rising sea levels during the Hoxnian interglacial period isolated Britain as an island.
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Evidence of very early Neanderthals, dating back to approximately 400,000 years ago, has surfaced at Swanscombe in Kent, while remains of classic Neanderthals around 225,000 years old were discovered at Pontnewydd in Wales.
Human habitation in Britain then experienced a hiatus from about 180,000 to 60,000 years ago, after which Neanderthals reoccupied the area. By 40,000 years ago, Neanderthals had vanished, and modern humans had made their way to Britain.
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However, these early modern human settlements were sporadic and short-lived, largely due to extreme climatic conditions that oscillated between freezing temperatures with tundra environments and severe ice ages, rendering Britain uninhabitable for extended periods.
The last of these glacial periods, the Younger Dryas, concluded approximately 11,700 years ago, marking the beginning of continuous human occupation in Britain.
Paleolithic Era
The Paleolithic Era, or Old Stone Age, marks a significant chapter in the prehistoric narrative of Britain, commencing around 700,000 years ago and enduring until approximately 8,000 BC.
This period is characterised by the earliest known human activity in the British Isles, beginning with the arrival of Homo heidelbergensis, a precursor to modern humans, who ventured into this landscape in search of the abundant wildlife and rich natural resources it offered.
Britain’s climate during the Paleolithic was highly variable, oscillating between cold glacial periods and warmer interglacials. These changing conditions not only sculpted the landscape but also dictated human presence and absence in the region.
During colder epochs, Britain was often depopulated, its inhabitants moving south to warmer territories. However, during interglacial periods, humans returned, exploiting the caves and open sites that the landscape afforded.
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Caves, with their natural protection from the elements and predators, played a pivotal role during this era. They served as temporary abodes for the nomadic hunter-gatherer groups that traversed the landscape, following the migratory patterns of the animals they hunted.
Activity Around 700,000
The remnants found within these caves—stone tools, animal bones, and the occasional human footprint or artefact—provide a window into the lives of these early inhabitants. For instance, the discovery of flint tools beneath the ancient river sediments in Pakefield, Suffolk, indicates human activity around 700,000 years ago, marking one of the earliest sites of human occupation in Northern Europe.
The artefacts left behind in these caves and sites are testament to the ingenuity and adaptability of Paleolithic humans.
Flint tools evolved over millennia, growing more sophisticated as humans developed new techniques for crafting weapons and implements essential for survival. The discovery of hand axes, scrapers, and spear points illustrates the technological advancements of the time.
Perhaps the most evocative insights into Paleolithic life come from the rare occurrences of art and burial. While Britain’s cave art is not as prolific or well-preserved as that found in continental Europe, sites like Creswell Crags offer evidence of these early expressions of human creativity and spirituality.
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Similarly, the ritual burial of the “Red Lady of Paviland” (actually a young man) in South Wales, adorned with red ochre and buried with artefacts, underscores the cultural complexity and emerging spiritual beliefs of Paleolithic peoples.
As the Paleolithic era drew to a close, Britain’s landscape underwent dramatic transformations with the retreat of the last glaciers. The warmer, more stable climate of the ensuing Mesolithic period fostered new ways of life, leading to significant changes in human habitation and culture.
Mesolithic Era
The Mesolithic Era, or Middle Stone Age, spans from the end of the last Ice Age, around 11,700 years ago, to the dawn of the Neolithic period, approximately 6,000 years ago in Britain. This era heralds a time of significant environmental transformation and human adaptation to a rapidly changing world.
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As the ice retreated, it sculpted the landscape, creating a rich mosaic of habitats. Forests of birch and pine, followed by oak, elm, and hazel, spread across Britain, transforming it into a largely wooded landscape. This new environment offered abundant resources, leading to changes in the way people lived.
The Mesolithic communities were hunter-gatherers, exploiting a wide range of food sources from this verdant landscape. They hunted deer, wild boar, and smaller mammals, fished in the rivers and seas, and gathered nuts, fruits, and other wild plants.
Star Carr in North Yorkshire
Their tools, crafted from flint, were small and refined, including microliths—tiny blades and points that could be hafted onto wooden shafts to create arrows and spears—reflecting an adaptation to a more specialised hunting and gathering lifestyle.
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The warmer conditions of the Mesolithic encouraged a greater human presence in Britain, and evidence of their habitation is found in the form of campsites along rivers and lakes, where the waterways provided both a source of food and a means of transport.
Sites such as Star Carr in North Yorkshire have yielded rich archaeological finds, including the remains of dwellings, wooden artefacts, and ceremonial items, offering insights into the social and spiritual lives of Mesolithic peoples.
Mesolithic Communities
These communities were highly mobile, moving seasonally to exploit different resources, but the detailed reconstruction of their camps suggests a degree of permanence and investment in certain favoured locations.
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The social structure of Mesolithic communities is thought to have been egalitarian, with a fluid hierarchy that allowed for the sharing of resources.
Artifacts such as beads and pendants, often made from animal teeth, shells, and amber, suggest personal adornment and perhaps the expression of individual or group identity.
The discovery of burial sites and ceremonial caches of objects indicates that ritual and ceremony played a significant role in Mesolithic society, hinting at belief systems that honoured the dead and perhaps sought to ensure fertility or success in hunting.
Prehistoric Britain
The landscape of Britain was not yet an island in the early Mesolithic, with a land bridge connecting it to the continent. This allowed for the movement of peoples and animals between what is now Britain and mainland Europe.
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However, rising sea levels eventually severed these connections, creating the British Isles and leading to a degree of isolation that would have influenced the development of distinct cultures and technologies.
As the Mesolithic period progressed, the continued warming of the climate and the development of more complex social structures set the stage for the next great leap in human history: the advent of farming and the transition to the Neolithic era. The Mesolithic, therefore, represents an incredible period of adaptation and change, laying the foundations for the sedentary lifestyles and complex societies that were to follow.
Neolithic Era
The Neolithic Era, signifying the transition from a nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle to one marked by agriculture and settlement, began in Britain around 6,000 years ago.
This transformative period introduced farming to the British Isles, dramatically altering the landscape and the way its people lived, worked, and organised their societies. They started to make a marked impact that we see today.
The introduction of domesticated plants and animals from the continent, facilitated by the movement of people and the exchange of ideas, allowed communities to establish the first permanent settlements.
Wheat and barley were cultivated, and livestock such as cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats were raised, providing a more reliable food source than hunting and gathering could offer. This agricultural revolution led to a degree of control over food production that had profound implications for social structures and the environment.
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With the advent of farming, the British landscape began to change. Large areas of woodland were cleared to make way for fields and pastures. This deforestation had significant ecological impacts but was essential for the establishment of farming communities.
Settlements became more permanent, with evidence of longhouses and other structures indicating communal living and a shift towards more hierarchical societies.
Megalithic Structures
The Neolithic period is also marked by monumental architecture, a testament to the era’s technological advances and changing social and religious practices. Megalithic structures, such as henges, stone circles, and burial mounds, dotted the landscape.
Perhaps the most iconic of these is Stonehenge, whose construction began in the late Neolithic and continued into the following Bronze Age.
These structures required considerable communal effort to build, suggesting a society capable of organising large groups for communal projects, and hinting at a complex spiritual and ceremonial life.
The causewayed enclosures, another hallmark of Neolithic Britain, served as gathering places for trade, social interaction, and religious ceremonies. The exact purposes of these enclosures are still debated, but they undoubtedly played a significant role in Neolithic society, facilitating the exchange of goods, ideas, and cultural practices.
Complex Social tructures
The introduction of pottery during the Neolithic revolutionised the storage and transport of goods. This, along with the development of polished stone tools and the first metalworking towards the end of the Neolithic, highlights the technological advancements of the period.
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These innovations not only improved the efficiency of farming and everyday tasks but also contributed to the increasing complexity of Neolithic societies.
The Neolithic era laid the foundations for modern Britain, transforming it from a landscape of nomadic bands into one of settled communities with complex social structures. It was a period of great change, not just in terms of technology and economy but also in how people related to each other and the world around them.
The legacy of the Neolithic is still visible in the landscape today, through the monumental stone structures that continue to fascinate and the deep-rooted agricultural practices that shaped the countryside.
As such, the Neolithic period represents a pivotal chapter in the story of human habitation of the British Isles, marking the dawn of a new way of life that would set the stage for the further developments of the Bronze and Iron Ages.
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Bronze and Iron Ages
The Bronze Age in Britain, commencing around 2500 BCE, heralded a new era of technological innovation and societal complexity following the Neolithic period. This era is distinguished by the introduction of metalworking, with bronze—an alloy of copper and tin—becoming the material of choice for tools, weapons, and ornaments.
This advancement facilitated improvements in agriculture, warfare, and craft, contributing to the development of more hierarchical and complex societies.
Bronze Age Britain witnessed the construction of roundhouses, the standard form of dwelling, which indicated settled communities with a strong connection to their landscape.
The era is also marked by significant burial practices, with the emergence of barrow mounds or tumuli, where individuals were interred with grave goods, suggesting a belief in an afterlife and the importance of the individual within society.
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The Beaker culture, named after the distinctive pottery vessels found in their graves, is particularly noteworthy for its contribution to the spread of metalworking skills and the establishment of widespread trade networks across Europe.
Appearance of Hillforts
The landscape of Britain was further transformed by the Bronze Age practice of creating ceremonial landscapes, including stone circles and alignments, which continued from the Neolithic.
The precise purposes of these sites remain a subject of debate, but they are believed to have served religious or astronomical functions, reflecting a deep connection between Bronze Age communities and the cosmos.
As the Bronze Age gave way to the Iron Age around 800 BC, Britain saw the introduction of iron, a material that would revolutionise tools, weapons, and daily life.
Iron Age Britain is characterised by the appearance of hillforts—fortified settlements located on elevated ground, which served as centres of trade, industry, and defence. These hillforts, ranging from small enclosures to expansive complexes, signify a period of increased regionalism and possibly warfare or competition between emerging tribal groups.
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The Iron Age also saw the development of more complex societal structures, with evidence of powerful chieftains or kings who controlled territories and maintained trade and diplomatic contacts with the wider European world.
New Tools and techniques
The La Tène cultural influence, originating from the European continent, is evident in the intricate art and metalwork of the period, showcasing the connectivity of Iron Age Britain to the broader Celtic culture.
Agriculture remained the backbone of the economy, with the introduction of new tools and techniques allowing for more efficient farming.
However, crafts and specialised trades also flourished, as evidenced by the wealth of artefacts such as jewellery, weapons, and chariots found in archaeological excavations. The religious life of Iron Age Britons is glimpsed through the deposition of valuable items in rivers and bogs, practices thought to be offerings to the gods.
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The arrival of the Romans in 43 CE marked the end of the Iron Age in Britain, although many Iron Age practices and structures persisted well into the Roman period.
The Romans’ written records provide valuable insights into the late Iron Age societies they encountered, describing a landscape of complex tribal kingdoms and a people skilled in agriculture, warfare, and art.
In conclusion, the Bronze and Iron Ages were periods of significant transformation in Britain, marked by technological advancements, evolving social structures, and the creation of enduring monuments and artefacts.
