A Short History of English Agriculture

This volume offers a sweeping survey of England’s farming heritage, tracing how the land that once fed feudal lords and village commons evolved into the modern agricultural landscape. Beginning with the communal strips of the early medieval manor, the author walks listeners through pivotal moments—such as the Black Death’s upheaval of the manorial system, the introduction of turnips and clover, and the dramatic enclosure movements that reshaped fields and fortunes.

The narrative highlights key reforms, inventions, and social upheavals—from Tull’s horse‑hoeing technique to the rise and fall of the Corn Laws—showing how each shift echoed through the broader economy and daily life. By focusing especially on the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries, the book reveals how innovation, legislation, and market forces intertwined to turn England’s countryside into a laboratory of progress. Listeners will come away with a clearer picture of how agriculture, often called the nation’s “great nerve,” underpinned the country’s development and shaped its social fabric.