In this essential handbook for all those researching landscape history, Richard Muir explains how to recognize and interpret the complex evidence for historical change in England's countryside. Drawing on the wealth of research carried out since Reading the Landscape was originally published in 1981, Muir provides a masterly synthesis of current thinking about the history of the key elements in England's rural landscape. As well as covering familiar topics such as villages, woodlands and roads, he explores how landscape features are human ideas made manifest-boundary walls and hedges reflect territoriality, churches and henges reflect belief and castles and hillforts reflect status and the need for defence. Throughout, he explains how the researcher can link the evidence of field archaeology, ecology and documentary research to develop as complete a picture as possible.An entirely rewritten successor to the original Reading the Landscape, with full referencing. Illustrated with 60 original maps guiding the reader through the interpretation of specific sites, and 40 high quality landscape photographs. Includes 29 tables explaining key landscape features, and how to diagnose them in the field.