Family Biggs live in the centre of England, in the county of Staffordshire, in a semi-rural setting. Below is a view (West) from the upstairs of my house in Tamworth, looking out from the front over the river Tame. The name Tamworth is derived from Tame-Worthig (a settlement or enclosure by the river Tame). The tall structure, just visible on the centre of the horizon, is the ‘Apocolypse’ ride at Drayton Manor Park and Zoo. Our wedding reception was held in Drayton Manor’s Hamilton Suite in 1982. The site was once the home of the 19th century British prime minister Sir Robert Peel .
Our house is situated well above the river. The houses on the opposite side are not so lucky and are built on a flood plain. Unfortunately the houses that can be seen in the picture were flooded during the heavy rain we experienced during the early part of the 2007 summer. The flood defences have since been improved. The Tame is popular with fishermen. Wildlife includes Herons, Swans, Ducks, Pheasant and Foxes. We’ve been feeding the local Foxes at night whilst walking our dog since shortly after we moved here 7 years ago. Sometimes they are actually waiting for us to turn up, peering around the bushes. The lampost, right of centre in the picture, indicates the footpath/cycle path running in front of the house.
To the right, but not in the picture, lies the current Watling Street – the site of the most important Roman road which runs East to West across Great Britain. The Roman Governor, Gaius Suetonius Paulinus and a force of 10,000 men defeated Boudicca and her army of 80,000 Iceni in this area in 60 AD.
I sometimes wonder what the Romans would think about our current UK climate – I expect they would be unimpressed by the current hysteria, alarmism and hypocrisiy, which I shall continue to highlight during 2008.
Snow is forecast here within the next couple of days – if it materialises, I will post a snowy version of the photograph below.
Happy New Year!
Jennifer Marohasy BSc PhD is a critical thinker with expertise in the scientific method.
Hi Paul,
I mentioned to John Brignell a year or so back about Roman Vineyards and how far north they might have occurred. From what I can tell from little serarching I have been able to do, no one seems able to grow grape vines where the Romans used to.
Are they any reliable accounts or data on this in the UK. A map showing the extent of the Roman Vineyards then and now would be useful thing to have.
Hi Paul,
‘From 1835 Tamworth had gaslight. In the late 19th century a piped water supply was created.’
Tamworth in Australia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamworth,_New_South_Wales is known as the ‘City of Lights’, being the first place in the Southern Hemisphere to utilise electric street lights.
Perhaps the name is synonymous with the priority provision of public utilities.
In my Daintree Cape Tribulation rainforest community, not only do we not have street lights or piped water, but we may very possibly be the only community in the world legislated off the grid.
I’m cautious about Roman vineyard claims. I recall the claim that the Romans had vineyards as far north as Northumbria/Northumberland, but I don’t think that there are any reliable records. A map would be useful if there is enough evidence to produce one. Currently, there is a vineyard nearby that opened a few years ago. Certainly the Little Ice Age didn’t do English wine making any favours! We have evidence of a several warm periods, including the Roman warm period, from the Schnidejoch Pass in the Swiss Alps , which is only open in warm periods.
I’ve heard of Tamworth in Oz – looks like an interesting place!
OK, fair enough, little or no data to go on.
I wonder where the Roman wine growing stories came from?
C’est la vie.
Cheers
UK Wine map here for RWP, MWP, LIA and projected 2050 and 2100:
http://www.winelandsofbritain.co.uk/lecture.htm
From DEFRA :
“the UK’s historical connection with wine goes back to Roman times”
http://www.defra.gov.uk/foodrin/wine/industry.htm
Independent:
Veni, vidi, viticulture – remains of Roman vineyards found in UK
One of the main wine-producing areas of Roman Britain seems to have been the Nene Valley, in what is now Northamptonshire. In the valley, near the village of Wollaston, archaeologists have found ancient vineyards covering at least 30 acres, in which vines were grown in the Mediterranean Roman style, exactly as described by classical authors such as Pliny and Columella. On one site, the remains of four miles of bedding trenches have been found. Estimates suggest that the site contained 4,000 vines, producing 10,000 litres of wine a year.
In Roman times, Britain had a slightly warmer climate than now; and, with 500 to 600mm of rain a year, Northamptonshire is at the lower end of the British precipitation range, which would have meant fewer fungal problems. The area would therefore have been suitable for grape production.
http://news.independent.co.uk/sci_tech/article165770.ece
Is that a coppiced woodland in the left background, Paul?
Coppiced woodland – yes sort of, but not very extensive.