Focus or frontier? The significance of estuaries in the landscape of southern Britain

Abstract

As major physical features of our landscape, and the location of some of our major ports and cities, it is easy to assume that estuaries have always been of great significance to our island nation. The examination of case studies in the east and west of Britain suggests, however, that estuaries were only important in certain socio-economic and political spheres, and that, particularly for the lower levels of society they often presented a barrier to contact. The significance of estuaries also changed over time as the nature of economic interaction and political structures evolved.