COUNTRYSIDE HISTORY

The Life and Legacy of Oliver Rackham

Editors Ian D Rotherham and Jennifer A Moody

Pelagic Publishing, 2024, 438 pages

Hardback £50 | ISBN: 9781784273163

Review by Janet Mackinnon

I regard Countryside History as a pinnacle in my ECOS reviewing experience, but it is also a challenging book to review. Like The Ancient Woods of South East Wales, the present volume is a scholarly labour of love, not just by the editors but also by its many contributors. Indeed, some of the 25 chapters merit full-length reviews in themselves. Let me start by saying this book has an excellent introduction, entitled ‘An Overview of the Work and Influences of Oliver Rackham’ by Ian Rotherham (a long-time contributor to ECOS) and Jennifer Moody, and is exceptionally well-structured and presented. The challenge arises because of the broad scope of the project, divided in to the following six parts. Along with the editor’s introduction, I shall use these to frame my discussion before making some concluding reflections on what has been called the ‘Rackhamian worldview.’

1. Woodland Studies in England

2. European Studies

3. Mediterranean Studies

4. Approaches to Countryside Research

5. Wider Perspectives

6. Legacy, Archive and Publications

Overview of Oliver Rackham’s Work

Toward the end of the editors’ introduction is an extract from Ancient Tree Forum founder Ted Green’s 2015 obituary of Rackham which describes him as: ‘Fieldman man, observer, ecologist’ and ‘scholar of the historical written word.’ Alongside meticulous field research and archival scholarship, Green also notes the remarkable ability to communicate with a general readership in memorable word pictures, or ‘Visual English.’ Moreover, what the editors describe as Rackham’s ‘legacy of landscape studies’ extends well beyond England, and even the Anglophone world – particularly the United States – to much of Europe, including the Mediterranean, Japan and Kyrgyzstan (see below). Comparing Britain and Australia, Rackham describes the latter as ‘… Planet of Fire. Except in the small area of rainforest, fire is as necessary to Australian native vegetation as rain to Britain.’

International field work in semi-arid zones, including a final trip to Ethiopia in 2012, enabled Rackham to develop his ideas on savanna (scattered trees in landscapes of tall grasses), in contrast to Dutch ecologist Franz Vera’s account of the mosaic pattern of grassland and wildwood in pre-historic Europe. While Vera’s support for the fundamental role of grazing animals, especially large herbivores, in the evolution of European mosaic landscapes has informed much rewilding theory and practice, Rackham challenged some of this thinking. Indeed, friendly critical discourse between the two famous ecologists, and their adherents, enhances the well-informed commentary of Countryside History. Nevertheless, it will be as advocate for better understanding of the historical ecology of ancient woods and woodland, and support for their conservation, that Rackham will remain best known in Britain.

Woodland Studies in England

This section of Countryside History would have been more aptly titled ‘Woodland Studies in Britain.’ For while the focus in on England, Adrian Newton’s chapter on ‘How the Wildwood Worked: Rackham’s Contribution to Forest Ecology’ ranges more widely. I’m going to begin with his contribution, because it is among those which particularly stand out and sets the scene for Franz Vera’s important subsequent chapter on rewilding in ‘European studies.’ Newton traces his own involvement in rewilding to establishment of the Carrifan Wildwood project in the Scottish Borders during the early 1990s. The development of this ground-breaking community woodland, incidentally, is described by one of its founders, Philip Ashmole, in a fascinating 2019 ECOS article ‘It is no co-incidence,’ observes Newton, ‘that the project incorporated the Rackhamian word “wildwood” within its name.’ He continues:

(Rackham’s 1980 book) Ancient Woodland was a key source of guidance, not only as a source of auto-ecological information about individual tree species, but also for information about how these species combine to form woodland communities.

A key ‘legacy’ of Oliver Rackham to the science of forest ecology is, according to Newton, that he ‘helps us to distinguish the ecological features that resulted from human activity versus those that are attributable to natural processes.’

‘Woodland Studies in England’ also has perceptive contributions from George Peterken, Della Hooke, Keith Kirby and David Morfitt. Forestry expert and conservationist Peterken notes that Rackham’s ‘idea of ancient woodland has appealed strongly to the public imagination;’ while Hooke, a historian of Anglo-Saxon England, extends this imaginative resonance to ‘ancient countryside.’ Her observations on transhumance and land management in the early Middle Ages, including use of cattle, pigs and horses before sheep farming became more widespread, are particularly insightful. However, Kirby argues the ‘observational and descriptive ecology which forms the core of Rackham’s work’ currently tends to be ‘out of fashion’ in academic circles, as would probably be his suggestion, flagged by Morfitt, that climate change could be beneficial to some native trees and shrubs.

European Studies

This section opens with a chapter by the Dutch biologist and conservationist Franz Vera entitled ‘On the Shoulders of Oliver Rackham.’ Vera is best known for his ‘wood-pasture hypothesis’ or ‘megaherbivore theory’ suggesting that open and semi-open pastures together with wood pastures formed the predominant type of landscape in post-glacial temperate Europe rather than primeval forests. Despite some theoretical divergence on ecological succession, Rackham and Vera gracefully acknowledged the influence of one another’s work, and the latter describes reading (or rather ‘devouring’) Ancient Woodland as a ‘revelation’. He credits this with guiding him towards the conclusion of his PhD thesis which became the seminal 2000 book Grazing Ecology and Forest History. Rackham also wrote extensively on wood-pasture systems and his detailed historical research revealed the importance of ‘hawthorn or holly scrub’ in protecting young oaks – trees most associated with this landscape – from grazing animals. Similarly, Vera noted this pattern in European wood-pasture ecosystems such as Borkener Paradise in Germany.

The second chapter (7) in ‘European Studies’ on ‘Forest History versus Pseudo-History’ concludes with a quote from Rackham which is especially relevant in many places today:

In the 1970s trees and plants seemed to be such a precarious state that only immediate action could save them: tree planting – any trees – was thought be needed in a hurry…. People should stop and think and get the details right. This may involve waiting a year or two, or planting fewer but better-chosen trees; or doing nothing and letting natural succession do the job. The time for playing God is over. (Woodlands, 2006)

This observation is applied to conservation of the Białowieża Primeval Forest, the main focus of the chapter, and support for ‘natural forest processes to inform future forest management across Europe.’ A subsequent contribution on ‘Old-Growth Forests in the Eastern Alps’ continues this theme, noting that Rackham’s ‘arguments for the natural regeneration of trees could also be applied to high-forest stands’ (also called ‘forest mountains’). By contrast, the final chapter in this section of Countryside History by Goria Pungetti is a eulogy to ‘Renaissance Man’ Olive Rackham’s extensive (and, for Italian author, profound) influence on the study of European ‘Biocultural Landscapes;’ which she compares to that of a conductor (or ‘Maestro’) directing a ‘harmonic composition that linked nature and culture…’

Mediterranean Studies

In some important ways, these five studies form the book’s centrepiece reflecting Rackham’s long-term collaboration with archaeologist and joint editor Jennifer Moody on the historical ecology of Crete and Greece. Moody’s contribution – ‘The Irreplaceable Trees of Crete’ – describes her friend and colleague’s enduring relationship with the island’s landscape, including local dedication of three remarkable trees ‘in celebration of his life and work’ there. However, the chapter follows one providing a broader context for Rackham’s writing that considers his joint 2001 publication with Cambridge geographer A T Grove: The Nature of Mediterranean Europe – An Ecological History. Their book challenged what had become known as ‘Ruined Landscape Theory’ or the ‘degradationist hypothesis’ latterly expounded in the work of American J R McNeill. It is perhaps more polemical in tone that Rackham’s other writing and less nuanced on the role of people in landscape management, a theme developed by other contributors to ‘Mediterranean Studies.’

From my perspective, a most thought-provoking contribution in this section is ‘Walking in Sacred Forests with Oliver Rackham: A Conversation about Relict Landscapes in Epirus, North-West Greece.’ This contains a number of extracts from a 2014 draft report by Rackham for a project exploring ‘conservation through religion’ to which he was an adviser. The focus of this project was the sacred forests of the Pindos Mountain range, ‘which have been protected for centuries through folk religious taboos and supernatural beliefs.’ I am reminded of the ‘Yeti national park’ (or Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary) in Bhutan where Migois, mythical ape-like creatures, are widely revered. Similarly, Rackham identifies a ‘sacred dread’ for certain forests, combined with recognition of their functional roles as embodied in the German word ‘Bannwald’ used to designate a protected area. Indeed, his 2014 report concludes that: ‘The sacred forests of Epirus are among the world’s oldest protected areas.’

Approaches to Countryside Research

Joint editor Ian Rotherham’s chapter (18) also tackles protection of ancient woodland, albeit through UK planning systems. As former head of Sheffield City Council’s ecological advisory unit, he describes how exposure to Rackham’s ideas led to establishment of the ‘Landscape Conservation Forum’ which generated several important national inter-disciplinary projects. These included a major review of the use of ancient woodland indicator plants whose 2008 output was ‘The Woodland Heritage Manual: a guide to investigating wooded landscapes.’ Based on this and subsequent work, a 2011 protocol which brought together information from a range of disciplines to assess ancient woodland status was produced that could be used by planning authorities, local groups and NGOS to defend sites against development. However, Rotherham emphasises that woodland indicator plants occur beyond wooded areas making it ‘important to address the nature of woods, wood-pastures, lost woods, ghost woods and shadow woods,’ as well as the presence of veteran trees. In addition to his key contributions to Countryside History, a selection of articles by the author on planning and landscape conservation, woodland management and rewilding are available at ECOS.

Other contributions to this section of the book also address the relevance and application of Oliver Rackham’s work to strategic and practical conservation In Britain and Europe. Melvyn Jones’ chapter again highlights the role of archives in woodland research, and a subsequent one points out that ‘Rackham’s craft was honed in the English countryside but transferred easily to, say, Europe or to North America.’ By way of illustration, the next chapter discusses the role of coppicing in woodland management, using the example of present-day Czechia (and the former Czechoslovakia) in contrast to ‘modern economic ‘scientific’ forestry.’ Tom Williamson concludes ‘Approaches to Countryside Research’ by emphasising the significance of Rackham’s fieldwork in East Anglia in the development of his thinking. He proposes that ‘a guide to fieldwork’ contained in chapter 6 of Trees and Woodlands ‘although published more than 40 years ago, has yet to be bettered’ as a ‘toolkit’ for ecological investigations.

Wider Perspectives

Whilst Paul Adam argues that much of Oliver Rackham’s field methodology can be transferred to Australia, he acknowledges difficulties in a country that Rackham himself described as ‘a miniature planet: its ecosystems work on different principles to the rest of the globe.’ In an account of ‘environmental history in Australia,’ Adam points to a discourse which in some ways is reminiscent of that around Mediterranean landscape modification, but also very different. Citing The Biggest Estate on Earth – How Aborigines made Australia (2011) by Bill Gammage, he suggests a more nuanced approach in contrast to a recent consensus that ‘management of fire transformed the vegetation and ecology of the whole continent.’ However, as noted at the beginning of this review, Rackham called Australia ‘… Planet of Fire. Except in the small area of rainforest, fire is as necessary to Australian native vegetation as rain to Britain.’ The difficulty of challenging the role of fire arises from relatively limited historical written records compared to Europe. Nevertheless, Adam ends by making the case for trans-disciplinary collaboration of the kind associated with Rackham.

Further chapters in ‘Wider Perspectives’ cover such themes as managing pollards in Sweden, and the influence of Rackham’s work on interpretation of diverse landscapes, especially wooded, in New England and Japan. In the 2012 preface to a Japanese edition of The History of the Countryside, the author comments: ‘….both countries are lands of ancient settled civilization; their plants and animals have something in common; and to some extent their human inhabitants have encountered similar problems and have dealt with them in similar ways.’ A ‘case study on the traditional satoyama landscape’ explores ‘traditional natural resource use systems’ with a view to gaining ‘knowledge and hints as to how future societies in rural farming and fishing villages could look and function.’

Legacy, Archive and Publications

In their conclusions to Countryside History editors Rotherham and Moody also look ahead:

A challenge for future generations will be to maintain the awareness and passion for these wonderful and irreplaceable landscapes that Oliver described as being akin to illuminated medieval manuscripts there to be deciphered and read. Beyond this is the need to protect the countryside and its ancient woods…

Information about Oliver Rackham’s extensive archive and a detailed publication list are then provided. Whilst the former focuses upon a range of material held by Cambridge University and Corpus Christi College, of which Rackham was a fellow and briefly Master, there is also a description of ‘eclectic’ items from his home carpentry workshop now held in the Small Woods Association’s Green Wood Centre in Shropshire. A bookshelf designed and built by Rackham accommodates his works on the Eastern Mediterranean at Boutsounaria in Crete where there is an archive of this work here and in other parts of Greece. Arguments for ongoing research based on his scholarship are made in the present and other chapters.

The ‘Rackhamian Worldview’

In my final reflections on Countryside History, sub-titled on bookseller Summerfield’s website as ‘Essays in honour of Oliver Rackham,’ I shall return to Adrian Newton’s account in chapter 3 of the ‘Rackhamian worldview.’ This was critical of ‘ecology as a science’, in part because historical ecology is widely regarded as ‘not science at all but natural history’. A certain professional scientific condescension for (and perhaps lack of understanding of) the latter is maybe one reason a new natural history GCSE has taken many years to introduce in to the English school curriculum. According to Newton, as well as the true naturalist’s attention to detail, Rackham was profoundly concerned about landscape’s ‘loss of meaning’ for many people: something his life’s work seeks to rectify. This interest in meaning evokes the Aboriginal Australian notion of ‘country’ which encompasses diverse human and spiritual connections with nature. The Rackhamian worldview seems to restore something of this connection to the land, and especially woodland, to people of European heritage. Indeed, a 2015 obituary in The Times described Rackham as the ‘High Druid of ecologists.’

Postscript

After the first draft of this review, I spoke to a Dutch cyclist taking a train/bike trip around parts of Britain and Ireland. We discussed Oostvaardersplassen and the controversy around past failures of animal ‘management’  The work of Franz Vera, in particular, has been challenged in a recent Handbook of Rewilding to which several people involved in ECOS contributed, including Simon Leadbeater (whom I’d like to thank for his observations on the review’s initial draft). A contributor to Countryside History, Dr Keith Kirby, has also done extensive research on large herbivores in a range of woodland systems that raises some critical questions about their widely accepted roles in rewilding.

Again, I was just reminded of the relevance of Oliver Rackham’s work to what might be described as the Welsh ‘post-rewilding landscape’ in an email about the Cambrian Wildwood project. ECOS was an early adopter of this initiative when conceived as a rewilding venture but, partly as a consequence of the Mid Wales rewilding controversy, Cambrian Wildwood became a less contentious nature restoration project. This is currently recruiting a ‘Heritage Communications and Development Manager’ whose duties include: ‘… the development of a plan to implement our new strategic priorities around discovering, preserving and telling the stories of the land around Bwlch Corog and the cultural heritage of the local community…the ability to communicate in Welsh and English is key to this role.’ Given widely differing viewpoints about what this constitutes, Rewilding Britain have produced a very helpful glossary for the subject.