The Agrarian History of England and Wales

The period between the repeal of the Corn Laws and the Great War is crucial for an understanding of present-day rural and agricultural issues. The unifying theme of this volume is the changing role of the countryside in national life, and the impact upon it of the social and economic forces unleashed by industrialisation and the growth of towns. Science and technology held out the prospect of unprecedented advances in agricultural output and productivity but, by 1914, English agriculture had lost its 'headship among industries', and technical supremacy among nations. It now produced less than one-tenth of national income and employment, and less than half the nation's food. Only one-fifth of the population was classified as 'rural'; most traditional rural crafts had long since decayed; and the social and political position of the landowning classes had been seriously weakened.