Ian Rotherham: 15 books

Though most of us will have enjoyed strolling through beautiful British woodlands, we might not be aware of the ancient – and often complex – origins of our surroundings. From medieval times, woodlands were carefully managed commodities with hotly contested resources: conflicting demands from...

The British spa came into its own in the Georgian period, with thousands flocking to take the waters at Bath, Cheltenham and Tunbridge Wells as well as numerous other towns. As these towns grew, their reputation as fashionable destinations became as or more important than the benefits of bathing,...

For thousands of years peat was the main fuel that that warmed houses all over the British Isles, and the mark of the peat cutter is written deep in the landscape. This book is a celebration of a cultural history that extended from the Iron Age to the twentieth century. It tells the story of the use...

From the time when it was a major producer of high-quality steel and internationally renowned for its cutlery, through decline and recession in the twentieth century, to its twenty-first-century reinvention and revival as a vibrant developing centre of retail and commerce, Sheffield has a proud and...

Bathing was central to Roman society. It was the pinnacle of sophisticated leisure and of cleanliness. After the collapse of the Roman Empire, even the most highranking people in European society were distinctly grubby and smelly! It would be thousands of years before anything approaching the same...

Sheffield is the fourth-largest city in England and was where the Industrial Revolution began in earnest. The city is renowned for its high-quality steel and fine cutlery, for its two large universities and for having the biggest shopping centre in Europe, yet there is so much more to its history...

Sheffield is the fourth largest city in England and was where the Industrial Revolution began in earnest. It is renowned for its high-quality steel and fine cutlery, for its two large universities and for having the biggest shopping centre in Europe, yet there is so much more to know about this proud...

World famous because of its historic association with the iconic Sherwood Forest, Robin Hood and the Sheriff – Nottingham has been home to major industries too with Nottingham lace, bicycles, and Player’s cigarettes notable in times past. Boasting two major universities, world-class theatres,...

York is known throughout the world because of its historic association with famous moments in English history, from Roman stronghold to Viking capital. It was also the home of major industries, with York-made chocolates and other manufacturing industries notable in times past. Today, the city is the...

This is a challenging new approach to understanding ecological systems especially in urban and urbanised areas. Synthesising current ideas and approaches the book develops an historic context to ecological fusion and recombinant or hybrid ecosystems. With massive climate change and other environmental...

Yorkshire’ Forgotten Fens’ is a history of the cultural landscape of the wetlands of the Humber basin and the entire county of Yorkshire stretching from the Humber and north Lincolnshire through the Vale of York, through South Yorkshire and Holderness, to Pickering and beyond. The book draws together...

The Lost Fens is the history of the cultural landscape of the Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, and Yorkshire Fenlands from the Humber and the Vale of York, to Norfolk. The book draws together the story of changing landscapes, lost cultures and ways of life, and the wildlife that has gone, too. This story...

North Yorkshire boasts some of the most stunning countryside and amazing seaside anywhere in England, and its history is equally dramatic. Whitby Museum holds evidence of the great sea creatures that formerly populated this region millions of years ago. The soft shale rocks reveal and release fossils...

One of the oldest settlements in Western Europe, York grew up on dry land with protective rivers and associated wetlands giving security and mobility. Early, prehistoric settlement was on nearby drier, raised areas along the flood plain. Here the Romans built a great, northern, fortified city and...