Rodney Castleden

Were prehistoric people like us? How did they live, what did they think and how did they see their world?3000 BC was a moment of great significance in the British Isles: Avebury, Stonehenge and many other major monuments were at vital stages in their construction and use, and writing – often regarded as the ultimate hallmark of civilisation – made its first appearance in Europe. In this revised and updated edition of Britain 3000 BC, Rodney Castleden uses the evidence of archaeological investigations to recreate the society, customs, economy, religion and ritual of Britain 5000 years ago, and to reveal the lost world of prehistoric people.From the well-built stone houses of Skara Brae on the Orkney Islands to the more primitive wooden huts of Honington in Suffolk, Castleden enters the dwellings and lifestyles of neolithic communities and delves into the nature of their society, their trading networks and positive obsession with death. Britain 3000 BC will be fascinating reading for everyone who is interested in prehistory, archaeology and the magnificent monuments our ancient ancestors left behind.

The book describes the route of the Cuckmere Pilgrim Path, a 14 mile round walk through the Sussex countryside. The path links seven churches and the Long Man, a chalk hill figure. As each church is reached, the narrative of the walk breaks off and there is a section about the detailed history of the building and its setting. The route includes Alfriston, Berwick, Alciston, Selmeston, Arlington, Wilmington and Lullington.

A guide to the history of Wilmington church in Sussex and its setting. The book includes the architectural history of the church and the ruined priory right next to it, as well as sections on the ancient yew tree in the churchyard and the Long Man on Windover Hill immediately to the south. The book includes way the church was altered during the Victorian restoration, as well as the latest thinking about the origins of the enigmatic chalk hill figure, the Long Man of Wilmington.

An historical guide to Selmeston Church in Sussex and its setting. The church looks like a medieval church, but was rebuilt from the ground up in the nineteenth century by the vicar, William Parish; his friend Lewis Carroll often stayed at the rectory opposite the church. The history of the site goes back much further, to the first Saxon settlers, and before that to neolithic and mesolithic people, who had settlements within a hundred metres of the church. This guide explores some of the historical enigmas. 101 pages, 47 black and white illustrations

An historical guide to Alciston church and the surrounding area. The manor of Alciston is unusual in having only two owners since the Norman Conquest, Battle Abbey and the Gage family, both of whom were conscientious record-keepers. Alciston's history is therefore known in some detail. The guide explores the church's fascinating architectural history, illuminated by a rare archaeological excavation at the eastern end. 105 pages, 47 black and white illustrations.

Arlington in Sussex is an enigma - a large church and churchyard serving a tiny hamlet. What happened here? This historical guide has the church as its focus, but explores the long history of the surrounding area along the way. The Saxons chose an unusual and difficult site - low, wet and densely wooded. They may have founded a river port here. The church's Norman chapel was probably built as part of the Canterbury pilgrimage cult. 102 pages, 49 black and white illustrations.

Berwick church in Sussex is renowned for its wall paintings by Duncan Grant and other artists in the Bloomsbury Group. But the church also has a fascinating earlier history. It was radically restored by Edward Ellman, the Victorian rector, and before that it had a history dating back to Saxon times. The font is Saxon, and the large mound in the churchyard may be a pre-Christian burial mound. This book is a guide to the church's long and interesting history.

The first full history of Seaford in Sussex, this book covers the development of the port shortly after the Norman Conquest and its rise to Cinque Port status in the middle ages. Natural silting at the mouth of the River Ouse led to the port's decline. Later Seaford became a major poltical hub, returning two Members of Parliament. Seaford is a town that has struggled for survival, reinventing itself several times over across 900 years. Large format (US Letter), 392 pages, 272 black & white pictures.

A complete record of all the inscriptions in the church and churchyard at Wilmington in Sussex. Wilmington is steeped in history and folklore. Stories of the church, the priory next to it and the figure of the Long Man looming over them on Windover Hill seem to intertwine. The yew tree presiding over the churchyard may be more ancient than any of them. A detailed historical introduction narrates the stories of all of these features and shows how they link together. The full record of monumental inscriptions includes photos, plans and indexes, making this book an invaluable resource for local and family history. 247 pages.

The book reviews the history of Arlington Church and Churchyard in Sussex, and gives the full record of all the inscriptions on the site, together with plans, photos and indexes. An invaluable resource for local amd family history. Arlington is an enigma: an unusually large church and churchyard serving a tiny village. The Saxons, who founded the village, chose an unusual and difficult site - low, wet and densely wooded - next to the Cuckmere River. Was it for the sake of of trading up and down the river? Was the Norman chapel connected to the Canterbury pilgrimage cult? Arlington has a history of isolation, disunity and dissent, not helped by roads that in the past were often under water. This A5 paperback is 227 pages long with 12 plans, 54 black and white illustrations, an index of monuments and a general index.

Selmeston in Sussex was a settlement long before the Saxons arrived, even though it has a Saxon name. Eight thousand years ago, stone age houses stood close to the site of the church. The unusual circular churchyard hints at a pre-Christian origin. The book reviews the site's history and gives a full record of all the inscriptions, together with plans, photos and indexes. 242 pages long, this book is an invaluable resource for both local and family history.

3300 years ago Agamemnon, king of Mycenae in Greece, attacked the city of Troy in western Anatolia. The bloody siege that followed gave rise to one of the most famous legends of the ancient world, and the search for the truth behind the legend has intrigued scholars ever since. In this fascinating new investigation Rodney Castleden reconsiders all the evidence in order to establish the facts and give a historical basis to the most potent myth of ancient warfare.

The fascinating story of the discovery and rediscovery of a unique prehistoric stone axe hoard. The 15 flint axes were found in 1986, but then forgotten and only displayed as a hoard in 2014, when their national importance was recognized. Hoards like this are very rare. Where were the axes made? By a remarkable coincidence, the factory where they were manufactured was also discovered in 2014, very close at hand. Neolithic Seaford is re-created in new maps. From all the evidence it is possible to reconstruct what it was like to live in Sussex five thousand years ago. Royal paperback, 134 pages, 49 b&w illustrations.

The climax of the Stone Age in Britain, the Neolithic period (4700-2000BC), was a period of startling achievement. The British Isles are rich in Neolithic sites, which give us evidence of a complex and surprisingly developed archaic society. The author surveys 1100 secular and ceremonial sites in Britain, selecting some for detailed explanation; from these a sense of the diversity and dynamism of the living Neolithic communities emerges. He presents a comprehensive, profusely illustrated and up-to-date view of the Neolithic, organised by county.Archaeologists and prehistorians will find this book of interest and it should prove indispensable to students of archaeology as a source of information about the British Neolithic.

First published in 1990. Of all the monuments left by the past, Stonehenge is the most evocative, the most memorable and the most mysterious. Whilst the monuments of other cultures have gradually surrendered their mysteries, Stonehenge alone seems to stimulate endless conjecture. Rodney Castleden's vivid presentation of the world of the megaliths answers many of the most baffling questions about Stonehenge. There are, he stresses, few absolute certainties, but from the vast body of evidence assembled during the last hundred years it is now possible to get much closer to the truth than ever before. Who built the monuments and for what purpose? How were the bluestones moved from the sacred mountains of the west to Salisbury Plain? Who were the people responsible for this amazing undertaking, and what did they think and believe?

Thoroughly researched, Rodney Castleden's Minoans: Life in Bronze Age Crete here sues the results of recent research to produce a comprehensive new vision of the peoples of Minoan Crete.Since Sir Arthur Evans rediscovered the Minoans in the early 1900s, we have defined a series of cultural traits that make the ‘Minoan personality’: elegant, graceful and sophisticated, these nature lovers lived in harmony with their neighbours, while their fleets ruled the seas around Crete. This, at least, is the popular view of the Minoans. But how far does the later work of archaeologists in Crete support this view? Drawing on his experience of being actively involved in research on landscapes processes and prehistory for the last twenty years, Castleden writes clearly and accessibly to provide a text essential to the study of this fascinating subject.

Every generation has created its own interpretation of Stonehenge, but rarely do these relate to the physical realities of the monument. Rodney Castleden begins with those elements which made possible the building of this vast stone circle: the site, the materials and the society that undertook the enormous task of transporting and raising the great vertical stones, then capping them, all to a carefully contrived plan. What emerges from this detailed examination is a much fuller sense of Stonehenge, both in relation to all the similar sites close by, and in terms of the uses to which it was put. Castleden suggests that there is no one 'meaning' or 'purpose' for Stonehenge, that from its very beginning it has filled a variety of needs. The Romans saw it as a centre of resistance; the antiquaries who 'rediscovered' it in the seventeenth century saw a long line of continuity leading back into the nation's past. The archaeologists see it as a subject for rational, scientific investigation; The National Trust and English Heritage view it as an unfailing magnet for visitors; UNESCO has declared it a World Heritage Site, the cultural property of the whole of humanity. Lost to view amid competing interests over the millenia are the uses it has served for those who live within its penumbra, for whom Stonehenge has never been 'lost' or 'rediscovered'. It exists in local myth and legend, stretching back beyond history.

A story of a collaboration. A series of letters between the co-writers of 'Winfrith' (an historian and a composer) shows how a music drama came into being. All the stresses and strains of creativity are visible in this blow-by-blow account of a race against time, to write a full-scale stageworthy music drama in time to celebrate the Millennium at Brixworth Church in Northamptonshire. A story of ambition, disagreement, compromise, and ultimately achievement against heavy odds. Includes the full text of the music drama and samples of the music. 278 pages.

The story of Seaford in the French Wars, 1793 to 1815, based on contemporary sources, including historic maps, court books, diaries and newspaper reports of the time. Seaford was a town with two parallel histories. Its status as a member of the Cinque Ports Confederation gave it unusual privileges, such as the right to send two Members to Parliament, and there was no shortage of ambitious politicians who wanted to stand for election here. At the same time, the town stagnated, with a population of just one thousand and only a tenth of those entitled to vote. Most of the inhabitants were poor agricultural workers or fishermen. It is a lively and colourful tale of large-scale corruption in a rotten borough. The book gives character sketches of all the major personalities of the time. 207 pages, 70 black and white illustrations.