AONB LCAR S1 P1-10 FINAL - the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding ...

2 Evolution of the Landscape
other essential equipment. The revival essentially saved
these industrial buildings from dereliction and ensured
their survival as features of the modern landscape.
The pattern of the rural landscape from the Great War
onwards was again undergoing significant change;
mechanical reapers, steam traction engines and later,
tractors replaced human effort and horse power in the
fields. Beyond the farm, steamrollers coated the Cotswolds
roads with tarmac, and in the towns fine Lias pavements
gave way to concrete and asphalt. It is this period of
transition that Laurie Lee describes in his book ‘Cider
with Rosie’.
Similar to the Great War, World War II saw increased
pressure on domestic agriculture and again Cotswolds
pastures were ploughed up for grain production. The
tractor, now widely in use, was the major agent of
landscape change at the time.
“Mechanisation is being developed increasingly on the
Plateau, and very large fields... makes this economically
possible... the face of Gloucestershire will alter considerably
as a result of the increased use of machines”. 18
SECOND WORLD WAR AIRCRAFT HANGAR
The wartime landscape also saw the introduction of large
airfields. Many have disappeared; however, the tarmac
runways and hangars of the larger establishments still
dominate the dip-slope landscape.
18. Gordon E. Payne, Gloucestershire: A Physical, Social and Economic
Survey and Plan
30
Cotswolds AONB Partnership
2.9
Recent History: (1945 – Present)
Since the end of the Second World War the Cotswolds
has witnessed many changes that reflect national trends,
notably population growth, increased mechanisation, and
greater personal affluence, mobility and leisure time. In the
past 60 years the AONB has seen changes so profound and
far reaching that they are comparable in scale to the those
witnessed by the generations present at the time that the
open fields were replaced by a patchwork landscape of
enclosed fields and small isolated farmsteads. Some of the
changes have been gradual and often imperceptible, but
over a period of decades the effects are significant. As a
consequence, the landscape that we see today within parts
of the AONB is no longer a reflection of the traditional
image so often associated with the Cotswolds, of a
landscape with a timeless quality, and a pastoral retreat.
The most significant changes that have occurred within the
Cotswolds in the post war period, and their consequent
effect on landscape character, are summarised below.
Agricultural Change
• As petrol and materials were released from war
production, agriculture became increasingly mechanised.
Large machinery such as combine harvesters and tractors
required large scale sheds to be constructed and field
entrances to be widened. In many areas, field boundaries
were removed in order to maximise efficiency.
• Ploughing up of extensive areas of the Cotswolds, and
the conversion of permanent pasture for sheep grazing
to arable cultivation for cereal production, has resulted
in the most significant landscape change in the
Cotswolds, particularly within the high wold and dipslope.
In 1983 there was only a 2% cover of permanent
pasture, compared to some 40% immediately prior
to World War II, which gives an indication of the scale
of the change that has taken place. Sheep pastures, so
long a feature of the high wolds, are now a mosaic of
arable fields, with seasonal variations reflected in the
changing pattern of ploughed field and cereal crops.
• An increase in the intensive rearing of beef and dairy
cattle has replaced the once extensive flocks of sheep.
While sheep are still present their numbers are vastly
depleted. Manifestations in the landscape are sometimes
evident in large scale milking parlours or feeding sheds
in close proximity to traditional farmhouses.