World Timelines - England - 2200-800 BC Bronze Age

British Isles > England

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Bronze-working	Livestock	Ritual structures and sacred places	Precious cups

Events

2200 BC

Earliest known date for production of bronze objects in British Isles; metal objects were mainly made of copper in the form of daggers, riveted knife-daggers and thick-butted flat axeheads

2200 BC

Over the next 100 years Stonehenge is enlarged with more stones and surrounding earthworks

2200 BC

‘Yorkshire Vase’ style of Food Vessel develops in northern England

2200 BC

Over the next 700 years Collared Urns are widely used in Britain to hold cremated burials

2200 BC

Long-Necked Beakers develop - specifically British pottery form

1900 BC

Around this time the bluestones at Stonehenge are rearranged into a horseshoe and a circle of bluestones placed between the sarsen horseshoe and the sarsen circle

1900 BC

Over the next 400 years a fashion arises in southern England for cups made of precious materials

1800 BC

Around this time more metal objects begin to be made from bronze in the form of dagger, halberds and thin-butted flat axeheads

1800 BC

Trevisker ware pottery develops in SW England

1700 BC

Dramatic expansion in bronze production

1700 BC

Deveril-Rimbury Bucket Urns develop

1700 BC

Over the next 100 years two concentric circles of holes are dug outside the stones at Stonehenge and between them and the surrounding bank

1700 BC

Jewellery seems to have been in much less demand

1650 BC

Around this time metal objects begin to be made from true bronze in the form of daggers, flanged axeheads, tanged spearheads and pegged spearheads

1500 BC

Construction of elaborate field systems stretching over vast regions

1500 BC

The abandonment of most copper mines

1500 BC

Construction of elaborate field systems stretching over vast regions

1500 BC

Abandonment of most copper mines

1500 BC

Trackway of wooden hurdles (Eclipse track) laid in the Polden Hills, Somerset

1500 BC

Over the next 350 years bucket-shaped pots are widely used in Britain to hold cremated remains

1450 BC

Around this time a superb ceremonial bronze dirk is deposited in a peat bog, Oxborough, Norfolk

1400 BC

Some time over the next 800 years a 'White Horse' chalk figure is cut into the hillside at Uffington, Berkshire

1400 BC

Around this time metal objects begin to be made from bronze in the form of palstave axes, rapiers and looped spearheads

1400 BC

Deveril-Rimbury pottery is at its height

1400 BC

Bronze and gold jewellery starts to reappear

1350 BC

Wooden boat sinks in Dover, Kent

1300 BC

Fighting tactics change as heavy swords introduced to Britain from mainland Europe

1300 BC

Three wooden boats sink in the River Humber at North Ferriby

1300 BC

Some time over the next 100 years a wooden bridge is built at Dorney, Buckinghamshire

1300 BC

Around this time a wooden boat sinks in the River Trent at Shardlow, Derbyshire

1300 BC

Ornate beaten bronze shields begin to be made

1300 BC

Specialist feasting equipment begins to be made

1200 BC

More varied range of jars, bowls, and cups in coarse and fine wares is developed for domestic use

1100 BC

First hilltop settlements built

1100 BC

First hilltop settlements built

1076 BC

Wooden trackway laid in Harter's Hill, Somerset

1000 BC

Around this time the settlement at Potterne, Wiltshire, is inhabited

1000 BC

Pottery forms begin to imitate metal vessels

1000 BC

Field systems and enclosures created near Dorney, Buckinghamshire

1000 BC

Around this time metal objects begin to be made from leaded bronze in more complex forms such as socketed axeheads, leaf-shaped swords and spearheads, socketed sickles, woodworking gouges and knives, razors, cauldrons and shields

1000 BC

Around this time a hoard of 6 gold bracelets is deposited at Morvah, Cornwall

1000 BC

From around this time a series of earth and stone ramparts were constructed at Taprain Law, East Lothian

991 BC

Wooden trackway laid at Caldicot, Somerset

989 BC

Wooden bridge built at Caldicot, Somerset

982 BC

Wooden trackway built at Skinner's Wood, Somerset

963 BC

Wooden trackway built at Greylake, Somerset

950 BC

Wilburton' phase of metalwork types develops

950 BC

Swords first introduced from mainland Europe

950 BC

Around this time a hoard of bronze tools is deposited at Carleton Rode, Norfolk

900 BC

Pottery forms begin to follow European styles, and incised and grooved decoration is used

800 BC

Wooden boat made at Brigg, Lincolnshire

England

2200-800 BC Bronze Age

Contact between Britain and mainland Europe became important during the Bronze Age because of the need for metals and the increasing desire for other exotic goods, such as amber. For example, there can be little doubt (although firm evidence is tantalisingly slight) that south-west England was one of the major suppliers of tin in the European Bronze Age. However, the extensive network of connections that resulted from such trade had a wider significance than just the exchange of goods. It fostered social alliances, such as intermarriage of high-ranking individuals, and broader political alliances between tribal territories.

Increased sea navigation led to the development of a new boat technology. Bronze Age boats were made of carved planks stitched together with thick withies, a design developed during this period.

Although sea communications extended far and wide, it was southern coastal areas and eastern England that enjoyed the strongest connections to mainland Europe. This is reflected in some cultural similarities on both sides of the English Channel. Upland regions further north in England tended to follow a different cultural development, inevitably with stronger ties to the north and west. A distinct identity seen in terms of pottery and metalwork styles also developed in south-west England.

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