Boydell Press
(2010). Hardback. xiv+208 pp. 35 line illustrations. 13 black and white plates. ISBN: 9781843835950. £50.00.
Drawing both on the surviving documentary sources, and on the eastern region’s rich archaeological record, this book presents the first multi-disciplinary synthesis of the process. It begins with an analysis of the historical framework, followed by an examination of the archaeological evidence for the establishment of missionary stations within the region’s ruinous Roman forts and earthwork enclosures. It argues that the effectiveness of the Christian mission is clearly visible in the region’s burial record, which exhibits a number of significant changes, including the cessation of cremation.
The conversion can also be seen in the dramatic upheavals which occurred in the East Anglian landscape, including changes in the relationship between settlements and cemeteries, and the foundation of a number of different types of Christian cemetery. Ultimately, it shows that far from being the preserve of kings, the East Anglian conversion was widespread at a grassroots level, changing the nature of the Anglo-Saxon landscape forever.
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Too often looked at in isolation, Richard Hoggett here does a grand job in making us look at all of these aspects together, to question how far we can correlate changes in burials, place and expression with conversion. … Hoggett’s conclusions are enjoyably bold. Read full review…
Dr Neil Christie, Medieval Settlement Research 27 (2012)
Hoggett provides a weighty synthesis of previous historical and archaeological research concerning East Anglia … a considerable amount of evidence is covered and the complex stratigraphy of arguments surrounding each issue is vividly and concisely appraised. Strategic assessment of key sites, features and finds provides the detail needed to create depth and resonance of argument without losing the overall momentum. Read full review…
Ruth Nugent, The Archaeological Journal 167 (2012)
The author is comprehensive in his summary and discussion of the data, requiring no previous knowledge of the subject on the reader’s part to follow the argument, yet at the same time his approach is refreshingly theoretical, tackling ideas and interpretative frameworks – such as cognitive archaeology – that early medievalists all too often still shy away from. Read full review…
Letty ten Harkel, Landscapes 13(1) (Spring 2012)
Hoggett’s thesis certainly captivates as one is guided through the startling richness and diversity of the conversion-period archaeology of East Anglia … but scratch beneath the surface and Hoggett’s argumments begin to unravel. Hoggett’s monocausal explanation … render[s] many aspects of the discussion unconvincing, particularly with regard to changing burial rites, where the author falls back on largely discredited paradigms. Read full review…
Dr Gabor Thomas, English Historical Review 127(527) (August 2012)
The book’s real strength lies in its author’s ability to sift effectively through a large corpus of archaeological finds from East Anglia dating from the Early and Middle Saxon periods, classify them, analyse them comparatively and present his readers with provocative general patterns. … Hypotheses combine to form a book that constitutes an important exercise in telling the story of conversion directly from the material evidence, rather than using archaeology simply to illustrate the Bedan narrative. Read full review…
Dr Roy Flechner, The Journal of Ecclesiastical History 63(2) (April 2012)
Richard Hoggett deserves sincere thanks for marshalling up-to-date archaeological evidence from early Anglo-Saxon East Anglia, for presenting it to a wider audience and for putting out some bold hypotheses about conversion and the archaeological record: the evidence for East Anglia is now available alongside that from other regions as a dataset with which to test these hypotheses. Read full review…
Dr Thomas Pickles, History 97 (April 2012)
This is never less than a useful and provocative survey which is imaginative in its building and use of models. It sets out an intelligent research agenda which, if implemented, would test its main conclusions and contribute substantially to our understanding of the 7th to 9th centuries in eastern England. Read full review…
Professor Chris Scull, Medieval Archaeology 55 (2011)
Hoggett has produced a scholarly, deeply researched study with a massive bibliography that draws, inevitably, on a wealth of material from the two fields of archaeology and history of religion. Read full review…
Chris Barringer, NAHRG Annual 20 (2011)
The conclusions, full of hope and inspiration, suggest several major lines of research, as well as emphasising the enormous body of work produced in the past few decades. There is a surprising maturity in this volume, which at times reads like an indispensable textbook. Only its substantial price can be used as an excuse for ignoring this book, and surely numerous scholars, including many from outside East Anglia, will gain much from it. Read full review…
Dr Andrew Rogerson, Landscape History 32.1 (2011)
Hoggett’s study takes us on an adventure of speculation. … A good start has been made in a direction that leaves me with a taste for the ongoing adventure. Read full review…
Rt Rev David Thomson, Bishop of Huntingdon, Times Literary Supplement (11 February 2011)
It is so well written and so beautifully argued. It is one of the clearest and best books on the subject that I’ve read.
Dr Sue Oosthuizen, Academic Director, University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education