Past Soil Erosion in Europe

Medieval environmental impacts and feedbacks: The lowland floodplains of England and Wales

“…Overall, a suggested medieval peak for Holocene soil: alluvium transfer in Britain is consistent with many European studies (Becker & Schirmer, 1977;Schirmer, 1995;Coltori, 1997;Bertram, 2004;Lang & Bork, 2006;Dotterweich, 2008;Enters, Dörfleer, & Zolitchka, 2008;Hoffmann et al, 2009), some demonstrating distinct sedimentation units, as in the Older Meadow Loam of Hagedorn and Rother (1992). An order-of-magnitude increase in sedimentation has similarly been suggested following the introduction of Euro-American cultivation in 19th-century America (Trimble, 1983(Trimble, , 1999Knox, 2006).…”

“…This formed part of a transfer system also involving hillslope erosion and gullying, and considerable colluvial accumulation in footslopes and headwaters (cf. Lang & Bork, 2006). The process would not exactly have been unknown to medieval people; Davies (1968:47) cites Bartholomaeus Anglicus, an English Franciscan writing ca.…”

The history of soil erosion and fluvial deposits in small catchments of central Europe: Deciphering the long-term interaction between humans and the environment — A review

“…At many investigated sites in Germany (9, 21, 22, 23, 24, 28, and 31), soil losses by a factor of 10 to 100 times higher than before were examined. Bork et al (1998) calculated a mean rate of soil erosion between 10 and 80 t·ha − 1 ·a − 1 for agriculturally used slopes in Germany (Lang and Bork, 2006). Additionally, the forming of many gullies in all of central Europe might be a result of extreme runoff during this time (4, 7, 8, 22, 23, 24, 31, and 40).…”

“…Houben et al, 2006;Macklin et al, 2006;Herget et al, 2007) no broad synthesis exists and review about the current case studies in small catchments of central Europe. Until now, only the German-language book by Bork et al (1998) provides a comprehensive approach and Lang and Bork (2006) offer some insights into past soil erosion in whole Europe.…”

A risk society? Environmental hazards, risk and resilience in the later Middle Ages in Europe

“…Multiple case studies combine to indicate order-of-magnitude increases in soil-derived sediments on European floodplains between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries, perhaps partly the result of the laying out of new settlements and field systems. The silting and abandonment of mills, the loss of cultivated fields, the renewed construction of flood banks and the burial of earlier archaeological sites by alluvium are just some of the impacts noted (Keevill 1992;Lang and Bork 2006;Brown 2009;Macklin et al 2010;Lewin 2010).…”