The Dublin Module
The results of the Dublin Module were published in 2010 in The Dublin region in the middle ages: settlement, land-use and economy. This module set out to examine settlement and land-use in the region around Dublin City. It combined documentary and archaeological data to create as complete a picture as possible of the lives of the people who lived near Dublin City, in its hinterland, in the later medieval period. It explored the defensive monuments (including castles) in the area, as well as the manors, the churches, and the Pale. It examined the ways in which resources of the region were managed and exploited to produce food, fuel, and raw materials for both town and country, and it investigated the processing of these raw materials for human consumption.
Then as now, the city profoundly affected its surrounding area through its demands for resources and through the ownership of land by Dubliners (ecclesiastics and lay) and the control of trade by city merchants. In addition to presenting a timely examination of urban-rural interaction, the book contributes to wider debates on topics such as settlement landscapes, the role of lordship, and the productivity of agriculture.
