Of Cabbages and Kings: The History of Allotments

by Caroline Foley

Overview

“An excellent account” of Britain’s tradition of parceling out land for the public to grow food on, and the colorful history behind it (The Independent).

This lively book tells the story of the private garden plots known as allotments—from their origin in the seventeenth century, when new enclosures that deprived the peasantry of access to common lands were fiercely protested, to the victory gardens of the world wars, and into the present day, when they serve less as a means of survival than as a respite from the modern world. While delving into the effects of the Napoleonic Wars, the Corn Laws, and the utopian dissenters known as the Diggers, the author reveals the multiple roles of allotments—and champions their history in the hope of protecting them for the future.

“Foley’s book reminds us that the right to share the earth has always been an asymmetric struggle.” —The Guardian

“Fascinating and handsomely illustrated.” —Daily Mail

“Well-told . . . . [a] gallop through the history of useful rather than ornamental crops.” —Spectator Australia

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781781011591
Publisher:	Quarto Publishing Group USA
Publication date:	12/20/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
File size:	20 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Caroline Foley is the queen of allotments. Her Allotment Handbook (£9.99) has been a bestseller since 2004, has sold more than 45,000 copies. Her Practical Allotment Gardening, 2008, (£12.99) has sold 23,000 copies. Both are published by New Holland. Caroline Foley is a freelance gardening writer and author who contributes articles to many magazines. She is the editor of Topiarius, the journal of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society. She has taken practical gardening and garden design courses at the English Gardening School. She lives in London near the Culpeper Community Garden of which she is Secretary.

Caroline Foley is the queen of allotments. Her Allotment Handbook (£9.99) has been a bestseller since 2004, has sold more than 45,000 copies. Her Practical Allotment Gardening, 2008, (£12.99) has sold 23,000 copies. Both are published by New Holland. Caroline Foley is a freelance gardening writer and author who contributes articles to many magazines. She is the editor of Topiarius, the journal of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society. She has taken practical gardening and garden design courses at the English Gardening School. She lives in London near the Culpeper Community Garden of which she is Secretary.

Table of Contents

Prologue 6

Introduction 8

1 The Serf & the Commons: 1066-1349 14

2 Black Death, Poll Taxes & the Peasants' Revolt 28

3 Wool, the Theft of the Commons & the Parish Workhouse: 1500-1800 46

4 The Fight for the Right to Dig & the Agricultural Revolution: 1500-1780 66

5 Parliamentary Enclosures & the First Allotment Movement: 1750-1850 82

6 William Cobbett & the Swing Riots of 1830: 1791-1830 98

7 Land, the Labourers' Friend & the Second Allotment Movement: 1832-1914 114

8 Industry, Popular Protest & How Allotments Left the Country for the City: 1800-1914 128

9 Digging For DORA - Allotments & the War Effort: 1914-1918 144

10 The Depression, the Quakers & Allotments for the Miners: 1918-1939 160

11 Digging For Victory: 1939-1945 172

12 Post-war Doldrums & the Green Revolution: 1945 to the 21^st century 194

Epilogue 208

Further Reading 210

Timeline 212

Index 217

Acknowledgments 222

Editorial Reviews

'I suggest you read this book. You will never again underestimate how precious and precarious a stake in the land is.'

'The gallop through the history of useful rather than ornamental crops makes a refreshing change from stately gardening.

'I suggest you read this book. You will never again underestimate how precious and precarious a stake in the land is.'

'One for the history shelf.'

-A history of England from an unusual but illuminating angle-

-Foley-s book reminds us that the right to share the earth has always been an asymmetric struggle.-

'An excellent account detailing the changing practice and importance of the patch you hope to take on - read it while you work your way up that long waiting list.'

'The gallop through the history of useful rather than ornamental crops makes a refreshing change from stately gardening.

'An excellent account detailing the changing practice and importance of the patch you hope to take on – read it while you work your way up that long waiting list.'

From the Publisher