- Hardcover: 352 pages
- Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson (26 May 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0297830864
- ISBN-13: 978-0297830863
- Product Dimensions: 24 x 16 x 5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 234,986 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Review
'First-rate' (DAILY EXPRESS )
'A good background book. Massively informative and earthily evocative, it does some of the preliminary workd necessary to understand, if not cure, our current identity crisis.' (Bryan Appleyard THE SUNDAY TIMES )
'In The Tribes of Britain, [Miles] unpacks some of the chocolate box notions of what it is to be English, Welsh, Scottish, Irish or British... Miles is at his best in showing how many of the conventional views of the origins of British identities are more myth than history.' (EVENING STANDARD )
'... a huge and fascinating subject... There is much to be learned here...' (THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH )
'Miles's copiously fascinating account... is not only highly enjoyable and instructive, but very timely.' (A C Grayling INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY )
'... scholarly but readable... a fascinating alternative to traditional history books.' (FAMILY HISTORY MONTHLY )
'A wonderful foray into British roots and hertiage.' (GOOD BOOK GUIDE )
'an engaging, informative and entertaining book... an excellent introduction to the complexities of British history and prehistory.' (BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY )
'A good background book. Massively informative and earthily evocative, it does some of the preliminary workd necessary to understand, if not cure, our current identity crisis.' (Bryan Appleyard THE SUNDAY TIMES )
'In The Tribes of Britain, [Miles] unpacks some of the chocolate box notions of what it is to be English, Welsh, Scottish, Irish or British... Miles is at his best in showing how many of the conventional views of the origins of British identities are more myth than history.' (EVENING STANDARD )
'... a huge and fascinating subject... There is much to be learned here...' (THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH )
'Miles's copiously fascinating account... is not only highly enjoyable and instructive, but very timely.' (A C Grayling INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY )
'... scholarly but readable... a fascinating alternative to traditional history books.' (FAMILY HISTORY MONTHLY )
'A wonderful foray into British roots and hertiage.' (GOOD BOOK GUIDE )
'an engaging, informative and entertaining book... an excellent introduction to the complexities of British history and prehistory.' (BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY )
A C Grayling, INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY
'Miles's copiously fascinating account... is not only highly enjoyable and instructive, but very timely.'
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
84 of 95 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The book is very readable and lucid, but greater use of maps and charts would have helped. Miles is an archaologist and clearly most at home in prehistory and ancient history, though he provides a good if basic social and cultural history of the pre-modern period. The last chapter on contemporary Britain is by far the weakest, with a disappointingly thin and partial analysis and a couple of factually inaccurate throwaways - Miles is no demographer or social scientist, and he doesn't understand the economics of migration.
The theme of the book is Miles' attempt to prove the modern liberal thesis that Britons are a 'mongrel' society. True to some extent, but no 'race', nation or ethnic group in the world is "pure" - they are all genetically mixed "imagined communities" or historical accidents. There's nothing special about Britain in that regard. What's more, Miles himself cites evidence that contradicts his argument. The genetic links between today's Britons and Ice Age "Cheddar Man", and the growing consensus that the Anglo-Saxons didn't eliminate the native Britons, and may not have been very numerous, indicates that the majority of British people can probably trace an indigenous ancestry back thousands of years.
There are limits to the vision of Britain as an immigrant society, which is a modern political project designed to show that recent immigration is part of a historical continuum (again, only partly true).
The theme of the book is Miles' attempt to prove the modern liberal thesis that Britons are a 'mongrel' society. True to some extent, but no 'race', nation or ethnic group in the world is "pure" - they are all genetically mixed "imagined communities" or historical accidents. There's nothing special about Britain in that regard. What's more, Miles himself cites evidence that contradicts his argument. The genetic links between today's Britons and Ice Age "Cheddar Man", and the growing consensus that the Anglo-Saxons didn't eliminate the native Britons, and may not have been very numerous, indicates that the majority of British people can probably trace an indigenous ancestry back thousands of years.
There are limits to the vision of Britain as an immigrant society, which is a modern political project designed to show that recent immigration is part of a historical continuum (again, only partly true).
38 of 46 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
When I asked for this book for Christmas from my wife, I had been under the impression it dealt with the genetics of the British people. The book does do this, but it is hardly the primary focus. I quickly was over any disappointment as the book captured my attention through sharp, crisp writing, a plethora of engaging facts, and seamless storytelling.
The book deals with the subject of just who the British people are and how they came to be. Woven into the tapestry of the tale are the histories of the pre-historic people of Britain, of the Celts and Picts, the Britons, the Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, Normans and every people and culture who have contributed to the bloodlines of the British people.
This is not a history of the Kings and Queens of England, or the hundreds of battles fought, or of the Empire. It is truly a history and an examination of the people of the British Isles.
One quickly comes to understand that it is impossible to define virtually anyone in Britain as simply "English" or "Ango-Saxon" or "Irish" - that the vast internal and external migrations and transpositions of people, language and culture that have occured over the millenia serve to blur the lines that supposedly differentiate the various home nations in terms of ancestry.
So many notable books concentrate solely on the English or on the Scots or only on the Irish, and many books that focus on Britain give only passing mention to the home nations other than England and her people. The Tribes of Britain is an excellent bit of writing about the British people as a whole and would be of interest to students of history and to the many people with any sort of British ancestry.
The book deals with the subject of just who the British people are and how they came to be. Woven into the tapestry of the tale are the histories of the pre-historic people of Britain, of the Celts and Picts, the Britons, the Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, Normans and every people and culture who have contributed to the bloodlines of the British people.
This is not a history of the Kings and Queens of England, or the hundreds of battles fought, or of the Empire. It is truly a history and an examination of the people of the British Isles.
One quickly comes to understand that it is impossible to define virtually anyone in Britain as simply "English" or "Ango-Saxon" or "Irish" - that the vast internal and external migrations and transpositions of people, language and culture that have occured over the millenia serve to blur the lines that supposedly differentiate the various home nations in terms of ancestry.
So many notable books concentrate solely on the English or on the Scots or only on the Irish, and many books that focus on Britain give only passing mention to the home nations other than England and her people. The Tribes of Britain is an excellent bit of writing about the British people as a whole and would be of interest to students of history and to the many people with any sort of British ancestry.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
A quick skim through this book found abysmal mistakes which seem incompatible with the academic distinctions listed against the author's name. He cites a Gaelic linguistic heritage for Wales, along with Scotland and Ireland. He posits a language shift from Gaelic to English in southern Scotland as a direct, blanket process of anglicisation without, apparently, being aware of the intervening shift from Gaelic to Norman French in all matters of any importance. Similarly, he implies that Scots Law undertook a wholesale adoption of English Law, rather than parts of it. These raise the suspicion that other parts of the book are similarly unreliable.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Full of basic errors, it's a disgrace.
Has this book been edited? Henry VIII did not accede to the throne in 1502, Richard II was not born in 1377, nor was he king in the mid-fifteenth century. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Mrs. S. V. Read
Worthwhile and informative though tangential and agendaed
If you are thinking of buying this book, I would certainly recommend it as great value for money. It is lucid and packed with interesting facts about every era of British history,... Read more
Published on 11 Feb 2010 by Cicero
Fascinating
This book helped me discover and understand the history of Britain and of the different people that throughout history have made of this island their home. Read more
Published on 29 Jan 2010 by Miquel
Very readable but with no real conclusions
So, what did I like about this book?
It was very readable - almost un-put-down-able. It went from era to era seamlessly and I was impressed with the author's grasp of the... Read more
It was very readable - almost un-put-down-able. It went from era to era seamlessly and I was impressed with the author's grasp of the... Read more
Published on 12 Dec 2009 by uncle barbar
Well researched but dull
This book, as others say, is excellently researched. But I don't see how anyone can describe it as 'fascinating'. Read more
Published on 1 Jan 2009 by Boogieshooz
The disappearing people..
I just started reading this today, after receiving it as a X-MAS gift and naturally immersed myself in the chapters concerning the dark ages, which facinate me the most. Read more
Published on 26 Dec 2008 by Medieval Lady
So you think you know your origins?
This is a comprehensive study of British history from the perspective of its "tribes". The author calls upon a wide range of sources and the latest archaeological techniques,... Read more
Published on 9 Oct 2008 by Geoff Buck
Biased
I had heard David Miles interviewed on radio re this book and was impresed enough to purchase it. On reading it though I was quite dispointed and had figured Mr Mile's religion... Read more
Published on 20 July 2006 by Certes
Well written, very informative, but no maps
I recently read Bloody Foreigners by Robert Winder, a history of immigrants in Britain. The Tribes of Britain is more of a general history of the British Isles, but with a... Read more
Published on 5 Jun 2006 by Martin Akiyama
The Janus face of history
Writing of one's own land carries certain risks. If the view is too internally focussed, the dynamics of human movements are omitted. Read more
Published on 22 Jan 2006 by Stephen A. Haines
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