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The Ashdown and Wadhurst series of the Weald of Kent, Surrey and Sussex, by Percival Allen, 1843 at University of Reading (Ph.D. thesis)

A critical edition of the English poems of Henry King, DD, sometime Bishop of Chichester, by L. Mason, 1913 at Yale University (Ph.D. thesis)

The Economic Growth of Sussex during the 14th century, with special reference to the County's relations with lands across the seas, by R. A. Pelham, 1930 at University of Wales (M.A. thesis)

The life and work of Nathaniel Woodard, with special reference to the influence of the Oxford movement on English education in the 19th century, by R. Perry, 1932 at Bristol University (M.A. thesis)

The Agricultural Geography of West Sussex, by E. Cook, 1939 at Liverpool University (M.A. thesis)

Religious thought of Robertson of Brighton, by Thompson Lewis Shannon, 1946 at Edinburgh University (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

The Parliamentary Representation of the Sussex Boroughs: Bramber, Midhurst, Lewes, Rye and Winchelsea, 175401768, by Margaret M. Cramp, 1953 at Manchester University (M.A. thesis)

The History and Archaeology of Roman Chichester, by Jane G. Pilmer, 1954 at Durham University (M. Litt. Thesis)

The Parliamentary Representation of Surrey and Sussex, 1377-1422, by A. Rogers, 1957 at Nottingham University (M.A. thesis)

The Episcopate of Richard Curteys, Bishop of Chichester, 1570-1582: an aspect of the Elizabethan religious settlement in Sussex, by R. B. Manning, 1961 at Georgetown University (Ph.D. thesis)

Local Politics and the Parliamentary Representation of Sussex, 1529-1558, by R. J. W. Swales, 1964 at Bristol University (Ph. D. thesis)

Alciston Manor, Sussex, in the Later Middle Ages, by Judith Wooldridge, 1965 at Bristol University (M.A. thesis)

The Fabric of an interest: the first Duke of Dorset and Kentish and Sussex Politics, 1705-1765, by K. Von den Steinen, 1969 at Los Angeles University (Ph.D. thesis)

The Mesolithic of South East England, by A. G. Woodcock, 1970 at Leicester University (M.A. thesis)

Sussex smuggling: a case study in eighteenth-century Crime, by C. P. Winslow, 1973 at Washington University (Ph.D. thesis)

The private press in Sussex, by P. R. Harrington, 1974 at Library Association (F.L.A. thesis)

Romanesque wall paintings of Hardham church, Sussex, with reference to those in the other churches of the 'Lewes Group', by W. D. Park, 1975 at Manchester University (M.A. thesis)

Richard Cobden and the development of the Manchester School of Economics, by Camille P. Castorina, 1976 at Manchester University (Ph.D. thesis)

Julius Charles Hare, 1795-1855: a Life of the archetypal Broad churchman, by N. M. Distad, 1979 at Toronto University (Ph.D. thesis)

The Cartulary of Durford Abbey, Sussex, by D. King, 1979 at Manitoba University (Ph.D. thesis)

A social and economic study of the Cinque ports region 1450-1600, by G. Brindle, 1980 at Kent University (Ph.D. thesis)

The nineteenth century Earls of Ashburnham and their Sussex estate 1812-1913, by A. Guilmant, 1980 at Kent University (M.Phil. Thesis)

The Lower and Palaeolithic archaeology of Sussex (with particular reference to marine transgressions and their associated Palaeolithic industries in the south-west of the country) , by A. G. Woodcock, 1980 at Leicester University (Ph.D. thesis)

John Lake DD, Bishop of Chichester, 1624-1689, by H. H. Poole, 1981 at Delaware University (Ph.D. thesis)

The Common Peace: Legal structure and legal substance in East Sussex, 1594-1640, by Cynthia B. Herrup, 1982 at Northwestern University, Illinois (Ph.D. thesis)

Bishop Reginald Peacock as moralist and social critic, by P. C. Lawton, 1982 at Catholic University of America (Ph.D. thesis)

Aspects of the phonology and agricultural terminology of the rural dialects of Surrey, Kent and Sussex , by David John North, 1982 at Leeds University (Ph.D. thesis)

Land tenure and social structure in nineteenth century Newick, by Sarah J. Caffyn, 1983 at University of Leicester (M.A. thesis) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/508357]

Roman Catholicism in West Sussex in the 18th century, by Mary K. Kinnoulty, 1983 at Lampeter (M.A. thesis)

Museums and Tourism development in East and West Sussex, by S. Farrant, 1987 at Surrey University (M.Sc. thesis)

The sociology of recurrent ceremonial drama: Lewes Guy Fawkes Night, 1800-1913, by J. E. Etherington, 1987 at Open University (Ph.D. thesis)

Aspects of the ecology of the micro-invertebrates in the intertidal soft sediments of Chichester harbour, by N. S. Thomas, 1987 at Portsmouth University (Ph.D. thesis)

A comparative study of education and society in selected areas of West Yorkshire and West Sussex between 1660 and 1835., by Doreen Elsie Smith, 1989 at University of Leeds (Ph.D. thesis)

Hares and skylarks as indicators of environmentally sensitive farming on the South Downs, by Andrew Wakeham-Dawson, 1994 at Open University (Ph.D. thesis)

London, Brighton and south coast religion? : Tractarianism and ritualism in Brighton, Hove and Worthing, by Ruth Cowl, 1996 at University of Keele (Ph.D. thesis)

Status, occupations and landholding: The emergence of an independent peasantry in the High Weald of East Sussex in the late thirteenth century: The evidence of Ashdown Forest and its region, by Bob Parsons, 1996 at University of Leicester (M.A. dissertation in English local history)

Classical sculpture and the English interior, 1640-1840: purpose and meaning, by Ruth A. Guilding, 2000 at Bristol University (Ph.D. thesis)

The 2nd Earl of Arundel was the first English collector to imitate directly Italian Renaissance collections, creating sculpture displays in Arundel House and its gardens in the 1640s which became famous throughout Europe . Translated into the quasi-domestic context, classical sculpture represented the veneration of the cultural and political mores of ancient Rome and Greece, the props and justification of political power, but could also be portrayed as an inspirational 'body of history' augmenting civic culture, as 'national treasure' and exemplars for the improvement of the arts, carrying the onus of granting opportunities for their public consumption . Arundel's displays were piously recreated, at Wilton House, Easton Neston and the University of Oxford, but subsequent collectors adopted the Palladian format, based on Roman architectural vocabulary, as the convention for display until c.1760 . Dependent on symmetry and niche architecture, Palladian displays required full-length statues, or copies and casts of the best works in the antique canon. Outside the context of the 'atrium'/entrance hall. where busts and statues could stand as putative ancestors, sculpture continued to hold the same resonances, but in these controlled and formalised settings its significance could be diminished to that of grand furniture. The more intensive antiquarianism of the Enlightenment gradually eclipsed such resonances. From the 1760s, tastes broadened to encompass the works of Piranesi, inscriptions, funerary sculpture, and non-classical antiquities, placed in 'Museum' room displays . In the last full-blown aristocratic galleries, at Castle Howard, Woburn, Petworth and Chatsworth, between 1800-c.1840, marble antiquities were juxtaposed with modern sculpture, to convey a political message, or as antique exemplars. The cachet of ownership increased: Charles Townley's reputation was entirely vested in his antique marbles; his housemuseum at Park Street acquired a quasi-public status, becoming the model for the first public sculpture galleries, when his marbles were bought by the British Museum.

Church, land and lordship in West Sussex, 680-1200 , by Philip John Masters, 2001 at Leicester University (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

This thesis contributes to the debate on the nature of Anglo-Saxon minsters and regional variation in the Anglo-Saxon and Norman Church by relating form, setting and endowment of churches to origin and function, examining the relationship between Minster parochiae and estates in contrasting landscapes, and assessing the effects of the Norman Conquest at a local level. Extensive survival of Saxo-Norman churches in western Sussex allows a classification and chronology to be developed, while a systematic approach to topography and records of glebes defines settings, enclosures and endowments. Anglo-Saxon charters, episcopal, capitular and monastic records, manorial documents and state papers are the basis for analysing rights and dues between churches. High-status churches were frequent, but, except in two cases, probably dating from the ninth or tenth centuries, parochiae were ill-defined. They were smaller than the estates which differed in form between the coastal plain, Downs and Weald and differed from the extensive estates of eastern Sussex and Kent. It is likely that ecclesiastical and lay institutions failed to develop fully, at least in part as a result of exploitation by Wessex. There were probably few churches outside estate centres in 1066, but the types of church built in the period c. 1070 - 1120 reflect the pre-Conquest pattern. Two-cell churches were at small manors on poor land around the compact estates. Centrally-sited unicellular churches on the estates and in large Wealden parishes may be an indication of systematic pastoral provision. Larger churches at known or possible minster sites may be late Anglo-Saxon but are more likely to reflect the post-Conquest importance of collegiate churches. The form and siting of churches is found to be a helpful method of interpreting the institutional development of the Church, but rights and dues can be traced mainly to c. 1070-1120. The study points to a contrast between marginal areas like western Sussex and the heartlands of the major Anglo-Saxon kingdoms.

The modelling of groundwater flow and seasonal groundwater response to rainfall in the Chalk of East Sussex, UK , by Leonora J. E. Lee, 2003 at Reading University (Ph.D. thesis)

De-mystifying 'partnership' and 'governance': the case of Brighton and Hove, by Rebekah G. Southern, 2003 at Nottingham Trent University (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

The aim of the thesis is to gain insight into the contemporary system of urban governance through an analysis of multi-sectoral regeneration partnerships. It specifically seeks to contribute to an understanding of urban governance through an investigation of three inter-linked themes. These are firstly, the power relations that governance entails; secondly, the quality of the relationships between those involved, with particular regard to the existence (or otherwise) of trust; and, thirdly, the democratic implications of the system. Three conceptual lenses were developed to investigate those central concerns, the first drawing on insights from regime theory, the second employing the literature on social capital and the third utilising the principles of deliberative democratic theory. These lenses were applied both separately and holistically to concrete examples of three different types of multisectoral regeneration partnerships operating within the geographical location of Brighton and Hove. The purpose was firstly, to ascertain whether when viewing the partnerships holistically the exercise of power, the development of trust and the engendering of democracy were compatible with one another; secondly, to gauge whether success in one of those dimensions was to the detriment of one or more of the others; and thirdly, to examine how different types of partnerships dealt with those issues. From the case study it was found that the exercise of power, the development of trust and the engendering of democracy were difficult goals for all of the partnerships studied. It was also found those goals were incompatible with one another and that success in one was to the detriment of one or more of the others but that the different types of partnership dealt with those issues in different ways. These findings contribute to a fuller understanding of multi-sectoral regeneration partnerships in and of themselves and they also provide insights into the contemporary system of urban governance. For the practice of urban governance they indicate, for example, that policy makers may be faced with incommensurable goals. At a conceptual level the findings suggest the need for a holistic approach to the subject.

New media: the affects of networking and cluster co-location upon learning and innovation: a case study of Brighton and Hove, by Clifford Conway, 2005 at Kingston University (D.B.A. thesis)   View Online

This thesis builds on the findings from previous research, where the conventional wosodm suggests that cluster co-location and networking have a positive affect upon small firm learning and innovation. The researcher perceived the need to test the efficacy of these findings with the claimed 'new-media' cluster in the city of Brighton and Hove. A detailed analysis of the literature contributed to the development of a conceptual framework from which five propositions and 23 research questions were derived. The researcher's philosophical stance recognised the subjective nature of the social world and therefore a largely qualitative epistemology was followed. An interview instrument was designed and implemented through 17 new media owner-managers, and the findings were compiled, coded, analysed, and then compared to the previous research studies. The analysis found some evidence of new media clustering, but it was clear that some of the key characteristice were missing, namely the co-location of customers and competitors, thus forming a hybrid cluster. The networking practices of the sample new media firms were found to be limited to working with complimentary digital services suppliers and freelancers, while suppliers and key institutional agencies, although co-located, were not considered important networking partners. The paradox that arises is that customers are considered the most important networking partner but they are generally not co-located. Learning and innovation are very important to the new media sample firms, because of the need to manage discontinuous technological and market changes. The hybrid nature of the cluster, however, and the limited networking practice of the respondent firms, limits the full potential for learning and innovation to occur. In addition, factors such as firm size and limited resources also dictate that most innovation is customer-driven and of an incremental rather than a radical nature. The thesis concludes that the conceptual framework is only partially proven and using Pooper's (1964) falsification principle, the research propositions do not hold. From this, a series of recommendations are made concerning theory development, future research and professional practice, that should help enhance new media firms' ability to learn and innovate in the future

An edition of the English texts in British Library MS Sloane 3285, Practical medicine, Sussex dialect and the London Associations of a fifteenth century book , by Maria Helena Loen-Marshall, 2005 at Glasgow University (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

This thesis is an edition of the English texts in British Library MS Sloane 3285, an important fifteenth century medical collection, hitherto unpublished. After an introductory preface, the thesis consists of five chapters, followed by the text, notes and a glossary. Non English items are presented in appendices. Chapter 1 offers a description of the book's make-up, and gives an account of its place within the Sloane collection. This chapter includes a paleographical discussion of various hands in the manuscript. Chapter 2 discusses the language of the different hands. Chapter 3 places the contents of texts in relation to medieval medical practice and theory. This chapter also offers an outline of the various traditions that lie behind these texts. Chapter 4 discusses the medieval provenance of the manuscript and relates it to its intellectual milieu. Chapter 5 outlines the editorial practice of the edition. An edition of the texts then follows, edited on conservative principles as outlined in chapter 5. The intention of this thesis is to reconstruct the mental landscape that informed the creation of this remarkable medieval artefact.

Mapping the limestone decay and decay processes on the external limestone of Chichester Cathedral, a structure stemming from the period circa 1076-1090, by Anthony A., 2006 at Portsmouth University (Ph.D. thesis)

Chichester Cathedral, the construction of which commenced between 1076- 90, within the rural setting of Sussex, is composed of an eclectic mix of limestones and some sandstones, which have undergone continued replacement over the lifetime of the building due to surface decay and failure. The purpose of this study was to map and record the decay exhibited on a southern aspect of the building, which was due for restoration. In addition a simple study was also undertaken on the early stone still existing from the first building phase from other areas of the building and within differing environments and which confirmed that decay forms commenced with a change in limestone type used, particularly in this case from the Quarr stone to the more micro porous Caen and similar limestones. Thus indicating porosity as a factor in weathering. Laboratory analysis of samples was not available for this study so the majority of observations and recordings were made on site. A study of the climate of the region in chapter 2, indicated that although rainfall for the region was low, humidity was relatively consistent and within the upper range (60-90 per cent). Although wind direction was mainly from the southwest, thereby removing any significant pollutants, the combination of low S02 and high humidity would fit in with the accepted environment for absorption of atmospheric salts and associated crystallisation, hydration pressure and expansion, leading to decay. Micro-climate analysis of an area of the southern side also confirmed that the moisture content across the stone face was also conSistently high and thus an indicator of a salt mobilisation and hydration environment. Chapter 3, which considers the building phases and materials used throughout the building history of the Cathedral, also mapped an emerging pattern of stone life for the various parts of the Cathedral, which tends to fit in with the theory that the lithology of the same stone type may playa significant factor inIt is well established that atmospheric pollution is a major contributor to stone decay but no major polluting industrial base has ever existed within the area of Chichester, which was primarily an agricultural centre (historically a 'Staple Town'). It was necessary therefore to establish the possible historic forms of industry that may have contributed in some way to atmospheric pollution thereby enabling the mapping of resultant pollution levels over time. The analysis of this industry in chapter 4 has indicated that as expected the levels of S02 were so low as to be almost inSignificant until the arrival of wide spread coal use, and then even then they were very low. The amount may be significant, however, when combined with high relative humidity. The actual mapping and main photographic analysis of surface conditions across three height ranges is undertaken and described in chapter 5. In a number of cases, a relationship between black crusting and surface loss could not be established, although, it was apparent that scaling and surface loss of the sample areas was high. It became significant that decay was tending to emanate from the lime mortar joints in a number of locations and situations. This also became evident when looked for in other regions of the structure, for example the north side of the Bell Tower, which had started to decay within a forty-year period of restoration and is covered in chapter 6. Various forms of mechanical breakdown were established but this research did not enable any form of biological decay analysis to be undertaken. the durability of samples.

Exploring soil erosion and biodiversity in multifunctional landscapes: A case study of the South Downs, UK, by Sarah Marie Bateman, 2009 at Nottingham University (Ph.D. thesis)

A GIS-based approach to reconstructing mid-20th century agricultural land use around Lewes, East Sussex , by Katherine Jane Taylor, 2009 at Kingston University (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

The main objective of this project has been to reconstruct agricultural land use around Lewes, East Sussex between 1931 and 1959. The key aims were to contribute to the debate around theories of productivism and to demonstrate the power of GIS as a tool for historical reconstruction. The data for 1931 included the field sheets and one inch maps from the First Land Utilisation Survey, and significant differences were identified between these two sources. The data for the early 1940s included the maps and forms from the National Farm Survey along with a Luftwaffe aerial photograph. Using these, some farms were reconstructed successfully, although there were issues with the consistency of the data. The remaining datasets were aerial photographs from 1945/7 and 1959 along with the parish summaries of the 4th June agricultural census data. In terms of the productivism debate, a fuller definition of pre-productivism was proposed as a result of examining the 1931 data. The shift towards productivism in this part of East Sussex was considered by looking at the snapshots of land use provided by the different datasets. A clear growth in arable land, an increase in farm size and intensification in terms of livestock farming was identified. Finally the use of GIS allowed the integration of disparate datasets and the mapping of different types of land use in a way that has not previously been attempted for this area.

Treating borderline mental illness in twentieth century Britain: the pioneering contribution of Dr Helen Boyle, with particular reference to the foundation of the Lady Chichester Hospital , by Emma Milliken, 2010 at University of Westminster (Ph.D. thesis)

Animalscapes and empire : new perspectives on the Iron Age/Romano British transition , by Martyn George Allen, 2011 at University of Nottingham (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

Human-animal relationships have long existed, across cultures, in many varied forms. The associations between the two are integral to the creation, form, use and perception of landscapes and environments. Despite this, animals are all too often absent from our views of ancient landscapes. Humans experience their diverse environments through a variety of media, and animals regularly play an important role in this type of exchange. Landscape archaeology commonly emphasises the influences of humanity upon the physical world. However, such engagement is rarely unilateral. Whether herding domesticated mammals, hunting quarry, or merely experiencing the range of fauna which populate the world, many of these interactions leave physical traces in the landscape: the form and location of settlements, enclosures, pathways, woodland, pasture, and meadows. Also, in more subtle ways, human and animal actors work together in performances through which people subconsciously generate their perceptions of landscape and environment. These physical and psychological animal landscapes have the potential to inform on human society and ideology. This thesis seeks to utilise zoo archaeological evidence to examine this concept. Animalscape research could be applied to any place or period but as a case study this project will explore, through animal bone analysis, how landscape and environment were used to negotiate cultural identity during the Iron Age/Romano-British transition, a pivotal but poorly understood period in British history. Research focuses on a c.200 km2 area of land bordering the West Sussex coast. This is a complex and singular locale, encompassing a number of Iron Age and Romano-British sites - most notably the elite settlement at Fishbourne which originated in the late Iron Age and developed, towards the end of the 1st century AD, into the largest 'Roman-style' domestic building north of the Alps. The site has been excavated a number of times in different areas since its discovery in 1960 until 2002; the various investigations producing a large quantity of animal bone. Yet this has, until now however, only been subjected to piecemeal analysis. The full re-analysis of the Fishbourne faunal assemblage is central to this project. To place these new data in their wider context, existing animal bone information from all pertinent published and 'grey' zoo archaeological literature is synthesised. The resulting datasets allow for a detailed examination of animal landscapes across the Iron Age/Romano-British transition at three nested scales: site and context; hinterland/region; and, Empire. Integrating the zooarchaeological data with evidence from landscape and environment studies, Iron Age/Roman archaeology, ancient history and, most importantly, social anthropology is key to this project. A new theoretical framework is adopted here, whereby animals are seen not simply as passive indicators of economy and environment but as active beings, providing visual, audio and physical experience, and it is through these novel approaches by considering the human-animal-landscape relationship, that a new insight into the cultural changes of the Iron Age to Romano-British transition will be obtained.

The history of coppicing in south east England in the modern period with special reference to the chestnut industry of Kent and Sussex , by Deborah Mary Frances Barlett, 2011 at University of Greenwich (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

This thesis focuses on coppice woodland management in South East England, the region with the greatest concentration of woodland in the UK, with Kent the county with the highest proportion of ancient semi-natural broadleaved woodland. The woodland management practice of coppicing has declined, particularly since the Second World War, generally attributed to loss of markets for products fashioned from small diameter roundwood. This thesis begins by asking questions about the decline in the coppice industry particularly the extent of the decline and the significance this has for ecology and landscape, as well for the livelihoods of both woodland owners and the workforce. This is set in context by a review of the historical background, focusing on the modern period, the previous research into the industry, and the changes in policy that have taken place over the last fifty years. The evidence for the decline and the attempts that have been made to address it are evaluated. A series of investigations have been undertaken, including interviews, questionnaires and focus groups. These provide evidence that coppicing is still taking place over a wide area, and that there is a strong demand for products, both here and abroad, particularly for chestnut fencing. Claims by earlier researchers that the workforce is diminishing, with the majority nearing retirement, are refuted. Profiling the workforce has revealed the existence of separate groups, with distinct characteristics. These do not operate in the same way, indicating that considering the industry as a single entity is no longer valid. The importance of the chestnut workers, with a craft tradition handed down through the generations should be acknowledged. The current political context highlights the importance of involving all stakeholders in decision making. Recommendations are made for further research to incorporate this and so enable more successful development of the coppice industry in the future, whether this is for environmental, economic or social reasons.

Agents and professionalisation : improvement on the Egremont estates c.1770 to c.1860 , by Sarah Ann Webster, 2011 at Nottingham University (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

This thesis examines aspects of estate improvement on the Egremont estates in Sussex, Yorkshire and Australia between 1770 and 1860. Using the Petworth House Archives and others, it documents large-scale improvement projects, including William Smith's work in mineral prospecting in West Yorkshire, and Colonel Wyndham's land speculation in South Australia. The third Earl of Egremont (1751-1837) himself has received some biographical attention, but this has concentrated to a great extent on his patronage of the arts. This thesis therefore documents a number of important matters for the first time, in particular the detailed work of the middle layer of personnel involved in estate management and improvement. Episodes of 'failure' in estate improvement are also revealing in this study. This thesis contributes to debates regarding the nature of 'improvement' in this period, and most particularly, to understandings of the developing rural professions and to scholarship regarding professionalisation; interpreting key episodes in the archive utilising a 'landscape' approach. It uses the concept of an 'estate landscape' to draw together the dispersed Egremont estates in order to better understand the management structures of these estates, and how they relate to the home estate at Petworth.The thesis examines the relationships between Lord Egremont and the various agents (in the widest sense) who acted on his behalf; the configuration of which agents was different for each of the different estates. It makes a particular contribution to ongoing debates about the formation of the professions in eighteenth and nineteenth-century England in suggesting that despite the contemporary stress on applied agricultural expertise, legal land agents remained more influential than has been supposed. The belated professionalisation of the Petworth agents and the significant differences in their roles when compared with a land agency firm such as Kent, Claridge and Pearce suggests that estate management was far more diverse than has been suggested. Egremont himself emerges from the archive as neither a hands-on agricultural improver nor as an uninterested and neglectful absentee. Instead, I suggest, he acted as co-ordinator and as an impresario amongst the men engaged to act on his behalf, the middle layer of developing rural professionals including agents, surveyors, and engineers. If the literature to date has concentrated on Egremont as patron of art, he emerges from this thesis as a patron of improvement.

Violence, authority, cultures and communities in Sussex and Kent c.1690-1760, by Lyndsay Claire Poore, 2014 at University of Hertfordshire (Ph.D. thesis)   View Online

This thesis deploys both qualitative and quantitative methods to explore the role and meanings of violence within the context of Sussex and Kent in the early part of the eighteenth century. Historians have often approached the topic of violence from the perspective of a history of crime and therefore deviance. The focus has frequently been on measurements of levels and has ignored cultural contexts. In contrast, this research is grounded in experiences of violence demonstrating that it is not a uniform concept and includes a wide variety of behaviours from brawls to murder. By drawing on a range of sources it has been possible to allow the ritual and meaning of violent actions to be explored in detailed context. Quantitative data is taken from the quarter sessions records of both counties and analysed alongside the interpretations of previous historians. This is supplemented with depositions, literature, letters and notebooks to provide a 'thick description' of the contexts and circumstances of violence. The experience of violence is explored from a range of angles and at several levels, from anonymous brawls in the street to gang violence to household chastisement, the ritual and meaning of violent actions is investigated in detail. This analysis demonstrates that violence was a subjective concept, dependent on context. No clear definition of violence can be found, instead there are a range of descriptions, portrayals and accounts which all combine to illustrate the plurality of this concept. This thesis concludes that violence was often meaningful and connected with cultural concepts of order, authority and community. It was not random and its purpose can often be found if the signs are read. Evidence for struggles over authority and power can frequently be found as the basis of violent disputes and this can be found at the household, community and county level. This thesis demonstrates how violence was regulated through both formal and informal methods involving concepts of legitimacy and acceptability, as although violence was defined legally the border between legitimate or acceptable and illegitimate and unacceptable was blurred and contested.

Waves of Excess: Drinking Cultures in Brighton, 1880-1939, by Richard Robinson, 2016 at University of Helsinki (Ph.D. thesis) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/509276]