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What research exists on early modern forest use and regulation?

My thesis looks at law and custom in woodland management. Before defining my case study, I need a synthetic overview of the major debates: Was regulation driven by scarcity, state control, or class conflict? What's the current scholarly consensus or divergence?

 

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By Meghna R Answered 2 years ago

The research landscape, from what I've engaged with, is defined by a central debate: was regulation a response to ecological scarcity or a tool of social control? Earlier works often focused on state-building how forest laws (like French Ordonnance or German Forstordnung) centralized power. Recent scholarship emphasizes social conflict, using court records to show how customary user rights (e.g., for grazing, timber) were contested. I'd recommend looking at the "commons" debate sparked by E.P. Thompson and developed by scholars like Jeanette Neeson, which reframes regulation as a site of class struggle, not just top-down policy.

 

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