The objective of this study is to seek to better understand the processes involved in landscape change that have resulted in the highly distinctive character types found in the British Isles. Rather than drawing examples of different aspects of development from around the regions, a single heavily wooded landscape has been chosen for study, that of Savernake Forest (Wiltshire, southern England). The case is made that the processes involved in landscape dynamics are universally applicable, but that the various factors interact in subtly different ways in order to create distinctive landscape...