Thinking Through Change: Combining the Adaptive Cycle and Assemblage Theory to Assess Urban Change in Later Medieval Northern England

Abstract

The potential for combining elements of the adaptive cycle and assemblage thought to develop a novel approach to change in historical urban contexts is developed. It is proposed that the “adaptive cycle” model common in studies of resilience provides a valuable comparative tool for understanding change, but is limited by its conceptualization of the system as a homogeneous whole and its linear approach to temporality. This is particularly problematic given the fragmentary nature of archaeological data. To address these issues, the model is drawn into dialog with assemblage theory, an approach well attuned to these kinds of incoherent data. It is argued that correlating stages in the “adaptive cycle” with phases of assemblage formation and dissolution provides a means to engage with change as multitemporal and to better understand the material relations through which continuity and change emerge. The argument is developed through reference to evidence for boundary features, building materials and cultivation in 5 towns in Northwest England (Carlisle, Cockermouth, Kendal, Appleby, and Penrith) between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries, a period characterized by multiple crises.