Bloody Old Britain: O.G.S. Crawford and the Archaeology of Modern Life

by Kitty Hauser

O. G. S. Crawford (1886–1957) was a man who thought history held the answers to everything, and that to study it was to know humanity’s glorious future. At first a field archaeologist, digging into the mysterious mounds and ditches of rural England, he became a photographer/observer flying over the Western Front during World War I—an experience that taught him the new skills of interpreting the earth from above and made him a pioneer of aerial archaeology. Then he fell in love with Marxism, was befriended by H.G. Wells, and traveled to the Soviet Union as one of its disciples. In the 1930s, it seemed to him that contemporary Britain would soon disappear, conquered by history’s inevitable march to world socialism, and he made a photographic study of everyday things—churches and advertising—as future evidence of how unenlightened British society had once been in its worship of God and the motor car. Later there came angry disillusionment and a book, too bitter to be published, called Bloody Old Britain. In recounting Crawford’s extraordinary story, Kitty Hauser uses many of his photographs—including fascinating undocumented scenes and sites such as anti-fascist graffiti and signs in Berlin and London in the 1930s—and penetrates neglected but fascinating aspects of British life that have themselves become history.

Genres: Biography, Archaeology, Nonfiction, History

286 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2008

Reviews

[T. Thurai · Rating 5 out of 5]

This biography affords an insight into the life of an extraordinary man O.G.S. Crawford. His life is symptomatic of an age when the ‘Great British Eccentric’ could still thrive although, one feels, such characters were soon to be swallowed up by bureaucratic red-tape and a growing mountain of rules and regulations.
Virtually orphaned as a baby – his mother died and his father remained in India – Crawford was brought up by two unmarried aunts in an ultra-religious home then, when he was old enough, consigned to Marlborough College which he hated.
His dysfunctional and lonely upbringing is the stuff of spy novels and, if he had not followed his own idiosyncratic route into archaeology, he might well have followed the same route as Anthony Blunt, the Cambridge spy, who had also been a pupil at Marlborough. Crawford certainly shared some of Blunt’s Communist convictions, although his idealism later turned to cynicism.
Crawford was an angry yet brilliant misfit who used his extraordinary talents to transform archaeology from a mere adjunct of Classical literature to a separate discipline based on science. His career marks the transition from the gentleman antiquarian of the 19th century to the professional archaeologist of the 20th century.
Crawford’s experience of aerial reconnaissance and photography in the First World War honed skills that were to be invaluable to a field archaeologist. Seen from above with Crawford’s discerning eye, the earth disclosed secrets of ancient settlements that had lain hidden for centuries.
Among his many achievements, Crawford founded the journal Antiquity, set up a project to create a map of the Roman Empire and used his position at the Ordnance Survey to serve the purposes of field archaeology. It seems that he was not always understood – or valued – and the avoidable loss of much of his work at the Ordnance Survey during the Blitz was a bitter blow.
He was a colourful and extraordinary character described as being both misogynistic and misanthropic: a character who was probably difficult to like and who, no doubt, presented a challenge to his biographer.
Yet Ms Hauser elegantly introduces touches of humour into her book which highlight the poignancy of Crawford’s life and help the reader to sympathise with him. Despite all his brilliant outpourings, one of his most popular broadcasts for the BBC was a talk on cats in which he ‘interpreted and mimicked cat noises with – by all accounts – uncanny accuracy’. This resulted in a ‘fat folder’ of letters from appreciative listeners and the offer of a book deal from an American publisher.
Other comments which raise a wry smile are Crawford’s eccentricities: for instance, his appearance at conferences wearing “’a greenish bowler hat’ of uncertain age’ and “the arguments he got into with everyone from his photographic developer to the company that made his favourite biscuits.”
This engaging and informative biography will stand the test of time. It will appeal not only to those with an interest in archaeology but to anyone who wants to get a flavour of the first-half of the twentieth century and one of its less well-known but truly unique characters.
Highly recommended.
Bloody Old Britain: O.G.S. Crawford and the Archaeology of Modern Life

[N · Rating 5 out of 5]

My thesis supervisor lent me this book to help me think through the concept of airmindedness (a concept from the 1920s; 'what can aviation offer us in war and daily life') and archaeology. I didn't end up using some of the interesting points that this book raised, but Hauser writes so engagingly about O.G.S. Crawford that I wanted to finish it anyway. I suppose what draws me to Crawford is that, like Lawrence (and they were almost exactly contemporaries, both went to Oxford, were interested in archaeology, loved cycling A Lot), he's kind of an eccentric, very devoted to whatever he ended up doing. I also found the explanation of Crawford's pre- and post-WW2 politics, and his disappointment with the communism that he thought so promising, very enlightening.

Unfortunately I have to return this book to its owner but I might buy it - it's something I'd like to hae in my library.

[Emily Sherriff · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really interesting biography about an interesting character from British archaeology. Despite only hearing about O.G.S Crawford late last year, I was keen to read more about this fascinating man. From founding Antiquity Magazine, to visiting Soviet Russia, all whilst exploring and recording British archaeological sites, he truly did live a full life - although it is clear from this biography that he himself did not recognise the contributions he made to British archaeology.

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good as far as it went - an excellent study of an early C20th crank who nonetheless had significant influence - but there were elements and issues in the story that I'd have liked discussed further. Also, I hate it when books which have clearly involved a great deal of intricate primary research don't have proper footnotes, though I realise this is about publishing economics.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent account of O.G.S. Crawford and life in 19thC Britain.