encounter of British and French scholars with areas of the world populated by
people of other colours, political organizations and tongues led them to
discussions about race, language and origins that did not seem so pressing
in other parts of Europe. Also, the colonies brought wealth, and therefore the
possibility of either the state or private individuals sponsoring a higher
number of scholars to deal with these matters. Empires, however, do not
explain everything, for a strong tradition of scholarship existed in other parts
of Europe like Germany and Central Europe, and in Scandinavia. For other
aspects like environmental archaeology, intriguingly, developments in the
latter area are remarkable and with no apparent parallel elsewhere in Europe.
Archaeologists’ concern for the past does not mean that they did not
believe in the power of the Classics and the archaeology of the Great Civil-
izations. Indeed the discourse of civilization still remained very powerful in
the nineteenth century, as explained in Part II of the book, and this arguably
inXuenced the study of the Roman archaeology in the own nation. Yet, for
most of those with interests in the past it was simply not suYcient to engage
with the archaeology of the Great Civilizations to the same extent that they
could become involved in the search for their own past. Their commitment
illustrates how, in theWrst half of the nineteenth century, the discovery of a
country’s own past devolved from being controlled by the higher strata in
society to the middle classes. It is worth emphasizing that this interest rose at a
time,Wrst, when through liberalism and economic wealth, the middle classes
were accessing political power and, second, when the history of Europe was a
complicated one in which many views competed over the existence and exact
location of national frontiers. Archaeologists could not avoid being part of
this contest. On the one hand, their experiences as individuals sometimes had
a critical impact on their social and intellectual lives. On the other, they often
contributed with their opinions to the on-going political debates.
Liberal Revolutions (c. 1820–1860) 367