A Vision of Britain Through Time

A Vision of Britain through Time brings together historical surveys of the British Isles to create a record of how these islands and their localities have changed. It was created by Humphrey Southall and the Great Britain Historical GIS Project (“GIS” stands for “Geographical Information System”). It is based in the School of the Environment, Geography and Geosciences of the University of Portsmouth.

This is a free-to-use website which has now been updated and re-launched. Among the latest additions is a full listing of every General Election result, 1832 to the present, by constituency and as a whole – the first time this information has been accessible online free of charge. Other additions include historic boundary maps, greater details of how land use and agriculture have changed, extra insight into labour market trends, including unemployment and wages, and a greatly-expanded collection of travel writing, providing seven centuries of comment and observation, by artists, authors, preachers, social reformers and agitators.

In short – one click unlocks a treasure trove of historical facts, figures, maps and viewpoints covering almost every settlement in Britain from many perspectives.

You can visit the site here

For the next two weeks, from 20th January 2025, there will be an online survey about the website and the opportunity to hear your views about the site, how easy you find it to use, what you like and what you don’t.

Clicking on the link below will take you to the survey questions. The survey can also be reached through the website itself via a link in the main banner at the top of every page. Once you reach the survey you will be asked a series of questions giving you the opportunity to voice your opinion. It will only take up a few minutes of your time and all responses are optional.

You can access the survey here