Early Medieval Defended Communities Across Europe: Fortified Settlements of the Eighth to Tenth Centuries AD While much archaeological and historical attention goes on the defence of the later Roman world and on the development of medieval castle, too often the intervening early medieval period is overlooked or misunderstood in terms of its settlements, populations and defence. Were defended communities typical in the early Middle Ages? How far was there a direct continuity from late Roman into early medieval in terms of hilltop villages and fortified sites? What new sites emerged…
