Research Environment

Conflict Heritage and Archaeology is a unique programme that reflects the central role which the internationally renowned Centre for Battlefield Archaeology has played in the development of the field.  The Centre for Battlefield Archaeology is the first research centre in the world devoted exclusively to researching archaeologies of conflict, but you will also be able to draw on a wide range of experts and benefit from a close association with Archaeology, History and the Scottish Centre for War Studies at the University of Glasgow.

The Centre is constantly engaged in research projects, both in Britain and abroad. Projects have included:

• Work on battlefields of the 1879 Anglo-Zulu War in South Africa
• Work on the discovery of the site of the Battle of Bannockburn
• The excavation of tunnels from the Great Escape at Stalag Luft III in Poland
• A range of projects on the Western Front from the First World War
• A major project investigating the archaeology of the Battle of Waterloo

It is also heavily involved with experimental archaeology, with a ground-breaking HLF-funded project with Northlight Heritage to reconstruct WWI trenches over a period of three years, and maintains a small arsenal of black powder firearms, such as Brown Bess muskets and Baker rifles, as well as a working reproduction of an eighteenth century 1.5 pounder cannon, which have been used in various ballistic experiments.

As a postgraduate student, you will benefit directly from the Centre’s portfolio of past and present research, also benefit from the experience of leading experts based outside of the Centre and the University, who often give guest lectures as part of the course. Additionally, we are actively engaged in a number of field projects, both within the UK and overseas.