Food is part of a country's identity. It can provide a sense of place, history and identity. This book highlights foods that have been part of people's lives in Britain since prehistoric times until today. These may be meals that were popular at the time, telling us how people lived, or they may be meals that are significant to a particular moment in history. Some of the foods may still be familiar today; some may make you feel hungry, some may make you feel glad that they're part of history and not part of your lunch!

The book is part of 'A history of Britain in 12 ...', a series which examines 12 items that are key to British history from the Stone Age to present day. The series helps students understand chronology and the idea of continuity and change. By focusing on different objects, it also encourages the reader to understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources and to gain knowledge of the methods of historical enquiry.

• 1: Britain and food
• 1: Neolithic/Bronze/Iron Age 6000 BCE–43 CE: Finding food at Skara Brae
• 1: Roman Britain 43 CE–410: Foreign food
• 1: Anglo-Saxon and Viking Settlements 410–1066: King Alfred burns the cakes
• 1: Norman rule 1066–1154: Death by lamprey
• 1: Middle Ages 1154–1485: Revolting peasants and a feasting court
• 1: Tudors 1486–1603: Four and twenty blackbirds
• 1: Stuart Britain 1603–1714: Fire on Pudding Lane
• 1: Georgian Britain 1714–1837: Food from the Empire
• 1: Victorian Britain 1837–1901: Slumming it in the city
• 1: World Wars: The Ministry of Food
• 1: Post–1945: Quick and fancy
• 1: 21st Century: Fast food fatties
• 1: Further information
• 1: Glossary
• 1: Index