Around 1550 BC, on the shores of the English Channel or North Sea, a boat was

built to navigate the sea and realise regular connections between what is now

England and the continent. The people living at that time on the coasts shared

a common identity. The sea was thus a thoroughfare and not a frontier. The

frontiers lay inland, well away from the coasts.

In 1992, the discovery of a 3,500-year-old boat in the port of Dover was the start

of an astonishing adventure into the history of Bronze Age societies in the Transmanche

region. Its study has brought to light the existence of highly technical,

specialised boatbuilders. It has became a symbol of Transmanche maritime

connections. Archaeological excavations, particularly preventive archaeology,

that proliferated at the same time in Northern France, in Belgian Flanders and

in the south of England have added to this scientific knowledge : settlements,

objects and funerary practices studied demonstrate undeniable similarities on

either side of the sea in 1550 BC.

Archaeology offers a new perspective on these ancient oral societies, little

known by the public. This volume offers an overview of our knowledge about

the Bronze Age by way of seven themes that summarise the way of life of Transmanche

societies 3,500 years ago.