ABSTRACT
One partial explanation of the anomalous persistence of Celtic culture might be that the Celtic groups have been isolated from the course of English history. While the Celtic groups were not wholly isolated from events occurring elsewhere in the British Isles, it is likely that the Celts were affected qualitatively differently: their history must, in certain respects, diverge from that of the other British peoples. In order to understand the particular historical experience of the Celtic groups it is necessary to begin by considering the ecology of their territories. Yet, the union of the Celtic periphery with England, unlike the earlier unification of English counties during the Anglo-Saxon period, did not establish state-wide legitimacy for the government in London. The periphery's weapon of resistance to English authority was the nineteenth-century development which came to be known as 'Celtic culture', though in many ways this had little in common with its ancient counterpart.
