The Devensian

The Devensian cold stage and the Holocene temperate stage are primarily responsible for what the landscape of north of England looks like today. Large ice caps once established in the highlands of Scotland advanced south only to amalgamate with more local ice caps such as the one that formed over the Lake District. Having covered north of England, on retreat, periglacial processes stepped in to further modify the glaciated landscape. The end Devensian was marked with rapid climate fluctuation as a result of vegetation changes together with sediment accumulation in lakes. The final stage of the Quaternary Period i.e. the current Holocene temperature stage, is marked by a notable rise in sea level, reactivation of river systems, and of course the human modification on the landscape.

There are many aspects of the Devensian glacial record that ought to be considered if you wish to fully understand the nature of ice ages. Suffice to say that the Devensian can be conveniently divided into an Early Devensian (115 - 50 ka), Middle Devensian (50 - 25 ka) and Late Devensian (25 - 10 ka). The Late Devensian is the part that played the pivotal role in moulding the landscape we see today. In order to understand the Ice Age, consider the following: