Co-published with British Society for Geomorphology This volume is the fifth in the definitive series, The History of the Study of Landforms or the Development of Geomorphology. Volume 1 (1964) dealt with contributions to the field up to 1890, Volume 2 (1973) with the concepts and contributions of William Morris Davis and Volume 3 (1991) covered historical and regional themes during the ‘classic’ period of geomorphology (1890–1950). Volume 4 (2008) concentrated on studies of geomorphological processes and Quaternary geomorphology between 1890 and 1965; by the end of this period, process-based studies had become dominant. Volume 5 builds on this platform, covering in detail the revolutionary changes in approach that characterized the study of geomorphology in the second half of the twentieth century. It is divided into three sections: the first deals with changes in approach and method; the second with changes in ideas and the broader scientific context within which geomorphology is studied; and the final section details advances in research on processes and landforms. The volume’s objective is to describe and analyse many of the developments that provide a foundation for the rich and varied subject matter of twenty-first century geomorphology.

This re-issue, first published in 1964, is the first of a seminal series analysing the development of the study of landforms, from both the geographical and geological point of view, with especial emphasis upon fluvial geomorphology. Volume 1 treats the subject up to the first important statement of the cycle of erosion by W. M. Davis in 1889, and attempts to identify the most significant currents of geomorphic thought, integrating them into the broader contemporary intellectual frameworks with which they were associated. As well as dealing with such key figures as Werner, De Saussure, Hutton, Playfair, Buckland, lyell, Agassiz, Ramsay, Dana, Peschel, Powell, Gilbert and Davis, attention is also given to many less important contributions by American, British and continental workers. A spirited biographical treatment, attractively set off by contemporary portraits, diagrams and sketches, will make this book of great interest to the historian of science, and indeed to the general reader, as well as to the student and scholar in geomorphology, hydrology and any other earth science.

This volume is entirely devoted to the life and work of the world's most famous geomorphologist, William Morris Davis (1850-1934). It contains a treatment in depth of Davis' many contributions to the study of landforms including: the cycle of erosion denudation chronology arid and karst geomorphology the coral reef problem.

This volume is entirely devoted to the life and work of the world's most famous geomorphologist, William Morris Davis (1850-1934). It contains a treatment in depth of Davis' many contributions to the study of landforms including: the cycle of erosion denudation chronology arid and karst geomorphology the coral reef problem.