--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For two centuries the English countryside…" description: "\"For two centuries the English countryside has been an icon of national identity and the loved reminder of our island home. Yet the government is bent o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/roger-scruton-971_countryside_for-two-centuries-the-english-countrysid_220313.jpg" --- # For two centuries the English countryside has been an icon… ![“For two centuries the English countryside has been an icon of national identity and the loved reminder of our island home. Yet the government is bent on littering the hills with wind turbines and the valleys with high speed railways.” quote by Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/roger-scruton-971_countryside_for-two-centuries-the-english-countrysid_220313.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/roger-scruton-971_countryside_for-two-centuries-the-english-countrysid_220313.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/419/roger-scruton-971_countryside_for-two-centuries-the-english-countrysid_220313.jpg) > “For two centuries the English countryside has been an icon of national identity and the loved reminder of our island home. Yet the government is bent on littering the hills with wind turbines and the valleys with high speed railways.” [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The English countryside symbolizes national identity, but modern infrastructure threatens its character. **In simple terms:** Countryside = identity; turbines/rail threaten it. Key Takeaway Protect heritage while planning development. Themes national identity environment modernization heritage infrastructure Mood concerned defensive Type reflective critical When to use this quote - policy debates - environmental activism - tourism planning - local community meetings - heritage preservation initiatives Key Concepts cultural symbolism environmental impact urban planning Questions to Reflect On - How can development respect cultural landscapes? - What trade‑offs are acceptable for modernization? A Different Perspective Economic growth may prioritize progress over preservation, causing conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Countryside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/countryside/) [Countryside Icon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/countryside-icon-2252229/) [English countryside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/english-countryside/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [High speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-speed/) [High speed rail](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-speed-rail/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [National identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/national-identity/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speed/) [Turbines Valleys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turbines-valleys-2252230/) [Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind/) [Wind turbines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind-turbines/) ## Related quotes > [But the European Union does not have a concept of national identity. It was set up to abolish that idea, not to abolish German…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/but-the-european-union-does-not-have-a-concept-of-national-identity/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [The California High Speed Rail Project is a failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-steel/the-california-high-speed-rail-project-is-a-failure/) [Michelle Steel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-steel/) > [We are also ignoring and underfunding high speed rail which is one of the best ways to move citizens and improve congestion on our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corrine-brown/we-are-also-ignoring-and-underfunding-high-speed-rail-which-is-one-of/) [Corrine Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corrine-brown/) > [The "Green" community, the enviro people, are preoccupied with running all the cars differently. Our techno-grandiosity has us gibbering about high-speed rail - which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/the-green-community-the-enviro-people-are-preoccupied-with-running/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [Obama wants to build such things as smart electrical grids and high-speed rail lines, which will offer big environmental improvements. 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America is ready for high-speed rail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-abbott/america-is-ready-for-livable-communities-america-is-ready-for-high/) [Greg Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-abbott/) > [California's High Speed Rail Project is a failure, and not one more taxpayer dime should go towards this money pit project.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-steel/california-s-high-speed-rail-project-is-a-failure-and-not-one-more/) [Michelle Steel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-steel/) > [We seem to be committing ourselves to an eye wateringly expensive railroad for the few. High speed rail plan is madness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-rutherford/we-seem-to-be-committing-ourselves-to-an-eye-wateringly-expensive/) [Mike Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-rutherford/) > [I think one big improvement would be if we somehow made it cheaper and easier for developing countries to learn from the sad experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pogge/i-think-one-big-improvement-would-be-if-we-somehow-made-it-cheaper/) [Thomas Pogge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pogge/) > [“Bram stared into a pair of wide, dark eyes. Eyes that reflected a surprising glimmer of intelligence. This might be the rare female a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tessa-dare/bram-stared-into-a-pair-of-wide-dark-eyes-eyes-that-reflected-a/) [Tessa Dare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tessa-dare/) ## More by Roger Scruton > [Beauty is vanishing from our world because we live as though it does not matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/beauty-is-vanishing-from-our-world-because-we-live-as-though-it-does/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [“So conceived, the English police force served to emphasize a fundamental truth about the English law, which is that it exists not to control…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/so-conceived-the-english-police-force-served-to-emphasize-a/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [My 2018 ended with a hate storm, in response to my appointment as chair of the government's Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/my-2018-ended-with-a-hate-storm-in-response-to-my-appointment-as/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [I've never been an optimist, but that's fine because pessimists have the possibility of being agreeably surprised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/i-ve-never-been-an-optimist-but-that-s-fine-because-pessimists-have/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [Unlike every other product that is now manufactured for the table, wine exists in as many varieties as there are people who produce it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/unlike-every-other-product-that-is-now-manufactured-for-the-table/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [The abstract, unreal freedom of the liberal intellect was really nothing more than childish disobedience, amplified into anarchy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/the-abstract-unreal-freedom-of-the-liberal-intellect-was-really/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [“I think we can all see the force of the idea that there are certain things that cannot be done to human beings –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/i-think-we-can-all-see-the-force-of-the-idea-that-there-are-certain/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [When art becomes merely shock value, our sense of humanity is slowly degraded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/when-art-becomes-merely-shock-value-our-sense-of-humanity-is-slowly/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [“Western democracies did not create the virtue of citizenship; on the contrary, they grew from it. Nothing is more evident in The Federalist than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/western-democracies-did-not-create-the-virtue-of-citizenship-on-the/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [“If one looks back to the French Revolution, one sees just how easy it is for the doctrine of “human rights” to become an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/if-one-looks-back-to-the-french-revolution-one-sees-just-how-easy-it/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [“I say it was immediately apparent, but it was not apparent to the intellectual class, which has remained largely wedded to the post-war consensus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/i-say-it-was-immediately-apparent-but-it-was-not-apparent-to-the/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [Conservatives hold on to things not only because they are attached to them, but also because they do not see the sense in radical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/conservatives-hold-on-to-things-not-only-because-they-are-attached-to/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [“Academic philosophers in the English speaking world still regard philosophy as Locke defined it in the 17th century, as “the handmaiden of the sciences”:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/academic-philosophers-in-the-english-speaking-world-still-regard/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [Delia Smith is, actually, my bete noire. I consider her a most pernicious influence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/delia-smith-is-actually-my-bete-noire-i-consider-her-a-most/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [Modern art was born from a desire to destroy kitsch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/modern-art-was-born-from-a-desire-to-destroy-kitsch/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) [Explore all 317 Roger Scruton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) ## More Countryside quotes > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [“In East Sussex, let us say, an old farm sleeps in sun-dapple, its oast-house with its cowls echoing the distant steeple of SS Andrew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-m-w-wemyss/in-east-sussex-let-us-say-an-old-farm-sleeps-in-sun-dapple-its-oast/) [G.M.W. 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And I share your concern.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/you-are-worried-about-what-man-has-done-and-is-doing-to-this-magical/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [My father was trained as a saddler, but in fact as a young man worked in his father's business of rearing and selling cattle,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-klug/my-father-was-trained-as-a-saddler-but-in-fact-as-a-young-man-worked/) [Aaron Klug](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-klug/) > [Britain still has the most reliably beautiful countryside of anywhere in the world. I would hate to be part of the generation that allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/britain-still-has-the-most-reliably-beautiful-countryside-of-anywhere/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Gail Anderson-Dargatz has a noticing eye, a voice as unique as the countryside she writes about, and a heart large enough to love her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hodgins/gail-anderson-dargatz-has-a-noticing-eye-a-voice-as-unique-as-the/) [Jack Hodgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hodgins/) > [What e'er you are That in this desert inaccessible, Under the shade of melancholy boughs, Lose and neglect the creeping hours of time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/what-e-er-you-are-that-in-this-desert-inaccessible-under-the-shade-of/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [There are some delightful places in this world which have a sensual charm for the eyes. 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