From Gildas and then Bede onwards (See Introduction Note) it was popular for indigenous historians to start their works with a general geography of Britain. Bede's opening contained a number of wonders (though not explicitly listed as such), including hot baths and salt springs (making one consider whether Bede had access to the Historia list before its inclusion in the manuscripts we have today, and summarized it). The Historia's list is much more explicitly about Wonders. This seems to have inspired many later historians, very reasonably, to combine the geography and wonders into a single prologue for their works, often including other geographical lists such as the cities of Britain (Note) or lists of the most important rivers.

In some cases, however, an alternative list seems to have been circulating, comprising of Peak Cavern and/or Chedderhole, Stonehenge and/or other stone circles, and orographic rainfall! In the case of the first of these, the list usually mentions a strong wind blowing from it, which doesn't seem to be the case for Peak Cavern (see Wonder 9 Myth), strongly suggesting the adaptation of the Historia list for a more English audience.