This book conveys the excitement, diversity and richness of London
at a time when the city was arguably at the height of its power,
uniqueness and attraction. Balancing the social, the topographical
and the visible aspects of the great city, author Andrew Saint uses
buildings, architecture, literature and art as a way into
understanding social and historical phenomena. While many volumes
on Victorian London focus on poverty (an issue which is included in
this book), the author here provides a broader picture of life in
the city. It is enlivened with a rich line-up of colourful
characters, including Baron Albert Grant; Henry Mayers Hyndman and
his connections with Karl Marx, William Morris and George Bernard
Shaw; John Burns; Octavia Hill; Aubrey Beardsley and the artistic
bohemians; Alfred Harmsworth and the Garrett sisters, and includes
insightful quotes on London by esteemed authors such as Trollope,
Henry James and Rudyard Kipling. Divided into four long chapters,
each dealing with a decade, London's evolution between 1870 and
1914 comes across clearly. Although not intended to be a complete
history, it does cover all the most important historical
developments in London and London life. Particular issues are
allotted to the decade in which they seem to have been most
critical. Topics covered include: the creation of new
neighbourhoods and roads; how the Victorians dealt with their
housing crisis; why certain architectural styles were preferred;
and the fashion for focusing on certain types of building, such as
ice rinks, schools, houses, hospitals, fire stations, exhibition
halls, water works, music halls, recital rooms and pubs. This is an
up-to-date, readable and well-illustrated book which embraces the
whole in a positive spirit. Saint's interpretation of London's
history in the period covered is unashamedly one of progress in the
face of great odds. He shows that, in almost every aspect, it was a
much better city in1914 than in 1870. At a time when local autonomy
in Britain has been ruthlessly downgraded and London's face is
every year coarsened further by money-led developments, this story
of gradual and earnest improvement may have lessons to teach.
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