Housing in Urban Britain 17801914 [Paperback]

An ideal introduction to a central issue in nineteenth-century social history  the history of housing and the transition from a rural to an urban society.The history of housing between 1780 and 1914 encapsulates many problems associated with the transition from a largely rural to an overwhelmingly urban nation. This study reviews the recent arguments and guides the student of social history to further reading.The history of housing between 1780 and 1914 encapsulates many problems associated with the transition from a largely rural to an overwhelmingly urban nation. This study reviews the recent arguments and guides the student of social history to further reading.Why did slums and suburbs develop simultaneously? Were class antagonisms to blame? Why did the Victorians believe there was a housing problem? The history of housing between 1780 and 1914 encapsulates many problems associated with the transition from a largely rural to an overwhelmingly urban nation, whose unprecedented pace imposed immense tensions within society. This book reviews the recent arguments and guides the student of social history to further reading, making it an ideal introduction to a central issue in nineteenth-century history.1. Introduction: an urban framework; 2. Urban expansion and the pattern of demand; 3. Supply influences; 4. House types: terraces and tenements; 5. The suburbs: villas and values; 6. The containment of 'The Housing Problem' 18501880; 7. A late-Victorian and Edwardian housing crisis; 8. Comfort and housing amenity; 9. Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Updated bibliographical note; Index. ...Rodger's study is an excellent introduction to the social, economic, and political issues related to urban housing. Students at the undergraduate and graduate level will benefit from reading this introduction and then using both the notes and the updated bibliographical essay for further study. Vladimir Steffel, Historian