The Government of Victorian London, 1855-1889: The Metropolitan Board of Works, the Vestries, and the City Corporation - Hardcover

Owen, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0674863453 ISBN 13: 9780674863453

Publisher: Harvard University Press, 2014

Synopsis

Of all the major cities of Britain, London, the world metropolis, was the last to acquire a modern municipal government. Its antiquated administrative system led to repeated crises as the population doubled within a few decades and reached more than two million in the 1840s. Essential services such as sanitation, water supply, street paving and lighting, relief of the poor, and maintenance of the peace were managed by the vestries of ninety-odd parishes or precincts plus divers ad hoc authorities or commissions. In 1855, with the establishment of the Metropolitan Board of Works, the groundwork began to be laid for a rational municipal government.

Owen tells in absorbing detail the story of the operations of the Metropolitan Board of Works, its political and other problems, and its limited but significant accomplishments--including the laying down of 83 miles of sewers and the building of the Thames Embankments--before it was replaced in 1889 by the London County Council. His account, based on extensive archival research, is balanced, judicious, lucid, often witty and always urbane.

About this title

Review

This is a major work of urban history, a superbly wrought piece of historical reconstruction. It adds enormously to our knowledge and fills what may he termed a scandalous gap in the history of London and the bibliography of current urban history. It will enhance the reputations of Owen and those who have done so much to bring his book to its final polished state.,

This is a major work of urban history, a superbly wrought piece of historical reconstruction. It adds enormously to our knowledge and fills what may he termed a scandalous gap in the history of London and the bibliography of current urban history. It will enhance the reputations of Owen and those who have done so much to bring his book to its final polished state.,

From the Back Cover

Owen tells in absorbing detail the story of the operations of the Metropolitan Board of Works, its political and other problems, and its limited but significant accomplishments--including the laying down of 83 miles of sewers and the building of the Thames Embankments--before it was replaced in 1889 by the London County Council.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 0674863453
• ISBN 13: 9780674863453
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 486