Towns, Plans and Society in Modern Britain

by Helen Meller

Overview

This concise survey explores the interaction of the social and physical environment of cities. Helen Meller shows that while all modern societies have been subject to the economic, social and technological forces that have produced mass urbanization, not all towns and cities are the same. The author addresses the question of how people in Britain have sought to improve the quality of life in cities, and points out how projects to regenerate the urban environment have drawn on local history, traditions and culture to produce unique results.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521572279
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	08/07/1997
Series:	New Studies in Economic and Social History , #31
Pages:	152
Product dimensions:	5.59(w) x 8.82(h) x 0.59(d)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction; 2. Understanding cities: the impact of mass urbanisation; 3. Ideals and experiments in modern urban living, 1860–1914; 4. Town planning in a free society: the inter war period; 5. The golden age of planning: 'Building the better Britain', 1942–65; 6. Crisis of identity for cities and town planners, 1965–79; 7. Thatcherism and cities: the new context for planners; 8. Economic imperatives and urban regeneration: a new culture of cities?; Appendix; Bibliography.

Editorial Reviews

'Clearly written and well organised, this short book provides a useful introduction to the subject for both students and teachers of urban, social and political history.' History

From the Publisher