GGY201 Urban Structure, Environment and Society Lecture Notes PDF

GGY201 – URBAN STRUCTURE, ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY. LECTURE NOTES: THE ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT OF CITIES (PART 2) CITIES AS ENGINES OF ECONOMIC GROWTH, CAPITALISM, INDUSTRIALISM AND URBANISATION:  After the decline of the Roman Empire (476 AD) a period of stagnation occurred in Europe,...

GGY201 – URBAN STRUCTURE, ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY. LECTURE NOTES: THE ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT OF CITIES (PART 2) CITIES AS ENGINES OF ECONOMIC GROWTH, CAPITALISM, INDUSTRIALISM AND URBANISATION:  After the decline of the Roman Empire (476 AD) a period of stagnation occurred in Europe, which saw the decline of large cities.  In the post-roman era Europe entered what is commonly referred to as the “dark ages” (476 AD – 1000 AD).  Ancient cities focused on extraction not profit and this feudal economic system continued in Western Europe with self-sufficient estates (autarky) with a peasant or serf class working the land and serving the local lord or bishop.  There was very little trade in Europe during the “dark ages”.  During the medieval times (5th to 15th centuries) there was a revival of urbanisation which saw the growth of trade and early forms of capitalism. The buying and selling of goods for profit (commercial capitalism) and artisans producing goods for profit (industrial capitalism).  Cities in Northern Italy (Milan, Florence, Venice) emerged as important trading cities with import trade links to the far East – luxury commodities such as spices, silks, and porcelain. In 1363 Venice had a population of around 80, 000 people. This painting is by eighteenth-century Venetian artist Giovanni Antonio Canal, known as Canaletto (Source: Wikimedia Commons). 1  These trading cities grew in importance and were often considered city-states.  The notion of “citizenship” became important and it was best to be considered a citizen of an independent or chartered city.  There were also non-citizens, visitors, rural subjects and minority populations.  The social order of the city was headed by the merchant class who had moveable assets (important to note the shift from Feudalism).  Growing political organisation of the merchants based on certain trades – establishment of guilds (occupational groupings) to solidify their power.  The spatial form of the medieval city was still condensed with a wall for protection from invasion.  Estimates that 60% of city budget was spent on wall maintenance, walls also restricted growth and often new walls had to be constructed. Map of Bruges (Belgium) 2  Medieval trading cities were centred around a market place or several market places (trading plaza’s).  Major cities had several market places.  Harbours and canal systems were important for trade.  Winding street patterns.  The social geography of medieval cities was complex and often linked to occupation.  There was segregation based on occupation and ethnic groups.  For example, the word ghetto was applied to a Jewish neighbourhood in Venice and comes from the Italian word borghetto (little town).  The growth of consolidated kingdoms/ states put an end to the autonomy/ independence of trading cities, but capitalism was carried over into the economies of European kingdoms/states.  It is important to note that at this stage the majority of the population still resided in rural areas and only a small percentage of people resided in cities.  The industrial revolution (18th and 19th century) was a watershed moment in history of cities.  The shift to a different economy based on production and exchange required a much larger labour force.  The industrial revolution occurred largely due to innovation in power supply and the development of the coal burning steam engine.  Technological improvements in machinery and a shift from small workshop production to a factory system which housed hundreds of workers enabled mass production.  Improvement in agriculture – less farmers/labourers needed on farms for food production and a shift of surplus labour to urban factories.  England was at the centre of the industrial revolution in the 18th century, but it soon spread to other parts of Western Europe and the world.  England had a lot of coal reserves which helped power steam engines and saw the innovation of the railways and steamships. 3  Industrial revolution was also fuelled by global trade, the slave trade and colonialism.  Better transportation also meant that colonies would provide many of the raw materials needed for industrial production.  The industrial revolution accelerated urbanisation at a massive scale.  The population of Europe doubled in the 1800s and the urban population grew six times over.  England was 20% urbanised in 1800, 40% in 1850 and 60% urbanised by 1890.  By 1800, London had a population of 1 million people, in 1850 it reached 2.5 million and by 1900 around 6.5 million people.  The factory system required a far greater concentration of labour in one place.  Coal was expensive to transport, so many new industrial cities emerged around the coal fields.  These cities were not pleasant – lots of pollution and poor living conditions.  Vast gap between the rich and poor and factory workers often lived in slums (tenements – cheaply built homes).  Disease was rife – infectious disease spread easily, like small pox and epidemics like cholera.  Spatial separation between the social classes accelerated, with widespread class based segregation.  Railroad connections emerged as an important transportation mode, linking to ports. Innovation in transport also expanded the boundary of cities. 4 5