Early Eighteenth-Century Britain: 1700-1739

Description

The early eighteenth century saw British society move towards greater stability and sustainability following the centuries of turmoil that had climaxed in bloody civil-war and the drama and decadence of the Restoration. The inexorable rise of the middle-classes brushed aside outdated customs, etiquette and prejudices and powered the 'Reformation of Manners', a new system of social mores and rules for a fast-developing nation, and cities were planned to benefit from careful lighting and green spaces. This period, accessibly described here by Lorna Coventry, was a tremendous step towards a recognizably modern Britain, giving us our first novels and, following the Great Fire, London districts through which we walk to this day.

Lorna Coventry is an urban historian specialising in eighteenth-century architectural, social and political history. She has worked for English Heritage on the Survey of London project, and is currently completing her thesis on eighteenth-century Westminster.