ABSTRACT
Queen Victoria ascended to the throne in 1837 and remained there until her death in January 1901. In terms of social, economic and architectural development, the Victorian era is one of the most dramatic periods in recent history for the United Kingdom. There were also wider geographical repercussions given the extent of the British Empire across the world and the consequent effect on the social and built structures of those countries that formed part of the Empire. Within the British Isles, there was a transformation from an essentially agrarian society to an industrialised and urban society in less than a century. The population rose dramatically, more than tripling in the course of a century. In 1801 the population was ten million, but had risen to almost 21 million in 1851 and then 37.5 million by 1901. This had profound implications for the built environment and the need to house people, provide places of work and centres for government and learning. The rapid rise in population and increase in industrialisation and ultimately urbanisation created opportunity for some, along with misery and squalor for others.
