ABSTRACT
The conditions that led to the recognition of culture as an aspect of amenity and social welfare provision, and the growth of public participation in national and local cultural activities, can be linked fundamentally to the growth of urban and city populations-in density and industrial conurbations. This was (and is still today) also concurrent with the need for reinforcement of national identity and culture, which rises and falls in scope and intensity as either are threatened, whether from without, e.g. war, economic competition, new technology, or from within, e.g. political, social change movements and creative milieu. Whilst force majeure incidents, notably great fires and natural disasters, had provided the opportunity for the rebuilding, planning and cultural renewal of major city areas, the destruction caused by modern warfare combined with the need for reconstruction of both the social and economic fabric, and also opened up the foundations for late urbanised society and therefore systematic town planning and consideration of the arts as an element in social welfare provision. As Rasmussen pondered: ‘I often wonder if there would have been any progress in London planning if there had not been a war…. The war period became the third phase of the great comprehensive plans for the entire London Region’ (1937/1982:427) and for example in Germany, ten years after the War, one hundred theatres were built or reconstructed. The effect of public and private transport technology and provision should also not be underestimated in opening up recreational opportunities and cultural consumption beyond largely pedestrian limitations, as train, bus, tram and the motor car extended the travel horizon to a widening social group between the 1830s and 1930s.
