ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The collapse of Coventry's economic prosperity in the 1860s was marked by a sharp rise in the number of applicants for poor relief, a proliferation of soup kitchens for the needy and a substantial exodus from the city of unemployed artisans. The peak year of the cycle boom in 1896 brought a flood of immigrants to Coventry and an immediate housing crisis. Maternal and infant health care received special attention with the appointment in 1901 of a woman health visitor and in 1905 the introduction of a limited scheme of school medical inspection. The foundations of the British motor industry were laid in Coventry in the 1890s. Daimler, Rover, Standard, Riley, Siddeley and Alvis are just a few of the famous names associated with the city from its early car-making days.
