ABSTRACT
If the dominant history of London’s development can be encapsulated in the idea of opportunity-driven incremental growth, then the role of business of all types in the city’s expansion has been pivotal. Thus Chapter 2 revealed how at key points in London’s history, alliances of the city’s landowners (often aristocrats) and its entrepreneurial builder/developers (large and small) have driven its growth, sometimes in direct opposition to alternative visions mapped out by the state. London in the neo-liberal era has been subjected to a new development dynamic brought about by a huge and sustained investment of the city as an international financial and service centre.
