Introduction

One of the most remarkable social changes in nineteenth-century Britain was the congregation of the majority of the population into large cities. Such a development was unprecedented, though other areas of Europe and the USA were undergoing a similar transformation by the end of the century. ¹ No one doubted that the Industrial Revolution had brought material advantages, however unevenly distributed. But had urbanization brought parallel social and cultural riches to those now forced to live in cities? In the new relationships brought by mass urbanization, between city and citizen, environment and society, there was a need to create new living patterns, as a means of collective social stability and as a means of promoting individual fulfilment. Traditional customs and mores became eroded, and the challenge for the late Victorians was to replace them with the assets of city life, freedom of choice, mobility and a wider range of social and cultural experiences.