Urbanisation

Question 1

What is urbanisation?

Answer 1

The process of an increasing population living in urban areas compared to rural areas. An urban area is a built-up area such as a town or city. A rural area is an area of countryside.

Question 2

Which time period does the ‘Great Era of Urbanisation’ refer to?

Answer 2

Between 1800-1914.

Question 3

During the ‘Great Era’ what was urbanisation driven by?

Answer 3

The need for towns as markets/services such as churches and city halls in rural areas.

Question 4

Where did urbanisation tend to occur?

Answer 4

• Political capitals
• Port cities
• Industrial cities (later 19th century)

Question 5

What are some problems associated with urbanisation?

Answer 5

1. Health problems
2. Pollution
3. Fear of moral problems
4. Increased crime

Question 6

Give details concerning the health problems that were driven by urbanisation.

Answer 6

• Bad health mainly due to high rates of disease and epidemics.
• Disease can be attributes to increasing population of people in small areas leading to poor living conditions.
• Leading to high death rate in urban areas so shorter life span (e.g. Glasgow 27 years old).

Question 7

Give details concerning the issue of pollution driven by urbanisation.

Answer 7

• Factory waste being dumped in rivers.

- People began associating smoke/pollution with jobs as urban areas generally held many job opportunities.

Question 8

What kind of moral problems were people afraid would result due to urbanisation?

Answer 8

• Urbanisation served to change and breakdown traditional community structures.
• Creating sense of anomia (i.e. feeling of disconnect and alienation towards society).

Question 9

Give an example of urbanisation in Europe.

Answer 9

• The Hausmannisation of Paris that took place between 1852-1870.

Question 10

What did the Hausmannisation of Paris entail?

Answer 10

• This was a public works program which aimed to transform the medieval Paris into a modern, urban center.
• This involved the demolition of medieval neighbourhoods, building of wide avenues (believed to aid in cleaning the air and creating more space), new parks and squares as public spaces and new sewers (previously used rivers).

Question 11

Why is the Hausmannisation of Paris significant?

Answer 11

• Became an inspirational model for other cities as considered one of the most modern cities in world.
• First public architecture (e.g. Arc de Triumph completed in 1836, Eiffel Tower completed in 1889 signifying power of steel and industrialisation, marking Paris as important)
• Introduced new urban infrastructure with public transport (Metro line opened ca. 1900), creating new form of civic life, sewer tunnels built underground so less disease, utilising land above and below ground.

Question 12

Which country holds the oldest underground?

Answer 12

The London underground opened in 1863 and is the oldest in the world.

Question 13

What practical things does industrialisation create a demand for in urbanising areas?

Answer 13

• Housing
• Water/waterworks/pumping machines (i.e. machines)
• Gas lines (non-leaking gas pipes)
• Sewage and water lines (bathrooms so plumbing)
• Electrical lines/power stations (need for electrical wire, switches and lights)
• Lights allowing cities to turn night into day (gas and electric lamps)
• Windows (glass)
• Pavements/cobblestones/concrete
• Greater public planning and financing forcing public to invest for engineering, traffic regulation, fire/police safety i.e. ‘standards’

Question 14

What are some social aspects that industrialisation creates a demand for in urbanising areas?

Answer 14

• Promotes sociability (theatre, and shopping)
• Stress (speed of modern life)
• New opportunities and risks for men and women (moving away from tradition)
• New political frameworks
• New forms of crime (e.g.prostitution)

Question 15

Give an example of another country outside of Europe that was industrialising and urbanising at this time?

Answer 15

• Many port cities which have a lot of European architecture to this day > e.g. the Shanghai ‘bund’ exemplifies colonial era architecture (old port city for European community)

Question 16

What are the 2 main theories that explore what makes some cities grow larger than others?

Answer 16

1. Central Place Theory

2. Network System Theory

Question 17

What does the Central Place Theory claim?

Answer 17

• The growth of industrial cities both enhances power of capital as well as threatens it.
• Capital of an empire or nation has ability to influence laws, language and literature.
• Idea of a hierarchy between capitals/cities and small towns.
• This can be applied to cities like Paris, Berlin, Vienna and Beijing.

Question 18

What does the Network System Theory claim?

Answer 18

• Idea of a city as a nodality in a larger network i.e. depends on having broader links (waterways until railroads) rather than just to specific trading ports.
• Participates in global networks, less hierarchal (i.e. tension with capital city).
• Cosmopolitan.
• Can be applied to cities like Liverpool, Bristol, Rotterdam and Bordeaux.