AP EURO Unit #5 – Nationalism of 19th Century PPT #509 Taming the City, and The Rich and the Poor (ISSUES OF URBANIZATION)

Life in the city What were conditions like? Absolutely deplorable conditions Unpaved streets, no trash collection Over crowded and filthy No parks or open areas – no real urban planning Open sewers, lacking drainage Complete absence of public transportation Living in cellars, often surrounded by overflowing outhouses and sewers Urbanization in England: 1801 – 1.5 million in cities (17% of population) 1851 – 6 million (35%) 1881 – 15 million (54%)

Advent of public health Theory: disease was caused by filth Cholera epidemic of 1856 What was utilitarianism? How would it apply? Poor Law of 1834 Response to Bentham’s Utilitarianism What was the “Bacterial Revolution?

Bacteria Revolution Sanitation improvements Sewer System – Paris first Reaction to Cholera epidemics in 1830s & 1840s Believed to be a result of filth Massive clean up Sewer System – Paris first Led to dramatic drop in mortality rates Germ Theory – disease caused by microbes Louis Pasteur (France) – pasteurization (heating) Robert Koch (Germany) – identified harmful germs Joseph Lister (Britain) –sterilize before surgery

Response to improvements How do we know this all mattered? Note chart on p. 721 Mortality rates dropped dramatically Some diseases just disappeared Housing theory: adequate housing -> lack of social unrest and political discontent

Urban Planning What will this lead to that we now see in European cities? Led to Beautification of cities Paris – George Haussmann Hired by Napoleon II Completely transformed city Tore down whole neighborhoods of tangled streets Crowded cities = more crime London – Sir Robert Peel Uniformed police force – separate from army

To protect and serve… What is changing with police force? Why? Why does it matter? What does it show? Peel’s “bobbies” – uniformed police without weapons – to serve the public Prison Reform New goal: rehabilitate, not just punish Previous: “hulks,” “transportation,” large holding cells holding all types of criminals Philadelphia system – isolate criminals

Public Transportation Mostly a western European improvement Started with [American invented] horse drawn street car Pleasant, convenient, clean, reliable Electric street car Faster, cheaper, dependable, cleaner, comfort 1886 – 900 million riders in “big four” western nations nations 1910 – 7 billion riders

The Rich and the Poor

Distribution of Income Disparity still huge – not changing Richest 5% received 30% of income Bottom 80% got less than 50% But – stratified – lots of subclasses But, wages did have real growth Doubled for British workers 1850-1906 Other industrial nations to follow

Life for the Middle Class What characterized how they lived? Big meat eaters – 25% of income Well fed, well housed Fancy clothing – material tastes Well served – another 25% of income STRICT code of behavior Stressed hard work and discipline Sexual purity Saw drunkenness as a vice of the poor Committed to family and upward mobility

Life for the Working Class 80% of British population by 1900 Fewer than 8% still on farm in Britain Germany closest – 25% France lagging behind – 50% All other FAR behind LABOR ARISTOCRACY Highly skilled lower class – leaders of laborers Attempted to live as the Middle Class Strict moral code – puritanical Proud to be foremen and construction bosses Many MANY domestic servants (1 out of 7) Lowest workers: “sweated industries”

Leisure and Recreation What appeared to be happing to behavior of the common man? Why do you think that was happening? Even working class enjoyed Drinking still popular among lower classes Heavy drinking became taboo Public drinking – became more oriented for couples Cruel sports on the decline Replaced with soccer and racing (spectator sports) Music halls and vaudeville Decline in Church attendance & donations