Why did London change so dramatically in the period 1750-1900?
How London Changed
This six minute video tells us how Britain adapted to the changes in every day life, like the working of factories.
An image of the first steam train going through the Thames Tunnel, after the tunnel was opened on the 9th January 1843
This image shows the first steam train travelling through the Thames tunnel, which was firstly used for pedestrians to walk through. This was a big moment in history because without this being done, we wouldn’t be able to get to places like London fast like we do now! So much money had been made by tourists going through the tunnel that it could be eventually be developed to transport cargo under the river, like in the picture. However, it wasn't a very nice place for the train drivers to work because it often got very smoky and hot as there were no ventilation shafts!
An image of people roaming around the streets of London in 1750-1900.
This image shows how much the population grew between the 1750's and the 1900's. In the 1750's the population was around 10 million, however, in the 1900's the population had grew more than four times to 42 million people! In the 1750's, people lived in the countryside and in small villages, but in the 1900's nearly everyone lived in big cities and towns, which would have lots of things to do, and would have a big supply of food and other essentials, and so that is a reason on why London/ Britain grew so dramatically!
This picture shows the housing of middle class people during the 1750's - 1900's
This image shows how different housing is now compared to during the Industrial Revolution. Houses for the middle class people were quite small and back to back and some with small gardens. All of the money made because of the steam train transporting things, and people visiting the empty tunnel before that meant that workers could now live on the outskirts of the city and travel into London all under a budget that they can afford.
This picture shows an example of how many jobs were available during the 1750-1900's.
This image shows a big factory that would have had hundreds of people working there, earning money to live on (they didn’t earn that much money at all then). This was one of the most common jobs for the middle and lower class people at that time and most families had someone that worked there! However, it was not a very nice job to do and involved hours of hard work just to get their minimum wage, normally shifts would start from early in the morning and finish late at night.
Flatford Mill
Flatford Mill (Scene on a Navigable River) is an oil painting by English artist John Constable, painted in 1816. It is Constable's largest exhibition canvas to be painted mainly outdoors, the first of his large "six-foot" paintings [more]
The Fighting Temeraire
The Fighting Temeraire tugged to her last berth to be broken up, 1838 is an oil painting by the English artist J. M. W. Turner. HMS Temeraire was one of the last second-rate ships of the line to have played a distinguished role in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. [more]
The Hireling Shepherd
This is a painting by William Holman Hunt, a leading British Pre-Raphaelite.
Ophelia
Ophelia is a painting by British artist Sir John Everett Millais, completed between 1851 and 1852. It depicts Ophelia, a character from Hamlet, singing before she drowns in a river in Denmark. [more]
The Music Lesson
The Music Lesson or Lady at the Virginals with a Gentleman by Jan Vermeer, is a painting of young female pupil receiving the titular music lesson. [more]
