Hasegawa, Junichi (1989) The replanning of the blitzed city centre in Britain: a comparative study of Bristol, Coventry and Southampton, 1941-1950. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Preview

PDF WRAP_THESIS_Hasegawa_1989.pdf - Requires a PDF viewer. Download (25Mb)

Request Changes to record.

Abstract

Before the outbreak of the Second World War Britain had suffered the consequences of uncontrolled industrial development - too highly populated built-up areas and indiscriminate sprawl of houses in the suburbs of industrial cities. Those associated with town planning called for comprehensive national planning. The state of city centres was the microcosm of the lack of such planning - insufficiency caused by traffic congestion and chaotic development of buildings of all kinds, and the absence of social amenities such as civic centres and public open spaces. But the local authorities could do very little, because, for one thing, there was no proper legislation dealing with such highly densely developed areas.
The German air raids on several industrial cities in 1940 were thought to have provided a golden opportunity for the local authorities to set to the task of replanning city centres. The Government promised to make up the necessary legislation, and encouraged the blitzed local authorities to plan boldly and comprehensively. City centre replanning had become a symbol of post-war reconstruction as a whole. However, the blitzed authorities soon had to face a wave of pressure to subdue boldness in their city centre plans. This thesis, by exploring the three case studies of Bristol, Coventry, and Southampton, illustrates the development of city centre replanning in the 1940s, and explains why it failed to live up to some of the expectations of its supporters.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions D History General and Old World > DA Great Britain
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Urban renewal -- England -- Bristol -- History, Urban renewal -- England -- Coventry -- History, Urban renewal -- England -- Southampton -- History, Central business districts -- England -- Bristol -- Planning -- History, Central business districts -- England -- Coventry -- Planning -- History, Central business districts -- England -- Southampton -- Planning -- History, Bristol (England) -- History -- Bombardment, 1940-1941, Coventry (England) -- History -- Bombardment, 1940-1941, Southampton (England) -- History -- Bombardment, 1940-1944
Official Date:	April 1989
Dates:	Date Event April 1989 Published
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Department of Social History
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Hinton, James ; Mason, R. A.
Format of File:	pdf
Extent:	293 leaves : ill., maps
Language:	eng

Request changes or add full text files to a record

Repository staff actions (login required)

View Item

Downloads