The Birth of Modern London the Development and Design of the City 1660-1720

The period between 1660-1720 witnessed the foundation of modern London. The city was transformed after the great fire from a tight warren of medieval timber-framed building into a landscape of brick houses laid out in squares and spacious streets. This book examines the building boom of the period, and the speculative developers who created that landscape, their working practices, the role of craftsmen, and the design thinking which led to the creation of a new prototype for English housing. Focusing on this period as a distinct phase in London's architectural development, this book offers a radical reinterpretation of the adoption of Renaissance styles.