18Th Century London Facts That Will Take You Back In Time

One of the reasons we are still eager to read classic novels is because of our fondness for 18th century London.Lasting from the years 1700-1799, 18th century London saw the prolific growth of the city. As the British Crown was reigning worldwide, London was going through rapid industrialization.More than ever before, the city was full to the brim, with people heading towards it from the rural areas in search of a better life. London wasn’t as clearly divided as it is today; rather, the capital city was hopeful of bringing a better time for everyone. The turn of the 19th century might have brought a difference to its state, but the 18th century still remains etched in the minds of people, especially due to literature and art. Hence, we thought of giving you more facts about London.So, keep reading to learn more about the prolific city that still remains strong today.If you enjoyed going through this article, you could also read about 14th century England facts and 1896 Olympics facts here at Kidadl!Fun Facts About 18th Century LondonTo learn about the city of London, we will start out with some fun facts. These will surely help you learn what life was like while living in 18th century London.As you may know, the industrial revolution began in Great Britain with the invention of the steam engine, and the starting year is said to be around 1760. This led to an influx of people into the city of London, which is also known as the westward migration. Even before the revolution had begun, London had already achieved a population of about 630,000 people by 1715, which made the city equal to Paris, which had stood as the most populated European city till that time. At the start of the revolution, the estimated population was said to have been around 750,000 people, which turned into a million as the century closed. As you might know, the steam engine led to better connectivity among the cities in Britain as well as in the colonies of the country. On top of that, the invention of it also helped to power better machinery at the factories, leading to more work in the industries that were mainly populated by poor people.Life in the 18th century might have been great for the wealthy, but it was devastating for the poor people, especially in terms of hygiene and sanitation. Due to the overwhelming population and the rising industrial revolution, there was no proper way to dispose of human waste. Hence, most of it ended up on the streets. Poor people had to live in ramshackle conditions, often inhabiting just one room, and it went on beyond the 1800s. Along with poor hygiene, the dirty food and bad water led to the deaths of up to 500 children out of a thousand born in London before the age of two.When it comes to good things, London is said to have had some of the best street lighting installations in the world during the 18th century.The Royal Academy of Arts, located in Burlington House in Piccadilly, London, was founded in 1768, around 253 years ago.Facts About The Society Of 18th Century LondonIn terms of social history, the society of London dominates the idea of 18th century Britain. Due to its prolific growth, all the cultured people were supposed to have lived in the city. At the same time, London was also seen as the seat of political power due to its importance in trade.Upon observing the society of London, or the whole of England, only a tiny minority can be considered rich, and these people lived in lavish houses, had the opportunity to have a good life, and belonged to well-off families. However, other than that, most parts of London were filled with poor people who were looking to make ends meet, and many lived crammed into just one room. The streets of London are also said to have been in desolate conditions with poor hygiene and an inability to get drinkable water.Having said that, society wasn’t really just divided into a tiny minority of rich people and a majority of poor people. In fact, the famous writer Daniel Defoe suggests that there were actually seven class divisions among the population, ranging from the great or upper rich class to the miserable who only knew how to supper. An interesting thing about the 18th century had to be the presence of a middle class who had the means to live a great life and believed in entrepreneurship and investing in new technology.Looking at Jane Austen, you may think that the social gap between the genders might not have been prominent, but even in the 18th century, it wasn’t really a great time for women. Yes, fashionable women were present, especially in well-off families, but most still dressed plainly. The average age for marriage was 17, and education was still limited. Rather than investing time in academic subjects, most girls were taught embroidery, music, cooking, and other household-based lessons. Moreover, academic subjects or school as a whole were confined to the upper classes who had the means to get an education. Having said that, some charity schools were created to give lessons to poor children. These charity schools were sometimes known as the ‘bluecoat schools’ due to the uniforms worn by the children. Due to the huge population and bad living conditions, it was a common phenomenon on the 18th-century streets to find orphans.Even though most of London did have a majorly white population, by the end of the 18th century, the black population of England is said to have been around 15,000 people. Most of these people preferred to live in major cities like London, Liverpool, and Bristol. A common profession for black people was domestic service.Crime Facts About 18th Century LondonWell, we have to agree, apart from the industrial revolution, another topic that pulls us towards 18th century London has to be the rate of crime. As you may know, it was definitely on the higher side due to the increasingly poor population in relation to the few wealthy people who had the money to survive.The most common crime seen in the 18th century London had to be theft, and it happened to both households as well as shops. Rather than having a police force like today, the London of that time was mainly patrolled by watchmen derived from householders. It was upon them to keep an eye on the criminals, especially during the night. On top of that, wealthy people also hired people to look after their households.During the 18th century, more people who had the means to pay decided to pool their money to have a more professional force to stay worry-free in their homes. It isn’t surprising to know that the earliest police-like forces, known as thief-takers, were actually ingrained in the society of criminals rather than being the moralistic beings that the police are supposed to be today. Even after the high crime rate, most Londoners didn’t want a patrol force near them and often loathed France for having a fully functional force.Another glaring criminal aspect of 18th century London has to be the presence of a corrupt judicial system. More people, especially the poor, had to move towards crime as the high officials weren’t keen on giving them the deserved justice. At the same time, the punishments, even for small crimes, were intense and often led to a death sentence, particularly for those who were poor. As you might know, the 17th and 18th centuries were known as the Enlightenment era, and this led to the rise of debate regarding the abolishment of capital punishment. However, public executions were still common in London, and the common device for them was hanging, so there were very few instances where the person might have been beheaded. We can very well assume that the same thing was happening even in the 1800s, as London turned towards the 19th century.Cultural Facts About 18th Century LondonWe have already talked about the social situation in London, where the wealthy were outnumbered by poor people who had to survive on dirty food and unhygienic living conditions amidst the industrial revolution. But this era also brought a surge of culture and a thirst for knowledge, making London a cultural hub.Did you know that it was during the 18th century when Londoners finally adopted drinking tea into their culture? In a household, the tea was usually prepared by the women, and they even took part in drinking tea after dinner. On the other hand, the men preferred to end their night with alcohol. To prepare the tea, one had to gather several utensils, and ceremonies were arranged around it. Even though tea was usually served inside the house or in gardens, men sometimes went to coffee houses to enjoy it.In 1753, the Marriage Act was signed and passed by the British Parliament to prevent secret marriages sanctioned by unauthorized clergy. This gave way to the necessity of registering one’s marriage by signing, which introduced a key point into the culture of marriage as well as the level of education in London.If we are talking about London during the 18th century, we cannot skip the gin graze. This was the time when alcohol gin became pretty popular due to the inexpensive method of producing it. And, during the industrial revolution, the huge influx of labor force in the factories meant that the people needed a respite at the end of the day. It is estimated that by 1750, half the amount of wheat grown in Britain was spent on producing gin. By the 1730s, London had around 6,000 houses that sold gin to the public, and by the 1740s, the average consumption of gin in Britain was around 6 gal (22.7 l) per year. Many people held the idea that gin was behind the high crime rate in London, but it could be easily debated.You may think that the era of the industrial revolution would be devoid of art. But it was during this time that more people became interested in art shows and exhibitions, including wax figures, paintings, and sculptures. Other than that, social events and gatherings played an important part in the lives of people, and the big ones were even included in the calendar. This was also the era when it was fun for people to watch fights between animals as well as humans.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for 18th century London facts that will take you back in time, then why not take a look at 1930 facts or 1936 facts?

One of the reasons we are still eager to read classic novels is because of our fondness for 18th century London.