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2 - Mapping troubles

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 December 2009

Paul Griffiths
Affiliation:
Iowa State University
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Summary

‘Little worlds’

Trying to say something definitive about this metropolitan maze is like trying to square a circle. ‘There are so many little worlds in her’, Donald Lupton marvelled in 1632. There were twenty-six wards, 109 parishes, and a mesh of criss-crossing jurisdictions. Wards were split into about 242 precincts, many of which crossed parish lines, blurring borders still further. ‘Many little worlds’, indeed, and many were just small specks on maps but with their own sights, sounds, stench, and stories to tell. London has not one history or even a dozen histories, but hundreds of histories of places, peoples, and cultures. Not one was hermetically sealed from the rest or forked off in one direction on its own. They all crossed constantly like London's streets and jurisdictional patches. These ‘little worlds’ and histories are set in London and they all have something to say about living in the city, but they are not histories of London.

London's quick growth modified mental and physical landscapes and how people experienced the city. These human responses are swamped by growth, and people living 400 years ago can easily get lost in population counts. Londoners made their own environments but each self was affected in some way by place, people, landscape, and living standards. Each Londoner carved out his or her experience and niche in the city, making it their own.

Type
Chapter
Information
Lost Londons
Change, Crime, and Control in the Capital City, 1550–1660
, pp. 67 - 97
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2008

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  • Mapping troubles
  • Paul Griffiths, Iowa State University
  • Book: Lost Londons
  • Online publication: 15 December 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511495823.004
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Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

  • Mapping troubles
  • Paul Griffiths, Iowa State University
  • Book: Lost Londons
  • Online publication: 15 December 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511495823.004
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Mapping troubles
  • Paul Griffiths, Iowa State University
  • Book: Lost Londons
  • Online publication: 15 December 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511495823.004
Available formats
×