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Spitalfields

The History of a Nation in a Handful of Streets

Dan Cruickshank

$32.99

Paperback

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English
Windmill Books
15 June 2017
Two thousand years of English history in one neighbourhood

SHORTLISTED FOR THE HESSELL-TILTMAN HISTORY PRIZE 2017

AN OBSERVER BOOK OF THE YEAR 2016

Religious strife, civil conflict, waves of immigration, the rise and fall of industry, great prosperity and grinding poverty - the

handful of streets that constitute modern Spitalfields have witnessed all this and much more.

In Spitalfields, one of Britain's best-loved historians tells the stories of the streets he has lived in for four decades. Starting in Roman times and continuing right up to the present day, Cruickshank explains how Spitalfields' streets evolved, what people have lived there, and what lives they have led. En route, he discovers the tales of the Huguenot weavers who made Spitalfields their own after the Great Fire of London. He recounts the experiences of the first Jewish immigrants. He evokes the slum-ridden courts and alleys of Jack the Ripper's Spitalfields. And he describes the transformation of the Spitalfields he first encountered in the 1970s from a war-damaged collection of semi-derelict houses to the vibrant community it is today.

This is a fascinating evocation of one of London's most distinctive districts. At the same time, it is a history of England in miniature.
By:  
Imprint:   Windmill Books
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 198mm,  Width: 129mm,  Spine: 50mm
Weight:   638g
ISBN:   9780099559092
ISBN 10:   0099559099
Pages:   784
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Dan Cruickshank is an architectural historian and television presenter. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, a member of the Executive Committee of the Georgian Group, and on the Architectural Panel of the National Trust. His recent work includes the BBC television programmes Civilisation Under Attack (2015) and At Home with the British (2016), and the books A History of Architecture in 100 Buildings (2015) and Spitalfields (2016). He lives in London.

Reviews for Spitalfields: The History of a Nation in a Handful of Streets

Genial, erudite and companionable ... this heroic and heartfelt book caps a career devoted to [Spitalfields'] heritage. Spectator Dan Cruickshank bores into the rich history of Spitalfields, the area of east London where he has lived for decades. -- Rowan Moore, Best Books of 2016 Observer With beguiling erudition, TV historian and local resident Cruickshank tells the story of Spitalfields from Roman times to today ... This is people's history at its tastiest. Sunday Express Cruickshank's history laments the City's encroachment on Spitalfields and the attendant growth there of estate agents, internet companies, fashion outlets and beardy hipster capitalists bent on having their slice of East End exotica. -- Best Books About London Evening Standard This is an elegy to a place changing beyond recognition ... Cruickshank is an appealing, sympathetic writer who clearly loves his home. The Times


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