1. TOO MANY FLATS?
There are lots of flats in Islington. Some say there are too many.
The Council in 1972 switched from building blocks of flats to rehabilitating old houses. Now when we provide new places the Council is trying to provide houses rather than flats.
But we have a long way to go before we can offer people the choice of a house as against a flat.
2. IN ANCIENT ROME
Blocks of flats are not a new feature in city life. People have been living in flats for a very long time.
The biggest city of ancient times was Rome. It was said to have a population of 1.5 million (10 times the population of Islington).
And it was full of blocks of flats. A census was taken in the 4th century AD. It was iound that there were 20 times as many flats as houses (46,602 flats as against 1797 houses).
3. CITY OF SKYSCRAPERS
The Romans were building flats 3 storeys high 400 years before Christ.
And higher and higher the flats rose. Some say that they soared up to ! 15ft -12 storeys high. Blocks of 7 storeys were common. |
4. WHAT WERE THE FLATS LIKE?
As with most things, there were 2 sorts - flats for the rich and flats for the poor.
The flats for the rich were quite pleasant. Built by the seaside, the blocks were not too high, the floors were tiled with mosaics and some apartments had 12 rooms.
But the mass of people lived in the high blocks called "Insulae".
5. THE WORKERS' FLATS
These flats had a suprisingly modern appearance. They all looked very much alike with plain fronts. Often they were built with wooden or concrete balconies around an inner courtyard.
The ground floors were usually occupied by shops or the owners. An external staircase led to the first floor.
From there upwards the overcrowding and squalor began.
6. CROWDED ROME
As the Empire increased, so Rome became more crowded. Returning soldiers from the conquering legions, traders, ne'er-do-wells, slaves packed the city.
The demand for accommodation was so great that anything could be let. Owners of the blocks let out the flats on 5 year terms to speculators.
The flats usually consisted of 1 room dwellings with 25 flats to a landing. Because of the high rents the flats were often shared by 2 or more families.
These blocks were often only 10 ft. apart. Vehicles could not move through the streets; the rich were carried trough these alleys on sedan chairs. The over-crowding in the blocks and streets was unimaginable. |
