Centenary paper: The evolution of cities: Geddes, Abercrombie and the new physicalism

Abstract

One hundred years ago, the first coordinated reactions to the urban chaos of the industrial revolution were being established though a system of centralised planning, while the rudiments of a theory underpinning this collective action were also being fashioned, through the writings and rhetoric of Patrick Geddes. Drawing on Darwin's theory of natural selection, he laid the foundations for a response to urban growth that drew loosely on ideas of evolution, but which ultimately became established through the imposition of a top-down 'organic' order in city and regional plans associated with the work of Patrick Abercrombie, one of Geddes' best-known followers. This approach was rooted in 'physicalism', a perspective that assumed social problems might be solved by manipulating the physical built environment. This ideology began to fragment from the mid-twentieth century on as questions over its effectiveness in generating more liveable and equitable urban environments grew. Now, however, there are signs that ...