Jerry White will explain ways in which London was transformed by the French Revolution and the wars that followed it. The collapse of French colonies in the Caribbean brought to London the coffee and sugar that would otherwise have headed to Europe. The increased shipping led to the formation of London’s docks on the Isle of Dogs and at Wapping from 1800. Bankers and merchants fled Holland, Germany and Spain, pushed out by Napoleon’s take-over of almost the whole of Western Europe. The flight of wealth from France and Amsterdam brought vast fortunes to London to be invested on the stock exchange and spent on luxury living. In addition, London remade itself on the ground, adding suburbs east, west, north and south. The area of present-day Camden was involved in this expansion: Camden Town, Somers Town, Bloomsbury, and to the east of Regent’s Park took shape at this time. It all amounted to a giant turning point in London’s modern history. And it was all the unintended consequence of the French Revolution and the great dictator it spawned.

Jerry White is Emeritus Professor of Modern London History at Birkbeck, University of London, and the author of books about the capital from 1700 to the present day.

Non-members are welcome to attend the talk, which is preceded at 7pm by the Society's AGM (open to CHS members only)

Admission: Free to CHS members. Non-members welcome (£2 at the door).