chapter 6

• Where were mortality rates higher in medieval times?

  In towns
• Why were mortality rates higher in towns during medieval times?

  People lived closer together with animals and filth
• What were some important improvements in public health during medieval times?

  • Monasteries followed cleanliness rules
  • Public latrines were built in towns
  • Muck-rakers cleaned streets
  • Bath houses were established
  • Quarantine laws were introduced
  • Crusaders brought back soap
• Which monastery is mentioned for its cleanliness rules?

  Tintern Abbey
• What was the purpose of public latrines in towns?

  To improve sanitation and public health
• How many public latrines did London have by the 15th century?

  Over a dozen
• How much excrement did London produce daily?

  About 50 tons
• Who were muck-rakers in medieval London?

  Workers hired to clean the streets
• What were gong farmers responsible for?

  Clearing out cesspits
• How many hot baths did Southwark have in London?

  18 hot baths
• How were bathhouses often connected in smaller towns?

  They were often connected to bakeries
• What was the purpose of quarantine laws in towns?

  To combat the plague
• What were lazar houses used for?

  Confined people with leprosy
• What did Crusaders bring back from the Middle East?

  Soap
• What were the attempts to improve public health in the 16th century?

  • Henry VII forbade slaughterhouses in cities
  • Henry VIII allowed towns to tax for sewers
• What law did Henry VII pass regarding slaughterhouses?

  Forbidding them within cities or towns
• What power did Henry VIII's Act of Parliament give to towns?

  To impose a tax for building sewers
• What major health issue did London face in the 16th and 17th centuries?

  Outbreaks of the plague
• What was the impact of the Great Fire of London in 1666 on public health?

  Led to wider streets and stone houses
• What was mandated after the Great Fire of London regarding house construction?

  Houses must be built of stone
• What roofing materials were required for houses after the Great Fire?

  Tile or slate roofs
• What were local and central governments' initial attitudes towards public health?

  They were not interested in public health
• What events prompted the government to investigate living conditions in industrial towns?

  Serious outbreaks of cholera in 1832 and 1849
• Who was asked to lead the Royal Commission into living conditions in 1839?

  Edwin Chadwick
• What significant publication did Edwin Chadwick release in 1842?

  Report on Sanitary Conditions
• How did Edwin Chadwick's report impact public perception?

  It shocked people but no immediate action was taken
• What did the 1848 Public Health Act establish?

  A Board of Health run by three commissioners
• What was the purpose of the local boards of health set up by the 1848 Public Health Act?

  To address areas with high death rates
• How many towns had set up local health boards by 1854?

  182 towns
• What effect did the cholera epidemic of 1848–49 have on public health reform?

  It increased interest but did not force action
• What were some improvements in public health after the cholera outbreaks?

  • 1859: Joseph Bazalgette built London's sewage system
  • 1866: Sanitary Act forced sewer construction
  • 1875: Public Health Act made sewers compulsory
  • 1875: Artisans’ Dwellings Act allowed slum clearance
• What did Joseph Bazalgette begin building in 1859?

  London’s new sewage system
• What was the purpose of the Sanitary Act of 1866?

  To force local authorities to construct sewers
• What did the Public Health Act of 1875 require local councils to do?

  To lay sewers
• What power did the Artisans’ Dwellings Act of 1875 give to councils?

  To clear slums
• What did Prime Minister David Lloyd George promise in 1918?

  To clear away slum housing
• What was the purpose of the Housing Act of 1919?

  To provide grants for building homes
• What type of housing was built as a result of the Housing Act of 1919?

  Council houses
• When did mass demolition of back-to-back housing begin?

  In the 1920s
• What did the Beveridge Report of 1942 identify as a major issue?

  Squalor as one of the 'Five Evil Giants'