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After the death of Queen Anne the throne passed to King George(1714-27). He was a great-grandson of James I. George had been born and brought up in Hannover, Germany. He never learned English, and was the first of four-reigning Georges in the Hannoverian line. Under his reign was Britain´s first Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole. He was also presented with 10 Downing Street as his residence.
During the 18th century, London grew very fast, both in population and built-up area. South London became more accessible with the opening of the first new bridges, Westminste Bridge(1750) and Blackfairs Bridge(1763). Until then, London bridge had been the only bridge over the River Thames.
Poverty & Crime
In the older districts, people lived in terrible squalor and poverty. Fleet Street and St. Giles were the most notorious slums, only a short distance from streets of fashionable residences. Becaus of this, many Londoners drank excessively. The well-off seemed totally complacent. They regularly amused themselves at the popular Renelagh or Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. Public executions at Tyburn were among the most popular events in the social calendar.
The outrageous imbalance in distribution of wealth encouraged crime: robberies in the West End often took place in broad daylight. In 1751 the satirical writer Henry Fielding established a volunteer force of "thief-takers". This gruop of early cops were the forerunners of todays Metropolitan Police. Riots were also a regular reaction to middlemen charging extortionate prices. In 1780 there was the most violent riot, called anti-Catholic Gordon Riot, leaving 300 people dead.
It was not only the population of London that was on the rise in the 18th Century. Country people drifted to towns in large numbers. The East End was increasingly the focus for poor immigrant labourers. By 1801, London´d population had grown top almost a million, the largest in Europe.
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