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The Nature

of Cities

L.

Hilberseimer

The Nature of

Cities

/
Origin, Growth, and Decline

Pattern and

Form

Planning Problems

Paul Theobald

& Co.

Chicago 1955

Copyright 1955 by Paul Theobald, Chicago. All rights Reserved

Printed and

Hound

in

The United

States of

America

.i.lt-

lie

I'n

and [ndusti

Vthenean Empire

aeus

Defeat and De< bin

Greek

Contents

olonizal ion

Reasons
I

li

mill

Suggestion

's

The Ora(

le

of Delphi

Miletus
Colonies around the Euxine Sea,

in Italy

Pages 61-84
Preface,

Page

Italy

Latins

I.

Origin, Growth,

and Decline

Alba Longa
Rome Septem
S\

The Founding Riles

Pages 15-33

From Savagery

The

Ptigi

noecism of Romulus

Population
to Civilization

Severian Wall

Age
Achievements and Conflicts
Types of Settlements
Neolithic

Their Location

in Relation to

The Bronze Age and the

The Fertile Crescent
Peasants and Nomads
Conflicts

Momsen's Description
Water Supply
Defence

Rise of

Towns

Unification of Italy

Colonies and Roads

Rome and

Carthage

Economic Changes
The Small Farmer

and Inter-action

Early Despotic States

Economy
Money

Trade Interchange

Civil

Hoe and Plough

Slave

Wars

Caesarism

Summer
Ur

Rome

of the

Changes

Amorite and Chaldean Babylon

Trade Location
Seleucia and Ctesiphon
Rome's Politics and its Consequences

Emperors

in the City

Rome, World Capitol

High Density and Increasing Popidation
Housing Shortage

Mohammed

Roman

Baghdad, City of the Caliphs

Royal Cities in the Near East and

Libanios' Eulogy of Antioch

in

Egypt

Cities

Wall of Servius Tullius

Rome's Decline

Pages 33-61

The Aegean

Constantinople the
Sea

Piracy and

Trade
King Minos

New

Capitol

Trade Position
Despotism
Architectural Character

Knossos
Outposts

Gournia

The Greeks
Destruction and Creation
Greek Ideas about Cities

Rome's Greatest Achievement

Did Barbarians Destroy the Cities?
Their Kingdoms

The Coming

of Islam

Plato and Aristotle

and Venice
Carolingian Empire

Synoecism and Polis

Cloister Plan

Types of

The Monks

Cities

Marseilles

Exceptions
Sparta

Conquest
Landownership
Thucydides' Comparison
Athens
Theseus
A New Economic Concept

Pages 84-104

The Medieval City

Free Work and Independence
Feudalism

Changing Economy
Crafts
Diversified Production

and

Sicily

Weekly Market

Fair and

Difference in the Sizes of Cities

Population Groups

A New

Concept of Life
Decline of Feudalism

Conflicts

Optical Order
Plato and Aristotle

Hippocratic Treatise
Orientation
Socrates

Colonization

Augustin
Geometric and Organic Order

Bastides in France

Castellazzo di Fontanellato

St.

Germany

Eastern

Glastonbury

Teutonic Order

Autocratic Cities

Hansa

Stasicrates Suggestion

Alexandria

Expansion of the Economic Sphere

Merchants
Princes

Peking
Kioto
Versailles

Territorial States

Division of Labor

The Role

of the State

Free Cities

Thera
Heraclea

Berlin

Nagasaki

London

Cordes

Paris

Huguenots

Herrenberg
Noerdlingen

Pages 105-114

Miletus

Industrial Revolution

Pages 148-150

National States

Colonial Cities

Railroads

Tent-Camps

Finance-Economy
Changing Cities

Growth
Land Use

Planless

Extensive

Disorder
Traffic

and Parking Problems

Slums

Crime

Ethnic Differences

Pages 150-161
Geometric and Organic Planning
Verona and Berne
Market Places
Rome's Capitol Square

Padua Piazza del Santo

Geometric and Organic Landscapes

Health
Dr. Foreman's

Urban Land

Opinion

Institute

Concentration

Pages 161-172
City Architecture

Decentralization

Utility

Planless Suburbanization

Material

New Communities

Two

and Beauty

Space Concepts

Proportion
Relative and absolute scale contrast
Horizontality and Verticality
II.

Pattern

and Form

Pages 115-124
Determinant Factors of a City
Site, Function, People
Site

Priene

Luebeck

Dominant

Edifices

Perspective

Venice

S.

Marks Square

and Defence

Islands

Pages 172-175

Riverbends
Cape Formations

Renaissance

Hills

Bramande's Plan

Static concept

for S. Peter's

Filarete's Ideal City

Pages 124-148
Impress of

spirit

Athens

Roman
Forum

Fra Giocondo

Palma Nova
Grammichele

Building Groups
of Trojan

Pages 175-191

Acropolis

Baroque

Doxiadcs Explanation

Dynamic concept

Berninis

S.

Peter's

Square

hu ago

Fontana's Proposal

Pin

Versailles

Slums

nil.

nns

<

Radiating Streets

How

Piazza del I'opolo

Four Studies

Nancy

Railroads

in

(pinion

.iiistni in

foi

in

Metropolis

Gradual

hangea

Capitol Square

Fire bleaks

Rome

Plans with Rectangulai and Square

Concorde
Trend towards openness, Bath

Commercial Area

Paris Place de la

ommunities

Detailed South Side Studies

Ledoux

>ci

Washington

entralized

Regression

Pages 257-275
Decentralization

Planning Problems

III.

Integration of Industrv and Vgiioilttirc

Possible Consequences

Regional Planning

Pages 192-225

Our

Physical Structure
Cities

What

Obsolete Street System

New

City Element

is

Region

Eastern U.S.A.

Settlement Unit

Decentralization

Characteristics

New

Combination

Main

Air Pollution

Branch Belts
Examples

Techno-Chemical Devices
Planning Possibilities

Ruralizing Cities

Prevailing

To

Industrial Settlements
Belts

Urbanizing the Country

Winds

The

Wind Diagrams

Cultivated Landscape

Integrated Industries

Main Sources

Industrial Area

Hydrologic Cycle

Commercial Area

Soils

of Life

Ecology

Residential Area

Physical Structure

Density

Political-Economic Problem

Orientation Consequences
Architectural Problem

Hawaiian Islands
Danger of Specialization

Six Studies

Maui

Mixed Building
Communities

Stabilization

Zoning

Physical Structure

City Aggregates

Proposed Plan

Unlimited Variations

Possible Variations

Traffic

India

Small Farms

Problems

City Architecture

The

Villages

Two

New

Patterns

dimensional Plan
Three dimensional Reality

Combining Agriculture and Industry

Space Concept

New

Pages 276-286

Possibilities

Some Examples

Complexity of Planning

Pages 226-256

Can we Change Our

Work

Influence on

Man

Henry Ford

Cities?

Peter Kropotkin

Eliminate Defects?

Can we Transform them

Perfection of

into Functioning

Organism?

Patrick Geddes

Residential Area

Transition

Comparison

Means

Commercial Area

Decentralization, a

Recreation Area

Defence Requirements

Elkhorn Replanned
Rockford

Physical, Legislative

of Defence

and Administrative Problems

of Planning

Present Conditions

Financial Problems and Possibilities

Gradual Replanning

Conclusion

27.

Amastris
E. von der

28. Syracuse.

29. Selinus.

lustrations

Rome
Rome
Rome, Forum Romanum.
Rome, Forum Romanum.

Republican

31.

Imperial

33.

Island of Ortygia

Reconstruction

30.

32.

Nahmer

The

Reconstructed

At the End of the

Middle Ages

A Dead and A

Living City

34.

Constantinople

35.

Constantinople. View from Galata across the

Golden Horn
I.

Origin, Growth,

1.

and Decline

Cahernamatirech. Stoneage settlement

36. Aries.

Amphitheater

37. Aries.

Amphitheater with

38. Spalato.

After Geo de Meyer

2.

Aichbuehl.

Reconstruction of a Neolithic

39. Spalato.

Diocletian Palace with

Road

41.

Town

Venice
Plan of a Monastery

Circular Village

42. S. Gall.

5.

Street Village

43.

Berne. Castle below the Citv

44.

Carcassonne

6.

Glastonbury. Reconstruction of a Lake

45.

Rothenburg

46.

Munich

4.

Reconstruction

40. Marseilles

After R. R. Schmidt

Houses Along

Town

Palace,

After E. Hebrarda

Village

3.

Diocletian

Pix

Village
After
7.

M.

Forestier

Lake of Zurich. Reconstruction

of

Lake

Dwellings

47. S.
48.

Gall

Essen

After R. von Lichtenberg

8.
9.

10.

50. Siena. Civic Square.

Italian Hilltown

Ur,

Temple

Cathedral Square

49. Pisa.

Place of Refuge

Below Market Square

Grassi

Precinct

51.

Wetzlar

52.

Aigues Mortes
F Stoedtner

53.

Gransee

54.

Neidenburg

F. Stoedtner

11.

Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar. Reconstruction

12.

The Mound of Ecbatana, below

present Hamadan

After Koldeway and Unger

After O. Kloeppel

E. F. Schmidt. Oriental Institute, University of

Cliicago

55. Berlin, 1733

13.

Persepolis
E. F. Schmidt. Oriental Institute, University of
Cliicago

56.

London. From South Warke

57. Paris. Successive City

14.

Egypt. Pyramids

15.

Knossos. Palace of King Minos

16.

Mycenae

59.

Paris.

17.

Tiryns

60.

New

18.

Larissa Argos

61. Industrial

After Mathieu Merian

20.

City

Eu'ing Galloway

Kahun
63.

Air Pollution
Fairchild Aerial Surveys

Thebes

64. City Traffic

After E. Uodwell
22. Sparta. Site of the

65.

The Walls

24.

Athens and Piraeus, with the Long Walls

Connecting Them
II'.

Traffic Engineering Bureau, Detroit

Ancient City

23.

After

Town

62. Industrial

Gournia
After Flinders Petrie

21.

Cathedral and Surroundings

Erlangen

Aero Films Limited

After A. Blouet
19.

Walls

58. Paris

of Athens

Judeich

Recreation
Ross-Pix

66. City

Slum

67. Paris

25.

Ancient Athens

68.

Disorder and Chaos

26.

Medieval Athens

69.

New

After Coronelli

York, Air View

Fairchild Aerial Surveys, Inc.

and Form

Pattern

II.

15.

116.

Athens. Parthenon

70.
71.

is.

Tyre

lordoba

\ (I (111.

Bel

\ll

\n

lie

Motya

72.

After F. A
73.

Karlsruhe.

Mam

Market

Place

\ms

iew

of

the Cit)

with

reeman

lew

Karlsruhe. Market Place

After E. A. Freeman
119.

HH

\
\

Strahlsund

74.

Early Settlement of Paris

75.
70.

Durham
Norma

77.

Carthage. Reconstruction

78.

Amphissa

79.

Thera

120.

Luebeck. Markel Place.

121.

Luebeck. Markel

Plan

122.

Rome.

123.

Padua. Piazza del Santo

121.

Geometric Landscape

125.

Organic Landscape

126.

Badminton. Geometric Park

127.

Bath, Priory Park. Organic Park

Aero Films Limited

lapitol

l'la<c.

iew

Square

Firing Galloway

After Hitler von Gaertringen

SO.

Corcula

81.

Cnidos

12S.

I'lm. Street with Cathedral

129.

Cologne. Cathedral

130.

Rome.

131.

Danzig.

132.

Dresden. Frauenkirche

133.

Priene. Plan

After A. von Gerkan

82.

San Gimignano

83.

Rome. Forum

of Trajan

84.

Rome. Forum

85.

Baalbek. Temples. Reconstruction.

of Trajan. Reconstruction

86.

Palmyra. Colonaded Street

87.

Athens. Acropolis, Air View

St.
S.

M. Schede

After

88.

After A. Zippelius

After K. A, Doxiadis
89.

After K. A. Doxiades

After K. A. Doxiadis

91.

136. Priene.

Fontanellato

Glastonbury

Mount

Athos.

Its

137.

Luebeck. Plan

138.

Luebeck. Aerial View

139.

Luebeck. View from Marli

140.

Luebeck. Holy Ghost Hospital

proposed transformation

After Fischer von Erlach

93.

Alexandria

94.

Kioto

95.

Peking

Theater
M. Schrde

After

After A. Rulleid and G. Gray

92.

Agora

135. Priene.

Athens. Acropolis. Plan

90. Castellazzo di

View

134. Priene.

Athens. Acropolis. Reconstruction

141. Villeneuve-les- Avignon

After

142.
96.

Peter's

Marien

J.

Stuebben

Melk

Heraclea
143. Halicarnassos.

After F. Krisclien

The Mausoleum

After F. Krischen
97.-98. Nagasaki.

Plan and View

111.

145. Venice. Piazza

After A. E. Brinckmann

101.-102.

Plan and View

Bramante. Plan for

147.

Fra Giocondo. Ideal City

IS.

149.

106. Sutri

After R. von Lichtenberg

Bazas

View

Nomadic Tent Camp

111. Military
112.

after

Montpazier
After Parker

114.

New

Orleans

Mark. Air

and

its

square

Plan

Granmichele
Michel Angelo. His concept of

S.

Peter's

and

septate

After a Painting in the Vatican

H. Schleif
152.

Rome.

153.

D. Fontana. Proposed extension of

S.

Peter's

Square
S.

Peter's

Square
154. Versailles.

View towards the radiating

F. Stoedtner

After A. von Gerkan

113.

Peter's

150.

Tent Camp

Sikhester

S.

PalmaNova

its

After A. von Gerkan. View after H. Schleif

110.

Filarete. Sforzinda.

S.

151.

After A. E. Brinckmann

108.-109. Miletos. Plan

Mark

and Piazzetta of

146.

Thera. Plan
After Hitler von Gaertringen

107.

S.

View

Herrenberg. Plan and View

103.-104. Noerdlingen.
105.

Venice. Piazza

Cordes. Plan and View

99.-100.

155. Versailles
156.

Karlsruhe. Original City

157.

London. Plan by Chi. Wren

streets

158.

of the City. Noitliern part with

Piazza del Popolo

Rome. Plan

159.

Rome.

160.

Nancy. Place Stanislas

161.

Nancy. Place Royale

162.

Rome. Capitol Square

Piazza del Popolo.

three Radiating streets

163. Paris. Place

de

la

Bath. View from

View

165. Karlsruhe.

Hedgemead Park

198.

Plan of Community. Indicating

mensional appearance

199.

Park between Settlement Units with Com-

200.

Community around

201.

Fan-shaped Community. View

202.

Uniform Apartment Buildings dispersed

203. Diversified

three di-

a lake.

View

Apartment Buildings within a

Residential Area

Admiralty

204. Fraternity-Dormitory and Apartment Buildings. Project for Illinois Institute of Tech-

After A. F. Brinckmann

167.

its

within a Residential Area

from the Palace

Petersburg-Leningrad. Place of the

166. St.

Larger Fan-shaped Community with Air Polluting and Related Industries

munity and Apartment Buildings

Concorde

of the City

Fan-shaped Community

197.

View towards the

F. Stoedtner

164.

196. Small,

A. N. Ledoux. Plan of the City of Chaux

nology, Chicago
205. Project of the University of Berlin

III.

Settlement

168. Industrial
169.

Settlement Unit

170.

Unit Detail

171.

Unit Detail

172.

School
School Plan

174.

Rows of

Community. View

Two Proposals
Area. Two Proposals

207. Chicago,

Marquette Park.

208. St. Paul.

Commercial

209. Zurich,

Lake Shore Development. Plan and

View
210.

Elkhorn Replanned. Different stages

211.-214.

173.

175.

206. Part of a large

Planning Problems

Rockford Replanned

211. Rockford. Existing Plan

212. Rockford. First Stage of

Units

Units. Adjoined by Units With

Small Farms

Rows of

214. Rockford. Final Stage of

Winds on Air Pollution and the

Shape of Settlements

176. Influence of

215. Chicago. Status of City

177. Integrated Industries

216. Chicago.

178.

Commercial Area

179.

Sun Charts

Redevelopment

213. Rockford. Second Stage of

Redevelopment

Redevelopment

Chicago Plan Commission

North Side

Section. Existing Street

Pattern
217. Chicago. North Side Section. Different Stages
of Redevelopment

After H. T. Fisher

December
180. East
181.

North Side Section. Possible Final

Stage with Rectangular Communities

218. Chicago.

Diagrams of Sun Penetration on

180.-181.

21

North Side Section. Possible Final

Stage with Square Communities

219. Chicago.

Exposure

South Exposure

182.-183.

Diagrams of Sun Penetration on June

182.

East Exposure

183.

South Exposure

184.

Three Density Diagrams

21

220. Plan of Chicago. Firebreaks One-Quarter of

a Mile Wide. Using Existing Railroads
221. Plan of Chicago. Firebreaks

New

One Mile Wide.

Railroads

222. Plan of Chicago, with rectangular

Communi-

ties

185.

186.

Apartment Buildings with Different Plans

and their Effect on Density
Effect of Different Densities

on the Plans of

Area Between Lake Michigan and Fox River with Square Com-

223. Plan of Chicago.

munities

Houses
224. Chicago. Commercial Area Replanned
187.

L-Shaped Houses

188.

Houses with Vegetable Gardens

189.

Different

Apartment Buildings
Lake Michigan

225. Chicago.

Types of Apartment and House

Plans
Plans of Curved Apartment Buildings

191.

Plans of Bent Apartment Buildings

taining the same Density

Community

194.

Small

195.

Larger

Community

226. Chicago. South Side Section. Existing Street

227. Chicago.

South Side Section.

First Stage in

Redevelopment
by Main-

taining the same Density

193. Studies of Architectural Variations

Park Along

Pattern

190.

192. Studies of Architectural Variations

in

228. Chicago.

South Side Section. Second Stage

in

Redevelopment
by Main-

South Side Section. Possible Final

Stage in Redevelopment

229. Chicago.

230. Chicago.

South Side Section. Detail Dilferent

Stages of

Redevelopment

South Side Section. Detail. Possible

Final Stage of Redevelopment

231. Chicago.

232.

Re-planned Chicago. View from

Lake Michigan

233. Part of

Washington. Opened up by Fire

Breaks
231.

Washington. Decentralized

235. Eastern
ized

United

States. Industries Decentral-

and Extended

236. Settlement

South

to the

development along an Inlet

Maui.

Maui. Annual Rainfall

245.

Maui. Types of

246.

Maui. Land Utilization

247.

Maui. Proposed Plan

248.

Maui. Different

Inlet

opograph)

Soil

Arrangement

251. Industrial Villages

Surrounded by Small
a

2 13.

244.

250. India. Villages with

Farms
Along

Hawaiian Island Maui. View

249. India. Villages with Small

Communities Developed on Hilly

Grounds

238. Industrial

240. Belt of City Aggregates

Decentralized City

212.

Small

of

Farms

237. Decentralized City in a River Valley

239. Belt of City Aggregates

Around an

211.

252. Effect of H-Bomb

tion of Cities

Rivet

farms

Proposed Larger Farms

Along Highways
on the

Size

and Distribu

Note by the Author

"The New

City", published in 1944

and long out

of print,

may

well

be replaced by the present volume, "The Nature of Cities". This book

deals with the

same problems, but

is

wider in scope and more liberally

illustrated.

While

it

was in the

may have on our

necessitated

diagram

some

state of publication,

last

tion.
I

H-bomb

were made public. This

effects.

herein developed, having been

met the new requirements without

altera-

their spacing will be affected.

wish to express

The more

of the effects the

probable influence on planning of these

city aggregates

for decentralization,

Only

some

their spacing,

minute readjustments and the preparation of a

illustrating the

The communities and

planned

and on

cities

my gratitude

to Alfred Caldwell for his

generous help.

detailed study of the south side of Chicago was

made

in co-

operation with Earl Bluestein, Jacques Brownson and Reginald Mal-

colmson.

wish also to thank various students of the Illinois Institute

of Technology for their assistance in preparing

I

am

some of the

particularly indebted to Klaus Anschuetz, Robert

illustrations.

Jones.

Joseph

David Ornstein, John Quay. David Tamminga, Ramachandrasa

Vagale and Edmund Zisook.
Krofta,

Chicago, December, 1954

12

DEAD AND A LIVING CITY

Preface
THE NATURE OF

CITIES embodies

with one aspect of the

city;

deals with the city's origin, growth,

rather than of particular

three parallel studies. Each deals

together they form a unity.

cities.

and decline.

The second

It is a

study,

The

first

study

history of city types

on pattern and form,

and the organic,

has to do with the two orders of planning: the geometric

which govern

city types, city architecture,

and

city landscape.

study considers the planning problems with which the

modern

The
city

third

and

its

region are confronted in our industrial age.

The

first

two studies show that

of their times. Cities are

and

change with the changing concepts

cities

an expression of particular spiritual and material,

and modified by the forms of

production and the means of communication. The Greek city and the
Roman city were both based on the work of slaves; but they differed from
each other because the political and social concepts of Greece differed
from those of Rome. Greek cities were small city-states; Roman cities, part

social

political conditions, influenced

of a vast empire. Medieval

well as from Greek and

work and were

territorial states,

free

and Baroque

Roman

cities.

from each other

cities differed

Medieval

communities; Baroque

cities

cities

were based on

where manufacturing, the economic

They

omy

little in

stage of production

with the

cities

of

cities of past ages.

depend on large national states; they are based on a national econtending to become world economy. In their extraordinary material

achievement, they far surpass any

The

common

free

were parts of growing

between handicraft and industry, was being developed. The

our industrial age have very

as

cities of

cities

the world has ever known.

our industrial age, however, have not yet found the pattern

adequate to their potentialities, according

to their function

and techno13

development. They are a mere conglomeration of unrelated

logical

parts,

They are paralyzed by insurmountable traffic

and parking problems. They achieve no harmony in their component
each disturbing the other.

parts,

no unity

be and what
cities

in their diversity.

is

grow seem

The discrepancy between what might

The very forces which made those

grows ever wider.

to

now working toward

be

Yet the problems of our

cities

their destruction.

and our regions could be

solved.

The

plan-

ning methods and the planning elements we propose in these studies

could work a transformation.

upon them. Old

cities

New

cities,

small or

larsje,

could be built

could be replanned and remade into well-function-

ing organisms, in which each part

is

related to other parts

and

to

an

harmonious whole.
Today,
cepts.

as in the past, cities

The Medieval

city

and regions are influenced by ideas and con-

was dominated by the cathedral and ruled by the

church. Renaissance and Baroque

and ruled by princes. The

commerce and ruled by

cities of

interest.

cities

were dominated by the palace

our age are dominated by industry and

Some

day, perhaps, cities

be planned and developed according to the needs of

reason.

14

and regions

man and

will

ruled by

1.

I.

CAH1-.RN AM A

IRKCH

Stone Age settlement

Origin, Growth,

The

city

Cities
ever,

and Decline

dweller of our age can hardly imagine a world without

seem

to

him

and

as inevitable as life itself,

appeared relatively

late in

which he

The human

is

as eternal. Cities,

how-

man's long history, and they emerged only

on which man depends and

after a long struggle with the forces of nature

of

cities.

also a part.

settlements of

all

ages are an expression of the societies which

created them: an expression of spiritual aspirations and of material re-

quirements. Social organization, political intention, economic means,

tistic

and technical

ability,

forms of production and consumption, means

of transportation all these are factors

nature of man's settlements.

present, varies as

ar-

The

which determine the form and

interaction of those forces, everywhere

one force or another tends

to

predominate.

Culture and civilization are the two aspects of society. Man's material
progress has

moved

steadily forward since

man's beginning. But

it

is

highly questionable whether this material progress has always been accom-

panied by spiritual progress.

The

concept of progress, so dear to science,

tends to confuse culture with civilization.

ture

is

They

are not synonymous. Cul-

the spiritual expression of a people; civilization, the material one.

Civilization

may advance while

culture becomes sterile; and, conversely,

15

2.

AICHBUEHL

Reconstruction of a Neolithic Village

a very high cultural

development may he accompanied hy

of civilization. Civilization

cause

it is

panied hy a low

The

self-elevation of

low standard

without culture may hecome very weak, he-

cut off from the roots of

civilization

its

existence.

But

a high culture

may be extremely productive

man from

in

its

savagery to civilization, from a

unfolding.

life

accident to a planned and secure existence, took countless ages.

slow process, not without

its

accom-

of
It

mere
was a

periods of regression. Conquest and destruc-

march with seeming

mankind to retrace painfully

tion could stop a forward

finality,

make

steps already taken.

it

necessary for

the defeated were not always exterminated.

serfs or slaves,

If

they lived on to

16

But

hecome

they could eventually assimilate with their conquerors,

transplanting seeds of their old achievements into their

3.

might, indeed,

HOUSKS ALONG A ROM)

new

setting.

What

4.

CIRCULAR VILLAGE

5.

STREET VILLAGE
17

had been destroyed could thus come

to life again.

and conquered brought

tion of conquerors

Sometimes amalgama-

entirely

new developments

which, as a result of a special ability of the conquerors, reached higher

levels

The

than those attained before.

age of civilization begins with the relatively peaceful development of

the Neolithic period. Stone implements

weaving emerged. Grains and

domesticated.

The

society

which emerged

munity of equals. Production was

the

mere needs

of

became more

fruit trees

and

were cultivated. Animals were

in this era

so limited that

still

refined. Pottery

com-

satisfy

only

was probably
it

could

created no surpluses on which social distinctions

life. It

could be based. But people were learning to work together toward com-

mon

ends. Well-established settlements, various forms of village,

being. Life in those villages began to teach

mony
the

men

came

into

to live, not only in har-

with themselves, but also in harmony with their neighbors and with

community

to

which they belonged.

This very progress led

and the

to conflicts. Fertile land

was probably not abundant,

and conservation were undiscovered.

secrets of soil fertilization

became less frequent, population was bound to increase.

Young members of the settlement were crowded out to find new land to
cultivate. They could possess the living space they required only through
Yet, as wars

conquest.

The

people they conquered had to follow the same course.

These conquests, disturbing

as they were,

had some positive

results.

Since

their goal was land acquisition, not the extermination of enemies, dis-

placed populations were forced, themselves, to be on the move, and the

Neolithic civilization was carried

all

over the Near East, North Africa,

to

need defense against would-be con-

and Europe.
As the Neolithic settlements began

querors, their structural pattern changed.

isolated houses, with gardens

and

along a road. Such settlements were

fields

life.

gether or be placed on both

formation around

difficult

stronger barriers.
ger, that

on

Then

Their

to

Houses tended

to cluster to-

road or around a square.

The

islands

fortification was, at

traverse.

neolithic

first,

provided by tight

man

discovered, under the spur of dan-

use of natural advantages.

He

to

make

made

Later palisades and ditches

made

even learned

circu-

square proved best for defense, and the

Man

began

artificial islands in

ture. Settlements of lake dwellers, built

18

danger loomed,

nature could provide even better defenses. Settlements on

advantages.

built

defend and did not encour-

When common

village.

sides of a

a central

circular village appeared.

thorn hedges,

may have

grouping of the houses more compactly and thus

brought into being various types of

lar

first settlers

behind them, stretched sparsely

difficult to

age the development of community

necessity forced the

The

hills

or

to look, for these

imitation of na-

on platforms supported by

posts,

6.

GLASTONBURY

7.

LAKE OF ZURICH

Reconstruction of a Lake Villag

Reconstruction of Lake Dwellings

'

fV^:-^ *,^.

>
^vJLir

W&B&&4

19

8.

PLACE OF REFUGE

gave to their inhabitants the

villages

were

still

full

protection of a water barrier. But the

small. Aggressors in superior

numbers could overwhelm

and conquer them. The development of the place of refuge was the

To

sponse to this continuing danger.

the dispersed villages could flee for safety in time of attack.

them

take with

their animals

serve property as well as

only by the

common

life.

and

their

They could

movable belongings and thus

pre-

Since such a place of refuge could be built

effort of those

who wanted

to use

it,

the result was a

strengthening of social organization and the spirit of cooperation.

villagers,

re-

these fortified hills, settlers living in

working together, learned

to resist

aggression

The

and eventually

to

defy invaders.

Xenophon*, writing of the Drilae, a tribe in Asia Minor, pictures a place of

refuge and indicates its strength. When the Drilae were attacked, Xenophone wrote, they retired to a stronghold protected by a tremendously
deep ravine and almost inaccessible by road. The Greeks "were not able
to take the place

ditch around
palisade

on top

intervals."

The

by

assault,

which was not surprising,

as there

broad

of the rampart

and wooden towers erected

place of refuge were so effective that a

primitive tribe could resist the onslaught of an organized

Those

cult to retreat

from the

professionals,
place.

Xenophon: The Persian Expedition

20

facilities of this

sional soldiers.

was

with the earth thrown up to form a rampart and with a

it

Xenophon

at

army

frequent

of profes-

adds, even found

it

diffi-

place ol refuge preserved the

of their

es ol the

li\

movable belongings. But

ii

people, theii animals and

some

did not keep houses and villages from

destruction. Invaders could burn and pillage and leave to the discouraged
villagers the task ol

rebuilding from ashes.

It

seems probable

places of recurrent attack, people began to desert

settle

to

on

their places ol velum'.

This meant

that

their villages

the

lot

that,

in

and

to

tided places had

be extended to provide space for more permanent settlements. Such

settlements developed in time into towns and even

of cities.

The

hill

towns of

Athens was located on the

Palatine Hill. In

all

Italy

hill of

came

to

form the nu<

lei

hear out this assumption. Prehistoric

the Acropolis; prehistoric

Rome on

the

probability these settlements stood on former places

of refuge established as early as Neolithic times.

The

Neolithic people,

who achieved

the village. Like

many other

tern survived

creators

its

and

so

much

in agriculture, also created

objects of the Neolithic age, the village patstill

fulfills its

original function in

some

of

the so-called backward countries even to our day.

The settlement structure of the Neolithic Age remained almost unchanged

as men laid aside stone tools for the newly discovered and more efficient
copper.

With

the

coming of the Bronze Age, however, advancing

tech-

nology brought changes in the pattern, both economic and technical. Villages

turned into towns; some destined

to

become

cities; a

few the capitals

of great empires.

9.

ITALIAN HILLTOWN
21

What made

transformation possible?

this

probability, man's

which Breasted

first

calls

cities arose at

Where did

the southeastern end of the area

rim

is

Toward

the north and east

bordered hy highlands and mountain ranges.

is

all

"the fertile crescent," which stretches from the south-

eastern Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf.

this crescent

take place? In

it

Its

inside

formed by the northern extension of the Arabian Desert. The

his-

tory of this region was characterized by unceasing conflict between settled

peasants and the wandering

conquered the

either side,
turn,

nomads who entered

A new

conquered by new invaders.

the fertile crescent from

and were themselves,

settled inhabitants,

in

element appeared in these recur-

The new conquerors wanted, not only the land, but also
who tilled it. The nomads, attracted by the richness
crescent, were superior because of their mobility. The soil-

ring conquests.

the labor of the people

of the fertile

rooted peasants became serfs of their conquering masters, forced to tend

and

the fields for them.

till

Results of this unmutual contact between peasants and

ficant, positively as well as negatively.

the peasant, but

benefitted even

it

its

worked

Conquest

nomads were

inflicted

signi-

heavy burdens on

advantage of humanity. Eventually

to the

peasant victims.

Through

and soil-bound peasant and mobile,

it

the interaction of settled

nomad,

restless

higher society

emerged, more differentiated in character and better integrated economi-

and

cally

politically.

The new

rulers discovered the potentialities of the

country and the secret of increasing production on the conquered land.

This not only made their own support possible but helped
realization of their political

There was

and religious aims.

rich fertile soil, water,

and sunshine

in

abundance.

What was

more effective
land in some places,

needed was the integration of those natural resources and

Water

also in the

way

of production.

left

others dry and arid. Dikes were needed to stem the overflow; canals,

to carry

The

water to thirsty areas. Vast irrigation systems had to be established.

canals,

tation.

developed for water control, provided also means of transpor-

To make

The hoe had

Stoc

of the rivers overflowed the

to

production more

effective,

was necessary

kbreeding developed to provide the oxen needed

How

did the plough come into existence?

only; or did

it

a phallic symbol,

and

that

ploughing

"the primeval scene."

Freudians

call

animals

also based

is

to organize

Was

it

to

it.

draw the plough.

a technical invention

derive from religious symbol or cosmic concept?

practical use a technical application only?

is

it

be replaced by the plough; plot cultivation by agriculture.

on

a religious

gods rode along the Milky

Way

Some

Some
itself

Was

its

believe that the plough

is

an imitation of what

believe that the use of draught

concept, that the chariots in which the

furnished the prototype of the wagon as

well as of the plough. Images of such chariots were placed as holy vessels

on
22

altars to

symbolize the presence of the gods.

As the culture of the hoe gave way

ology carried into the

woman's

tool.

The

plough, this magi< ide

to that ol the

The hoe had been

the idea of holiness.

fields

plough, originally a priestly

properly handled only by a man.

The new

made

tool

possible to grow

ii

grain on a scale large enough, eventually, to feed the masses

cities.

It

also

profoundly altered the status of

in all probability,

one of the

The

archate to the patriarchate.*

ol

the growing

in society.

and brought about

made

use of the plough

a division of labor.

appeared in the developing

society.

the exchange of surplus products.

was.

It

change from the matri

agriculture

provided food for an increasing population; made

possible:
stable;

woman

factors in the social

.1

could obviously be

vessel,

life

more

Craftsmen and merchants

Caravans and river boats made possible

Timber and

stone for buildings, coppci

and lead and precious metals and stones for the adornment

of temples

and palaces could then be imported. The new merchants developed the
trade; the craftsmen found employment in working these materials. Gradually craftsmanship rose to creative art.

Meanwhile

living conditions im-

more complex

proved. Larger settlements became possible. Society became

and more

The

differentiated.

The

city stands as

despotic states arising from

victory

symbol of

this

coordinated,

development.

politically

and

economically, an ever-increasing territory, and came eventually to com-

whole

prise a

coastal region,

an entire river

valley.

Large dominions were

thus established in the regions of the Euphrates and Tigris, the Nile, the

Ganges and Indes, the Hoang-Ho and Yangtze-kiang, and other great
rivers.

The

organization required for this development must have been

tremendous. Swamps had

tems had to be planned and

to

be drained and made useful. Irrigation

to

built.

The tremendous

and

reservoirs had

fates.

The caste

states.

All were built

and ruled by

be employed without regard

to

system, serfdom

upon

life of

depended upon
if it

meant

civilization

slavery,

were

thus

workers,

to their personal

a necessity for those early-

and masters, however, each contrib-

Aman

puts

priest,

it:

warrior were

the ruler, as well as that of

all

also slaves to their

members

of the state,

complicated mastery which had to be maintained even

sacrificing all natural values of life.

is

many

wide stratum of a subject people, dominated

"But the conquerors king,

The

and

their conquerors. Slave

uted to the building. As Paul

calling.

this task

stable living conditions.

technical tasks required the services of

and these workers had

canals, tanks

be constructed. Only an autocratic system could accomplish

and attain and secure permanent

**

Dams,

sys-

shown

in

its

The

problematic nature of

early beginning."**

Hahn, Edward: Von der Hacke sum /'//;/ Leipzig,

Aman, Paul: Tradition and Weltkrise. Berlin. 1934

191

23

10.

UR,

TEMPLE PRECINCT

The Sumerians were

doms and temple

probably the founders of the

states.

These were

first

fortified cities

agricultural land which supported them.

One

of

them was Ur,* which

eventually gained the leadership of Sumer. Originally,

on one of the

village

small city king-

surrounded by the

Ur was

a Neolithic

river islands of the Euphrates at the southeast

the fertile crescent. Its settlers lived by cultivating the rich earth.
their huts of

mud

end

of

When

bricks fell into decay, as they often did, the settlers

simply built new huts on top of those which had collapsed. In the course
of time,

on the once low

top of

This rising of a

it.

happening

village site, a small hill arose with a village

hill of

decayed

mud

huts

may have been

on

the only

in Ur's early history.

new people moved into the

valley: the Sumerians. We do not know when they came, nor where they
came from. But we do know that they conquered Ur, took possession of its
All of a

hill

and

the hill

sudden things began

its

to change.

arable land, and drove the old inhabitants to the lands below

where they were forced

to

till

the fields for their

new

masters.

The Sumerians were of superior ability. They fortified the hill for their
safety. They erected permanent buildings of burnt brick temples for their
gods and houses for themselves. Ur became in time a prospering city. The
temples of the Ziggurat are an expression of that prosperity. Remains in
the tombs of kings reveal a highly developed culture and refinement of

Ur's two harbors suggest that

it

may have been

population was divided into the people

who
*

a successful trade city. It

quite possible that increases in the arable land were also achieved.

is

tilled the

who

lived in the city

land and lived in villages in the

Woolley, C. Leonard: Ur of the Chaldees. London, 1929

24

life.

fields.

and the

The
serfs

When

li was already

Akkad,

a cultural

north

Ear

Leading

and commercial center which extended

Assyrian capital

as the

kingdom

the united

cit\ ol

ol

noone

a village, whose future greatness

velopment was not unlike

Assur

that ol

the

at

Copper was being replaced

already known, though

made

use of

new

bronze

1>\

technological

means

to

theii

was

that time; iron

use.

The Ammonites

produce wool and leather and

manufactured woolen goods. Hammurabi made Babylon

commercial center. But

still

made Babylon

at

common

too scarce lor

still

influence as

Amorites, entering the Eu-

phrates Valley, conquered the Babylonian plain and

capital city.

its

Babylon was

could foresee. Babylon's earl) de

The

l'r.

igris,

Sumet and

ol

alter his death the area

and

political

was raided by the Hittites

from the northwest and eventually taken over by the Kassites from the
northeast.

The

ended Babylon's

Kassite conquest

first

The

civilization.

city vanished.

But Babylon was reborn.

tertile crescent

To

it.

The

who conquered the whole ol the

made Babylon their capital and rebuilt

Chaldeans,

and ruled over

it,

upon their
monumental

express their power and to impress

subjects their right

they adorned their city with

buildings, temples,

to rule,

towers,

and

palaces.

Herodotus*,

describes in his history

glimpse

its

who

in all probability saw Babylon,

monumental

the

city

We

Nebuchadnezzar.

of

greatness also in the reconstruction

made by

its

excavator,

R. Koldewey.**

Babylon stood on a broad

to the Tigris.

The two

and were crossed by

fertile plain

is

close

great rivers were connected at this point by a canal

from the

a road

and thence, along the Jordan

ylon's shape as a square, and
Its

where the Euphrates comes

east leading

valley, to Egypt.
this

is

westward

to

Damascus

Herodotus describes Bab-

true for the older part of the city.

shape was probably a reflection of a religious-astronomical belief. There

square constellation of

and which they imagined

of Babylon was supposed

stars

to

which the Babylonians called "the

be the agricultural land of the gods.

to be the projection

upon

field"

The

city

earth of that celestial

field.

But even

at the

a true square. It

parts

time of Herodotus, Babylon was a rectangle rather than

had been extended across the river

were connected by a bridge, the

have any record.

The

city

first

to the west,

and

its

passenger bridge of which we

was surrounded by a broad deep moat,

filled

with water. Behind this moat rose a wall of considerable height and
width. Nebuchadnezzar built a second wall very close to the

first

one

around the older part of the city. The city's main fortress stood at the
north of the area between the river and the procession street. South of it
were the temples and the great temple tower, the Ziggurat. Secondary
* Herodotus: History
** Koldewey, R.: Excavation at Babylon,

19M

25

II.

26

BABYLON OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR

Reconstruction

fortresses stood in the center of each city division, according

He

i<>

[erodotus.

described the houses as being usually three or four stories high;

ones running parallel to the

streets as all straight, the principal

river,

tin-

and

main avenues at right angles. Outside the cit)

suburban settlements, but these ma\ have been
observed
Herodotus

the others crossing the

walls,

the villages in which lived the people tilling the land for landlords living

within the

city.

Herodotus was deeply impressed with Babylon. "In magnificence there

no other

city

that approaches

he remarked.

it,"

The Babylon

ol

belonged to Persia, then master of the lamest empire ever established

the

Near

The

East.

Babylon only

Persians had

made Parsagadae

The

an occasional residence.

as

their capital

and used

prove their true succession to the vanished and vanquished kings they

Ecbatan, the
as a

Medean

city, in

the

commercial center

summer. Babylon retained

which

to

its

in

Persian kings, in order to

placed, resided in Babylon in the winter; in the Elamite city of Susa

portance

is

his d,\\

re-

and

also the im-

location destined

it.

This established commercial importance was challenged, however, when

Seleucus, one of the principal heirs of Alexander the Great, took possession
of

most of Alexander's Asiatic empire.

founded

as capital of his

The new

which he

empire, was located on the western bank of the

Tigris, northeast of Babylon. Seleucia

It

city of Seleucia,

had the same advantageous

grew

at the

expense of Babylon.

position as the older city,

traffic

and

it

had

the added advantage of being the center of a great empire.

Babylon, thus challenged by

its

newer

wanted

positive destructive action. Seleucus

and important

as possible to give

rival,

was reduced
his

new

to

impotence by

capital to be as large

adequate expression to the greatness

of his power. Therefore, he populated Seleucia with the forced migration

And

of a great part of Babylon's people.

he used the older

city as source

of building material for the new. Bricks of Babylon's fortification

and

buildings were used for Seleucia's buildings and fortifications.* Babylon

was

still

a city, but, inevitably, a declining one.

At the time
lowest stage.

of the
It

Roman emperor

had become again,

before, an insignificant village.

Hadrian, Babylon had reached

its

had been two thousand years

The prophecy of Isaiah had been fulfilled:
as

it

"And Babylon, the glory of Kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees, shall
be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited, neither shall
shall the

Arabian

it

be dwelt in from generation to generation; neither

pitcli tents there;

neither shall the shepherds

make

their

fold there.
"lint wild beasts of the desert shall lie there;
full of
* Streck,

and

their houses shall be

doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and Satyrs shall dance
Maximilian: Seleucia and Ktesiphon. Leipzig, 1917

27

and the wild

there,

and dragons

beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses,

in their pleasant palaces;

and her time

near to come, and

is

her days shall not be prolonged."

There

is

tragedy in the death of a proud

city.

Seleucia, Babylon's successful rival, did not long

Seleucids. Gradually their

had

capital

to

capital of the

empire gravitated toward the west; then

be in the west

capital; Seleucia

remain the

also.

Antioch on the OroUtes became the new

was reduced to the status of second

But Seleucia became more important commercially

traffic,

made

as

as

it

political

lost

it

and

river

had once made Babylon, one of the chief commercial

antiquity and the principal market of the Asiatic caravan

grew into

It

it,

empire.

city of the

prestige. Its favorable location, at the crossing point of land

cities of

their

a large city, inhabited

traffic.

by a mixed population of Greeks,

Macedonians, Babylonians, and Jews, in which the Greeks came

to

dom-

inate.

The moving

Antioch proved disastrous

of the capital to

of the Seleucids.

When

to the

empire

the Arsacids, ruling family of the Parthians, con-

quered the western part of the Seleucid empire, they made Gtesiphon,

on the eastern bank of the Tigris, opposite Seleucia, their capital. Ctesiphon had existed before the Parthian conquest as a small settlement and
where goods brought by caravans from the East were relayed
the market of Seleucia. Its new position as Parthian capital did not,

a place

first,

affect Seleucia's

Why

to
at

commercial position.

did the Arsacids not

Seleucia their capital?

make

the rich and prosperous Greek city of

Did they mistrust

its

people?

Or was

their aim, as

Strabo suggests,* to "spare the Seleucians the burdens of furnishing

Or was
that new

quarters for the Scythian soldiery" consisting of rough nomads?

the choice of Ctesiphon an expression of the Asiatic tradition
rulers

must always found new

capitals?

Perhaps the new rulers saw an

advantage in keeping themselves independent from the traders of Seleucia.

Seleucia was then a large market from which they could draw revenues.

This was not an unheard-of arrangement. The twin

former capital of Borna west of Lake Tchad

market outside the

free

city limits

from the influence of the

toward the west,

traders.

28

Geography

and part

great

keep the

city

of

its

function was to

came into conflict with the

other conquered Greek cities, saw in Rome a

their oriental politics,

Parthians. Seleucia, like

Strabo:

its

at bay.

The Romans, through

in order to

Kura, the

had

Gtesiphon was a military camp,

fortress protecting the seat of the ruler,

keep the Seleucians

city of

in Africa, also

deliverer from hated Parthian rule.

and Caesar
cities.

But

member

his

N. Licinius Crassus, with Pompey

of the triumvirate, tried to liberate those (reek

army was ambushed,

the battle

and Crassus caused

lost;

himself to he stabbed to death by his shield hearer.

The Roman-Parthian

struggle

destroyed Seleucia

at

last.

The

<it\

was sacked and burned by the soldiers of Aridus Cassius, the legate of the

Emperor
greatly

Most

L. Veins.

of

100, 000 inhabitants

its

The Roman, who professed desire

sold into slavery.

weakened

his position in

(he

Near

were
to

killed, the rest

defend Hellenism,

East through this pillage ol

Seleucia.

new power arose in that region.

under the leadership of the Sassanid

Less than a century later, a

restored

its

national

life

threw the Parthians and conquered the whole

ol

New

Persia

kings, over-

the fertile crescent.

Ctesiphon, which had fallen heir to Seleucia's trading position, became

and remained,

their residence,

the capital of a great empire.

still exist. Its

builders.

That

hall

symbolized the greatness of

come down to us even in

Moslem Arabs, who terminated the

this hall has

ruins

may be due

its

to

Sassanid rule, found

useful as a place of worship.

When

more than four hundred years.

Arabia, became the prophet of a new

the Sassanid empire had existed for

Mohammed, born
religion: Islam.

12.

and

ruins of the palace of the Sassanid kings

wide-spanned impressive

the fact that the

it

until the rise of Islam, a leading city

The

in

Mecca

in

This religion was spiritual in origin, but forceful

THE MOUND OF ECBATANA

below present

in action.

Hamadan
29

The

courage of the converted barbarian Arabs in combination with their

religious zeal

made

new movement

the

The

invincible.

Islamic forces took

and Syria from the feeble Byzantine empire; Mesopotamia from the
Sassanids. A great new oriental empire came into being, in which the
1-

"g\ pt

usual passivity of the oriental had been converted into dynamic activity.

In a relatively short time, the established structure of the countries sur-

rounding the Mediterranean had collapsed and the new Islamic empire

had swept from India, along North Africa, and, eventually, into Spain.
Baghdad, not very far north of Ctesiphon, was founded
the

new empire and

ceeded Ctesiphon

the seat of the Caliphs,

as a ruling city,

it

its

inherited also

its

Ctesiphon declined and Baghdad became the leading

Moslem empire

political center of the

The

rise of

and

Roman

Islam and

its

political

number

common
ligious

flourishing trade.

city of the East, the

its

religious center.

influence which had so long prevailed in those regions.

scribes this upheaval:

suc-

consequences terminated the Greek

upheaval had thrust out an intrusive

made

Mecca was

as

as the capital of

As Baghdad

rulers.

civilization.

"Confronted with

An

Arnold Toynbee* de-

this challenge, the Syrian society

of attempts to respond,

and these attempts

all

had

feature. In every instance, the anti-Hellenic reaction took a re-

movement

for

its

difference between the

vehicle. Nevertheless, there

first

was a fundamental

four of these reactions and the

last

one.

The

Zoroastrain, the Jewish, the Nestorian, and the Monophysite reactions

were failures. The Islamic reaction was a success."

Within the

relatively small area

where these

rivers

come

between the Euphrates and the Tigris,

and prosperous cities arose

during the milleniums. One after another they rose and fell. As early as
the Sumeric times, city states were fighting to subdue each other. Later,
as larger states developed, they too fought each other with the same aim.
Babylon, twice founded, succeeded itself and was succeeded by Seleucia.
Seleucia was succeeded by Ctesiphon; Ctesiphon by Baghdad. The rise of
each
cities

new

city

close together, great

meant the decline

of the old one. People of the deposed

were sometimes killed or sold into

transplanted to the

new

material for the new.

Seleucia, Ctesiphon,

city.

The

it

More

older city always provided the building

made

had always

cities,

for

Babylon were used

existed.

In ancient times
it

it

was identified with

with Baghdad, sometimes called

Baghdad, Babylon.

30

J.:

to build

was also the most famous. In the minds of

Seleucia. Medieval travelers identified

Toynbee, Arnold

often they were

and eventually Baghdad.

Babylon, oldest of these

people,

The

bricks

slavery.

A Study

of History.

New

York and London, l!M7

*CT.

PERSEPOLIS

13.

All these cities originated with the founding of

after conquest.
capital.

Here

Quite different

the city

is

state.

in scattered villages

Medes

The

king,

upon

Medean

Before Ecbatana

without any central

authority. Lawlessness prevailed throughout the land.

of this disorder, the

and empires

states

the origin of Ecbatana, the

was the foundation for the

was founded, the Medes lived

new

To

rid themselves

king and elected him unanimously.

"required a palace to be built for him suit-

elected a

his elevation,

able to his rank, and a guard to be given to

him

for his person.

The Medes

complied and built him a strong and large palace on a spot which he himself

pointed out, and likewise gave him the liberty to choose himself a bodv

guard from the whole nation. Thus

settled

required them to build a single great

city,

upon

the throne, he further

and disregarding the petty

towns in which they had formerly dwelt, make the new capital the object
of their chief attention.

now

The Medes were

called Ecbatana, the walls of

rising in circles,

again obedient and built the city

which are of great

size

one within the other. The plan of the place

of the walls should out-top the

one beyond

nature of the ground, which

a gentle hill, favours this

in

some degree, but

circles
last.

is

The

seven.

The

it

is

[the

it

was mainly effected by

royal palace

circuit of the outer wall

Thus Deioces

and strength,

name

and the
is

is,

that each

by the battlements.

art.

The

arrangement

The number

of the

treasuries standing within the

very nearly the same as that of Athens.

of the king] collected the

Medes

into a nation

and ruled over them alone."*

*

Herodotus: History

31

After

long reign Deioces was succeeded by his son Phraortes,

the Persians
of

and brought them under

two nations and powerful enough

But Cyrus, son of

Medean

princess

He

his rule.

to think

and

who attacked

was then the king

about conquering

a Persian

subdued the Medes, made the Persians the ruling

all

Asia.

nobleman, eventually

and established

class,

himself as the ruler of Asia. His successors extended the empire, con-

became kings

solidated their conquests, and

of kings.

Persepolis, the residence of the Persian kings, represents a

It

was a palace-city; and

different kings,

it

was no longer

were on a large

the king, his court, his nobles

that city

artificial terrace.

and

were settled below the

fortified.

The

city type.

Persepolis was a city for

his administration.

terrace.

new

palaces, built by

The

people

to serve

Alexander destroyed the palaces

avenge the destruction of Athens by the Persians one hundred and

years earlier.

The

ruins of the city

still

While the Persian kings were building

reveal

its

to

fifty

past greatness.

their palaces at Persepolis, kings of

More stable conditions in their land

permitted the royal city to develop much earlier. When a king ascended
the throne of Egypt, he erected a new palace and a new pyramid, his
future tomb. And he founded also a new city for his court and administraEgypt were building themselves

tion.

Behind

this

cities.

custom and practice was probably a magic concept,

ex-

pressed in ancient rituals derived from Animism, which caused primitive

man

14.

32

to

shun

EGYPT

all

the belongings of a dead man.

Pyramids

When

a king,

who was

15.

KNOSSOS

Palace of King Minos

considered godlike, died,

be abandoned and

left to

it

was only natural that

decay.

Those

his palace-city

should

royal cities of Egypt have entirely

disappeared. Only their pyramids, the tombs of the dead kings, have survived.

The

long row of Pyramids south of the Great Pyramid of Khafre

are the only remains of once royal

borne away the

lutism.

It is

rest.

The

The

cities.

Nile's yearly floods have

royal cities of Egypt are an expression of abso-

not surprising that,

when absolutism appeared again

in

Europe,

the royal-city type was reborn.

The

plain of the rivers Euphrates and Tigris

is

vastly different, in geo-

graphic structure and topographical formation, from the Greek mainland

and the

islands of the

Aegean

Sea.

In contrast to the uniformity and

evenness of the plain of the two rivers, Greece's geographical structure and

topography presents endless variety. Theie are rivers and

and

tains

myriad
two

plains.

There

are bays

islands. Since the

parts,

and

inlets.

There

is

the sea

possible.

No

large

but small kingdoms and,

may

its

a great variety of local

later, city states

common

less

and protected by

empire could be established

each other but united through a

The

with

almost every place of any importance can have more or

surrounding mountains, and thus

aims.

itself,

moun-

Gulf of Corinth cuts the Greek mainland into

direct access to the Sea. Small fertile plains are isolated

becomes

valleys,

developments

in this setting,

could grow up, independent of

language and

common

cultural

character of the country well matched the Greek concept of

life,

have, indeed, helped to form their preference for small, independent

communities.
33

Western

civilization

the islands of the

developed

Aegean

Sea.

not on the Greek mainland, but on

first,

Aegean

civiliza-

going back to the Neolithicum and developing parallel with the

tion,

civilizations of

Egypt and the Near

East. All these civilizations influenced

own aims and

each other, but each had

its

The Aegean

countless islands,

is

preceded Greek

civilization

Sea, with

its

each
is

its

unique development.

like a lake. Its

"closed" by a chain of islands of which Crete

southern end

the largest.

is

Midway

be-

tween Europe, Asia, and Africa, Crete forms a natural link between three
continents.

It

was inevitable that

it

should become a main trading center

between Egypt and the Orient and Europe. Even

in ancient times, travel

between the Aegean islands and these lands was not very
his ship

was small, the

sailor

security.

Some land was

always within sight.

could

feel

difficult.

Though

measure of confidence and

He

could always count on a

harbor for the night.

Those favorable conditions, however, had some distinctly unfavorable

aspects. The character of the Sea and its islands encouraged piracy to
flourish. The early development of the Aegean was as much influenced by
the nomads of the sea as that of the fertile crescent by the nomads of the
desert.

Thucydides* describes the

activities of the

Aegean

pirates:

"In early times

the Hellenes and the Barbarians of the coast and islands, as communication by sea

became more common, were tempted

to

turn pirates, under the

conduct of their most powerful man; the motives being to serve their own
cupidity and to support the needy.

They would

fall

upon

town un-

protected by walls, and consisting of a mere collection of villages, and

would plunder

it;

indeed, this

came

to

be the main source of their

liveli-

hood, no disgrace being yet attached to such achievement, but even some

The same prevailed also by land."

Homer** also considered the pirate raids

glory.

famous hero Odysseus

meaning

calls

epiite legal

and

right.

of the phrase very clear

when he

tells

of his exploits at Ismarus,

the city of the Cicones: "I reached this place and destroyed the

held

it.

His most

himself "a sacker of cities" and makes the

Their wives and the rich plunder

that

we took from

men who

the town

we

divided so that no one should go short of his proper share."

Minos

make

of Crete was able to establish a navy to defeat the pirates

himself master of the Aegean Sea.

asks, himself a pirate?***

been very powerful. The

of feudalism

**

He

sea

and commercial exploitation.

Thucydides: The Peloponnesian

to

He

must have
kingdom he founded was based on a system
could have been.

War

Homer: The Odyssey

* Bruckhardt, Jacob: Griechische Kultur

34

Was

and

Minos, Jacob Burckhardt

gescliichte

certainly

16.

To

MYCENAE

strengthen his kingdom and to secure

Minos established

out-

posts, selecting their sites for their strategic possibilities, hut also with

due

regard for the

These

fertility of the soil

fortress-castles

of the Argive Plain.

its

trade.

on which they must depend

for support.

towered over fruitful plains. Most famous are those

Here

the castles of Mycenea, Tiryns,

and Midca were

so located as to cover the passes leading to the plain, while Larisa,

of a free standing hill,

17.

dominated the whole

on top

area.

TIRYNS
35

18.

LARISSA-ARGOS

Minos may have

sent his sons, relatives, or captains to

posts. Certainly,

he needed able

keep order in the domain. For

men
his

command

such out-

there, to rule over the people

own

and

to

residence, he chose Knossos, lo-

cated at the north side of Crete, inland but close to the harbor from which
the trade in the

Aegean

sea could be controlled.

On

the southern side of

The

the island, he founded Phaestos, possibly as his second residence.

harbors of Phaestos served the trade with Egypt.

These settlements

of

Minos possessed the

feudalistic settlements.

position

on

The

characteristics

castles or palaces of the rulers in a

their large estates; the surrounding villages in

ject people, often

reduced

common

to

serfdom, lived to

till

to help

the fields for their

castles

and

when danger

defend the stronghold. Such

settlements were economically dependent on agriculture.

Aegean

dominating

which the sub-

masters and to mingle with the people of the castles only

loomed and they were summoned

to all

Some

of the

palaces, at least their heavy fortification walls

and

foundations, have defied time. But the villages disappeared.

The

sea

on trade

kingdom

of Minos, unlike

most feudal

states, was.

as well as agriculture. Originally that trade

however, based

may have dealt with

more advanced

the exchange of raw materials for manufactured goods of

countries.

It is

quite possible that the Aegeans imported and distributed

iron discovered and processed by the Hittites into the world around the

Mediterranean.
a

The

fact of this trade base

made

necessary settlements of

different character from the fortress outpost with

Organized trade requires harbor

facilities,

its

villages.

wharves and shipyards, ware-

houses and houses for the people working there and for the sailors between
36

When

Aegean civilization advanced to the point where it

could produce goods wanted everywhere, shops and settlements for workers
and craftsmen must have been established. We may assume that such settlements were in the possession of the k
or the ruling class, since trade
voyages.

the

1 l>

was a royal prerogative.

We

know nothing about

workers and for

its

the settlements Crete developed lor

craftsmen.

Egyptian workman's settlement

workers on the pyramid.

The

They may have been

at

Kahun,

its

harbor

similar to a

known

built to provide houses for the

pattern of any such settlement would be

modified, of course, according to the topography of

its site.

Excavation of the Cretan settlement of Gournia has revealed houses with

stone foundations grouped close together around a palace. Since Gournia
is

close to the sea, perhaps this

was a settlement of traders or merchants.

There may have been similar settlements connected with other Cretan
palaces.

At Knossos larger houses were discovered

close to the Palace, built,

may be, for nobles who had to live close to the court.
The palaces of Crete, unlike those of the Greek mainland, were
it

fied.

not

forti-

This indicates that the power of the Aegean kings must have been

very great and their

but they

all

have

fleet

very efficient.

common

Those

palaces differ widely in

characteristics. All are built

around

size,

a rec-

tangular court. All show the tendency to relate the enclosed space to the

open space of the landscape.

Real

19.

cities

did not exist in the Aegean world.

GOURNIA

None

of

its

settlements con-

EBB^oq
fSllili

Half

20.

m$

KAHUN
They were never more than

stituted a city.

parts of cities, not yet in-

tegrated into a whole, with unified political and economical

of

its

life

and aims

own.

The great
unknown

artistic abilities of the

until

our time.

Aegeans and the work they created were

What Schliemann

and Mycenea; what Evans discovered

world. At

last

we knew

that

excavated at Troy, Tiryns

at Knossos,

Homer's works were not

poetic descriptions of a world which once existed.

of the

Aegean

astonished the whole

poet's fantasies but

The

cultural remains

between the cultural

civilization are like the missing link

development before the Greeks and that of the Greeks themselves.

When

the

Aegean

civilization

was

at

its

the north, entered the Greek mainland.

Thucydides* wrote, "had no

peak, the Greeks,

"The country now

settled population;

tions

were of frequent occurrence, the several

their

homes under pressure

of superior

tribes readily

38

life

War

sea, cultivating

no

required, destitute of

never planting their land (for they could not

Thucydides: The Peloponnesian

abandoning

numbers. Without commerce,

of their territory than the exigencies of

capital,

called Hellas,"

on the contrary, migra-

without freedom of communication either by land or

more

coming from

tell

when an invader

might not come and take

it

away, and

all

when he

come

did

the)

had no

walls to stop him), thinking that the necessities of daily sustenance could

be supplied

at

one place

They

as well as another.

cared

little for

shifting

the habitation, and consequently neither built large cities nor attained to

any other form of greatness.

this

change of masters.

ment
fertile

As

The

The

and thus created

arose.

This process had, in

destructive, effect

achievements.

Aegean

upon

which proved a

faction

new powers

new

crystallized,

probability, an adverse, not to say

all

and their cultural

new powers took possession of the

the settlements of the Aegeans

We may assume that

fortified

to

also invited invasion."

It

a result of those successive migrations,

kingdoms

were always most subject

goodness of the land favored the aggrandise-

of particular individuals,

source of ruin.

richest soils

castles

those

and established themselves there by

right

of

conquest.

Crete was finally conquered

people.

Its

civilization

centers of culture

came

their possessions

to

an end.

an unknown time and by an unknown

at

and

The

its

palaces were destroyed.

on the mainland, and, in so doing, provoked new

new

as the

of their

own, they attacked Crete, defeated

rulers in

on

that island and, eventually,

may, quite possibly, have been the

Greek aggression; and

conflicts.

Greece were powerful enough and had a navy

As soon

on

The Aegean

kings of Crete must have tried to cover

all

her,

and established themselves

Aegean Sea. Troy

the islands of the

last

stronghold of the Aegeans to

resist

many Aegean

wars.

the Avar against Troy, the last of

Troy was attacked by the Achaeans or, as Homer occasionally calls them,
Argives and Danaans. After long siege, Troy was utterly destroyed.

The Greeks were

destroyers but also creators.

Under

their touch, in the

course of time, an entirely new settlement development took place everyr

Greek world.

where

in the

Greek

city states, as they

It

came

reached

final

provided for their citizens opportunity lor

life.

The

life

limits of the restrictions of society was

stir

cities.

formation, fostered the creation

spirit

of

human

might unfold

life

on

slavery,

city.

but they

and vigorous individual

freedom within the

of

an achievement which, ever

since,

the imagination of man.

Greece developed no large

ceived on the

a rich

which these Greeks created a

has continued to

expression in the free

into being, were based

scale in

in

Its

ever-varying landscape, by

and maintenance

very

which the rich potentialities of the Greek

utmost variety.

Greece may be due in part

its

of small states, con-

The

great cultural achievements

to the physical smallness of

smallness of the scale had political implications, too.

It

her

made

cities.
it

The

possible

for each citizen to take his active part in the life of his city.

39

As both Plato* and Aristotle** indicate, the Greeks had definite ideas
about their

them

the

city states

and

embodiment

relation of the city to

which the

A state,

its

They thought

territory,

about

its

clearly, too,

sufficient for a

good

life

in the political

state, there is a limit, as there is to

make

and the ways

living space

when

it

in

has attained a population

community. As

large or too

small for example, a ship which

at all,

state are to

nor

a ship a

judge and

must know each

is

when

other's character.

When

If

the citizens of the

according to merit, then they

they

do not

and the decision

possess this knowl-

of law suits will go

wrong. Clearly then the best limit of the population of

number which

suffices for

they are too

only a span long will not

quarter of a mile long.

to distribute offices

edge, both the election to offices

to the size of the

other things, plants, animals, imple-

ments; for none of these retain their natural power

largest

to

about the

citizen could provide for his livelihood.

Aristotle wrote, "begins to exist

be a ship

worked

a clear sense of direction as they

of th$ir ideals.

the purpose of

life

a state

the

is

and can be taken

in at a single view."
Aristotle does not give the exact figure he considered appropriate, but he

may have agreed with Hippodamus

of

philosopher and city

Miletus,

planner, whose ideal state consisted of 10,000 citizens, Aristotle mentions

Hippodamus and was

certainly acquainted with his work. Aristotle, how-

ever, recognized other considerations influencing the size of a city.

It

should be small enough, he thought, so that every citizen could hear the
speaker on the Agora; large enough to provide as

neighboring

with which

city

it

might come into

many

hoplites as any

conflict.

It

had

to

be

prepared against aggression.

Plato also believed that a city should be neither too large nor too small.

He

concludes his discussion about the

size of the state

by saying. "Our

rulers will find the best principle for determining the size of the state

the proportionate

amount

of territory

the state should be allowed to

without

beyond which they

grow only

so far as

it

can increase in

Aristotle draws a distinction

between members of

a state

as a necessity.

and

its

servants.

excludes from citizenship also merchants, traders, and husbandmen.

Husbandmen, he

The

distinction

* Plato:

Republic

** Aristotle: Politics

believes, will of necessity

between

natural and right.

40

size

loss of unity."

Both Plato and Aristotle accepted the institution of slavery

He

and

will not go:

be slaves or barbarian Perioeci.

ruling class and a subject class seemed to

him

Aristotle's

of

measure of the physical

people.

its

should be of such

It

was the need

si/c ol his ideal territory

he

si/e,

said, "as

may enable

the in-

habitants to live at once temperately and liberally in the enjoyment

leisure. It

things

should be

and

territory

want nothing

to

is

which

and

that they

Moreover,

sufficiency.

they should import from abroad what

all-producing, for to have

is

is

it

is

necessary

all

that

own country

not found in their

should export what they have

ol

in excess; lor a city

ought

to

be

market, not indeed for others, but for herself."

Regarding the location of the

what we wish,

it

city, Aristotle

remarks.

"II

we could have

should be well situated in regard both to sea and land.

It

should be a convenient place for the production of the whole country.

It

should be

enemy and

difficult of access to the

easy of egress to the in-

habitants."
Aristotle considered also the health needs of his city

and water were the most important

Cities

which

healthiest,

lie

toward the

east

and decided

that

wind

factors in assuring civic well-being.

and are blown upon by

east

winds are the

he thinks. Next come those sheltered from the north wind, for

they have milder winters. "There should be a natural abundance of springs

and fountains in the towns,

may be
when the

or,

if

there

is

a deficiency of

them, great

reservoirs

established for the collection of rain water, such as will

not

inhabitants are cut off from the country by war."

fail

Aristotle agreed with

Hippodamus

streets regularly laid out.

difficult for strangers to get

way

planned with

also this interesting observa-

"For security in war the antiquated mode of building, which made

tion:
it

that cities should be

However, he makes

in, is preferable.

lines,

out of a tow n and for assailents to find the

T

The whole town

should not be laid out in straight

but only certain quarters and regions; thus security and beauty

will

be combined."
Before the Greeks established

and were ruled over by

cities,

chieftains

the various clans lived in villages

who were

called kings.

the kings was limited in peace time, increased sharply

The people

of those early villages

may have

The power

of

when war came.

built themselves places of

refuge as they presumably had done in the countries from which they
originally came.

Perhaps the dangers they were exposed

to

because of the prevailing piracy

on land and sea forced them to take further steps, to draw together into
one larger place, a fortified city strong enough to protect them against
sudden raids. In such a stronghold life could be lived with some sense of
security.

Such an explanation seems

There may have been

rational, but

it

may

well be only part

work other forces than necessity,

forces not material in nature. The development of the Greek city may
have been, in large part, the expression of Greek creative ability and com-

of the story.

at

41

may have been an urge

prehensive sense of harmony. There

new way

of

life,

a spiritual

cend mere material

and manifested

impulse which spurred the Greeks on to

necessity.

itself

to create a

The demos may

trans-

have ained consciousness

with the creation of the Agora, the symbol of the

Polis, the center of its political life.

was believed that the Agora was also

It

There were markets

was a
a

Greek

in

gathering place for the free

This

is

men

of the city.

From

it.

not true.

The Agora

but not on the Agora.

cities,

affairs

and

Aristotle remarks,

should be excluded and no mechanic, husbandman, or any

such person allowed to enter unless he be

What brought

the Polis into existence

hidden behind a

is still

place.

meeting place for the discussion of public

political

"all trade

market

summoned

by the magistrates."

we do not know

No

veil of mystery.

one has

yet

exactly. Its origin

been able

fully to

penetrate that secret.

So

far as

we know,

the Polis was the result of the process of synoecism:

the condensation of a clan into a

community was allowed

to live together politically

which had

at a place selected

its

territory

no other independent

Synoecism involved a corporate decision

governments in favor of one. The

might be

In

city.

to exist.

as its corollary the abolition of local

seat of the

new

unified

from among those already

government

in existence: or

it

might be newly founded

come

into being.

as the center for the government which had just

Here was the Agora, the government offices, the gymna-

siums, the theater, the fountain with flowing water. People might

allowed

had

to

to live in their old villages,

be exercised in the

still

but their rights and obligations

be

now

Polis.

For many, svnoecism must have been an unhappy experience. Thev had

abandon old inherited estates and. worst of all, the graves of their
ancestors and the cults connected with them. Perhaps, in some cases, the
to

process of synoecism had been forced by a small powerful group, by a

king with imagination about the future. Possibly

human

sacrifices

were

sometimes connected with the process, the victims being afterwards adored

Tyche

as the

The
its

creation of the Polis was always a decisive experience in the

people:

more than
something
polis

of the Polis.

its

a city.

to

It

which

was regarded
life

had

to

as

something higher than

ol

its

life

of

itself,

be subordinated. Not to be a citizen of

was considered a grave misfortune.

was punishment second only

over the lives

life

maintenance and ever-present obligation. The Polis was

to death.

The

citizens; the citizens

To

be deprived of citizenship

polis

was conscious of

its

power

accepted this power freelv and

proudly.

When
42

Socrates,

condemned

to death, refused the offer of his friends to

21.

THEBES

help him escape to some other

of the polis
"If

and

we mean

your best to
this,

its

right. In the Crito,*

you the lover of

he makes the laws of Athens speak:

"because we think

to kill you," they say,

kill its in

decision was based on his concept

city, his

it

just,

must yon do

your turn? Can you claim that you have

virtue.

Is this

your wisdom, not

to

a right to

know

that

do

above

and mother and forefathers stands our country, dearer and holier

hither

than they, more sacred, and held in more honor by

God and men

of under-

That you ought to reverence her, and submit to her and work
her when she is in need, for your country more than your lather, and

standing?
for

either

win her consent or obey her

and hold your peace; be

it

yielding,

it is

the law courts and everywhere

right

else

we

Polis

is

And

suffer,

we must do what our

and

still

lies.

less

past: in

war and

city bids us

For

it

is

It is

do and

against our fatherland."

demands, "that the laws speak

Crito can only answer, "I believe they do."

life

its

based on the participation of every citizen. Life in

the Polis became, to the Greek, the only

only

in

not lawful to

the peculiar product of the Greek spirit, an expression of

essential activity.

living, the

what she bids you

should be borne; there must be

say to this, Crito?" Socrates

the truth or not?"

The

it

convince her where justice

use force against father or mother,

shall

suffer

no running away, no deserting of one's

our country, or

"What

and

imprisonment, or blows, or wounds in war or

death it must be borne, and

no

will

adequate

to the

form of human existence worth

aims of Greece.

Life in villages was

Plato: Crito

43

regarded

as

human

beneath

dignity. Villages

had no agora, no government

therefore no political activity could develop in them.

offices;

gymnasium nor

theater; therefore

no cultural

life

They had no

was possible.

The

dis-

solution of a polis, the leading back of the citizens to their original villages

was a severe punishment sometimes

upon Mantinea

instance, fell

Spartan king.

It

upon

inflicted

alter that city

Such

a city.

a fate, for

surrendered to Agesipolis, the

constituent villages. "Those who

Mantinea remained on the site of the
pull down their houses and move each to the village

was broken into

its five

originally belonged to the village of

city.

The

rest

had

to

The

where

his

all his

hieher interests."*

property was.

meant

loss of civil life

to a

Greek the

loss of

Greece had many

cities, but few of them gained more than local fame.

prominence through conquest, others through industry or
favorable trade location. It may well have been that most Greek cities

Some
a

rose to

to be independent and to provide a good life for

But independence was always in danger. Intentions of neigh-

were content merely

their citizens.

bors could not always be trusted. Thebes, for instance, tried to unify the

whole of Boetia and eventually succeeded. But not without making Athens
her enemy. Corinth, by the very nature of her location, gained importance

came in conflict with Athens. Aero-Corinth,

the acropolis of the city, had a commanding position on the Isthmus. Since
the Isthmus was the link between northern and southern Greece, Corinth
and

as a trading center,

also

held the key to the Peloponnesus. Moreover, two important trade routes
crossed each other at Corinth: a road running north

and south and a

waterway running

east

and

The

city

grew rich and prosperous, founded colonies of

market

place.

west. Corinth

was inevitably, therefore, a

which Syracuse became the most famous. Like Thebes, Corinth looked
with jealousy on the growing power and commercial success of Athens.

The

policies of the Corinthians

toward

changed with changing events. Envy

eventually that,
that

when

of

also

War

toward Sparta

to

such a pitch

was over, Corinth insisted

Athens must be annihilated, a proposal which Sparta rejected. Thebes

to

learn themselves

Thebes when she rebelled unsuccessfully

of Philip;

burned
but the

Bury,

J.

new
as a

B.:

against

Macedonia

ground, their people sold into slavery.

Athens and other Greek

city

cities

helped

occupied the Cadmeia only,

Caesar, recognizing

Corinth

what annihilation meant:

after the death

Corinth when she rebelled against the Romans. Both

to the

later rebuilt.

44

and

Athens mounted

the Peloponnesian

and Corinth both were

this rival

Roman

the

its

History of Greece

cities

were

cities

were

to reestablish

Thebes,

former acropolis. Julius

important advantages of

colony.

Both

its

location,

rebuilt

22.

SPARTA

Site oj the

Ancient City

Sparta and Athens were the leading cities of Greece, and they differed

from each other

in every possible aspect.

concepts; they differed also in their

exploiting

They

means

differed in their political

of subsistence. Sparta lived by

subdued people; Athens, by industry and commerce. But

shared a common aim: to achieve hegemony oxer Greece.
its

both

cities

The

conquest of Laconia, the southeastern part

of

the Peloponnesus, by

Doric tribes ended the Doric Wandering, the migration into Greece from
the north.

The

pressure from outside ceased, and eventuaily an inner

equilibrium was established.

them was

The

New

states

The most powerful

emerged.

of

Sparta.

Spartans were few in

number

but powerful through the eflu iency

of their military organization. Their state was based

strove to be conquerors

all

on conquest and they

the time. Their military organization was the

source of their success and the reason lor their strength. Conservative in

would never
barrack life, had

character, they might change their constitution, but they

change their military organization. They lived

common

meals.

They did

kind of

not work, but they were always on the alert.

Watchfulness was important

if

only to keep subjected peoples submissive.

The Spartan devoted his whole life to service of the state.

The two kings who headed Sparta were related to the military
tion.

They

had power only in time of war.

They represented

organizaa survival

from the heroic age of Greece, their functions being reminiscent of the old
kingships of the time of the Doric Wandering.

This suggests

that

the

45

Spartans

may have

when two bands

originated

of warriors, each with

its

own

king-leader, joined forces. Five Ephors controlled the kings of Sparta,

and the power of Ephors increased as that of the kings declined. The
Ephors, Bury believes, "must have won that power in a conflict between

the nobility

who had no

who governed

in conjunction with the kings,

share in the government.

and the people

In that struggle, the kings rep-

resented the cause of the nobility, while the Ephors were the representatives of the people."*

The

Spartans took possession of and settled in the rich valley of the

mountain

Eurotas, surrounded by high

trated almost the

over

From

ranges.

there, they pene-

whole of the Peloponnesus and established hegemony

They considered themselves a master race, kept their blood pure,

who were, in differing degrees, their subSome of the people of the Peleponnesus accepted the supremacy of

it.

did not mix with the inhabitants

jects.

the Spartans

and became

their allies.

The

other two groups were: the Perioeci who were relatively free peasants
and had to serve in the army; and the conquered people who became helots,
had no rights, and were required to work and till the land for their Spartan
masters.

When the Spartans increased in number, a

To solve it, Sparta undertook the conquest
yond Mount Taygetos. Subjection

pressing land problem arose.

of Messenia, the country be-

of the people of Messenia required long

wars, but Sparta was at last successful.

New

land and new helots to work

the lands were acquired by the conquerors.

economic problems in

They had

danger.
helots.

this

always to be prepared to put

The permanent army

economic

life

common

it.

The

To

helots

provide equality and economic

a lot or,

more

who

in-

accurately, was allowed

land passed from father to son, but

under the ownership of the

The

a rebellion of the

people of Sparta, the land was divided into

and each Spartan was assigned

sold.

down

necessity.

dependence for the

the use of

Spartans solved their

of the Spartans became, in time, a stern

Only noble families owned land.

lots

The

way, but they did so at the cost of never-ending

state

tilled the

and could

it

remained always

not, therefore, be subdivided or

land belonged also to the

state.

They were

required to deliver to their masters a certain amount of produce; they

might keep for their own use any surplus beyond that amount.
Sparta, the Spartan capital, was located

between the two

and

its

ly it

had been an army camp, well protected by those

Bury,

46

tributary, close to the

J.

B.:

History of Greece.

mountains

New

York

rivers, the

Eurotas

in the north of Laconia. Originalrivers

and the moun-

Out

tains.

camp

this

<>l

Athena, stood on

down toward

by

its

would make

Lycurgus

or, as

which has

quoted

is

men

a wall of

it

acropolis, with the temple

was

itself.

Roman
to

times.

The

have expressed

instead of stone.

expect

that

the

Bui Sparta

was protected

city

it,

<>l

and farther

a large theater,

One would

their capital a lot tided city.

fortified, at least not until

men

fortified

Its

promontory. Below

the plain was the citv

military Spartans

was never

the city grew.

"The

well

itv is

"*

Villages were the original type of Spartan settlements,

formed by the unification of five villages which, to

and Sparta was

some degree, always

retained their identity. Each village was headed by one of the

Sparta was never a city like Athens, Corinth, or Thebes.

village character:
It

Homer

was, as

was always

it

called

"broad"

it,

a city of

than that of more populous Athens.

"were

to

become

desolate,

public buildings were

left

always kept

its

houses connected with gardens.

city,

"II

It

Ephors.

five

covering a space

much

larger

Sparta," remarked Thucydides,

and the temples and the foundation of the

as time went on there would be a strong
.

disposition with posterity to refuse to accept her fame as a true exponent

of her power.

And

yet they (the Spartans)

and lead the whole, not

as the city

is

to

occupy two-fifths of Peloponnese

speak of their numerous

allies

without.

Still,

neither built in a compact form nor adorned with magnificent

temples and public

edifices,

but composed of villages after the old fashion

would be an impression of inadequacy. Whereas, if Athens

same misfortune, I suppose that any inference from appearance presented to the eye would make her power to have been twice
of Hellas, there

were

to suffer the

as great as

it

is."**

What Thucydides
both

cities

became

predicted, history proved.

When,

in the course of time,

desolated, Sparta vanished entirely, leaving

the Acropolis of Athens

still

no

trace,

but

bears witness to the former grandeur of a great

city.

Athens and Sparta were both

terests

uppermost

in

mind.

selfish cities,

When

Athens succeeded

empire, she was hated for her success.

own

always keeping their

When

in building

in-

up her

Sparta conquered and en-

slaved her fellow Greeks, she Avas greatly admired for her military strength.

Athens had

all

the vices; Sparta

all

the virtues. But

in the Peloponnesian Avar, the Greeks

when Athens met

found that they had only changed

their masters. Sparta claimed her intention of restoring the

of the

Greek

cities.

for Sparta's real

But such proclamations proved

aim the

defeat

establishment of her

independence

to be only camouflage

own hegemony.

Brasidas

the Spartan, speaking to the citizens of Acanthus, said so frankly. "I shall

take the

Gods and the heroes

of your country to witness that

came

for

* Plutarch: Lives. Lycurgus

** Thucydides: The Peloponnesian Win

47

your good and was rejected, and

shall

do my best

to

compel you by laying

waste your land.

I shall do so without scruple, being justified by the

which constrains me, first to prevent the Lacedaemonians from
being damaged by you, their friends and secondly, to prevent the Hellenes
from being hindered by you in shaking off their servitude."*

necessity

The Athenians

always considered themselves the autochthonous popula-

tion of Attica.

As a matter

comers
priority

were relatively new

of fact, all the Greeks

Herodotus** makes a modified claim to Athenian

when he calls them "the more ancient natives in Greece, the only

in the area.

Greeks who have never changed their abode." Thucydides* also comments on Athenian stability. It was due, he said, to the fact that Attica's
soil

was so poor that did not tempt invaders, and therefore the

settlers there

enjoyed, "from a very remote period, freedom from faction," and the area

"never changed

We now know

its

inhabitants."

that the settling of Attica took place in very ancient times.

There may have been Neolithic settlements,

the soil

and used the commanding

refuge.

The

Acropolis

lies

hill of the

whose people

tilled

Acropolis as their place of

four miles from the

two small streams which were,

tection.

villages

in that day, large

sea,

and

enough

it

was girded by

to give

added pro-

Quite probably, Attica, like the Argivian Plain, came into the

possession of the Aegeans,

who made

they ruled the subject population.

and made

it

their

home, they

the Acropolis the fortress from which

When

the Greeks conquered Attica

and the Acropolis again

the seat of kings. Thucyd-

settled in villages

may have become a place of refuge, then, later,

ides writes: "Under Cecrops and the first kings down to the reign of
Theseus, Athica had always consisted of a number of independent townships, each with its own townhall and magistrates. Except in times of
danger, the king of Athens was not consulted; in ordinary cases they
carried

on

their afovernment

and

settled their affairs

ference. ... In Theseus, however, they

had

without

his inter-

king of equal intelligence

and power, and one of the chief features in his organization of the country
was

to abolish the council

and

to

merge them

chambers and magistrates of the petty

in the single council

present capital. Individuals might

as before,

still

chamber and town

which thus counted

her citizens, so that

hall of the

enjoy their private property just

but they were henceforth compelled

center, viz. Athens,

cities,

all

to

have only one political

the inhabitants of Attica

when Theseus died he

left

among

a great state behind him.

Indeed, from him dates the Synoecia, or Feast of Union."*

Unlike Sparta, Athens opened

* Thucydides: The Peloponnesian
** Herodotus: History

48

War

its

gates freely to other Greeks. Victims

LEGEND
Pelorgicum
.:ss& Pre-PersionWoll

"^^^"- Themutodtan Wall

CUuns Cross Wall

1

_____

ladrians Wall

Franki sh("Vakrian")Wall

_n_ Turkish Wall

MAP OP
THE WALLS OF ATHENS
i

Milt

Kilometer

THE WALLS OF ATHENS

23.

of taction

and war from

also an opportunity to

become Athenian

unique character of Athens,

activities. It

may

Hellas found there not only a retreat hut

all of

its

citizens.

cosmopolitanism,

This may explain the

its

industrial

and trade

explain also the striving for power which led, at

last,

to

the city's tragic end.

Before the Synoecism of Theseus, Athens consisted of the fortified Acropolis

and

beneath

a single district

began

capital of Attica, the city

New
it

districts

to

it

grow, both in

toward the west, the

became the
population and in extent.

toward the south. As

east,

and the north gradually turned

into a circular, wheel-shaped city, with the Acropolis in

a city without walls.

The

a fortress Acropolis

it

its

center.

It

was

old walled-in city which long ago had looked to

had been replaced by

new

city

which the

for

Acropolis was no longer a stronghold but the sacred abode of the gods.

The
It

population pressures in Greece increased with increasing prosperity.

became impossible

area.

new

Many

of the city states solved this

living space

beyond

and the enslavement

own

for the city state to feed

of

their

own

its

people upon

its

limited

problem by colonization, by taking

borders. Sparta solved

it

by conquest

conquered peoples. Ingenious Athens found her

solution in the development of industry and trade which enabled

her to exchange industrial products for necessary food. This resulted

changes in the social as well

There came

to

be in the

as the

economic structure of Athenian

in

life.

city four distinct classes: the nobles, the peasants.

49

and merchants, and the non-citizens metics and slaves.

Some of the nobles still lived on their country estates; most of the peasants,
on their farms. Craftsmen and merchants lived in the city; the potters, for
the craftsmen

example, had their quarters

worked on the

The

rise of

at the

Kerameikos.

estates of the nobles or in the

The

non-citizen group

workshops of the craftsmen.

manufacturing and trade undermined the importance of the

aristocracy. Industrious

merchants and craftsmen, gaining wealth, gained

Some

also political power.

of the nobles

became

interested in the

new

sources of wealth which trade and manufacturing had uncovered. Social

distinction based on wealth began to supersede distinction based

Aristocracy gave

way

to timocracy.

The problems

on

birth.

created by this trans-

formation were very serious. Ironically, growth and progress resulted in

and poverty. The old agricultural economy

internal conflict, discontent,

was disturbed by the increasing importance of the new economy of trade

and manufacturing. Money, the measure of wealth, became an end in

itself. The rich few became richer and also more oppressive in their dealand the craftsman. Farmers were forced

to

meet the new competition. Craftsmen had

to

ings with the small farmer

mortgage their farms

borrow money

The

tion.

to

to

make improvements

necessary for

new

types of produc-

rate of interest was high; the laws harsh. If they could not fulfill

their obligations, farmers lost their farms, craftsmen their independence.

Insolvent debtors, both farmer and craftsman, could eventually be sold

into slavery.

Most

of

The

leaders of the city did nothing to better such conditions.

them merely

tried to take full advantage of them.

Solon, the great statesman and law giver of Athens, tried to bring order

out of the prevailing disorder.

He recognized four groups of the

graded according

each possessing certain rights and duties to

to wealth,

correspond with those

population,

Only the nobles could hold high

rights.

office;

the

lowest class had at least the right to vote. Solon also established the principle that

it is

He

poor.

the duty of the

cancelled

sold into slavery.

owned by
estates.

"He

debts,

and passed

fixed a limit for the

a single person, so as to

And

to
a

provide for

its

invalids

that too

and

its

law forbidding debtors to be

measure

of land

which could be

prevent the growth of dangerously large

he forbade the exportation of Attic products, except

had been found

it

all

community

much

corn

(wheat)

was carried

oil.

For

to foreign

markets, where the prices were higher, that an insufficient supply remained

be observed, that,

for the population of Attica.

It

is

Athenians had not yet begun

to

import Pontic corn."*

The

were sadly disappointing.

results of Solon's reforms

limy.

SO

).

B.:

A History

of Greece.

New York

to

at this

The

time, the

people called

upon

to

make

complained that they

sacrifices

who gained grumbled that they

himself, had made the mistake
economy

already passing

sacrificed too

much.

did not gain enough. Solon,

of basing his reforms too

Those

merchant

much on

the

That economy

of agricultural self-sufficiency.

could no longer support the increased population. But Athens was alrcadx

moving toward a new economic concept: the exchange of specified agri

cultural and manufactured produce for food from overseas. An economic
improvement was under way which eventually would make possible the
support of the whole population.

It

was

time of transition.

Aristocracy had been both

very creativity caused dangerous troubles.

Its

weakened and corrupted; democracy was not

Tyranny, which Solon

yet strong. Party strife complicated the situation.

had

hard

tried

political

to avoid,

now became

gained great popularity through

and

his

was Pisistratus who took

reality. It

He

advantage of the prevailing economic and social disorder.

his

had

conquest of Nisaea, the port of Megara,

He

subsequent conquest of Salamis.

used

this

popularity to

His sons continued the Pisistratean

establish himself as tyrant of Athens.

rule.

changed the physical structure of Athens,

Pisistrates
it.

to

He and

the tyrants

who succeeded him

Solon never changed

constructed a network of roads

connect outlying settlements with Athens. They built an aqueduct to

supply the city with water.

its

as

They made

fortifications for their protection

walls.

On

the Acropolis a citadel again, using

and building

its

the Acropolis they also surrounded the temple of Athena, the

Hecatompedon, with colonades, and

gate. Possibly they

had great plans

built the old Propylaca, the entrance

for the city too.

wall erected during the VII century

possible. Since they built

defenseless city,

and was

The Athenians may

theless, these tyrants

empire and

But they

their palace within

to

work

left to

to

nothing in

remain

so for

make extension

to

of

the

the
city

Athens became an open,

place,

its

They pulled down

more than

half a century.

not have enjoyed the rule of the Pisistradids. Never-

had imagination
for

it.

Miltiades,

It

to see the

coming

of the

Athenian

was they who established the Athenian navy.

who came

to

power

after their defeat, the im-

portant achievement of gaining the Thracian Chersonese which assured

the wheat supply for Athens' growing population.

When

Minor

the Ionian cities of Asia

Athens, supporting the rebels,

attempt

at

won

revolted against the Persians,

the deep enmity of Persia. Persia's

vengeance ended in defeat. But ten years

vasion of Attica razed Athens to the ground.

Again the

tide of battle turned.

at Salamis; the

army

at

The

later, a

second

first

in-

old Athens disappeared.

Themistocles defeated the Persian navy

united armies of Sparta and Athens defeated the Persian

Plataea, the

Athenian

fleet

won

a victory at

the Hellespont.

51

Greece and the Ionians in Asia Minor were free

menace. Athens could move forward in her
pansion.

The Athenian empire became

at last

political

from the Persian

and commercial

no longer existed. It had been reduced to ashes

Persian wars. Should it be built again on its old site? Should the
Athens, the

of the

city,

new empire be placed

however, resisted such innovation. Athens and

and

A new

harbor

city,

fast
its

in the
capital

the second

becoming. Tradition,

sacred Acropolis were re-

the Piraeus, was planned. Themistocles began

Pericles finished this great undertaking.

Sparta, the

Many urged

closer to the sea?

course as befitting the sea power Athens was

built.

ex-

a reality.

new Athens was soon

In spite of protests from

fortified again

by a wall. This wall en-

closed a space nearly twice as large as the old city, including city extensions

toward the north and the southwest and the settlements which had grown

up outside

The

the old wall demolished by the Pisistradids.

original harbor of Athens, merely a place

where ships could ride

at

anchor, had been located at the north shore of the bay of Phalerum.

Themistocles, seeking more adequate harbor

facilities for a great fleet,

found them on the Piraean peninsula. Three natural harbors here were

and Zea, became the harbors

for the

Two

Munychia
warships. They were fortified and

strategically fitted to serve a naval station.

moles were built in connection with the

ships were also provided.

Mai", stab 1

24.

52

The

smaller harbors,

fortifications. Shelters for the

large harbor at the west side of the pen-

60 000

ATHENS AND PIRAEUS,

with the

Long Walls Connecting Them

became the port

insula

merchant

for

vessels.

too was fortified

It

and

protected against the sea by moles. Piraeus, harbor city of Athens, rose

on the peninsula between the harbors.

a plan by Hippodamus.
Athens now comprised two

dependent on each other but separated

cities,

by a distance of four miles.

war came,

If

was built under Pericles alter

It

enemy army could cut

a strong

communications between them. Athens would then be without food supply

and could be forced

To meet

to surrender.

defend, but they

ficult to

made

this

danger, the two cities were

These were

connected by the so-called long walls.

and

costly to build

The

the two cities one defense unit.

between the walls could provide shelter for the people of Attica

Greek

cities felt

it

in time

War.

of danger. It was so used during the Peloponnesian

All

dif-

space

a religious obligation to rebuild the temples de-

stroyed during the war with Persia. Nowhere, however, was this rebuilding

done with greater splendor than

had again become, not

in

a fortress,

Athens under

Pericles.

The

Acropolis

but a sacred precinct, devoted to the

gods and their temples. Those temples, built of marble and adorned with
sculpture, are a magnificent expression of the artistic culture of classic

Athens.

Athenian sea power had liberated the Greek

islands of the

Aegean

Sea.

It

cities of

Asia Minor and the

was, therefore, appropriate that Athens

should assume leadership in the Delian league, established to maintain

the independence of these

cities.

The

league was technically a federation;

became the Athenian empire. Cities who did not voluntarily

join the league could be forced to become members. Member cities who
wanted to withdraw found that such withdrawal might be prevented
in fact,

it

by force.

The

cities

which made up the Delian League were

all,

in

other,

dependent on Athens. Some even had

eignty.

But the panhellenistic tendencies

conflict

with the Greek passion for unresrticted freedom.

unity was not achieved.

the

domain

When

to give

of

their

Athens were

own

sover-

in

constant

The

necessary

Athens entered the western Mediterranean,

Athenian traders began

of Corinth, the

up

one way or an-

to out-distance the

Corinthians, conflict became unavoidable. Conflict with Corinth eventually led to the

Peloponnesian

War

in

which Athens,

strength, was defeated, forced to tear

her harbors, and to turn her

the disorder caused by war.

fleet

down

after exerting all her

her long walls, to demolish

over to Sparta. Internal

strife

increased

Athens recovered, eventually, but she never

regained her former importance. Conflict with the Macedonians put

further strains

upon

her.

Then

the

Romans became

the threat. Athens

took sides with Mithradates. and, defeated, faced disaster second only
to that

brought by the Persian victory. Politically Athens

lost all

impor53

25.

26.

54

ANCIENT ATHENS

MEDIEVAL ATHENS

Roman

tance. Sonic

emperors, however, looked with favor on the

city.

Hadrian was one. In his time, Athens extended its city area toward the
and Hadrian adorned this new part with magnificent public buildings.

east,

What Athens had

source of the

came

to gaze

created in the time of her greatness now became the

livelihood. Visitors

city's

upon her works

center of learning.

To

influence.

Then

all

known world

over the

and architecture. Athens became a

be educated in one of her schools was

distinction. Politically dead,

and Athens

of art

from

Athens exercised

mark

of

for a time great spiritual

Constantinople became the capital of the Eastern Empire

lost

even her intellectual prestige. Under

philosophical schools were closed. Athens then slowly decayed as a

method used

her

Justinian,

city.

For most Greek

cities

tion problems.

Instead of adopting Sparta's plan of conquest or Athens'

colonization was the

to solve

popula-

plan of developing manufacture and trade, these cities dealt with surplus

The

population by sending some of their people elsewhere.

for example, in a time

when

their food

Thereans,

problem was rendered more acute

by famine, used lottery to select colonizers. Brothers drew

lots to

determine

which must emigrate. The colonizers thus selected met with great mis-

But when they

fortunes.

tried to

come home, their kinsmen met them

let them come near the shore.

with showers of missiles and would not

They had

to set sail again, and, eventually,

guided by the Libyans, the

forced exiles founded Gyrene in North Africa.

Colonization developed also from causes other than famine. Political

dis-

content caused by the concentration of land in the hands of the aristocracy,

common
many discontented men in

the suppression of the

sent

had the same

in Asia

result.

Yet

Minor only two

when

people and the consequent internal

search of

new homelands.

the Persians

of them,

subdued

all

strife

Military defeat
the Greek cities

Phocaea and Teos, preferred exile

to

submission.

To

establish colonies

on barbaric shores was not

easy. It

was possible only

because the Greeks were far superior to the barbarians they encountered.

Those barbarians were not able

to recognize the potentialities of their

countries, or to develop the potentialities they did recognize.

on the other hand, by experience and

of a city

and

its

area of sustenance.

tradition,

had

They knew how

that a city should be easily accessible

and

Greeks,

a city should be

located and what was required to provide the necessities of

knew

The

a clear conception

easily

its life.

They

defended, that

it

should have a natural harbor to make possible intercourse with other

cities

and the exchange of goods with them.

Homer

in the

Odyssey vividly describes an island he considered a suitable

55

He

site for a city.

that city.

people,

".

who

we came

why

explains clearly

never

lift

the natives were not able to build

to the land of the Cyclopes, a fierce, uncivilizeu

hand

plough but put their

to plant or

trust in

Providence. All the crops they require spring up unsown and untitled,

wheat and barley and the vines whose generous

them wine

clusters give

when ripened for them by timely rains. The Cyclopes have no assemblies
for the making of laws, nor any settled customs, but live in hollow caverns
in the

mountain

heights,

where each man

law giver to his children and

is

and nobody cares a lot for his neighbors.

"Not very far from the harbour on their coast and not

his wives,

so near either,

wood which is the home of

Used neither for grazing nor for ploughing, it lies
forever unsown and untilled; and this land where no man goes makes a
happy pasture for the bleating goats. I must explain that the Cyclopes
there

lies

a luxuriant island covered with

innumerable

goats.

have nothing like our ships with their crimson prow; nor have they any

merchant men

shipAvrights to build

that could serve their needs of plying

to foreign ports in the course of that overseas traffic

lished

between

nations.

which ships have

estab-

Such craftsmen would have turned the island into

a fine colony for the Cyclopes.

For

by no means a poor country, but

it is

capable of yielding any crop in due season. Along the shore of the grey
sea there are soft water

mere

is

meadows where

would never wither, and

the plough, where they could

the vine

plenty of land level enough for

count on cutting a deep crop at every harvest time, for the

surrace

is

exceedingly rich.

no occasion

to tie

with hawsers:
till

the spirit

all

up

at all.

Also

it

neither cast anchor nor

your crew have to do

of the harbor there

is

below the

has a safe harbor in which there

You need

moves them and the

soil

light

to

is

is

fast

beach their boat and wait

wind blows. Finally

a stream of fresh water

make

running out of

at the

head

a cave in a

grove of poplar trees."

Travelers like Odysseus
for

new land on which

a prospective colony

may have

directed early emigrants in their search

to settle. Soon,

however, the choice of the

site for

was taken out of the hands of the imigrants.

To

avoid interference and, eventually, hostilities between colonies, some

regulation was needed.
tion,

with

all

The

Delphic Oracle assumed

the authority derived from

its

this regulatory func-

religious importance.

colonies might not be founded without consulting the Oracle.

through

whom

The

New

priests

the Oracle spoke must have had a thorough knowledge

of geography, topography,

and ethnology. For the soundness

of the orac-

ular advice was attested by the rewards the colonists bestowed in gratitude

upon the Oracle which had guided them

Greek

success in colonization was based

of their world

and the people who

unique sense

of social organization.

56

so wisely

on

lived in

their

it.

They had

It

and auspiciously.
thorough knowledge

was based also on their

the ability to

make

laws

and the discipline

proud of

tive,

to

selves at

army

walls

once a

to all others. Nicias, the

spoke

at Syracuse,

city,

at

once daring and conserva-

and customs, regarding themselves

their habits

from and superior

his defeated

obey them. They were

wherever you

and ships without men

in this spirit:* ".

down

sit

as distinct

Athenian general, addressing

men make

you are your-

the city and not

Xenephon,** leading

in them."

his

army

back from Persia after the death of Cyrus, expressed the Greek drive

toward colonization and the Greek concept of the

city.

When

he con-

sidered that they were in the Euxine, he writes, where such a powerful
force

(as his

army) could never have been assembled without enormous

expense, he thought what a fine thing

and

so gain

he mused,
living

more
as

territory

and power

it

would be

to found a city there

would be a great city,
Greeks and of the people

for Greece. It

he reckoned up the number of

around the Euxine.

In founding their colonies, the Greeks had to reckon with the natives
of the lands they chose for their settlements. It

those natives reacted toward the Greeks

who

is

hard to find out

how

took away from them some-

They may have

circumstances. They

thing whose value they were not always able to recognize.

been submissive or aggressive, according

to particular

undeniably received great benefits from their contact with the Greeks.

They acquired

had never dreamed of and gained knowledge

things they

of industry

They learned about the land, how to drain

They learned about different kinds
and production; about the use of resources and how to enrich

their lives.

As the Greeks usually

of an advanced civilization.

and how

it

to cultivate

it

efficiently.

The

hinterland only indirectly.

settled

on the

coast, they affected the

native population

may have

not been

dense enough to create real pressure. Naturally the new colonial

became markets, advantageous both

for the natives

where natural products could be exchanged

and

cities

for the Greeks,

for processed

and manufac-

tured goods.
Peaceful conditions seem to have prevailed between colonists and natives

on most shores where the Greeks

sometimes get into trouble.

The

settled.

The

settlers of

colonists did, however,

Byzantium were subject

to

may have caused the

Calcedonians to settle on the opposite shore. The Phoceans who settled
at Atalia in Corsica came into conflict with the Phoenicians, who claimed
the island as theirs and nearly annihilated the Phocean fleet. The colony

steady attacks by the Thracians, whose aggressiveness

on the island of Lipara, where people from Cnidos and Rhodos

had continuous fights with pirates. Some Greek settlers, unable

settled,

to

cope

with marauders, turned pirates themselves.

'*

Thucydides: The Peloponnesian

War

Xenophon: The Persian Expedition

57

27.

AMASTRIS

The Greeks

prevented the Phonoecians from settling on the islands and

shores of the

Euxine

Sea,

Aegean

Sea,

and by

so doing, cut

them

In contrast with the Aegean Sea, with

its

many

from the

off also

whose shores the Phonoecians had exploited

islands,

for centuries.

where land

is

almost always in sight, the Euxine Sea seemed to the Greeks like a boundless

ocean, full of danger. But

they navigated

and

rich

its

shores, they

fertile fields

it

attracted their adventurous spirit.

When

saw what they had never seen before: the

and pastureland and

southern mountains, rich in metal and

cattle of the

north and the

forests.

Miletus was the leading city in the colonization of those vast shores of the

Euxine

Sea. Its

merchants exchanged

factured goods of Miletus.

the southern shore of the
site

exhibits

sists

all

its

natural products lor the

The Greeks founded

Euxine

Sea,

cities also.

Amastris,* on

was one of many colonial

cities. Its

the features the Greeks desired for a city location.

of a rocky

manu-

peninsula connected with the mainland by

It

con-

narrow

isthmus, easy to defend, and so formed as to provide two harbors, small

but secure, between the peninsula and the mainland.

In parts of the western Mediterranean, the Greeks encountered already

organized communities.

from

The

Etruscans as well as the Latins kept them

settling in then respective countries, as the

prevented the Phoenicians from landing on

Cyme

was one of the oldest Greek settlements on Italian

the settlement farthest north.

The name
after

58

Greeks had themselves

theirs.

its

It

was

also

With Neapolis and Poseidonia (Paestum)

derived from Amastris, the niece of Darius Codomanus,

destruc tion.

soil.

who refounded

the

(it\

28.

SYRACUSE The

Island of Ortygia

'

29.

SELINUS

Reconstruction

59

it

formed the northern group

group, the shores were

of

Greek settlements

all settled

colonies of Sicily, were called

in Italy.

South of

this

with Greek colonies. These, with the

Magna

Graecia.

Poseidonia was founded by Sybaris at the Tyrrhenian Sea. Located on a

plain between the mountains and the sea,

was famous for

it

especially for the temple of Poseidon which, in

its

temples,

heaviness, exhibits

its

the spirit of early Doric architecture. Poseidonia flourished as an agricultural

and trade

city.

Two

hundred

years after

its

founding, the Lucanians,

native population of the area, took possession of

Greek

colonists. Later

it

became

Roman city,

the colony Paestum.

however, a malaria-infested spot, and eventually

The

Phoenicians had preceeded the Greeks

and suppressed the

it

it fell

It

was,

into decay.

as settlers

on

Sicily.

Their

settlements were, for the most part, at the western end of the island, and
the Greeks were able to occupy the better sites

had been able

where the people, evidently,

One

to offer successful resistance to the Phoenicians.

of

these sites was Syracuse.

Syracuse was founded by the Corinthians at the southeastern part of Sicily,

on the

One

island of Ortygia close to the shore.

in Sicily,

it

was destined

to

become

its

of the oldest

Greek colonies

leading city and one of the most

important

cities of the

one

north side of the island and a larger one at the west of

at the

Hellenic world.

two natural harbors, a small

Its

gave

it,

Syracuse opportunity to develop as a trading center.

The

native population at Syracuse was reduced to serfdom and forced,

after the Spartan tradition, to cultivate the soil for their

ters.

own.

The settlement grew rapidly and was

When

Corinthian mas-

soon able to found colonies of

its

the island was connected with the mainland, the growing city

could be extended on the slopes of the mountain.

Syracuse came into conflict with Carthage, rose to supremacy
feated her rival at Himera.

The Athenians

when

she de-

laid siege to the city

during

the Peloponnesian War, but their forces were defeated and annihilated.

Then, during the

first

Punic War, the

city

was taken by the Romans, plun-

dered, and reduced to the status of a provincial town.

occupies only

The

original small

its

farthest west of the

of Sicily,

founded by people from Megara.

is

the old city

the island of Ortygia.

Greek colonies was

pice above the sea. Its layout

is

site,

Today

Selinus,
Its

on the southwest coast

oldest part stood

remarkable for simplicity.

on

a preci-

One main

street

crossed at right angles by side streets, the size of the blocks being deter-

mined by

the plans of the houses which, in their simplicity, contrasted

with the splendid community buildings and temples. Later the city had
to

be extended,

city,

and

first

finally

toward the north, then behind the older part of the

on the gently sloping

hillside

harbor and on the western slope toward the

separated from
60

it

by a marshy valley was

toward the

river.

east

Outside the

a sacred precinct.

and the
city

and

Selinus, by

very location, was subject to Carthaginian attack. Eventually

its

the city was conquered and most of

During the

its

inhabitants killed or taken prisonei

Punic War, Selinus was utterly destroyed.

first

It

has remained

ever since a deserted place.

While

Greek

the

ony only

weakened each other

city states

hegemony over Latium, became supreme

slowly gained

hegem-

in their light for

concentrated power of Macedonia,

to tall victim to the

Rome

and the

in Italy

whole Mediterranean world, and eventually extended her boundaries of

empire from the Euphrates

What was
it

Rome's commanding position

that

was always vulnerable

to

to the Atlantic.

the reason for such an extraordinary political achievement?

in the (enter of the

Was

Mediterranean

and the Romans, therefore, always forced

any challenge? Was it the spirit of Rome's

to attack

hold themselves ready for

people: the vitality developed in internal conflict between conservative

and peasant and progressive

aristocrat

may have kept

conflict, forever increasing,

and more complex

in the strength

developed

Or was

Etruscans?

activities

it

it

fostered.

as she

and merchant? That

industrialist

this vitality alive

Was

by the more

the secret of Rome's greatness

threw back invading Greeks, Phoenicians,

that the time was ripe for the unification

tion of the world which alone

would make

and

integra-

the survival of

possible

civilization?

There are no
life

of a

man

clear answers to those questions. In the life of a city as in the

the most essential qualities are often indiscernible

and hidden

in impenetrable darkness.

Because Italy
it

is

a peninsula, located at the center of the Mediterranean,

The

could develop both land and sea power.

graphical structure of the peninsula

branching
sula

is

geographical and topo-

very simple.

parallel to the shore lines of the seas.

ranges, the Apennines, divide the peninsula into

less

mountain system,

toward the south from the west Alps, runs across the penin-

off

and then south,

side, the

mountains diminish into lower

hills

two halves. At either

sloping toward a

extended plain along the shore with some small

Even without the great

river valley of the Po,

long to Italy proper, here was a land well

These mountain

hills rising

more or
above

it.

which originally did not be-

fitted for

human

habitation.

In the middle of the west side of the peninsula, between the mountains and
the sea, south

mountains,

and southeast of the

lies

Latium. Here the Latins,

north,

made

plains

and pastured

was not very

religious

river

Tiber and around the Alban

who

entered Italy from the

their settlement. Like their neighbors, they cultivated the

fertile.

their herds

The most

and governmental

on the uplands. The land they worked

important Latin settlement, probably their

center, the leading city of their federation,

and
61

main stronghold, was Alba Longa. This city stood on Mount Alban,
along the ridge bordering Lake Albano. Around it, in the plain, lay the
their

villages of the Latins,

Rome
Rome

surrounded by their

fields.

was originally only a village founded by Alba Longa. Like Athens.

at some distance from the sea. Ships could

There is an island here, the water around it
shallow enough for easy fording. The river formed the boundary between
Latium and Etruria. Since Etruria was more advanced than Latium, it

sail

was placed on a river

up

the Tiber to

its site.

offered manufactured woods

their food

and raw

which the Latins were

materials.

Rome became

Sflad to

exchange for

the natural market place for

such exchanges. And, since the Etrurians were hostile to the Latins,

Rome,

natural also that

the border town, should

was

it

become an important

outlying defense post.

The

advantages of Rome's location were

was

territory

overflowed

less fertile

its

seasons, water rushing

natural drainage was so imperfect that, in rainy

from the

which bred discomfort and

hills.

The

hills

disease.

such handicaps into advantages.

were forced

To

converted lowlands into marshes

Rome's people, however, turned even

avoid the fever marshes, the peasants

to build their settlements

integrated

by some disadvantages. Her

than other parts of Latium. Her river frequently

The

banks.

offset

on the more

airy

and salubrious

community which thus developed was an advance

over the typical Latin pattern. Proximity to the sea encouraged the devel-

opment

of trade;

industry.

and trade stimulated new

Rome must

lation, as foreigners

crowded and

still

and

activities in agriculture

have early drawn a numerous non-agricultural popu-

and Latins

alike

saw opportunities in the already

growing community.

Were there, as legend insists, seven villages (septem

of Rome? We do not know. But we do know that

pagi)

on the seven

the settlements

Palatine and the Quirinal were superior to the others; they were

hills

on the

all

more

and formed independent communities. We know also that

three communities were united by Synoecism and the settlement on the
or

less fortified

Palatine

hill,

Roma

quadrata, became the seat of the

and was surrounded by

not require that
original

main.

a wall. Synoecism, as

all citizens

we have

Roman community
already noted, did

actually settle in one place. Each of the three

communities retained possession of one-third of the

The

common

do-

people continued to live on their land or in their respective

meant that henceforth there should be one city

center, one council house and one comitium for the whole community, one
place where citizens assembled to exercise their rights. This center was
Roma quadrata on the Palatine.
settlements. Synoecism

62

Rome
that

was not,

as the saying goes, built in

was created

it

as a

community

in

one day. But

one day by

on the Palatine. Romulus, he

sent lour

men

ten rules in

they

dug

out of Tuscany

all

who

assembly, and into

it

piece of earth of the country from

now

is

solemnly threw the

good by custom or necessary by nature;

first

lastly,

the

comitium or court

call, as

ol

fruits of all things either

every

man

whence he came, they

miscuously together. This trench they

Then

and

city,

sacred usages and writ-

the ceremonies to be observed, as in a religious rite. First,

round trench about that which

making which

him by

which founded

rites

building his

says: "set to

directed

Synoecism.

this act of

Plutarch* relates the legendary story of the religious

the city

wholly possible

it is

taking a small

all

threw in pro-

they do the heavens,

their center, they described the city in a circle

Mundus,

around

it.

the founder fitted to a plough a brazen ploughshare, and, yoking

together a bull and a cow, drove himself a deep line or furrow around the

bounds; while the business of those that followed after was to see that what-

up should be turned all inwards toward the city,

and not to let any clod lie outside. With this line they described the wall,
and called it, by a contraction, Pomoerium, that is postmurum, after or
beside the wall; and where they designed to make a gate, there they took
out the share, carried the plough over and left a space; for which reason
they consider the whole wall holy, except where the gates are; for had they
adjudged them also sacred, they could not, without offense to religion, have
given free ingress and egress for the necessaries of human life, some of
ever earth was thrown

which are in themselves unclean."

Rome,

like Athens,

welcomed

strangers,

opened

Etruscans were attracted to

Rome and

gates to immigrants,

its

and by law incorporated them into the body of

citizens.

Sabines and

settled there, contributing their

industry to the industrial and mercantile progress of their adopted

Rome was

full of

city.

busy workshops. Soon she produced nearly everything she

needed for herself and for the other communities of Latium. Eventually
her people learned to build ships and to carry on trade, like the Etruscans,

Greeks, and Carthaginians. At Ostia, at the

established salt works, built a harbor,

No

one

nities

likes to see

may

mouth

an equal become a superior.

well have been jealous of the growing

communities needed

Rome

of the river Tiber, they

and founded

their

And

first

colony.

other Latin

power

of

commu-

Rome. But

as their leader in stru;les against

these

common

Rome a measure of legal recognition

Rome herself did not want and could not

enemies. Recognition of this fact gave

as the

dominant

city of the area.

afford to have any other important

the Latin territory.

and independent community within

This may have been her reason for moving

and destroy Alba Longa, the old leading

Plutaich: Lives.

city of the Latins

to

conquer

and their

politi-

Romulus
63

30.

REPUBLICAN ROME

*
.,

31.

64

IMPEREAL ROME

cal

and

They

The people

religions center.

on the Caelian

settled

hill

Alba Longa were moved

ol

and became Roman

citizens.

could be united under a Latin League. Formation

second Synoecism, was symbolized by the

ol

Rome.

i<

Then Latium

tbis league, like

.1

city wall ol Servius Tullius, built,

Rome. Latins who did not become Roman

to enclose
citizens had, at least, equal rights as members of the Latin League.
Rome's population increased in size and diversity as Rome's power and
importance waxed. There were two main groups in the city now, each with
its own aims: the Old Latin aristocracy and peasantry, conservative in character and traditional in their way of life; and the merchants and craftsmen,
progressive and daring as their growing trade and industry demanded.
all

the settlements ol

This differentiation

Roman

inherent in

thought and action intensified conflicts already

in

society.

Each group was differentiated within

in the
tions

amounts possessed by

came

members. Social

its

people were

development of the

classified

city.

kind of timoc racy appeared;

Rights and obligations,

were determined on

this basis.

enclosed by the Servian Wall was already of considerable

city

included

been

according to their means.

especially those related to military service,

size.

The

city's

stronghold had been transferred from

on the Palatine

Tarpeian

to the

could be better defended

if

the city

itself

Hill.

This

its

hill, free at

should ever

fall.

original

every side,

A place of assem-

on the Tarpeian, but no private buildings were

bly (area capitolina) stood

permitted there. Close to the new stronghold the capitol

as

it

was now

called a bridge was built across the river, leading into the Etrurian
tory.

river,

To protect
had

to

this bridge, the

be taken and

the marshes were drained.

The

from the capitol

the

hill "to

Janiculum, a

The

fortified.

the marshy valleys between the

stronghold towards the city

hills.

Momsen,* who thus

hill

on the right bank

terri-

of the

space within the wall included

To make

this

valuable space useful,

place of assembly could then be transferred

flat

space where the ground

(comitium)

between the Palatine and the Carinae

also gives

It

the hills around the Palatine on which the original city had

all

built.

position

as well as material distinc-

into being. This created another conflict, social in nature, which

affected the further

The

accordance with differences

itself in

describes the

fell

from the

and which stretched thence

in the direction of the Vellia."

new

location of the place of assembly,

important descriptions of the surroundings: "At that side of the

comitium which adjoined the stronghold, and upon the wall which arose
above the comitium

and

in the fashion of a balcony, the

guests of the city

of festivals

had

a place of

and assemblies of the people; and not

Momsen, Theodor: History

of

members of the Senate

to them on occasion

honour assigned
far

from

this there

soon

Rome
65

came

to be built a special senate house,

name Curia

Hostilia.

The

which derived from

its

builder the

platform for the judgement-seat (tribunal), and

from which the burgesses were addressed (later rostra) were

created on the comitium itself. Its prolongation in the direction of the
Velia became the neAv market (forum Romanorum) On the west side of
die stage

the forum, beneath the Palatine, rose the

community house, which included the official dwelling of the king (regia) and the common hearth of
the city, the rotunda forming the temple of Vesta. At no great distance, on
the south side of the forum, there was erected a second round building
the storeroom of the community or temple of the Penates, which still
stands at the present day as the porch of the church Santi

Cosmae Damians.
Forum, butcher shops and other traders'
stalls were arranged. In the valley between the Palatine and Aventine a
space was staked off for races; this became the circus. The cattle market
Along the two longer

sides of the

was laid out immediately adjoining the river and

of the

arose

this soon became one

most densely peopled quarters of Rome. Temples and sanctuaries

on

the summits, above

all

the federal sanctuary of Diana on the

all

Aventine and on the summit of the stronghold the far-seen temple of

who had given to his people all this glory, and who now,
Romans were triumphing over the surrounding nations, tri-

Father Diovis,

when the
umphed along with them over

For her

four hundred years,

first

As

local wells.

the subject gods of the vanquished."

Rome depended

the city increased in size

for water supply

and population,

this natural

on

water

supply became insufficient. Water had to be brought into the city from
outside.

Appius Claudius built the

Rome's water supply came

to

first

of the

many aqueducts on which

depend.

After long wars and increasing struggles, especially with the Etruscans and

Samnites,

Rome

fortresses,

and

and with the

united Italy and secured

possession with colonies,

system of roads connecting these outposts with each other

capital,

Rome. National unity gradually developed out

political union.

Only once was

Rome

quered the

and destroyed

it;

city

its

taken by an enemy.

Some

city previously

opposed

this

taken by the Romans.

move, and

Rome

The

resist

suggested that

be abandoned and her people and government transferred

an Etruscan
fully

Celts con-

only the stronghold was able to

them. This great defeat almost ended Rome's history.

the city

The

of

to Veji.

patricians success-

was hastily rebuilt, with no regard for

The narrow crooked streets which resulted from this

rebuilding remained until Rome was destroyed by fire during Nero's reign.
The city that arose from those ashes had more regularity and more
order and harmony.

harmony.
66

Until

own

its

transmarine conquests, Rome, like

resources. It was both an agricultural

all ol

and

depended on

Italy,

mercantile

city,

its

but the

landed interests dominated the moneyed. Most of the people held property

and

Gains made by the sword were secured by the plough.

tilled the soil.

Agriculture was the main support

fortunes.

ol all

communities. There were no great

Carthaginian embassy visting

set of silverplate sufficed

for the

Rome

observed "that

single

whole senate, and had reappeared

in

every house to which the envoys had been invited." This sneering remark.

Momsen*
tions"

notes,

is

a "significant

between Carthage,

rich

token of the difference

in

and money-dominated, and

ing to the earth for her well being.

Then Rome came

economic condi-

Rome

still

look-

face to face with

Carthage, defeated her after long and devastating wars, and

fell

heir to

the Carthaginian wealth.

After the second Punic War, economic conditions in

change rapidly.

The

great advantages

Rome

Rome

began

to

had gained brought with them

Rome society. One might say that, with Rome's

began camouflaged as "progress."
The people hit hardest by the wars and their aftermath were the small
farmers. There were more of them and they had been the backbone of the
army. When wars were short and on a small scale, this military service did
not too much disrupt the farmer's life. But as wars extended in space and
time, the burdens the farmers carried became intolerable. They needed
money to effect a recovery. But, if they went into debt, they might, under
the unjust and rigid law s of the times, lose both property and freedom.
They might even be sold as slaves. What a fate for men whose industry
had laid the foundation for the empire, whose bravery as soldiers had
forces destructive to

success, her decline

brought prosperity

to their country!

The very military achievements of the farmers worked toward their ruin.
They helped make Sicily the granary of Rome, and its vast fields, worked
by slaves after the Carthaginian system, produced such quantities of grain
at so

low a price that the

to convert his

hard

Roman

farmer could not compete.

If

he tried

farm for a more profitable kind of agriculture, he found

to get the loans to tide

him over

transition lines.

it

As more and more

individual farmers were forced out of agriculture, their farms were bought

up and combined into large estates, managed by stewards and worked by

same Carthaginian system adopted in Sicily. Where one
hundred and fifty families had once made their livings, there might be left
now only one family of free men and about fifty slaves. The settlement
structure of the whole country was completely changed. As small farms

slaves after the

gave way to large

*

Momsen:

op.

estates, a

new

class

was created, the

Roman

proletariat,

cil.

67

32.

ROME. FORUM

ROMANUM

Reconstructed

citizens

without property

dren

become the paid

to

who could

soldiers of future armies.

tarians degenerated into a city

ment

of the

by the

serve the state only as they

mob,

Colosseumpane m

had

chil-

Eventually, the prole-

tired of everything except the excite-

el circenses.

money Rome took from her

They were

provinces.

led

and amused

Originally constructive

population elements became destructive.

"The nation was

and the community of free burgesses

composed of masters and slaves; and
although it was, in the first instance, the two long wars with Carthage which
decimated both the burgesses and the alies, the Roman capitalist, beyond
doubt, contributed quite as much as Hamilcar and Hannibal to the decline
in vigour and number of the Italian people."*
was resolving

On

visibly diminishing,

itself

into a body

the whole, Italian society began to decline

number

of slaves increased.

and disintegrate

as

the

Money, becoming more and more abundant,

also exerted a disintegrating influence.

exploitation of conquered provinces.

It

led to speculation

and

to the

Unscrupulous persons became very

The growing mass of the expropriated became discontented and

helpless. The whole population was out of balance and Rome became a

rich.

fertile

for

field

demagogues.

Civil

wars

followed

each

other

Caesarism emerged and emperors tried to solve the unsettled

until
social

problems by means of despotism.

Rome

grew

in size

and population with each

After the second Punic War, in

ished and the
*

Momsen:

68

op,

main

tit.

all

political

and military

success.

probability, the city wall was demol-

obstacle to the city's expansion thus removed.

On

the

33.

ROME. FORUM ROMANl'M

Campus

At the

End

oj

the

Middle Ages

Martins, the plain between the hills and the river, a new quarter

and orderly. The

arose, well built

Rome

of the Republic contained few

public buildings, and most of these were located at the

wooden booths

In time, the

the political center of the city.

Forum Romanum,
of the mer-

chants were replaced by stone buildings. Basilicas and halls gave the

an appearance appropriate

The

Forum

to its political dignity.

emperors, with their passion for monumental buildings, however,

changed Rome's structure. They regarded buildings

and

as political tools

used them to impress their glory upon the people and to establish for
themselves eternal fame.

First,

they adorned the

impressive edifices, meanwhile abolishing

ing to nil the

Augustus

power

built, a

of the people

was shifted back

The

people.

to the Palatine Hill

The change in Rome's

architecture. The informality of
palace.

Forum Romanum with

political function

to replace the

comitium once the

Rome, however,

political center of

where Augustus

political

built an imperial

structure was reflected in

the buildings on the

Forum

their functions, but not

one tended

of Caesar's day was only a

of Augustus

dominated

his

to

The Forum

of Trajan,

in size, accoid-

dominate the

homogeneous temple

site.

others.

all

The

The temple

forum, expressing dramatically the new

government which elevated one person far above

ing aristocracy and people alike to the domination

of

its

Forum Romanum

had been an expression of equality. These buildings varied

inar to

and reduc-

and of the Senate. Caesar planned, and

new Senate house

Roman

assembly of the

its

spirit

others, subordinat-

of one.

by Apollodorus of Damascus,

expressed

this

69

The

imperial spirit impressively.

and adjoining

libraries, far surpassed all

The columns between

splendor.

dominated by

large square,

preceding

efforts in

marked

the libraries

basilica

its

scope and

the line of the ridge

which had once connected the Capitol Hill with the Quirinal, but which
had been cut away
these buildings

make room

to

and

to

connect

of the ridge with those of the

Campus

for Trajan's buildings

and the forums south

Martius and those beyond the Tiber. Between the buildings and building
groups, parks and gardens with fountains united nature with the works
of

man.

Rome became

Imperial

became, indeed, the acknowledged

city,

Underneath

center of the world.

human

world

and luxury

glory

its

festered all the

miseries inevitable in so vast an accumulation of people.

over the Empire,

men

migrated to Rome.

changed

physical structure.

its

The

influx changed the

same degree

sition of the city's population to the

Some

called

From

Rome

that the

compo-

emperors had

union of

all

others regarded her as a city without citizens, populated by the

all

peoples;

scum

of all

the world.

A vast housing shortage was one result of the

Rome

Rome. This

into imperial

metropolises, but in

Rome

transformation of republican

a characteristic

is

because the city lacked transportation

The atrium
style house,

make

possible expansion

Rome, with

its

small rooms on the sides

had already been replaced by the more comfortable

more or

The

owners.

was further aggravated

It

facilities to

of the already vast city area.

house, typical of old

of the Atrium,

in all

the problem was intensified as available land

was appropriated for vast imperial buildings.

beyond the periphery

development

less

peri-

elaborated according to the requirements of

imperial palace was

little

house. Only the rich adopted the

more than

new kind

its

a large scale peristyle

of dwelling.

For the poor,

the atrium house was replaced by the apartment. This development was

brought about by lack of living space in those areas where such space was

The

most needed.

and had room

area were

aristocracy settled

to breathe.

jammed

The

on the Caelian and Aventine

lesser people,

together in ever-increasing congestion.

houses rose to six or eight floors to provide "relief"

The
to

size

make

of

individual

space for yet

situation; rents

apartments decreased.

were possible

70

Apartment

Streets

were narrowed

Rome,

spread them

the

high.

said that

all

it

carried city piled

on

city.

on the ground, he estimated, the

would be covered by one vast continuous city extendthe Adriatic Sea. Juvenal, with more insight, remarked that in

whole width of
ing to

to

city

from overcrowding.

more building. Land speculation aggravated

became unbearably

Aristides, writing in praise of

If it

Hills

crowded into the old

Italy

Sora, Fabrateria, or Frusino, a house

and garden could

bought

l>c

Eoi

the

amount of money paid tor a year's rent in a dark apartment in Koine.

Under Augustus, Rome's population may have reached the million mark;
during the second century

To

it

was probably

Rome

secure her conquests,

was followed by the peaceful

Mediterranean, and

Roman

had

north

hundred

Rome

years.

Greek-Roman

the touch of

Roman

were once

soldier

then around

Italy,

the

Gaul, Germany, and Britain.

as

The

Africa,

camps; they became flourishing

cities.

civilization.

when

into decay

however,

cities,

and Cologne

Timgad

in

and other settlements here and there

in Syria,
fell

to knit

remotest parts of that empire

Paris,

Palmyra

ruins of those

her colonization

London,

were not so fortunate; they

The

in

tried to use

together spiritually her vast empire.

North

Inst

imperialism brought peace to the world and maintained that peace

for almost two

felt

The conquering

to colonize.

settler,

finally as far

million and a hall.

still

the empire disintegrated.

reveal the character of

Roman

cities.

Peace brought

Rome

security

and wealth.

It

stimulated enterprise and

building. Cities of a regular pattern soon began to rise everywhere.

They

were adorned with temples and forums, triumphal arches and colonaded
libraries,

streets,

basilicas,

and amphitheaters.

Safe

communication within the empire. Aristides wrote:

many

so

cities?

What

facilitated

there ever

ruler of the past could reach another city in his

realm every day? Pass through two or three

all

roads

"Were

cities

cm the same day? Indeed

previous rulers were but kings of a desert, with strongholds; but, you,

Rome, you alone

rule cities."*

Libanios'** eulogy of his native

civilization reached in

water supply of our

Roman

city

is

city,

cities, especially

excellency of our

w ater. In

all

"The
"Others may

those in the Orient.

unsurpassed," Libanios wrote.

equal us in some respects, but they are

r

Antioch, indicates the high level

inferior to the

the public baths, and in

abundance and

some private

baths,

each stream
the size of a river, and the rest are not much
He
who has the means to build a new bath need not fear that it will be dry
when completed. Every part of the city sees to the elegance of its public
baths.
The abundance of the flowing water can be measured by the
number of dwellings; for there are as many flowing waters as there are
dwellings.
Therefore, we do not quarrel at the public wells as to who
comes first to draw water; an evil true of so many reputable cities, where
smaller.

is

large crowds wrangle

around the wells over broken

jugs.

As everybody

has water within the house, Ave have fountains as an adornment of our
city.

The

sunlight

is

rivalled

by other

lights,

lights

which surpass

Quoted by Friedlander, Ludwig: Sittengeschichte Rows

* Ibid.

71

those of the illuminations at Egyptian festivals. In our city, nights differ

from days only by the variance

difference,

and continue

so

Roman empire began to

The unregulated succes-

During the third century, conditions

in the

change rapidly. Peace was giving place

to strife.

the

of

and dances,

sings

Hephaestus and Aphrodite share the night."

that here

sion

busy hands notice no

in illumination;

and whoever wishes

to forge

Meanwhile,

emperors caused ever-increasing struggle and

from

without,

the

barbarians

hammered

war.

civil

every

against

frontier.

The

long wars with their devastation, the huge state machine with

countless

officials,

the great

army required

to protect the

empire all

its

these

increased taxes to an unbearable height.

The number of those who received increased disproportionately to the

number of those who produced. Productivity was crippled, responsibility
weakened. The result was psychological and physical disintegration which
touched life in city and country and which, in the end, undermined Rome
herself.

For more than

Rome

five centuries

never saw an enemy

danger was coming nearer now. Aurelian saw

much

and, to protect the city

it

new

against possible barbarian invasion, built a

her gates. But

at

city wall

which enclosed

larger area than the wall of Servius Tullius, long ago demolished.

Protected by this Aurelian wall,

Rome

was able

to survive the

break

down

of the empire.
It

was

a city,

however, of dwindling importance. Diocletian's restoration

of the empire began the decline.

He and

who

the rulers

lived at

Nicomedia and Milano, Sirmium and Trier,

danger.

Rome

continued to be the imperial

capital,

followed

him

closer to the zone of

but she was no longer

the center of government; that center shifted, naturally, to the head-

quarters of the rulers.

it

his capital,

When

Constantine founded Constantinople, made

and adopted Christianity

as a state religion,

Rome's

real

eclipse began.

Rome succumbed to the assaults of

power completely. Two fortes accomplished

Eventually the empire was divided.

the barbarians and lost her
this destruction:

out.
ity,

Christianity from within

Each destructive force had within

it

shorn of temporal power, developed into

Christendom

barians, vigorous

elements of

Paganism, created Christian

after destroying

ful in

and the barbarians from with-

as

and

ancient
vital,

Rome

a spiritual

had been

new

Rome

Christian-

life.

which, though

world center

in her

Empire.

paved the way for the rebirth of

as

power-

The
new

bar-

spirit

which, alter dark ages, flowered in medieval civilization and culture.

For

The
72

Rome

the city this period of transition was. at

great buildings of antiquity

first,

wholly destructive.

became quarries from which

stones were

obtained lor new construction;

this

Internal strife tore

teenth century.

process continued
at

the seven

until

the physical as well as spiritual

fabric of the city: strife

between the nobilit) and the people, between

factions of the nobility,

between rhv and pope, between emperor and

pope, between pope and counter-pope, emperor and counter-emperor.

Conflict flared into violence

at

many

papal elections,

at

pra<

ic

coronation of an emperor. Antique buildings became strongholds

warring

unable

The

parties.

to achieve,

devastation of

now became

through which wound narrow

Rome, which

reality.

streets

The

city

became

and (looked

Forum Romanum. When,

at

<>l

the

the barbarians had been

and vegetable gardens appeared among the

yards,

grazed on the

ever)

all)

alleys,

ruins.

mass of ruins
fields,

vine-

Clows and goats

the beginning of the four-

teenth century, the Popes fled to Avignon, there to remain until 1377,

Rome

sank to the lowest point in

all

her history.

Her population was

redueed to about twenty thousand, not much more than one per cent of

what

Out

it

had been

in the city's

of the toil of centuries,

prime.

Rome

created an empire. Constantinople was

a creation of this empire.

Founded

beginning

expressed Constantine's determination to build

to

New Rome,

crumble,

it

time

when

the empire was already

centrally placed within the empire, which should take the

place and the function of the

Ten

at a

years after

its

weakened ancient

city.

founding, Constantinople was a good-sized

city,

with

fft)rw'% %

34.

CONSTANTINOPLE
73

^zz*-

-**

35.

"

CONSTANTINOPLE

monumental

View from Galata across the Golden Horn

buildings.

It

had grown

expense of other

fast at the

cities,

which had been despoiled of their art treasures and architectural elements
for the glory of the

new

capital,

and which had been robbed

of their

The

develop-

people that the city of Constantine should be populated.

ment

of a

new

city

by the forced settling of inhabitants of other

cities

was

and the Diadochs had populated their newly

with people from cities they conquered or destroyed.

traditional oriental practice,

founded

cities

Constantinople's magnificent location

over

made

of this synthetic mass a living

Placed at the geographic center of the empire,

reality.

Rome.

It

was the link between Europe and Asia,

near the Euphrates and the

Danube from which

launched their powerful inroads in the empire.

routes between east and west.

The

Aegean by the Dardanelles and

Sea of

it

had advantages

strategically placed

Parthians and

It

was the center of trade

Marmara

to the Black Sea

Germans

is

here joined to the

by the Bosporus.

The

Black Sea and the Aegean Sea were, with the Mediterranean, the main
waters of the eastern part of the empire.

The

site

chosen for the

against attack,

it

was also

triangular peninsula

Marmara

to the

Horn, forming

city itself

its

in gentle

also magnificent.

easily accessible for

south and

east. Its

Guarded by nature

commercial intercourse. The

on which Constantinople was

built faces the sea of

north side borders an

inlet, the

north

side,

chain of

hills

runs along

this

penin-

near the Golden Horn. At the south, the land

rolls

waves toward the Sea of Marmara.

This excellent location had been, of course, already occupied by

settlements.

Phoenician settlement and

tium had been built

Byzantium
74

Golden

a large natural harbor. Only the west side, connected with

the mainland, had to be fortified.

sula at

is

lor his

at the

new

later the

Greek

obtuse point of the peninsula.

capital,

city of

earlier

Byzan-

By choosing

Constantine proved himself an able and

far-seeing statesman.

Constantinople remained the capital of the eastern

empire for more than

thousand

years.

Byzantium, however, had not been Constantine's

number

considered Sardia (Sofia) and a

choice.

first

of other cities,

He had

and had

finally

on Troy because of its traditional importance as the ancient sacred

home of the Romans. According to the oracle, Troy was destined to become again the seat of Rome's rulers. For centuries, sacrifices had been
offered at the tombs of the Homeric heroes. In designating Troy as his
capital, Constantine would have had wide support in the pagan world if
not in Rome. But the gods opposed the choice, and Constantine, though
no longer considered the son of a god, was obedient to heavenly admonition. The gate of the new capital had already been erected on the site of
Troy one hundred years later their remains could still be seen from the
settled

God

sea when the admonition came.

dream and advised him

to choose

himself appeared in the emperor's

another

commanded by the gods was

may assume that similar advice led

site.

We

to the

and

be advised by

new experience

rather than

a state religion,

To

for Constantine.

adoption of Christianity

that this decision was taken because the

in Christianity a political

means, a source of strength

prove the farsighted statesmanship of

The god-guided

choice then

host of pagan traditions.

boundaries on which the

he strode too

far.

One

of

fell

to

be erected,

them dared

who

Gibbon, Edward: The Decline and Fall

a site

not linked to a

to ask,

of the

his

companions

felt

that

"How much farther, Sire?"

me stands still,"* as

walks before

though he saw a super-human being, perhaps

*

History was

Constantine, spear in hand, paced the

was

Constantine replied, "Until he

empire, to

this decision.

upon Byzantium,

When
city

as

emperor saw

to his

himself as emperor, and to the dynasty he wanted to found.

to

God

God

himself, leading him.

Roman Empire
75

Rome

Constantine transferred from the abandoned capital of

represented Rome's importance in the eyes of the world.

all

Burckhardt

says:* "Constantinople's virtual likeness with

Rome

was shown

establishment of identical institutions, public

offices

and the

connected with them. Above

all

small

number

of

Roman

and landed

The emperor

estates.

privileges

its

its

processions.

senators were induced to settle in Constanti-

nople by having special concessions conferred upon them, such

villas,

in the

there had to be a Senate, even though

purpose was obscure, unless the court required figurants for

that

as palaces,

erected also a magnificent Senate

house, but neither the pictures of the Muses, nor the statues of Zeus of

Dodona and

Pallas of Lindos at the entrances of the edifice, could alter

the inanity of

it."

Constantinople, as a founded

city,

could not grow organically as

had grown. The structure of the older

in

its

city

had expressed

all

Rome

the changes

long progress from small Latin village to great imperial capital. Con-

stantinople was built

city area increased.

nople's founding

all at

once.

And

only once in

its

long history was the

This took place one hundred years

and the

city

was then enlarged

to

after Constanti-

occupy the whole

peninsula.

Constantinople began where

Rome ended with

emperors added Christianity

as the state religion,

despotism.

To

bureaucracy

this the

as the

ma-

chinery of government. Together, despotism, Christianity, and bureaucracy formed so strong a unity that Constantinople was able to survive the
fall

of

Rome

by more than a thousand years.

In Constantinople, as in

Rome,

the poor were fed at the expense of the

provinces. Egypt, for example, had to provide an annual tribute of grain.

There was

There were factional and political struggles here

also which often menaced the city. But Constantinople differed from
Rome in that she had replaced economic passivity with vigorous activity
in industry and trade.
Antioch in Syria and Alexandria in Egypt, centers where Hellenistic culalso a circus.

ture was blended with orientalism, challenged Constantinople's cultural

leadership, but Constantinople eventually surpassed

became

them both. The

The

a religious center for the newly developing Christian world.

church of

S.

city

Sophia, built by Justinian to replace Constantine's timber-

roofed basilica, symbolized in architecture this spiritual dominance.

The

architectural character of Constantinople

raphy of

its

site.

The

city

was irregular on

regularly laid out on the south. But

dominating
*

76

factors.

is

determined by the topog-

its

hilly

nowhere were

The arrangement

north

axiality

side,

more

and symmetry

of the squares, with their imperial

Burckhardt, Jacob: Die Zeit Konstatitine des Grossen

and public buildings,

north

is

more

tree,

side, in spite of its hills,

was more open,

south side

Roman.

The

was the more densely settled area.

The

like

Greek

than

cities

houses interspersed with gardens which,

its

in-

creasing in area toward the city wall, gave the city the look of the country-

Around

side.

Golden Horn, were

the busy harbor to the north, the

necessary harbor installations, warehouses, stores,

and

also

and

the dwellings of craftsmen

This concentration

traders.

sites for significant

Now

had once built their temples there.

Later the

churches.

mosques,

all

attached to

architectural variations of

on the

The

city.

The Greeks

buildings.

became

were

hills

sites for

Christian

Moslem would crown them with mosques. Those

domes and semi-domes, which

of the houses

they

workshops,

Factories,

accounts for the greater density of this part of the

recognized always as natural

the

S.

Sophia, dominate the city with

contrast effectively with the hori/.ontality

hills as these

follow the elevation and are like terraces

it.

Constantinople's favorable location and growing splendor attracted the

when

envious eyes of the not-so-far-off barbarians, especially

weakened under

their

hammering. Yet the

Rome. The city

Her downfall came at the hands
its

when

only

rulers for a time.

the

The

doom

real

Turks overthrew the

city

to the barbar-

of fellow Christians

Crusaders, sweeping out of the west, stormed the

became

often in danger, was

was never surrendered

spared the fate of

ians.

city,

the empire

when

captured

city,

it,

the

and

of Constantinople was sealed

and made

it

the capital of the

Turkish empire.

The

greatest

They

achievement of

Roman

civilization

was the creation of

cities.

arose everywhere in the vast empire, serving as administrative

and

Roman civilization, and as forces drawing

into unity a widely scattered Roman world.
The new provincial cities were inhabited by Roman landlords and army

market

centers, as outposts of

veterans,

who

directed the predominantly agricultural economy.

landlords were responsible for taxes, measured by the

owned. They were,

They oppressed

And

in effect, parasites

upon

the native population, reduced

yet, these cities

amount

a people living
its

The

of land they

on the land.

members

to serfdom.

propagated seeds of freedom, glimpsed the ideal of

the self-governing community.

Colonization was possible only in an expanding empire, and

Rome

was

own protection.
limit, when it was
need for new land,

long forced to continue an expansionist policy for her

The

time came, however,

when expansion reached

checked by the barbarians who, feeling themselves the

made

aggressive

war against the empire.

to settle such land-seeking

It

had been

Roman custom

people in areas devastated by war. In this way

77

\
^k

t;
it-..-

36.

ARLES

Amphitheater

37.

ARLES

Amphitheater with Town

78

they could recover

lost

land and,

at

when

hungry. This plan no longer worked

querors in their

mounted

own

same time, appease the land

the

the barbarians

Then, the expense

right.

The

rapidly, while the revenues to pay this expense declined.

Eventually the empire

whole system of colonization began to crumble.

itself

became conempire

of defending the

was defeated and

its

civilization barbarized.

Some

barbarians recognized the importance of the empire

and saw the

possibility of using

it

of the

as

conquering

an organization

own advantage. In general,

make a deep impression on her

to their

however, Rome's civilizing touch did not

conquerors.

Many Roman

cities

were destroyed during the barbarian invasions. Many,

however, survived.

Roman

Especially

tradition, city

Latin countries,

in

continued.

life

The

rural

with

age-old

their

population, carrying

movable belongings, sought refuge from the havoc of war behind the
walls. Sometimes people driven from their homes found protection

their
city

within

The amphitheater

public building.

a large

of Aries

was so used.

The crumbling palace of Diocletian became a place of refuge

from Salone when their city was destroyed. The refugees built

for people

themselves

houses inside the palace; eventually their settlement became the nucleus

The

of the present-day city of Spalato.

Yenetes, living at the shore of the

northern end of the Adriatic, escaped destruction by fleeing to the islands

of the lagoons; their settlements

were

and Venice came into

later united

being.

Did the barbarians deliberately destroy the

many

tainly they destroyed

many burned

to the

ately destroyed

ground by

some

cities

they conquered? Cer-

cities

Certainly they saw

in the process of attack.

They may have deliberconsidered them symbols of

their defenders.

because they

oppression. But they cannot be held wholly responsible for the disappear-

ance of once flourishing settlements.

Roman

cities

depended

for existence

on the empire which proctected them. When that empire fell, they were
deserted. Their inhabitants were killed in the wars or fled to escape con-

The

quering armies.
decay.

When

this process

may have

conquered in order
saved the

deserted

cities, useless to

cities

well suited their purposes.

to rule

and made them the

one conquest

ians eventually

after another.

became

short lived.

No

Christians,

almost blotted out in a darkness

may

fell

into

tribes

kingdoms.

They were always

targets

The

barbar-

stable rule was possible.

and Christianity became the

it

which

very well have

fortified centers of their petty

idea shaping the western world, though

and

Those

over a subdued population

Those barbarian kingdoms were

for

the barbarians,

the barbarians only wanted the land for their livelihood,

spiritual

was, for centuries, obscured

difficult to penetrate.

and

Oriental tradition

Christianity flourished together in the eastern empire, until

Moham79

80

38.

SPALATO Dim Irlifiii

Palace, Reconstruction

39.

SPALATO Diocletian

Palacewith /own

mod

proclaimed the now

now

religion attacked

Europe

Constantinople, protected by

and

its

in

it

pincer jaws.

walls, hold out against the onslaught.

its

cross the Pyranees. Christianity

forceful, active, this

and West and hold

East

Moslems were defeated

the West, the

Dynamic,

Islam.

faith ol

Toms and

at

was saved

to

never again able

continue

its

In
to

spiritual mission

civilizing
*o task.

Moslems became masters

In this struggle, however, the

ol

most of the

Mediterranean Sea. Ago-old communication and trade relations between

and West were disrupted. The

East

Wo

know how

do not

cities of the

West laced now problems.

the inland cities were affected, bin

wo do know

the tremendous changes the rise of Islam brought about in two maritime

One

Marseilles and Venice.

cities:

suffered groat

loss:

the other great

gain.

between the

Marseilles, Eor centuries a link

founded by the Phoenicians

a natural

and

harbor, easily defended,

Romans

East

and Gaul, may have been

settled by (.rooks
it

from Phocis.

was the important port

ol

With
Gaul.

became the trade center ol southern Gaul. Alter

the Mediterranean became a Moslem sea, Marseilles could no longer

Under

the

it

perform the functions of

city dec lined,

a trade city.

and did not regain

its

Her

trade routes were cut

off.

The

old importance until the close of the

Middle Ages.

What

Marseilles

lost,

Venice may have gained. The

by people of the northern Adriatic coast

Huns

to find a safe refuge

on the

who

lied

city

had been founded

from the swords of the

islands of the lagoons.

Life was hard

on

those islands; the people were pitifully poor. But they had one essential of

human
had

to

in

life

exchanged

it

abundance salt. They extracted

for other necessities of

be accustomed

to

life.

To

from the sea and

salt

carry

on

this business, they

both sea and land; they learned the art of sailing

and became able navigators. As their islands could be approached only

by secret channels, they were well protected.

Their ships increased in

They built up trade with all the harbors of the Gulf of Venice.
Thanks to their enterprise and their impregnable position, they flourished.
When the Moslems came, Venice was able to make a trade agreement with
si/e.

these people

who

shared her interest in commerce.

certain extent, reopened to the

West

The

East was, to a

via Venice.

Unceasing wars devastated Europe, leaving destruction and anarchy in

their wake.

Weak and

unprotected free peasants had to give up their

freedom and their possessions

to

the lords of the large estates.

This

created the condition out of which medieval feudalism emerged.

The

Carolingian empire brought some degree of order out of

This was the

first

this chaos.

political expression of the spiritual unity of Christen-

81

7U>Sl.fg

f-

40.

MARSEILLES

41.

VENICE

82

doni,

but

it

was too short-lived

be really successful.

divided his empire into counties, cadi headed by

with the counts were the bishops.

;i

count.

Charlemagne
Equal

The

Carolingian empire was quite different from the

ment

structure.

In the

the cities had two

Roman

rank

Both shared the administrative Eunc-

Like the emperor himself, the counts traveled from estate

perform administrative and judicial duties.

tions.

to

in

Roman

empire, based on both

cities

in

to estate

its settle-

and

main functions: they were administrative

estates,

as well

as

trade centers; they were inhabited, therefore, by the landed proprietors

and the merchants.

42. S.

GALL

In the Carolingian empire, cities

Plan of a Monaster
TV

functions, except those

which became the

seats of the bishops.

economy was based on landed property and was

The

no longer had those

The whole

agricultural in character.

seats of the counts, as well as those of the

emperor himself, were

on the estates on which, through the prevailing self-sufficient economy, their livelihood depended. There
were
only regional markets. Trade with other countries was small and
located, not in the cities, but

unimportant.

Not very much has survived of this period. The plan of S. Gall, a valuable
document, gives some information about the monastery, Since a monastery

was

itself

part of a large estate, this information helps us to under-

83

stand the nature of these estates

The

also.

plan

idea which guided the lay out of the monastery

Such

monastery was

is

is

abstract, but the general

clear.

like a small town, except for

its

population.

It

contained, besides the ecclesiastical buildings, most of the essentials of a

The

town.

people

midst of these

who

fields.

tilled the

We

may have had

landlords

have been the same, the

manor, according

monastery

may assume

fields lived in villages in the

that the seats of the greater or lesser

The

a similar layout.

domestic buildings could

by a palace or a

ecclesiastical buildings replaced

to the owner's

We

rank and wealth.

and manors were

that monasteries, palaces,

may assume

also

and that they prob-

fortified,

ably served as places of refuge for the peasants, who, in time of danger

found protection there and served

palaces, manors,

as

defenders of their refuge.

Such

and monasteries must have been small centers of civilizawas not passive turning aAvay from life which character-

tion.

Their

ized

the monasteries

spirit

The monks, with

Egypt.

in

unceasing energy,

created conditions for civilization everywhere, worked persistently

tame the barbarians. They cleared

forests,

drained

Their work cannot be

settlements on land once deserted wilderness.

They

overestimated.

medieval

The medieval

The

laid the foundation of western civilization.

were the true

cities

city, like

fruit of the

to

fens, built flourishing

monastic

spirit

and

enterprise.

the Greek city, was a free, self-governing com-

munity, a free commonwealth with

its

own

constitution.

the Greek city, however, because there were no slaves in

It

from

differed

For the

it.

first

time in history, an economy based on free work became the source of

political rights.

How

did the medieval city come into being?

Among

question.

the facts

we know,

from cause. Perhaps, behind

new conception

all

it is

not easy to answer that

It is

consequence

difficult to separate

the facts,

some wholly

of life was at work, different

from

all

new

spirit,

some

preceding concepts

and making it possible for men to dissolve the torpidity born of unceasing
troubles and to imagine new creative possibilities. The emergence of the
medieval city was certainly no mere mechanical process, no inevitable
evolution.

Was

Christianity, perhaps, the driving force?

tian idea of the equality of all

brotherhood of
It

may be

One may
the

trace the

power of the

supreme.
effect,

before

God and

the Chris-

consequently of the

the central force which wrought the transformation?

so.

emancipated

84

man

men

Was

development of the medieval

central

themselves,

The

city

out of feudalism. As

government diminished and the

feudalism

increased

in

local officials

power and became

count, once a representative of the emperor, became, in

the prince of his

own domain. Ownership

of land was the source

Absolute tenure was modified into

of obligations as well as rights.

ditional one,

and

grew up. A grant

a system ol dependencies

oi

land

con

made

the recipient a vassal to the lord, as the lord himself was vassal to the

emperor. Such grants ol land varied

The

very large.

in size,

some being

very small, others

obligations attached to the grant, usually

character, were graduated accordingly.

Work

supreme land owner.

The emperor

military

in

or king was the

on the land was performed by serfs and

bondsmen. These, however, though dependent, were not dispossessed:

each had his place in the feudal system. Everyone had his regulated
his

share,

security

in

his

livelihood.

A man without a

become impossible.

The

life,

But personal freedom had

man

lord was a

chief occupation was agriculture.

On

without a livelihood.

the self-supporting estates was

produced everything their inhabitants needed. Craftsmen

shops pioduced

On

them.

articles to

fair,

the yearly or semi-yearly market.

Whatever may have been

had undeniable

its

increase

cleared, drained
to

order established by feudalism

faults, the

Under it, population

created new problems whose

increased considerably,

benefits.

changes in the settlement structure.

had

and cultivated

New

land had to be and could be

new

to provide

solution brought about

living space.

Some

individuals, especially craftsmen, could

from the routine of everyday work and permitted

their crafts.

The

possible for

them

lords,

manor

New

villages

be established, and they, in turn, increased the revenue of the

feudal lords.

The

in excep-

were surplus or special products made which could be sold

tional cases

its

work-

around

the needs of the people living

what was produced was consumed. Only

these estates

or exchanged at a

and by

meet

in their

growing

houses.

richer,

The

had usually been

to specialize

increased income of the landlords

to foster

and encourage

were able

spared

and perfect

may have made

refinement of the

this

to build larger

it

crafts.

and more comfortable

The

great landlords built castles.

closely connected with

now be

its villages;

manor house
new castles were

old

the

separated from

them and towered over them from the

sites facilitated

the fortification of the castles; they also symbolized the

power and importance of

their lordly owners.

manorial estate took place also

of population resulted also in

manors and

castles.

It

What happened

at

hill

the

something more important than

led to the creation of cities, the greatest accomplish-

of the age of feudalism.

have been these.

Such

at the monasteries.

The growth
ment

hills.

The

The

steps

toward

this

development may

craftsman, freed from agricultural work, could

now produce more goods than

the

community needed.

There was

surplus which could be exchanged with goods from other estates at the
fairs.

The

This development was advantageous

latter could,

in time,

buy

for

their release

both lords and craftsmen.

from compulsory

service,

85

43.

BERNE

Castle below the City

1-AVBOuP.C.

44.

86

CARCASSONNE

Mam-.- "'*-W"-r

**

"

< .v-%

v -^ y i4V >
<

SbC^S

jr

45.

46.

ROTHENBURG

MUNICH
87

become independent, and settle with groups of their peers. Some settled
in cities which still existed. In regions where there were no cities, rural
settlements of craftsmen under the protection of castle or monastery
became the nuclei of medieval cities. Princes and counts, bishops and

new cities.
establishment everywhere. Bern and Nuremberg

abbots were quick to see advantages for themselves in these

They encouraged

their

grew up under the protection of

was incorporated into the
the city

on a

hill.

At Carcassonne, the castle itself

At Rothenburg, the castle stands outside

city.

castles.

Gall developed in connection with a cloister; Essen,

S.

Luebeck grew up between two

in connection with the seat of a bishop.

older settlements, one developed under the protection of a castle, the

Luebeck

other related to the seat of a bishop.

center and, eventually, the head of the Hansa.

Munich were
Cities

all

founded

market centers

as

itself

became

Freiburg, Villingen, and

to serve their regions.

founded by lords and princes increased the revenues

Those

founders.

them, feudalism

had great

cities also

set in

motion the

death not the condition of

life?

a trading

forces of

its

own

their

of

In creating

historical significance.

But

destruction.

is

Does not destruction often pave the way

for construction?

The

creative energy of the people

The

measure.

crafts

became

who

ties.

new

cities

was beyond

Anew

differentiated; production diversified.

kind of population arose guided by a

individual wanted to

built those

become

spirit of

member

of

independence. Every active

one of these growing communi-

Reintroduction of trade with foreign countries became possible when

the invading

Norsemen were appeased and

and the Moslems,

France

settled in northern

their strength spent, could

no longer maintain

their

hold and rule over the Mediterranean Sea. This trade revival rejuvenated
old cities and stimulated the growth of those newly formed.

which had come

flourishing.

to

trade agreements with

Marseilles rose again.

Pisa,

Venice,

the Moslems, was already

Genoa, and other harbor

cities

on the Mediterranean became competitors as the trade with the Near

East developed. Christians and Moslems were enemies, but trade was

more important than religion. In the north, a similar development

took place. Harbor cities like London, Bruges, Bremen, and Hamburg
expanded

their trade as actively as the

harbor

cities of the

Mediterranean.

Inland markets developed also where trades of north and south met for
exchange.
of rivers

The

traffic

and their

crossed the Alps along the old natural

tributaries.

Raw

a civilizing influence; gradually

it

routes

material, manufactured goods, and

luxuries were the items of this exchange.

had

traffic

This commercial intercourse

lifted the less

advanced communities

to equality with others in the spreading civilization of the Middle Ages.

Did the medieval

88

city arise

from the market? Unquestionably some

cities

47. S.

48.

GALL

ESSEN

89

had such an origin. For instance,

at

Tiel on the river Waal there de-

veloped a market under the protection of a

nucleus of a

city.

market and the

Two

But

city

which became the

castle,

was the exception rather than the

this

The

rule.

developed together.

distinct types of

market are characteristic of the period: the

yearly or semi-yearly market of

fair or

which Tiel was an example; and the

weekly market. Each type grew out of

a particular settlement structure

and particular economic conditions.

The

fair,

whether annual or semi-annual, was the

dispersed small settlements in an

where everything needed

estate.

is

economy dominated by

market

for

agriculture,

produced and consumed within the house or

At these markets only special or surplus goods were sold or ex-

changed

from other

for surplus products

accumulated surpluses,
once in

six

few luxuries from

Because the

could be held only

it

estates.

abroad were also offered from time to time.

year,

typical

fair relied

on

at long intervals, once a

months.

The weekly market was

typical of a

more concentrated

settlement, in

which there was some division of labor and some diversified economy.
It

pre-supposed the city and the city economy based on differentiation of

agricultural

and

industrial production.

In the weekly market rural and

urban products were exchanged; raw materials and foodstuffs from the
country for the manufactured goods of the
to take place frequently.

To make

Such exchange needed

city.

The weekly market met

this

need.

exchange between rural and urban producers

integrate country with city, the cities

the farm people living

had

to

around them could

structure.

new

into being.

well-proportioned pattern of villages, towns, and

The

size of

each settlement was determined by

tion, the resources available,

neighbors.
tion,

and the

travel distance

between

settlements,

the country,

resources available were

show the

life,

its

economically and politically.

and their relation

all factors

to

were much

characteristics of

architectural.

have

Cities

to

each other were

soil

conditions,

influencing the settlement structure.

had

like villages at

first,

urban development,

to protect themselves

a city hall, a place of

their political rights.

90

func-

and

these factors, together with economic forces, tended to keep most

cities small. Cities

had

cities

spite of the great differ-

ordered organically. Geography, topography, climate and

And

its

it

settle-

balance was established between production and consump-

between urban and rural communities, in

ences between urban and rural

The

to

and home

travel to the city

again in one day's time. This required the development of a

ment
came

and

effective

be so located and spaced that

There had

but they soon began to

industrial, political,

and

with fortifications. They

assembly where citizens could exercise

to

be a church

also,

eventually perhaps

PISA Cathedral Square

1!).

a cathedral, a place of

worship dominating the

city

both spiritually and

architecturally.

Little information has

who

come down

lived in these cities.

one and

five

thousand.

show how widely the

importance.

The

8,700; of Zurich,

to us

regarding the

number

of people

The typical population may have been between

The following figures from the fifteenth century

cities

from each other in

differed

size

and

in

population of Noerdlingen was 5,000; of Frankfort,

10,500; of Strassburg, 20,000; of Luebeck, 22,300; of

Cologne, 37,000; of Ghent, 50,000.

Florence

may have had

100,000

residents, Paris nearly 200,000.

What brought about

ment

of a city

such a differentiation?

In most cases the develop-

was limited to that required for the fulfillment of

function as market for

history extended

its

impressive growth?

its

rural area. Noerdlingen only once in

city area.

Why

then did other

The answer must

cities

its

its

long

attain such

be particular for each

city.

favorable trade location, the possession and development of special natural

resources, the acquisition of special skills, the introduction of

concepts each of these factors contributed

which enjoyed them. The

the

power

force of
to

spirit of a

for a city's rise, for the city

its

to the

new

political

advancement of the

population might in

itself

depended always upon the

city

provide
spiritual

its environment. And there are always

who can do the impossible, who can even
advantage and make their very handicaps into assets.

people as well as on

be found groups of people

turn necessity into

Siena and Grenoble

owed

their

growth

to a favorable trade location

on
91

50.

SIENA

Civic Square.

an old route from

Below Market Square

Italy to France.

and Frankfurt, Strassburg and

Paris

Cologne possessed even more favorable locations because they were built

on navigable

by important land trade routes. Zurich,

rivers crossed

northern end of

a lake, stood at the point

where

from different directions converged and joined.

Pisa

and Luebeck, beside

rivers close to the sea,

on large

salt

exports from

northern Europe.

Sheffield

ore was abundant,

made

and

salt

number of land routes

London and Bremen,

were natural places for the

exchange of native goods for those from abroad.

prestige

Lunenburg

built her

works among the greatest in

Solingess, located in areas

cutlery in

at the

where iron

demand everywhere. Ghent, main

center for the manufacture of the unrivalled Cloth of Flanders, was one
of a

number

their

development of specialized industry.

Power

of cities

owing

their

remarkable population increases

to

combined with new political concepts, played their

and importance of cities. Florence, gaining power
Avars, became the ruling center of Tuscany. Paris rose

politics also,

part in the growth

through victorious
lo

be the dominant

Both

cities

city

and

capital of the large centralized state of France.

were profoundly influenced by

not remain independent cities

position were
realize.

beyond the

As centers

this rise to

possibilities

which independent

of states, they acquired

new

They could
cities

could

functions, and these

functions, in turn, influenced their development.

92

power.

because the requirements of their new

new

The

fortification

city

increased in population

needed

for the defense of a

ii\

limited

Inn could not extend

its

its

area.

lint

if

could often afford

to

extend

its

fortifications

population of medieval

its
it

parts to the

in various ways, according

conditions, especially the topography of the

The

and add new

it

usually

a city grew in prosperity as well as in population,

This could be clone

original city.

It

the smaller the city the greater was the density of

that

population,

the

fortification,

could solve the problem only by increase in population density.

happened

II

to

local

site.

cities consisted of distinct

and well-differen-

There were the craftsmen and merchants, the patricians

and clergymen. Craftsmen and merchants were organized in guilds which
regulated the social and economic relations among their members, with
tiated groups.

These craftsmen were

other guilds, and with the city administration.

much

less

concerned with making money than they were with improving

their skills.

This

which expressed

The

spirit

itself in

resulted in a high standard of craftsmenship

the smallest object

and

in the great cathedral.

much concerned with

money, in which they saw the source of power. As trade increased, money
became more and more important, and the merchants, who served money,
merchants, on the other hand, were very

became important

The

also.

rich,

grew

also in political power.

patricians were the administrators of the city.

the agents of the lord

51.

Some, growing

who founded

Once they had been

him for the

the city, responsible to

WETZLAR
93

maintenance of

and

made them very powerful.

number but great in

judicial functions

its

Their administration of the

his rights.

The clergy was a class

not great in

their calling, their educational

and charitable

government

city

influence because of

With the patricians,

more conservative element

services.

they constituted the city's educated class and the

of the population.

and economic conditions made the medieval city well adapted to

the needs of life. Security and economic independence for all were

Social

But economic independ-

possible to a degree seldom attained in history.

ence naturally bred desire for political independence.

with the feudal lord, the founder and owner of the

city,

immigration.

power

tried to increase

city steadily

By welcoming the foreigner,

of the lord

and strengthen

its

it

arose

the guilds and the

For

patricians fighting side by side to gain their freedom.

economic reasons, the

Conflict

its

and

political

population by

could weaken the military

own. Gradually,

cities

broke away

from the control of the overlord, some by open war, some by peaceful
purchase of his

rights.

The

became an independent

city

independence, however, marked the beginning of

within the city

itself.

In some

cities,

in others, a coalition of patricians

entity.

a struggle for

This

power

the patricians emerged victorious;

and merchants;

in

still

others, the guilds

of the craftsmen.

The

cities,

through their very existence and

activities,

mine feudalism, but they could not wholly dissolve

Germany

it.

through the

cities

it

new

under-

In France and

The

troubles.

and feudal

lords, into

sought only

its

became, because of

it

cities

wars

were drawn into

among

own

its

in

feudalism

As

weakness, the source

conflicts

the princes

between princes

and between the princes

maximum

Each group wanted

and the emperor.

What

tried to regain at the cost of the peasants.

feudalism became weaker,

of

to

the cities could free themselves from the bonds of feudalism,

but they could not free the peasants from those bonds.
lost

tended

independence; each

ends.

Feudalism, threatened by the increasing power of the city and the

in-

creasing might of the princes, tried to meet the threat by levying arbitrary

custom taxes and

The

tolls,

even by resort

destructive effect of

city of Wetzlar.
this city

to

such disorder

At the end

is

open highway robbery

of the thirteenth century, the population of

was about 8,000, a considerable population for that day. Wetzlar

was famous for

its

manufacture of linen

cloth;

it

was an important trading

center on the route from Frankfurt to Antwerp.

houses;

at times.

illustrated in the history of the

its fairs

were held twice a

year.

Then

It

possessed large store

wave of highway robbery

rendered the trade route to Antwerp so perilous that the traders began to
94

avoid

it

much

as

as they could.

facture dot lined also.

Wetzlar's trade die lined and

Craftsmen and merchants moved away.

became impoverished. By the middle of the sixteenth century,

tion

had

fallen to 1,350,

one

sixth of the

number

it

manu-

its

its

Wetzlar
popula-

had boasted

in

its

heyday.

During the Middle Ages, extensive and varied colonization took place
southern and southwestern France and, on

Germany and along

When

rivalry

of France

much

in

larger scale, in eastern

the shores of the Baltic Sea.

between the French and the English

led to wars, the cities

proved of great strategic value. They became

well as places of safe retreat.

New

cities,

sally points as

designed with strategic purposes

in mind, were founded; they were called bastidas, Bastida being an old

military

by

word

cloisters,

for fortified city.

by the crown

around Bordeaux
Built

on

itself.

The bastidas were established

The English themselves built

number

to protect that city.

a rectangular plan, the bastida consisted of a central square, or

sometimes two squares, one for the church, the other for the
streets

by nobles,

city hall.

The

ran at right angles or parallel to each other. Their circumvallation

was usually rectangular,

but sometimes was modified by topography.

Montpazier, founded by the English, and Aigues Mortes, founded by the

French, are typical bastidas.

The Hansa

established trading places which eventually

on the shores of the Baltic Sea

52.

as far as the

became the

cities

Gulf of Finland. This Teutonic

AIGUES MORTES
95

order colonized the land behind the sea coast, built strongholds at
gic spots,

strate-

and settlements around these strongholds. Marienburg was the

main

seat of the

made

it

his residence

Neidenburg is
built on a low
protected by

The Grand Master moved

Order.

and the

seat of his

government.

Teutonic order.

a typical settlement of the

hill,

dominates the

The

city.

there from Venice,

city

is

Its

stronghold,

geometric in plan and

walls.

Colonization had a different pattern and a different aim in the sparsely

settled provinces of eastern

Germany.

surplus population of the west.

villages

landlords,

Here the colonies drew on the

owned by

land,

lords, secular

and

were held under royal grants which permitted the owners

ecclesiastic,

found

The

and

and they

cities.

Such

cities

were

a source of

income

also secured the possession of the land to

to

for the

an increasing

population.

Before a city was built, a locator was commissioned.

contractor whose job

provide for
tion.

Such

its

it

was

to select the city's site,

cities

were usually agricultural

were farming townsmen, who paid

the city

He

building and fortification.

on which

had

in character.

a yearly

to build their houses

also

and

He

plan

was

kind of

layout,

its

to find

and

popula-

its

Their inhabitants

duty and received a

a piece of arable

lot

within

land outside

the city for their farm. Cities of this kind, founded east of the Elbe, can

be counted by the hundreds, villages by the thousands.

never

grew

communities.

.M.

96

(.R

WSI

beyond

their

fortifications

and

are

Most

today

of

still

them
living

'

VI.

The

v
,ii -

* '

;^^,,,,..

>/

:r

"rzyj

>

....,.,,,^,,v^v.;^

^^

ENBURG

plan of these cities was of geometric pattern.

two squares, one for the church, the other for the

Gransee

and

is

Usually there were

city hall

and the market.

typical. Its plan reveals the general character of these cities

their relation to the agricultural surroundings.

The medieval
and, with

it,

city ultimately

its

expanded

aiea of sustenance.

its

economic sphere of influence

The merchants

tried to

buy and

sell

everywhere, regardless of the restriction of the city which wanted to

control their trade.
restrictions

The

city

economy then became unbalanced. The

became more and more meaningless. Slowly

increasing rapidity,

new forms

their realms.

and with

development was the

Some, victorious

cities,

but with

production were introduced which

of

required and had to serve a larger economic

Parallel with this

at first,

field.

effort of the princes to enlarge

in struggles with other princes, with nobles,

increased their domains and founded territorial states.

Cities, as well as feudal lords, lost their

independence, became subordi-

nated to and integrated into larger political and economic wholes.

The economy
system.

Its

of the territorial state

was the economy of the mercantile

policy was to secure a favorable balance of trade, to develop

agriculture and manufactures,

and

to

monopolize foreign

trade.

97

This new

political

and economic development made

part of the state, subject to a

homogeneity between

unknown customers
powerful.

more comprehensive economy. The

moved

impoverished craftsmen, discharged

new and more economical forms

factor in success.

craftsmen

became an important

In ever increasing; numbers,

independence; they too became proletarians.

factories

had

to

city

They were

developments

as well as

be built and new

The

the

princes en-

new methods

The new
many ways.

revenues. Eventually they established factories themselves.

city

elements changed the self-contained medieval

its

in

proper place in an ordered scheme, growth without order brought

for themselves

The

princes, with

new and

their swelling

Usually,

power and

to

house

thev chose to build away from

existing cities and, in most cases, to stimulate the

17,'i.i

evil

incomes, could build

larger palaces, to display their

the increasing bureaucracy.

98

city

everything had been related to the whole and had fitted into

consequences.

KI'.RI.IN,

of

well aware that they might thus increase their

own

Where once

fio.

Factories, financed by

of labor

established for in-migrant workers.

couraged these new

production.

Their coming made possible

of production.

which the division

As industries developed, workshops and

residential areas

for

into the cities ejected peasants,

soldiers.

Free work diminished.

lost their

close

away markets. Merchants grew more and more

Proletarian elements

rich merchants, arose, in

coordinated

and country ended. Production was now

city

in far

cities a

growth of new

settle-

ments around new

of

many

Versailles

palaces.

typical.

is

imitations which were, however, dwarfed in scale.

Everything in the state became subject

arose, then the national state.

maximum;

England

in

to control.

became more and more

the territorial state

new concept of
-

political

dustrial revolution.
in

this

The

economy and provided

concept of

a Tree

medieval

free

lie

well illustrated by the

which surrounded

national state brought a

the

framework

It

was also

To

the two systems should clash.

robberies,

and

Hohenzollern

and unrestricted economy arose

of Berlin.

During the Middle Ages.

city.

acquired the land

It

member
and

cities

of the Hansa.

lords.

founded

to restore order.

Berlin's advan-

break the power of feudalism, to end

That was

The Hohenzollern promptly

the

Emperor appointed
setting a wolf to mind

like

its

the

the

sided with the feudal lords against

Berlin, like other cities, lost

cities.

to

was inevitable, therefore, that

it

to bring peace to the country, the

Emperor and
it

for the in-

doing freed the peasants from their

in so

tage was feudalism's disadvantage,

but

its

city to the city of the territorial state

development

and

it,

protect their trade.

the

monarch)

development reached

stood at the head of one of the city federations which

sheep!

<>l

was checked by Parliament which changed

it

Berlin was a free, independent, flourishing

It

political system

England and there readied perfection.

The change from

is

The

The

autocratic. Absolute

France

In

absolutism into constitutional monarchy.

first

became- the prototype

It

its

independence;

gained importance and began to grow when the Hohenzollern, the

founders of a
Berlin and

new

its

chose the city as their residence.

state,

twin city Coelln, separated from each other by the

river-

Spree, originated from two very old settlements at the river crossing of an

old road where

tfie

river could be forded.

111.

shows how the

city

grew by

new settlements. In the center are both the original cities

new part, all united by a fortification. Outside are other new settlements. There were at this time five different cities, kept separated from
the addition of

and

each other to prevent their united action.

now much
It

larger city

w as no longer
r

It is

fortified

of interest to note that the

and never would be

could, therefore, develop without restrictions until

it

again.

grew into today's

metropolis.

London and
Berlin.
at the

Paris developed along quite different patterns from that of

Both were very old

cities

founded

in

Roman

center of civilization, whereas Berlin stood at

Berlin began to outgrow

were already large

unknown

in

cities,

Berlin.

its

its

times.

Thev

periphery.

stood

When

medieval boundaries, London and Paris

having governmental and economic functions

Both were

capitals of

growing kingdoms.

Thev
99

56.

LONDON

differed

From Smith Warke

from each other, however, in magnitude, and expressed

this

difference in their pattern.

navigable

Thames which flows through a wide flat valley

estuary, London was destined to become a great trading

The

opened southeast England

Located on the

river

to her, and,

through

its

London

accessible the countries of northwestern Europe.

into a
center.

estuary,
early

made

became

England's most important port, dominating both internal and overseas

trade.

Probably London was originally a small settlement

Roman

times, this settlement

had no

at a river ford.

political importance,

but

it

was even

then a trading place and a center of maritime commerce. Roads from

directions led to
system.
its

The

city

London;

it

was one of the

favorable location, began to gain

Ages,

it

focal points of the

declined with the decline of

had regained

spite of frequent raids

its

new

Rome, but

strength.

In

Roman

all

road

soon, because of

By the

Middle

early

position as trade center, holding this position in

and

invasions.

The boundaries of Medieval London did not vary much from those of
the Roman city. East of the city was the Tower, the fortress of the king.
Toward the west, the small town of Westminster was still separated from
London by open

country.

England, in that day, exported only raw materials

in

exchange

For

manu-

factured goods, her most important export being wool. Gradually conditions changed, as craftsmanship developed in the city.

The

merchants were industrious and daring. They made

it

land to reverse her trade: to

of having to import

it.

make

possible for Eng-

cloth for export, for example, instead

This change, making England an exporter of

manufactured goods, an importer

of

raw materials and food,

Foundations for the country's future economic greatness.

100

guilds and the

laid

the

These economic changes had their effect on the (it\ <>l London. Before
the Great Fire. London had acquired many of the characteristics oi a itv
(

of our age. At
til is

center was the seat of finance and commerce.

its

Around

center and also south of the river were the quarters and dwellings

Toward the

the tradesmen.

Toward

houses, and workshops lor ship-building.

Westminster, were the

and

seat of the

who had

was spreading

middle

directions,

all

England had begun by

There was no

the city.

offices in

in

the

into

The

Seine

the

is

main

the king,
profes-

The

fortification.

city
it.

which were the

merchants.

ol

and conquered Gaul, the

the Gallic tribes, were living in the region which

France.

ol

and the

class,

that time to establish the colonies

Romans advanced

and around

incorporating (he parishes around

foundation of her empire, an empire

When

the west

government, the palace

also the houses of the aristocracy, the

sionals

ol

along the river, were wharves, ware-

east,

river of this region.

Parisii,

we now

call

one
Isle

of

de

Lutetia, a settlement

on a Seine island, was the most important center lor the Parisii, who
found protection against aggression in this island Parisii. Lutetia became
Paris. It may have had some importance in Roman times because of its
central location in
history.

There

is

region, but

its

some evidence

we know

that a

Roman

dangerous times which followed Rome's

were invaded again,

Kingdoms

arose

this

at

Roman

capital of his

king, although he was

kingdom.

acknowledged

domain. Centuries of bloody

authority

all

Empire, Paris and

fighting.

The

all

Carolingian

the end of the tenth century,

It

lasting dynasty.

Hugh
Paris

was the age of feudalism, and the

as such,

conflict

the proud princes

its

time by the on-rushing barbarians.

Capet became king of France and established a

became the

of that part of

wall protected Paris in the

and vanished, amid continuous

followed the Merovingian. Then,

little

fall.

After the collapse and dissolution of the

of France

very

was supreme only in his own

were necessary

and great

lords

to

bring under his

determined

to

maintain

their

power and independence even against the crown. Only when these

lords

and princes had been beaten into submission was the unification of

France possible.

plan of Paris, showing the walls built from the twelfth to the nineteenth

century, indicates the city's steady growth.

was already

a large

university which

world.

Its

and important

drew

city,

to Paris scholars

growth was due

During the Middle Ages,

internationally famous for

from

all

chiefly to the fact that

it

it

its

parts of the medieval

became and remained

the residence of the French kings, the capital of a growing centralized

state.

Paris increased in size

and importance

in step with the territorial

expansion of the kingdom.

101

Whereas London and Berlin were never

Paris always retained her fortifications.
tions

Middle Ages,

fortified after the

Building outside these

fortifica-

was forbidden by law. But the law was not always obeyed.

Mathien Merian shows

of Paris by

that, in the early

seventeenth century,

the walls.

To

offshoots in the city proper required the building of a

new

many new

settlements had sprung

up outside

plan

include such
wall.

It

was

quite natural that this expensive undertaking should be postponed

But the postponement had

long as possible.

its

effect

on the

Because space within the walls was so limited, building had to be

creased in height.

They became out

of proportion to the

as

city pattern.

narrow

in-

streets.

Population density increased. Like ancient Rome, Paris became a narrow

5S53^Hss=^Sav

mp%^p^

57.

PARIS

densely crowded

Successive City Walls

city.

Jacques Gomboust,* explaining

his

plan

made

in

the middle of the seventeenth century, says: "Paris seems to be so large

and

its

houses so high that

on top of each other.

One

it

It is full

appears as

there were two or three cities

could say that the whole world came together here." French

tion was revered throughout Europe.

were led
idol.

if

of people. All streets are filled with them.

to

copy slavishly the weaknesses

Instead of following the

houses prevailed,

London

many European

civiliza-

Unfortunately, admirers of France

cities

as well as the strengths of theii

pattern in which single family

adopted Paris

as

their model,

building narrowly and erecting the high airless apartment houses which,
in

some unexplainable way, seemed an expression

ization.

Quoted

102

by:

Hegemann, Werner: Der Staedtebau

Berlin, 1911

of the

admired

civil-

I*i

\N

1)1

\\

II

\.w

ifrr^i

$&&&* .,-

58.

,<jrf

~^.

PARIS

flM'lll'l
59.

THMRWII

PARIS

Cathedral and Surroundings

103

60.

NEW l.RLANGEN

France was never greatly interested in foreign trade. She was

Her geographical

extent self-sufficient.
tages of northern

and southern Europe without

economically independent.
fied

In

its

to a great

combining the advan-

their extremes,

made her

great fertility, adapted to rich diversi-

production, the country was able to meet the needs of the people.

was able to provide also

It

location,

all

the resources needed for their industries.

France's only important export was wine, so abundant and of such high
quality that

it

was eagerly imported by

As skilled craftsmen and artisans

French fabrics and

their art,
as

much more
They loaded
them

distributed

to transport

perfected

her goods. She had

their ships with

'The

as Voltaire* wrote:

became the

the Dutch, with their ships,

our goods

in

traders

our harbors and

over Europe.'' Colbert, minister of finance under

all

Louis XIV, was one of the

of trade to the

cities

opportunities opened for France's

other nations. Therefore,

English and
of France.

New

But France lacked ships

to use the ships of

and other French

weavings, furniture and jewelry became

silk

widely famous as French wine.

export trade.

non-wine-growing countries.

all

in Paris

French

first

state.

public

He

officials to

recognize the importance

encouraged the building of the necessary

merchant marine.

The Reformation

did not affect France as

of northern Europe.

much

as

it

did the countries

She not only remained Catholic, but

also

began

to

Huguenots who belonged to the

communion. When persecution made life intoler-

persecute, as enemies of the state, the

Reformed or
able, over five

Calvinist

hundred thousand

from France

of these unfortunates fled

the Protestant countries which were glad to receive them.

countries, these refugees brought highly developed skills
industrial

could

at

home what

France was a heavy loser in

this transaction.

colony grew up. Here and in other north

settling in

them:

an established

New

Erlangen

Voltaire: Steele

104

is

city,

German

to advance.

In

cities,

London
a large

there

French

the skills of the

Sometimes, instead of

the Huguenots settled in cities built for

a typical example.

de Louis Quatorze

settled

they had formerly imported from

whole suburb inhabited by French weavers. In Berlin

newcomers helped German industry

to

new
on which new
their

development could be based. The countries where they

now produce

France.

was

To

Freedom
Icli

.uid

and the new

of trade

.spirit

liberalism broke the

<>l

restraints

last

over from feudalism. Individual economic enterprise developed freel)

vigorously.

All countries shared

movement was modified,

of course,

in

l>\

development, though the

this

the local conditions in which

operated. Centralized national states were established

all

And, because the impulse which brought these

world.

was the same everywhere, the

cities

states into

istics,

being

which originated from the require-

ments of the national economy, or which were transformed by

where presented the same

ii

over the Western

characteristics.

one must understand the nature

To

it,

ever)

understand these characterprocesses which created

of the

them.
Division of labor reached

highest degree of development in the rising

its

economy and the world economy which finally emerged. New

techniques, based on the machine and specialization, divided the processes
of production to an extent hitherto undreamed-of. Meanwhile, the new
production recjuired increasing concentration of labor. Workers in great
numbers had to be drawn together wherever manufacturing took place.
This concentration implied the development of a labor market to meet
national

the

demands

of the large settlements

The coming

The

of industry.

which

of the railroad

think of as contemporary.

The

possible the
railroads

development of even the

and the new steam-propelled

whereby goods could be transported

ships provided a system

parts of the earth.

Ave

made

remotest parts of the country.

all

inevitable consecpience was the formation

The

masses concentrated in the great

and from

to

cities

could

thus be supplied with food with comparative ease.

The world

is

divided into areas producing raw materials and food and

those producing manufactured goods.

Large industrial nations trade the

products of their factories for food and raw materials.

finance

economy came

of manufacture.

It

world-wide

into being to provide credit for the development

created the conditions in which vast private enterprise

could grow. But in this process, the obligations which once bound society
together began to disappear.
process.

link of

The

industrialist

communal

who

The workman became

directed his

relationship.

forward, even that link

longer an individual; he

banks or capital stock.

is
is

part of the labor

work was the only remaining

of industry moves

As the development

weakened. In the end, the industrialist

is

no

replaced by the large corporation financed by

Under

the protection of such anonymity, there

develops a freedom from responsibility and obligation

unknown

in

other

economies.

There are two forms

of industrial production:

prime production and

manufacture. Each influences the settlement forms to which

Prime production takes place where natural resources

exist:

it

it

is

gives rise.
relatively

105

61.

INDUSTRIAL

TOWN

.'

-2S

:
62.

106

INDUSTRIAL CITY

63.

AIR POLLUTION

64.

CITY TRAFFIC
107

Manufacture, largely dependent on transportation

stable.

Both forms of production

locate itself at favorable transportation centers.

Prime production, because

require large aggregations of workers.

greater stability,

not necessarily confined to large

is

two new types of

city

urban settlements: the purely industrial

of

its

But manufac-

where that market

have arisen which have

city

cities.

depends on the labor market

turing, subject to considerable fluctuation,

and must, therefore, seek the large

must

facilities,

common

little in

Thus

exists.

with earlier

located at the source of

city,

raw materials and inhabited almost exclusively by workers; and the manufacturing city, which harbors not only large aggregations of laborers, but
also great

numbers

Variations occur in the manufactur-

of office workers.

ing city according to the importance of a given settlement in industry

or in trade.

Such have been the forces which brought our

cities into being.

does this city serve the functions for which

found the pattern adequate

cities

be answered in the affirmative.

There has never been time

adopted perhaps to

cities

This question cannot

The

gridiron system,

land in advance of growth, has

making no

streets and,

become

well

have grown without plan.

to think of planning.

determined the layout of the

Industries

Our

How

was created? Have our

to their purposes?

facilitate the sale of

the city's different parts, has

it

guide

distinction

among

to disorder.

and mechanized transportation have made possible the creation

and the rapid growth of our

cities.

But

this

growth, unplanned and

undirected, has resulted in sheer chaos. Each part of the city affects other
Blight and slums appear.

parts disadvantageously.
crease.

forces

Traffic hazards in-

City dwellers begin to desert the city for the suburbs.

which created the

city

seem now

to

The

very

be destroying their creation.

Meanwhile, decentralization and suburbanization, proceeding without

plan or direction, begin to create outside the city the same chaos and
confusion.

The

The

slums are being carried into the countryside.

random growth of our cities has resulted in many and

deficiencies. Let us name only a few. Houses in the residential

rapid and

serious
districts

have been built without the

who would

live in

unhealthiest parts of the

city,

who

thought that the people

population density

air.

live there,

In the worst and

highest and recrea-

is

Such residential slums are

tional areas direly lacking.

the people

slightest

them needed sunlight and clean

a danger, not

only to

but to the whole community.

Excessive use of land has simultaneously created high land valuations and

reduced the value of the land. More and more merchants and business
are driven into outlying areas

business

108

more

profitably.

where lower land

As buildings

rise

costs

men

enable them to do

higher and higher, automobile

65.

RECREATION

66.

CITY SLUM

congestion increases.

This congestion "drives the pedestrian out of the

business area to a place where he can shop with greater convenience and

We

safety.

have forgotten that

all

shopping

is

done by the pedestrian."

"High buildings are believed by many to be a cause of blight. They

effect on near-by property. It is an anomaly to note that,

have a depressing

while a few years ago,

it

was frequently said that high land values com-

pelled the creation of high buildings,

adjoining vacant or near vacant

we now have many high

lots in business areas for

buildings

which no

stable

use other than automobile parking can be found. Apparently too intensive use of land

No
No

effort has

is

not economic or necessary."*

been made

to place industry in

thought has been given

soot,

and fumes

Therefore, the smoke,

to prevailing winds.

of our industrial cities constitute

the health of the people

The

proper relation to residences.

who

an

evil

which threatens

live there.

disorder within the city area, the indiscriminate conglomeration of

industrial, commercial,

insoluble

traffic

and

residential sections, has given rise to almost

and parking problems. Far more conveyances than should

be needed must be used and even then

The

quate.

continue inade-

antiquated street system, faithfully followed, has created

danger for pedestrian and motorist

and

alike,

danger mounts

this

as

Parents of growing children must constantly worry be-

increases.

traffic

traffic facilities

cause each street corner has

become

death trap.

It

seems impossible to

prevent accidents or to relieve the inconveniences and confusions of

transportation.

How

do

cities affect the

human

people are spending their

beings

who

and doing

lives

them? More and more

work in cities. Can the
good place to bring up

live in

their

city-dweller live a satisfying life? Is the city a

children?

Does

it

promote physical and mental health? Does

slums

its

breed delinquency and crime?

To

the last of these questions, statistics indicate a sobering answer, that

the incidence of crime increases as the size of the city increases and

diminishes as the

city's size

diminishes.

relationship between the slum which

which

is

is

It

would seem

the cancer of the city

Within the

the cancer of society.

that there

city,

crime

is

is

close

and crime

always

more

prevalent in slum areas, decreasing in the outlying, better neighborhoods.

Does
does

this
it

mean

Or
human

that naturally criminals gravitate toward the slums?

indicate that the slum

makes the criminal?

Is a

criminal a

being destined, under any circumstances, to become an enemy of society?

Or
*

is

it

perhaps true that each

Urban Land

no

man

Institute: Decentralization.

What

has within

Is It

Doing

him

in

Our

seeds of evil

Cities.

and

Chicago, 1910

of

67.

68.

PARIS

DISORDER AND CHAOS

111

good and that

grow?

Is it

quent and

grown up

certainty.

normal law-abiding

to be a

a delin-

town or the

later a criminal might, in the setting of a small

country, have

have

who becomes

reasonable to suppose that the slum boy

Or

citizen?

is

crime

be treated by psychiatry?

a disease to

We

environment may determine which seeds take root and

his

much
Yet

much seems

this

we can answer such questions with

belore

learn

to

In the slum areas of our cities,

clear.

relaxed mores diminish resistance to temptations, anonymity protects,

and may even

We

Slums do breed crime.

attract, the criminal.

Our

take vast pride in the achievement of medical science.

hospitals symbolize the strides

But should

ot the sick.

we have taken

striking paradox to see

in the scientific treatment

healthy society require so

Should we not give more attention

many

hospitals?

prevention of sickness?

to the

great

masked nurses taking meticulous care

of

It is

new-born

babies who, within a few days, will be taken from the antiseptic hospital

back to the dirty slums where their parents

Speaking from

Foreman*
which

"In candid truth, the city

writes:

to live.

elsewhere.

Its

More

in

is

Dr.

Jonathan

not a healthful place in

inhabitants do not live as long or as happily as dwellers

them go

of

and perhaps most

city

live.

his experience as a practicing physician,

They

insane.

disastrously, they

are sick

to

fail

more

often.

Finally,

reproduce themselves.

The

must, as a consequence, import nearly one-half of the next generation

order to maintain

its

size

and

satisfy its civic pride.

If

pure surmise

it may be interesting to
when new blood could no

were one of the legitimate functions of science,

contemplate the

fate of a

longer be piped to
"Cities have

metropolis in an age

from the country.

it

grown

rapid and disorderly growth

elements in city

life.

It

responsible for

is

traffic

with noxious gases, dust,

and

lull of

danger, an atmosphere that

Men must

of

is

smog which

Disturbed mental poise and

ordered social habits have been engendered by

frustration.

of the undesirable

and smoke a blanket

dirt,

shuts out the health-giving sunshine.

and

many

has produced poorly designed streets that are

congested with unnecessary

filled

without intelligent planning; indeed the

rapidly,

dis-

loss of sleep,

malnutrition,

damped

quarters and

pay lor living in

interdependent environments."

This human view

is

shared, not only by physicians

and planners, but

also

by the Urban Land Institute, which reports: "Any observer of American

cities

must come

do not
*

to the conclusion that a larger part of the

like the cities

which we have

built,

Foreman, Jonathan: Biological Truth and

l>\
Elmer Peterson. Oklahoma, 1946

edited

112

and seek

Public

Health,

urban dwellers

to escape

from them

hi

Are

"Cities

if

Abnormal,"

69.

NOV

YORK. Air View

113

work permits and

their

they can afford to do

it

so.

ingly apparent that cities are not merely machines

for services
entities in

and

for the highest

economic

which human beings must

quirements of people are quite

live,

and
as

It

becomes

They

are also social

and

sociological re-

social

economic considerations."

may make

Fortunately for humanity, there are forces at work which

human

possible the realization of

requirements. Technical achievements

tend to encourage decentralization; defense necessity

last, it

may

human

be,

needs long neglected

may come

As the railroad and steam power once tended

urban settlements, so now

begun

may
to

be

to centralize

and motor

force

At long

it.

satisfied.

and concentrate

vehicles are tending to

had

the advent of electricity, the tide

who had been moving steadny into the city, began

new suburban railroads to escape from the city and to found

to turn. People,

to use the

new

electricity

Even before

decentralize them.

increas-

which must be planned

utility.

important

as

settlements beyond

its limits.

As the railroads were extended, these

settlements along their lines appeared farther and farther from the city
center.

But

The automobile

this dispersion

suburbanization.

accelerated this exodus, and widened

has been a

random

its

scope.

one, and has developed a chaotic

Only with the development

of

power has

electric

genuine decentralization become possible. Electric power

a real force

is

toward decentralization. Small settlements can now be established anywhere.

New

communities of

relative

independence can be

Even

built.

and

the smallest settlements can be supplied with water, electricity, heat,

light.

Power

rates in

them may, indeed, be lower than those

the

in

metropolises and great cities with their vast undeveloped areas requiring
extensive and expensive supply and drainage lines and complicated trans-

portation systems.

Great possibilities

lie

ahead

not mean, of course, that

with small ones.

centrated.
cities,

We

We

who

are wise

we should

should aim, not

be decentralized, we

114

we

enough

to use them.

strive to replace

all

at a

size.

maximum

As we learn

or a

live in

them.

minimum

to decentralize

may make our communities

This does

large settlements

should always concentrate what needs

but at an optimum

of the people

if

to

be con-

size for

what can

truly serve the best

our
best

good

70.

ATHENS

Parthenon

Pattern and Form

II.

The

pattern and form of a city are the result of an interaction of forces,

both material and spiritual. Yet the city

sum

There

of those factors.

is

is

always more than the mere

we can

always something

perceive but

cannot define; there are irrational factors which cannot be explained

physiognomy. Each possesses

forces

There

which brought
are,

character of the

city

is

is

it

a pattern

character and
of the creative

Each has

its

into being.

however, certain factors readily identified which, with their

implications and

the city

own

and form expressive

Cities are like individuals.

rationally.

interrelations,

do much

Most important

city.

is

to

determine the

the nature of the site on which

located, the relation of that site to the landscape of

a part, the character of that landscape,

graphical features,

its

essential

climatic conditions,

its

its

which the

geographical and topo-

available resources,

and

its

natural transportation routes.

A
it.

second major factor

Their character,

is

always the people

their spiritual

political concepts, their industrial

all

who make

and

artistic abilities

influence the pattern and form of their city as

conditions in which

the city and live in

and material aims,

their social

and

much

and

activities will
as the

natural

it is set.

115

third factor

is

the function the city

planned

is

difference in the structure of a city whether

sustaining or part of a larger state.

trative,

These
on the

others.

We may

keep in mind the

ft

makes

independent and

is

set its

They

stamp upon the

city's

self-

form.

Each depends

act together.

we should always

consider each separately, hut

always present together, each con-

fact that they are

tributing in differing degree and proportion to the totality which

character of a

functional specialization adminis-

commercial, industrial will also

factors are interrelated always.

it

perform,

to

is

the

city.

In the following pages,

we make no attempt

which influence the pattern and form of

few which have had,

all

of the city in relation to

through the
its

to investigate all the factors

cities.

We

shall deal only

with a

ages, decisive influence:

the location

defense; the social-political ideas

and organiza-

tion of the city's people; the creative expression in architecture of the

spirit of those people.

Geographers and archaeologists have discovered that even the most ancient
peoples instinctively understood the importance of choosing a
their settlements

They knew

which could

site

for

offer protection against primitive warfare.

that certain topographical features provided the hest defense

islands in the sea, the lakes and the rivers; peninsulas formed by river

bends or the confluence of

rivers;

cape formations along the shore or in

the mountains; single mountains standing in the plains.

always recognized as the best naturally protected

even the

earliest

city,

was located on a rocky island on the coast

was invincible because of

It

its

harbors, the Sidonian towards the north

the south,

the places where

people preferred to found their settlements.

Tyre, the Phoenician

Syria.

sites,

These were

made Tvre, with

its

location.

Its

of

two well protected

and the smaller Egyptian towards

industrious population, one of the oldest

merchant centers of the Mediterranean.

Motya, another Phoenician

city, also

considered invincible, stood on an

island in the midst of a bay at the west side of Sicily.

had

of this limited island increased, the inhabitants

As the population

to build their

homes

higher and higher until they became tower-like.

Neither Tyre nor Motya was actually invincible.

Alexander the Great

conquered Tyre; Dionysius of Syracuse, Motya. In both

cases,

however,

the strength of the original site had been impaired by causeways built

from the mainland

siegers

broke
if

were able

down

to

the city

Along those causeways, the bebring the towers and battering rams which finallv
walls. Would the cities have remained unconquered

to the island cities.

those causeways had never been built?

the Thirty Years

116

War, Stralsund,

a city

It is

on an

quite possible.

As

late as

island in the Baltic Sea,

71.

TYRE

12.

successfully resisted Wallenstein's siege.

Greeks on
the hostile

a larger island,

73.

to

Rhodes, a

maintain

its

city

founded by the

independence against

kingdoms which developed on the mainland.

built after a plan by

S.

was able

MOTYA

John built

Rhodes was

Hippodamus. During the Middle Ages, the order

a castle there

and

of

fortified the city.

STRAHLSUND
117

74.

EARLY SETTLEMENT OF PARIS

118

76.

77.

NORMA

CARTHAGE

Reconstruction

119

AMPHISSA

78.

There were many such

island cities 'in antiquity.

Arne, built by the

Greeks on a rocky island in Lake Copias. was one. Such

sites

were

so

highly valued for their strength that they were sometimes constructed

where nature did not provide them. The lake dwellings of the Stone Age
at
its

Glastonburg and Zurich stood on man-made

island nucleus to

dominate the

Luebeck rose on an island

in the river

the advantages of an important

Durham

in

England

is

traffic

Paris

islands.

valleys of the Seine,

grew from

Marne, and Oise.

Trave which combined

safety with

location.

located on a peninsula formed by an

the river Weir. Bern in Switzerland was similarly placed.

U-bend

in

Lyon in France
Rhone and

grew up on a peninsula formed by the confluence of the

Saone.

Lyon was

The Celts understood the

Romans who, coming later,

originally a Celtic settlement.

defense value of a peninsula

site as well as

the

used the same location for a city which became the military and commercial

center of the region.

Cape formations mountain promontories or

bluffs jutting into the sea or

the lakes were also favorite sites for early settlements.

Such formations

couM be made invulnerable by special and easily arranged means of defense. Norma in Italy located on a steep mountain promontory, shows
the advantage of

its

sheltered position.

Amphissa

in

Greece was

also

placed on a promontory. Today the ruins of a medieval castle mark the

site of

120

the old Locrian city; the town below

is

of later origin.

79.

THERA

Thera stands on a high promontory jutting out From a mountainous

island into the Aegean Sea. The promontory is connected with the main
mountain by

narrow isthmus,

Thera

invincible.

is

so easily

defended

Phoenician origin and was

of

Greek, settlers.

Standing high and strong, with

the city could

ward

Aegean.

It

ridge, with

off attacks

tew crossing side

The Dalmatian

street

streets.

city of

It

later

a tree

make

the city

developed by

iew over the sea,

from the pirates who then intested the

was a long-stretched, narrow

one main

as to

mountain

lying along the

city,

running through

its

entire length

and only

had two squares.

Corcula, like Thera.

extending into the sea from

mountainous

is

placed on a promontory

island.

But

its

site differs

Irom that of Thera hecause the peninsula formed h\ the promontory

a

low Hat

hill.

The main

street of the city

led

the square in trout of the cathedral and then

streets

from the gate up

down

is

hill to

again, while the side

on either side sloped genth downward.

In rocky coastal regions,

promontories offer protection and Form natural

harbors. Cnidos, on the southwest coast of Asia Minor,

this

made good

use

ol

dual advantage. Here the promontory forms an island-like peninsula,

connected with the mainland h\

slope

is

small isthmus.

Toward

the sea. the

very steep. But the gentle slope toward the eastern bay provided

space for the earliest

city.

Between the peninsula and the

mainland, two bays gave the

toward the

east

city

coast of the

harbors for her sailing ships.

formed large harbors:

part ol

the western bay

The

bay

Formed

121

80.

CORCULA

81.

CNIIXJS
122

smaller one.

canal built across the isthmus connected the harbors and

As Cnidos grew,

increased their usefulness.

new

part

on the

hill

it

expanded

gave the city the appearance of an amphitheater,

terraces along the

l>\

building

This extension

sloping gentl) to the eastern bay.

buildings rising in

its

hills.

Single elevations, rocky plateaus, isolated mountains were often chosen as

sale natural sites
polis;

Rome on

by early Greeks and Romans. Athens rose on the Acrothe Palatine Hill.

82.

SAN GIMICiNANO

far

enough away from

It

was also on a

hill,

it

to

its

cities

were close

to the sea.

be relatively safe from the attacks of

the Byrsa, that the

Carthage was founded by

surpassed

Both

men from

first

Tyre.

pirates.

Phoenician settlement

Soon the growing

parent settlement in glory and power.

city

which had been the

sites for

the original settlements

sacred precincts or, in the case of

Many

hill cities

Rome,

at

had

Athens, Rome, and

Carthage quickly grew beyond the expectations of their builders.

hills

but

became

in

The
time

palace grounds.

survive today in Italy. Their differences in appearance

are in part the result of differing topography, but are even

tion of differing social organization.

Acerenca, on a

plain, gives the impression of great simplicity

equality was the force which created

it.

hill

and suggests

few

more

a reflec-

isolated in a

that political

ecclesiastical buildings

123

stand in contrast to the simple houses which give the city

S.

Gimignano,

also a hill city,

they, like the towers of

is

Motya,

dominated by

number

Were

of towers.

provide for an expand-

a result of trying to

ing population in a limited narrow space?

character.

its

There seems

be a quite

to

different explanation.

As the

cities of

the Middle Ages freed themselves from feudalism,

it

was

natural that the feudal lords should try to regain in the cities what they

had

lost

on

In

their estates.

Italy, these lords

fully but with firm determination to regain

The

once more.

moved

into the cities peace-

power and

to rule the cities

houses they built are characterized by the towers which

These towers made the dwellings private

surmount them.

and attack

useful for both defense

in a city

where

strife

fortresses,

was continuous.

Quite naturally, these towers became a symbol of power. As the princes

and

tyrants put an

end

to the political aspirations of the aristocracy, the

deposed feudal lords were more or

began

of the cities.

assimilated into urban

But their towered houses continued

which no longer

reality

less

and

life

with the higher and more educated classes

to fraternize at least

They became

existed.

to stand as

symbol of a

a fashionable decoration,

widely copied though no longer serving a functional purpose.

The

number

and other

of

towers 700

250 in Bologna,

in Lucca,

many

in Siena

great

cities can be explained only by the theory that the rich merchants of

those growing cities built towers for themselves in imitation of the old
aristocracy in the

The

same

spirit as they

imitated their tournaments.

impress which the spirit of a people places upon the city

ically

illustrated at

rectangular building groups of

colonaded

halls,

and the

dramat-

is

Here, north of the Acropolis, stand two

Athens.

Roman

stoa of

origin: a

market surrounded by

Hadrian where colonaded

halls

court with a large building, probably the library of Hadrian, on

side.

Between these

Roman

on the Acropolis there

its

east

building groups and the Greek structures

the greatest possible contrast.

is

form

The

essential

genius of each people, the diversity of the art impulses which guided

them,

written here

is

in stone.

naive observer, looking at the two building groups, might easily come

to the

conclusion that the

Romans were

far superior to the Greeks.

had clear aims. They knew what they wanted

achieve

it.

planners.

dent, with

to

to

be independent, unrelated to

though the buildings had been placed together merely by

no consideration

for the unity of the whole.

A more

observer would, however, reach a epiite different conclusion.

124

They

and how

They understood geometry and symmetry. They were master

Compared with the Roman building groups, the Acropolis

seems planless. Each building there seems

others, as

to achieve

acci-

thinking

He might

83.

ROME

Forum

of

Trajan

in

ft

mi

,v.lS-fililHilj'

.ft

iniumiiiitiiiiM

H&

<

'

J
8J.

ROME

Forum

x,"

N ^ *vY

of Trajan Reconstruction

125

lii

Hl^^

"* rj

...4.

85.

BAALBEK

Temples. Reconstruction

86.

PALMYRA

Colonaded

126

Street

Roman

note that the

would
in

buildings arc strangely unrelated to the

"rowing respect

feel

for the naturalness

which the buildings are placed

to

<>l

the Acropolis grouping,

He

at

come

last,

ably

knew

why

did the

as clearly as

He would

and

skill

Since

is

mark

only a

we do not know

Athens,

Romans what

Forum

architectural

were and how

to

to appreciate

in the particular

limitation.

much about

Roman

the

building groups at

more equal comparison, examine the

imperial forums in Rome, and the largest

and most elaborate among them. The Forum

Roman

unquestion-

sake of a

one of the

of Trajan,

their aims

on the Acropolis

own

of our

very

us, for the

let

sensitivity,

artistic

understand that our failure

the Greeks placed the buildings

way they did

to religious tradition.

to the realization that the Greeks, with their

highly developed architectural

reach those aims.

He

harmonize with the topography.

would recognize and respect the adjustments made

would,

He

city.

and planning concepts

expresses those of Greece. Setting

them

Trajan expresses the

of

as clearly as the

we may

side by side,

Acropolis

better under-

stand them both.

The Forum

of Trajan,

To

to

make

possible

its

Augustus, and

it is

At the opposite

Toward

halls.

building on one

Its

level, the

The Forum

the

main entrance

is

halls

side.

It

large square

from the Forum of

emphasized by a triumphal arch adorned with columns.

side

is

the Basilica Ulpia, a large two-storied building.

the northeast and the southwest, the

Column

lower part of

itself is a

Forum

is

by two-storied exedras, semi-circular buildings which

naded

optically extended

rise

above the colo-

surrounding the square. Northwest of the Basilica Ulpia

of Trajan, equal in height to the height of the

removed

is

hill-

stands in the center of a small square formed by two smaller

buildings, possibly libraries,

stands in a colonaded court

The Forum

of

and the Temple of Trajan. This temple

and was

built

under the reign of Hadrian.

Trajan expresses, not only the architectural concepts of

Romans, but also their fundamental planning principles.

cantly, this Forum, like other forums of Rome, has no organic
the

to the city itself.

One

is

reminded

that there was

different temple courts at Baalbek in Syria.

superimposed upon
it.

lies

hills of

gain the space required for the large

the Quirinal Hill had to be removed.

surrounded by colonaded

Damascus,

of

between the

of Augustus in the valley

and the Quirinal.

the Capitol

forum and

whose architect was Apollodoros

Forum

northwest of the

Imperial

in Africa,

cities

its city,

intended

as

relation

no relation between the

The

imperial forum was

an ornament and adornment

themselves became subject to this same concept.

founded by Trajan, and Palmyra

successor Hadrian, with

Signifi-

their colonaded

for

Timgad

in Syria,

refounded by Trajan's

streets

and arched gateways,

exhibit the same ornamental splendor as the imperial forums, though on

a lesser scale.
127

Roman

architecture was

first

influenced by Etruscan architecture, and

empire spread toward the

later, as the

The Romans

east,

by Hellenistic architecture.

were particularly impressed with the colonaded stoas of the

They adopted such ideas freely, but they always placed

upon them the stamp of Rome. They smothered Greek refinement with
ornamentation. They over-loaded their buildings with carved mouldings
Greek

87.

agoras.

ATHENS

Acropolis, Air View

and sculptures. Their

axiality

which

cities

resulted in

was subordinated.

became subject

to a

rigid

ornamental compositions

The Romans
Rome,

which everything

believed that, in this way, they were

creasing the magnificence of their buildings and their

express the power of

to

symmetry and

to impress

and cow

cities,

in-

making them

conquered world. The

Romans were law-makers and rulers. They knew how to command and
how to obey. Their art and architecture speaks of discipline. "In the

Roman commonwealth,"
,

Momsen, Theodore: The History

128

writes

<>f

Romt

Theodore Momsen,* "there was no

89.

ATHENS

Acropolis. Reconstruction

ATHENS

Acropolis. Plan

129

dependence on any one man

special
its

moral policy,

Rome

as

and under die

human

idiosyncracies of

all

reached a greatness such

character were extinguished.

no other

state of antiquity attained;

but she dearly purchased her greatness at the

The

Acropolis of Athens stands on a rocky

plain.
is

Its

shape

not on one

sacrifice of the graceful

abandon and the inward freedom

variety of the easy

is

rigid discipline of

hill,

of Hellenic life."

rising steeply out of the

irregular, resembling a stretched hexagon.

level.

Its

surface

gradually from the west toAvards the

It rises

Cimon extended the surface of the Acropolis by moving the

The Acropolis we know is the work of the Periclean age, when
and other buildings destroyed by the Persians were rebuilt

east.

south wall.
the temples
in greater

splendor than ever before.

The

three

main buildings

gate to the Acropolis,

is

of this period

at the

still

stand.

The

lower west side where the

The Parthenon

Acropolis joins that of the Areopagus.

Propylaea,
hill

of the

stands on the

middle part of the Acropolis toward the south; the Erechtheion on the
lowest level of that part toward the north. Both these buildings are nearly

equidistant from the Propylaea.

The huge

statue of

Athena Promachos,

goddess of the Acropolis, stood between the Propylaea and these two
Farther back towards the

temples.

contrast to the

tall statue.

east,

two long low

altars furnished

Closer to the Propylaea were two lower build-

ings,

placed on either side along the enclosing walls.

The

order which governs the placement and arrangement of these build-

ings

is

an optical one. K. A. Doxiades* believes that he has discovered

governing principles.

Greeks looked

When

at

it,

We

should look

at the Acropolis,

he urges,

its

as the

not with the romantic ideas which obscure our vision.

the Greeks entered the Acropolis through the Propylaea, they

wanted

to see the Acropolis as a whole,

object, building, sculpture standing free,

Location as well

as

dimension was used

but they wanted also to see each

none interfering with any

to attain this optical result.

buildings are free standing; one ends where another begins.

could, indeed, as they

came

others.

All

The Greeks

in by the Propylaea, see the united view with

each object free of interference.

That was what they wanted.

There were two groups of buildings separated by an open space between

the Parthenon and the Erectheion, toward the east. Another open space,
between the Erectheion and the building at its left, is optically closed by
the distant hill of Lycabettus which thus becomes an integral part of the
view.

So far

as

we know,

earlier plans of the Acropolis,

the arrangement of the buildings,

'Doxiades, K. A.:

130

Raumordnung im

all

though they differed

in

applied the same optical principle.

griechischen Staedtchau, Heidelberg, 1937

90.

CASTELLAZZO

91.

GLASTONBURY

FF

DI

FONTANELLA TO

f T

131

There was always the same open space toward the east. Perhaps that had
something to do with the sunrise at the spring equinox and was connected
with a religious concept.

The Greeks

did not apply the same optical order to the building of their

These

cities.

cities

were composed of modest homes which contrasted with

monumental buildings and increased their significance. The Greek

more naturally with the city than we do, taking into consideration things we have utterly forgotten.
the

thinkers dealt

Plato and Aristotle regarded the city as primarily a social organism the

They were both

state.

treatise:

this

influenced in their thinking by the Hippocratic

"Airs, Waters, Places,"

which dealt with man and

environment, both natural and

food

man

eats,

his settlements

political.

the water he drinks, the climate he lives in, the location of

and

its

relation to sunshine

he considered the essentials for a healthy

and wind.

human

to the organization of the city, insisting that

Von Gerkan,* who

the most desirable.

came

his relation to

Hippocrates discussed the

life.

He set
He gave

available material,

all

located on hillsides preferred slopes toward the south.

is

what

an eastward orientation was

studied

to the conclusion that, in spite of Hippocrates,

Athens outside the Acropolis

forth

great stress

most Greek

The

cities

older part of

described by Thucydides as "looking

toward the south." Priene, founded several centuries

later,

had the same

southern orientation.

Such an orientation allowed the winter sun to penetrate the main rooms
of the houses

heating

and

facilities.

the contour of the

to

supplement with

At Priene, the main

its

warmth

natural

streets

run

insufficient

east to west following

in order to secure this south orientation.

site,

On

the

sloping terrain terraces were formed, connected with each other by cross
street

which climbed more or

less

sharply and were provided with steps, an

arrangement possible in a day when

Street orientation, however, as
city.

Each

streets

city

adapted

was very small.

von Gerkan points out, varied from

street orientation to its

own

city to

topography.

Some

ran north and south; some east and west; some at various angles

in between.

But the orientation of

orientation of a house.
of

its

street traffic

common

sense, as

To

it is

a street does not necessarily fix the

get the preferred orientation then was a matter

today a matter of proper planning.

Where

south

orientation was impracticable, southeast and southwest orientations could

be used. Either of these

is

almost

combined they can be even

as

advantageous

as

southern orientation;

better.

Socrates** seems to have preferred the south orientation.

Von Gerkan, Arnim: Grichische Stadt Aulagen. Berlin
Xenophon: Memoralities of Socrates

132

Leipzig. 1924

"A

house,"

he

said,

in.

...

"should be most pleasing and

same time most

the

at

useful to live

summer and warm

in

winter? ... In houses, then, that look to the south does not the sun

in

Is it

have

not, then, pleasing to

cool in

it

winter shine into the porticoes, while in the

summer

it

our

passes over

heads."

Considerations like these will obviously result

from the

entirely different

order.

Here

is

consideration
"organic

" in

Roman

an order

in

geometric order and the Greek optical

an order which grows out of the nature of things, takes into

and function.

necessity

There

character.

is

It

no longer

is

an order of naturalness,

dominating form concept

which everything must be subordinated. The organic order

mous;

own

its

planning

ol

guiding princ iple

law, that each part

is

must

that each part

also

have

portance and function, within the whole.

It

place, according to

means, as

St.

to

autono-

must develop according

due

its

is

to its

its

Augustine

im-

said,

"the disposition of equal and unequal things, attributing to each

its

proper place."

Organic planning aims

location

and function.

provides the conditions in which

The

and form adequate

and means

deals also with the forms

to a city's

of life

and

balance between things material and things spiritual.

strives to establish a
It

to find the pattern

It

organic order, since

it

all

things can

grow and unfold.

takes everything into consideration, includes

form values. The necessary and functional become sources of inspiration

to influence the creative impulse.
essential nature of

requirements are mastered, the

If all

an object will be revealed and

What

that the useful can also be the beautiful.

house

is

made by
ful

were

the

hand

of

also useful

Socrates* said about the

man. "The same houses," he

.

for
it is

whatever

is

much

organic order of planning

is

be, than recorded history.

It also

the Middle Ages;

Once more,

influence.

We

good

is

said, "that

We

older than the Greeks, older,

outlived the Greeks to

know much about

our own times, the organic order

is

become

it

these cities of
to

our own

beginning

to regain

some have survived almost without change

in

were beauti-

also beautiful in regard to

well adapted."

characteristic of the medieval city.

day.

prove

true also for the city, and, indeed for every object, large or small,

the purposes for which

The
may

this revealing will

have rediscovered the truth that objects made without

thought for form values may be more beautiful than those whose whole

purpose was beauty.

The

airplane,

technical age, has form values of

The

one of the representative objects of our

its

own

of surprising quality.

co-existence of these two concepts of order:

Xenophon: Memoralities

the geometric

and the

of Socrates

133

organic, can be traced back as far as the Stone Age.

The

prehistoric settle-

ments of Castellazzo de Fontanellato and Glastonbury are evidence of the

Both are original forms and

early existence of these contrasting types.

express differing concepts of

life

and

society in their purest form.

Castellazzo was probably a settlement of the

from the north.

island.

who

entered Italy

The

pattern expresses a well-established social order.

Its

was surrounded by

city

Latins

first

deep wide ditch which made the

site a

kind of

system was laid out geometrically; the center street was

Its street

wider than the others and

east of

it

was a square.

Glastonbury in southwest England, in contrast to Castellazzo, shows

the characteristics of an organic settlement. For protection,

on an

artificial island in a lake.

all

was placed

it

circular in shape, were isolated

Its huts,

or combined in groups. In the center of the settlement there was an open

space.

and Glastonbury represent,

Castellazzo

the autocratic and the free city.

sal city types:

through the

The

ages.

east.

And

already they show

all

Their pattern

is

They

buildings.

must bow. With

earliest autocratic cities

We

the characteristics

all

two univer-

find these types all

we know about

probability these were the oldest of

near

In

at a primitive level, the

urban settlements.

all

common

are in the

to autocratic cities.

geometric, having dominant axes leading to important

display the
their

power

of the ruler to

pomp and ostentation,

whom

the population

they proclaimed the omnipo-

tence of the ruler and symbolized the might of his rule.

The

autocratic cities of the

Near East

by Alexander and the Diadochs

common

in

Avith the

Peloponnesian

Greek

War and

who

greatly influenced the cities

followed him. These

city states

cities

founded

had

little

which had been weakened by the

Macedonian conquest. They

dissolved by the

had quite different functions. They were parts of great empires, kingly
residences

and military camps, founded

monarchs building

of

their

to express the self-glorification

kingdom on

mixed populations. Some, because

the oriental pattern.

of their locations,

All

had more or

had
less

important trade functions.

This
a

self-glorification

Greek

architect,

reached a climax in

made

to

Alexander.

a suggestion

Plutarch*

which

tells

Stasicrates,

the story:

"He

always promised something very bold, unusual, and magnificent in his

projects.

him

Once when they had met before

that, 'of all

most capable of being adapted

man;

that

if

he pleased

and most durable statue

Plutarch: Lives, Alexander

134

with Alexander) he had told

the mountains he knew, that of Athos

to

to represent the shape

command

in the world,

in

Thrace was the

and lineaments of a

him, he would make

which

in

its left

it

the noblest

hand should hold

^
t

92.

,'f^A

As,

MOUNT ATHOS

a city of ten

Its

'"._.- rat"'

-.

i-

^^5l,

proposed transformation

thousand inhabitants, and out of

a copious river into the sea'."

its

right

hand should pour

This noble mountain statue was

Alexander. Alexander, however, refrained from ordering

mere
the

fact that

it

it

to

resemble

built.

The

could be seriously suggested indicates the degree to which

Greek concept of freedom and independence had crumbled under the

influence of the oriental concept of monarchy.

93.

ALEXANDRIA
135

Alexander founded several Alexandrias, the most famous being in Egypt.

This city, destined to importance by its location, was built after a plan by
Dinocrates.

was placed on

It

and the Mediterranean Sea

tongue of land between Lake Mareotis

The

western Nile delta.

at the

island of

Pharos, connected with the city by a causeway, protected Alexandria and

formed

its

two harbors. Alexandria became the link between the rich Nile

and the Mediterranean world, the most important maritime and

valley

commercial

city of the Hellenistic age.

be seen from far away.

scraper, could

it

After Alexander's death,

made

Ptolmies, one of the Diadoch families,

enlarged

lighthouse, rising like a sky-

Its

stretched along the eastern harbor. This park was, in

first

for

city

all

park which

probability, the

park ever created. Alexandria became a seat of learning, famous

library; a great metropolis with

its

They

this city their capital.

and built themselves palaces connected by

the

capital of the Ptolmies until

its

mixed population.

conquest by the

It

remained the

Romans under Caesar and

Augustus.
'>

In the Far East, too, developing empires founded autocratic

cities.

The

most outstanding were Peking and Kyoto, the former capitals of China

and Japan. Peking was originally a

mander stood at its center, with the

The

camp.

tent

tent of the com-

and the army

tents of the generals

arranged in a geometric order around

it.

north-south orientation,

Its

based on a religious concept, was so completely carried out that later

layout was adopted for the imperial

much more

than a mere army camp.

dom

him knelt

imperial

emperor

honored him

sat

on

his

hub

of

throne facing

and throughout

the worshiping nobles,

his subjects, all facing north,

however, was

city,

stood as symbol for the

It

the universe. At important festivals, the

south. Before

The

city.

its

his king-

at their altars, even in the

remotest huts.

Kyoto remained the

before

its

Japan

capital of

place was taken by Tokyo.

for

The

divided into two parts with a wide central

street

is

more than

street.

city itself

to south

is

east to west.

a square,

of this

The

palace

fills

a wall.
this

enclosed area.

Each square

is

divided into blocks and

lots.

Versailles, residence of the

French kings, gave perfect expression

concept of absolute monarchy, represented in

XIV. The king was the

136

is

divided into large squares by streets running from north

and from

subdivided into

thousand years

At the north end

the palace ground, surrounded by a moat and

stands at the center of the park which completely

The

shape of Kyoto

glorified

its

to the

purest form by Louis

symbol of the monarchical system. His

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KIOTO

PEKING
137

palace stood at the head of the city as the king himself stood at the head
of his subjects.

The

city

was wholly subordinate

to the palace.

The

geometrical axial street system focused upon the palace and thus emphasized

its

Versailles,

importance.

however, was more than a place for royal aggrandisement and

amusement.

It

had

also a social-political function.

Louis

XIV had

ex-

perienced in his youth the drive toward independence through which

96.

HKRACLEA

the great nobles had endangered the

He

deliberately used the splendor

etiquette of court
courtiers.

With

of Richelieu

life,

to

and grandeur

the unity of France.

of his court, the rigid

transform rebellious nobles into obedient

this great political

who had

kingdom and

achievement, Louis crowned the work

originated the

movement

to

end the independence

of the great nobles, to reduce their power, and to unite France under one

supreme
138

ruler, her king.

'j**\

**<*\ <fc*4.

/%

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<

"i

'C

X
i
1

y
si*

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Vs
'*,.:

...c^

--

97.-98.

NAGASAKI

P/ flH

rt

rf

>-

efts- ,_,ci

f'/ew

139

Quite naturally, Versailles became the prototype for capitals of

Many

princes.
itations

on

show

princely cities

dwarfed

its

scale, like Rastatt.

Karlsruhe

is

one of

Some were

influence.

showing

some

also

one quarter of which

formed by the

is

other three-quarters by parks and adjoining

tural effects

The

have been achieved with

pattern of free cities

spirit of cities self-ruled

is

its

and based on

community, took advantage

buildings.

change became

made

possible

the

It reflects

community

a voluntary coalition of citizens.

these cities

may not have drawn

They

constituent parts to

its

meet the varied needs

tried to

The

and the public

make changes when

to

streets within the city and the roads which

city

and

its

agricultural en-

also organically developed.

organic order, like the geometric,

expresses the same

is

is

universal, appearing in widely

basic principles,

no matter

how much

it is

this

found,

expression

modified and diversified by the topographical features of particular

sites.

Let us consider some of the cities planned in this way, cities in

different ages

Of

and

the earliest

different parts of the earth.

Greek

cities little

remains except parts of foundations, on

which once stood houses and public buildings, and ruins of

Thera, which we have already mentioned,
it

of the

of the topography of the site in arranging the

separated countries and in widely separated times. Wherever

it

their plans

they had a clear conception about the city

communication between the

vironment were

prominence

Interesting architec-

forests.

Planning organically, they were able

desirable.

at

the center of a

is

defenses, carefully placed the fortification walls

city's

is

radial

ornamental plan.

arrangement, and the relation of

each other and to the whole.

The

this

its

Nine

the palace ground; the

city,

of an organic order.

The founders and builders of

as we would draw them; but
they wanted,

it.

toward the tower of the palace which in

symbolizes the omnipotence of the prince. This tower

circle,

originality of

Here, the palace of the prince

these.

the head of a city lying in fan-shaped formation before

streets are oriented

sheer im-

Others were adaptations, showing

clearly the inspiration of Versailles, but

creation.

territorial

already suggests organic principles in

built

on the part of the western

ancients,

is

is

city walls.

one of the best examples, and

its

plan.

coast of Asia

Heraclea, which was

Minor

called Ionia by the

another.

Ionia was a region of fertile land and natural harbors.

subject to unceasing change, as deposits of the river
built the land farther

once seaports, are

now

and farther into the

miles inland.

Priene were already blocked with

silt

The

sea.

But the

Meander

coast

was

constantly

Miletus and Heraclea,

harbors of

Myus and

the older

in ancient times.

Heraclea was located on a rocky mountain side on an inlet of the Aegean

140

99.-100.

CORDES

Plan and

Vie\

^.^K^"
141

This

Sea.

the

selected for

site,

Until

city.

it

safety, created difficulties in the layout of

its

became,

time of the Diadochs, a naval station,

at the

Then

Heraclea was of no great importance.

an increase in
walls

make

Very

little

size

and the

city

its

new function

necessitated

was twice extended. Ruins of various

city

method of fortification.
There were several outlying forts and an acropolis on the top of the
mountain to protect the city as well as the harbor and its installations.
us

it

possible to study the Hellenistic

of the city remains, but the reconstruction by Krischen gives

some idea

adapted to

of

how

the city looked to

its difficult

contemporaries and

its

how

Nagasaki, long the only trade port between Japan and the west,
at a

fisherman's settlement between two rivers.

It

was extended twice, and

its

new

Nagasaki's particular pattern

rivers.

Soon

parts

became

it

were

it

also a

also placed

determined by those

is

located

is

bay on the western coast of the island of Kyushu. Originally

city.

was

it

terrain.

was

harbor

between

rivers.

Until

the middle of the nineteenth century, Nagasaki was the only Japanese
port open to foreigners.

Since these foreigners were not allowed to live

were made for them.

in the city itself, artificial or semi-artificial islands

The Dutch
to the

traders, for

mainland by

example, were settled on Dejima island, connected

a bridge.

A similar island was provided for traders from

down

China. After Japan was forced to take

many

fluence.

World fame touched

the second atomic

bomb

Cordes was a medieval trading

World War II, when

upon Nagasaki and destroyed it.

southern France.

city in

hill.

As the

to enclose the growing

was added: Les Cabanas in the plain below the

streets in the old part of the city:

gate, a third

two main

streets

its

city hall, a

market square was covered with

from the weather. The

first

oldest part

hill.

it

was

walls which,

Later, a

city.

suburb

There were few

running from gate

between them leading from the western gate

and the market square with

it

Its

city prospered,

There were, consequently, three succeeding

one after another, were built

in-

the city at the close of

in history fell

stood on the top of a long-stretched

twice extended.

the bars against foreigners,

became Christians under European

of the people of Nagasaki

to the

few connecting cross

to

church

streets.

The

roof supported by stone piers to protect

extension of the city added some

streets parallel to those already there.

The

new

second extension, built on the

sloping hillsides, was separated from the older parts because of the topog-

raphy of

its

site.

The form

turally the natural features of

give Cordes

its

Like the Italian

142

character of the city emphasizes architecits site.

Houses similar

individuality; there are

hill cities,

Cordes

is

no

single

in shape

and form

dominating buildings.

impressive through

its

very simplicity.

101.-102.

HERRENBERG

Plan and View

143

Herrenberg was

medieval

a small

city in

the slope of a hill and bent around

southern Germany, located on

spur.

its

Its

bent

streets

were

at a

The few cross streets

down hill, some of them so steeply that they had to replaced by steps.
The city hall, with the market square, was nearly in the center of the main

uniform

altitude, following the formation of the site.

ran

street

which led

to the city gates.

The

up, the castle.

Above

with

city wall

it

was the church and,

towers no longer

its

still

exists.

Herrenberg's architectural character

parallel to the outerstreet.

mined by the gabled houses and

farther

deter-

the church above them.

Noerdlingen, also in southern Germany, was originally placed upon a

outgrew that

and had

but

it

city

could grow without limits on

site

to

be rebuilt on the

this

maximum

Since a circle encloses a

ran

It
is

new

site.

Its

of area by a

shape

is

hill,

The

plains below.

nearly circular.

minimum

of perimeter,

the city wall, following this shortest possible line, could be built less ex-

pensively and defended with greater ease.

Noerdlingen needed
tension

became

to

a ring

When,

like all

expand, the circular form was retained.

connected with those of the old

The

new

cities

The

ex-

city in various

new

ring were

ways and with the

city gates

wall.

we have

thus far considered have been diversified through the

influence of topography.

development.

The Greek

and the medieval

city of

on similar

Cities

graphical features, however,

of

cities,

around the circular nucleus. The old wall was

replaced by a circular street, and the streets within the

of the

growing

locations, with similar topo-

tend to follow similar patterns in their

Thera, the ancient Italian

city of

city of Sutri,

Bazas near Bordeaux illustrate this clearly.

them occupy good defense

positions,

All

and could be entered only by one

or few gates. Their street systems and the location of their public squares
reveal the

same intention

minds of

in the

fact that centuries separate

them from each

milleniums distant from Thera and

course, that the plan of a city

erected on similar plans

different

their builders, in spite of the

is

only

Sutri.
its

other, that Bazan, in fact,

It

is

should be remembered, of

horizontal projection.

Buildings

may be so different that they express quite

form concepts.

Organic planning does not rule out rectilinearity and rectangularity. This
is

well illustrated in cities planned by

Hippodamus and his school. Of

planned by Hippodamus himself,

and Rhodos, actually

known. But Miletus, planned before Hippodamus's time, and
Priene, planned after it, were good examples of what Greek tradition came
Peiraeus, Thuri,

very

little is

to call

"Hippodamian planning."

Miletus was a trading center, the founder of

144

many

colonies.

It

came

&*

103.-10-1.

NOl-.RIH.INGFN Plan

,ni,l

['/><<-

105.

THERA

106.

SUTRI

146

Plan

107.

BAZAS

108.-109.

MILETOS

Finn and Vine

under the influence of

Ionian

cities against

Persia,

and was destroyed during the

Persian rule.

Its

conquerors sought

to

revolt of the

wipe

it

out

as

a Polis, hut the few surviving citizens, strong in their faith in the eternity

of the polis, restored

and eventually rebuilt

Miletus stands on a peninsula.

At

its

their

community.

west side two inlets form

harbors and also divide the city into three parts.

The Agora and

two

the ad-

147

joining northern and southern markets occupy the central part. West of

Agora stands the council house with colonaded court in

the
of

it is

the

colonaded

Nymphaeum,

The

the city fountain.

front; east

markets are enclosed by

with compartments for administrative and commercial

halls

purposes.

The Agora and

the markets are determined by the rectangular street

block system, but they are not restrained by

Their

it.

size

is

and

adequate to

the purposes they served. Rectangularity does not necessarily force an axial,

geometrical pattern

dom. The

free

upon

the city.

arrangement of

its

Miletus

is

colonaded

developed with great

halls

and public buildings

made possible any desired change without impairing

harmony of the squares.
In addition to the geometric and the organic, there
city

type: the colonial city.

common

characteristics.

that of autocratic cities.

The
its

came

cities

is

the architectural

one more universal

into being for various

were always deliberately founded and, therefore, have

reasons, but they

certain

Colonial

free-

Their general pattern

is

geometric, like

But the pattern has new purposes and new

colonial city was never

dominated by the palace

center, as in Peking, or at

its

of a ruler placed at

head, as in Versailles.

geometric plan had one purpose: simplicity.

It

uses.

made

The

use of the

possible an equal

Wherever and whenever colonization took place,

throughout all the world and in all the ages, this simple geometric pattern
appears. Even colonial cities founded by people from cities built on an

division of the city area.

organic pattern followed the geometric plan.

The

tent

camp

simple terms,

of the

its

the colonial city and shows, in

nomads antedates

coordinating principles.

firmly established tent order

was one of the disciplining forces in nomadic

life.

Every person and

command or cogent
Encampment and decampment could, therefore, be effected with
swiftness and order. The tent and all its contents could be packed and

every thing had a place not to be changed without

reason.

In the Abyssinian tent camp, this

loaded in the shortest possible time.

order

is

not easy to comprehend.

military tent

Colonial

camp shows

Even

in

age.

however,

the same coordinating principles.

differences as well as general

cities possessed, of course, ethnic

similarities.

our own

Venta Silurum

(Silchester)

shows the traditional colonaded forum

Roman

colony in England.

at the crossing of the

Montpazier, a medieval colonial city planned

main

streets.

and built by the English

in

France, shows the two squares characteristic of the period, one for the

church, the other for the city hall.

citizen's

New
148

freedom

is

also the

market

Orleans, a French colonial

This second square, symbol of the

place.

It is

city, consists of

surrounded by arcades.
equal square blocks, but

110.

NOMADIC TENT CAMP

111.

MILITARY TENT CAMP

149

SILCHESTER

112.

it

has also the traditional French axis, formed by a street cutting across

the middle squares,

and leading, not

to a palace,

but to the church on the

public square at the Mississippi.

Cordoba

in Argentina omits the center block to provide space for the

placa, the characteristic feature of Spanish cities.

now

Let us

see

how

cities in their parts

and organic orders

the geometric

and

of planning affect

in their relation to their landscapes.

Let

us, for

purpose, take two cities similarly located on peninsulas formed by

this

river bends: Verona, a geometric city,

and Bern, organically planned.

Verona, founded by the Romans, shows in

Roman

of a

city.

its

pattern

all

Cardo and Decumanus, the main

the characteristics

streets, lead to the

The amphitheater and

most important survivals of Roman

forum, the Piazza Erbe, the market place of today.

the block

street systems are the

The city's geometric pattern wholly disregards the peculiarities of

The square blocks are spread over the peninsula and conflict

days.

the

and

site.

everywhere with the boundaries

At Bern, the
streets

run

formation

site

is

set

made

parallel with the river

smaller streets.

The

by the

river.

part of the organic plan.

Three main

and are connected with each other by

central of the

main

streets gains

importance by

its

width. Modest houses, expressive of equality rather than class distinction,

contrast with the

more elaborate public

The

pattern of Verona clashes with

with

it.

What

is

seems
150

to

it

that of

Bern

a disadvantage to the geometric order

vantage to the organic order.

enables

buildings.

its site;

to master

The

flexibility

is

in

harmony

becomes an ad-

and adaptablity

any location. Bern's pattern

be the only natural one.

is

of that order

so convincing that

it

A-

c.

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113.

MONTPAZIER

114.

NEW ORLEANS

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PT-I

CORDOBA
151

IKS.

17.

152

VERONA

I5ERM

Air Vieu

Air Vit

How

do these two concepts

planning influence the usefulness

<>l

the

<>l

Let us analyze the market squares of Karlsruhe and Luebeck to find

city?

the answer

to that question.

The market

square

at

Karlsruhe

radiating streets, leads to the palace.

made

Weinbrenner

by

main

pari ol the

is

Ii

is

axis which, like othei

part of the extension ol the eit\

The

the beginning of the nineteenth century.

at

number of squares of which the market square is the

Monuments
and imposing buildings on these squares give emlargest.
phasis to the axis. The market square is cut in half In this axis. Anothci

axis includes a

important cross street cuts

it

again.

The

square, therefore,

is

divided into

lour parts, an architectural arrangement which seriously impairs

The

fulness.

square diminishes

utility of the

to the

use-

its

same degree

as the

architectural intention dominates.

The market
ing to

square of Luebeck

function.

its

the city hall,

no

streets,

part of an organic city, developed accord-

separated from the main street by an extension of

It is

and from other

traffic

is

passes

by small blocks. There are no cross

streets

through

it.

The market

purpose freely and adequately. Behind the

Marien, the cathedral of the

square can

fulfill

church of

S.

icance to

the square without, however, diminishing

city,

its

high

city hall side rises the

giving architectural signifusefulness.

its

Can a monument or a statue have an intrinsic value and still be in harmony with its architectural surroundings? Must such a work of art always
be subordinated to the architectural composition of which

it

a part? Is

is

the placement of a statue subject to geometric or organic orders of plan-

ning? Answers to these interesting questions are suggested by two famous

equestrian statues: the antique statue of Marcus Aurelius
in

Rome, and Donatello's Gattamelata

they, as sculptural works, are affected

at

Padua.

the capitol

at

Let us consider

how

by their placement and by their

relation to architecture.

The

capitol at

Rome

was planned by Michelangelo.

We

shall

discuss

elsewhere his architectural composition and his contribution to the then

new

space concept.

The

statue of

Marcus Aurelius stands

the capitol square on a low postament.

Its

of a jewel, but this very setting diminishes the statues

value. It

seen as

it

becomes the center

of

its

its own diversity of light and

more natural background? Should

background

is

is

own

an architectural composition.

should be seen, because

center of

at the

admirable setting

It

like that

sculptural

cannot be

always an architecture

rich in

shade. But should not a statue have

it

clear sky, so that

The

its

own

Piazza del Santo

in

not stand, for instance, against a

sculptural values

may be

seen and enjoyed?

Padua, famous for Donatello's Gattamelata,

shows how organic planning allows each part

to

develop according

to

its

153

118.

KARLSRUHE

Market

Place. Vieiu

JUS

**

7 knH*.V hf, t w ft twhwhR

.

f^'^^i^teB

'-

?S

gfaKSlflfr-

iiMiA^'-tua

5U ^r',*' *'^
6

119.

KARLSRUHE

Main Axis

of

the

with Market Place

154

toiiMWi

City

[20.

LUEBECK

Market

Place. Vieu

121.

LUEBECK

Market

Place. Plan

155

122.

ROME

Capitol Square

MUllii

123.

156

PADUA

Piazza del Santo

own

laws and

remain

still

and

the Gatiameiata

surroundings

its

Marcus Aurelius

The placement

the whole.
is

age church of

The

Antonio.

S.

on

statue,

ol

in greai contrast to

Rome. The "L" shaped

in

no special significance; neither has the seven-domed

del Santo has

it

relation to

its

that of the statue of

that

harmon) with

in

high postament,

Piazza

pilgi

im

so placed

is

can be seen both from the Piazza and from the street which enters

the Piazza.

It

is

however, from the Via Capelli. From

best seen,

this street,

the equestrian statue appears high in the air. above the buildings of the

background

Piazza, against the neutral

The

of the sky.

relation of Donatello's magnificent sculpture to

church and the other buildings of the Piazza,

degree of

this perfection

Gattamelata's

staff,

is

shown

in

way

some small but important

that the statue

wilderness,

is

brought into

form relation

Piaz/a increases the sculptural values of the statue; the

statue gives to the Piazza significance far

The

details.

Sculpture and architecture enhance

to the architecture of that church.

The

The

lor instance, counteracts the falling lines of the gables

of the church in such a

each other.

surroundings, the

its

well nigh perfect.

is

beyond

its

architectural value.

untouched nature, can support man only

and inadequately

Man must

at best.

change nature

in small

numbers

maintain his

to

own

existence.

Each domesticated animal, each grain of corn, each vegetable

or fruit,

is

product of man's unceasing

man

nature serve

one of the chief aims of

is

taming of nature, which includes

civilization

nor culture.

making, or has

effort to

at least

Much

of

man

civilization.

what we

been transformed by
the geometric

Without

this

himself, there could be neither

nature today

call

is

of

man's

his effort.

Man's environment, therefore, becomes subject

order he has created:

To make

tame nature.

to

one of the concepts of

and the organic. Each concept has

found expression in man's division and use of agricultural land,

in the

gardens and parks he has created.

The

geometric order, with

conflict with

superimposing character, must obviously

its

nature everywhere, except perhaps on wide extensive plains.

Nature, with her mountains and

straight lines.
straight lines

She

is

and must ignore nature

nized agriculture, which would

to a hill-less, tree-less plain,

a landscape

fore

more

hills,

would,

efficient.

it

her lakes and

in conflict always with geometry

is

rivers,

to achieve its aims.

Today's mecha-

greatly prefer to have the landscape reduced

an expression of

this

geometric concept. Such

seems, be better adapted for the machine and there-

Nature, however, has her

own answer

takes her

own revenge on

pattern

disrupted, the ground water reservoirs dry up.

is

knows no

which depends on

those

erosion take their destructive

who hold them. As

toll.

to

such ideas,

the natural drainage

Wind and

water

In the end, the seemingly economical

plan proves to be completely uneconomical.

157

124.

GEOMETRIC LANDSCAPE

125.

ORGANIC LANDSCAPE

26.

127.

BADMINTON

Geometric Park

BATH, PRIORY PARK

Organic Park

The

parks and gardens of princes and nobles imposed on nature the

ornamentation of the geometric order. Their builders applied

symmetry of

the

concept, and,

their architectural

The

stereometric elements of the trees and the shrubs.

to nature

made

addition,

in

parks and gardens

they created were as formal as the palaces themselves. Trees were clipped

The garden became

into cubes, pyramids, cones, spheres.

a geometric

ornament with square, rectangular, wedge-shaped, round, or oval flower

Sometimes the

beds.

and make the abstract concept more complete.

Louis XIV, these concepts were realized on

to increase the artificiality

At

Versailles, the creation of

The whole

a grand scale.

was imitated

Versailles

many

these
a

was replaced by colored sand or gravel

grass itself

repetitions

countryside was transformed into a work of

all

is

Badminton

This

in Gloucestershire.

copy of Versailles, but an expression of the same

surrounded by geometric gardens.

spirit.

estate

Its

idea of forcing geometry

Baroque period during which

the Renaissance
villas

on nature, however,

is

much

became fashionable.

it

which admired and adapted

On

contained clipped shrubbery.

emperor Hadrian

at Tivoli

It is

The

it.

for the

Romans

to force

star.

older than the

older even than

Roman

gardens of

The

had geometric gardens, with

Forum

artificial lake. It

own

nature to their

already mentioned the removal of a hillside in

surfaces required for the

is

the terrace of Pliny's villa in

and hedges shaped stereometrically, and with an

means unusual

not

is

mansion

Tuscany, boxwood was cut and clipped into the shapes of animals.
villa of the

of

park grounds are traversed by

Its

twenty avenues, converging to one point like the center of a

The

art.

One

over Europe by princes and rulers.

of Trajan.

Rome

to

trees

was by no

ends.

We have

provide the level

We may assume that geometric

Roman

gardens appeared in connection with the palaces of the

emperors

in Constantinople, that they were known in the Near East and the Far East

wherever the geometric order was adopted and builders sought

form, not only the
If

city,

to trans-

but also the whole countryside into a work of

art.

the geometric order, always and everywhere, battles to force nature

into

its

achieve
serve

own

pattern, the organic order strives, always

harmony with

man

better,

nature. It must

and sometimes

eternal mystery, almost

as

its

unknown

tendency of the organic order

is,

work

and make use

and everywhere,

change nature

efforts fail.

to reach

agreement with nature

itself to diversities in

arable land as arable land, grassland as grassland,

eatine birds.

160

protects watersheds,
It
It

to the

topography,

which

It treats

beside them.

The

of the particular features of the land, the

position of the areas with

the geographical

It

to

make her

For nature remains an

climate,

woodland.

to

today as in the ancient past.

greatest possible degree. It tries to adapt

to recognize

to

lakes,

and

rivers

it

works.

woodland

by planting

as

trees

provides nesting places in trees and shrubs for insectuses

woods and

forests for the conservation of wild life.

harmony guides

This search for

also the

arrangement and subdivision

The

the land. Dividing lines and roads Eollow natural contours.

drainage pattern

is

thus maintained and the reservoirs

Chop

water preserved.

tween

man and

spirit of

the environment of which he

own

nature has a beauty of her

is

ecologically a part.

he-

Ins

The organic planner knows

The

Priory Park

harmony with

City architecture

nature,

Bath, in Somerset, proves

at

This

this.

in scale but not in pattern.

an enhancement of nature.

also

is

it

that

which, carefully developed, can achieve

park contrasts with the surrounding countryside

architecture which deals, not with single buildings or

is

groups of buildings, but with

all

the buildings which

make up

a city.

concerned with the relation of the parts to each other and with the

relation of each part to the city as a whole.

use of the material elements of the city.

order adequate to the

limited

means

goal

Its

is

tasks.

satisfying will

The more

be the

the creative

is

an optical

to achieve

City architecture has but

for the realization of such aims. Vet

be used in particular

more

objective

Its

physical order.

city's

clearly these limitations are recognized, the

the

conservation, prevailing everywhere, touches even the parks and

artistic values.

It is

maintain

organic order recognizes the interrelation be

gardens arranged for man's pleasure.

In

natural

underground

ol

rotation and organic fertilization

The

fertility of the soil.

ol

more

it is

true that the

more

can the means

effectively

completely the means are mastered,

results.

Means, however, are only means. Their mere application does not insure
Artistic ability will always be a

fruitful results.

such ability

is

innate and cannot be acquired.

determining

will always vary also according to the concepts of

relation between
ol

utility

the city architect

and beauty requires

must be the meeting of

recognize also, however, that what

is

sacrificing usefulness, transcend utility

factor,

and

Architectural expression
its

age.

And

the inter-

that always a conscious goal

He

needs to

for utility can,

without

utilitarian ends.

planned

and enter into the higher realm

of art.
It

was once believed that only the geometric order of planning could

effectively

develop

of organic cities

city architecture.

were considered more or

was regarded

order

itself

come

to realize,

The undeniable

as

however, that

cities of either

order
is

may be

We

have

built with or

not dependent on a par-

Both the organic and the geometric order may

influence the architectural expression of the city.

architectural problems

the organic

accidental;

less

devoid of architectural potentialities.

without architectural value. City architecture

ticular order of planning.

architectural values

and

offers

its

own

Each presents

architectural

its

own

possibilities

in

unlimited variety.

The

materials of city architecture are the city's

site

and

its

topography,
161

and the open spaces within and without the

the city's buildings,

means

of city architecture are, mainly, proportion, contrast,

The

city.

and perspec-

We

tive.

always

may consider and analyze these means separately, but we must

remember that they are inter-related, dependent one upon the

other.

Proportion

concerned with the relation of parts

is

whole

relation of the
is

to the

whole and the

The whole city within its landscape

The architect must consider this whole.

to the parts.

the concern of city architecture.

but he must also consider the parts the different buildings, the
the

open

spaces.

may be used

Proportion

make

and

large,

predominant

spatial factor,

object small,

making

group

spirited.

Deliberate

high and low, can increase or decrease,

dimensions. With perspective, proportion

at will, visual

streets,

a building or a

and grave or graceful and

of buildings appear solemn

contrast between small

to

making

may become

a small object appear large or a large

distant objects

seem

close at

hand and near objects

far away.

The

which

city,

problem.

exists in space, presents also a space

We

can-

not optically perceive unlimited space; only objects in space make us

aware of

it.

all ages.

But space concepts have changed

Spatial feeling has, however, influenced city architecture of

material and spiritual influences.

The

in those ages with changing

walled-in city of the Middle Ages

presented different problems and possibilities from the open city of the
Barocpie period.

The

space concept of the Middle Ages

is

expressed in the

high narrow naves of the cathedrals, whose loftiness symbolized aspiration

toward God. This

spatial expression

dematerialized light which

windows.

The narrow

bent

raised to mystical heights by the

through

streets of the

concept. Their view

is

of the cathedral,

own narrowness

its

is

penetrates

always closed.

the

medieval

high stained-glass

city reveal the

same

If

such a street leads to the tower

is

enhanced by the height

of the

tower rising above the houses.

The
tal.

space concept of the Baroque period

In spite of the artificiality of

open and
which was

its

away

to that

which was

in contrast,

open and horizon-

parks, the Barocpie city was always

in close relation with nature.

far

is,

Its

architects tried to relate that

close, as

did the landscape

artists in

their paintings.

There

are two kinds of proportion:

the relative and the absolute.

relative proportion, the relation of the parts to the

stant, regardless of scale.

in the Renaissance.

between

shaft, capital,

size of the

162

In

whole remains con-

This was the proportion sought in antiquity and

In a Greek column, for instance, the proportion

and base remains always the same, regardless

of the

column. In absolute proportion, the relationship between the

128.

ULM

Street with Cathedral

and the whole

parts

varies according to scale.

used in the Middle Ages.

short, but

its

capital

129.

Cathedral

This was the proportion

may have

medieval column

and base retain the same

COLOGNE

a long shaft or a

size regardless of the

length

of the shaft.

The

or increase the size of a building.

sance,
of

many visually decrease

Rome, built in the Renais-

application of relative or absolute proportion

its

is

S.

Peter's in

subject to relative proportion.

The

result

is

an optical decrease

dimensions, in spite of the contrast between the building and the

colonades which surround the square.

seem very different

Actually they are

in size

much

larger.

this difference optically, to the

Quite different

is

of

S.

Peter's

The

do not

close by.

use of relative proportion diminishes

disadvantage of

S. Peter's.

the effect obtained through the application of absolute

proportion, especially
small, high

The windows

from those of the Vatican buildings

and low.

if it is

combined with

contrast between large

and

Particularly impressive are the cathedrals of the

Middle Ages. The contrast between the unusual

the familiar scale of the small low houses
optical size

beyond

scale of a cathedral

which surround

it

and

enhances the

actual dimensions. Absolute

cathedral, increases

its

proportion, since

does not require that parts of buildings maintain an

artificial

it

its

relationship which at times creates a dwarfing effect, allows the

buildings and their parts to appear in their absolute dimensions.

163

"-,

130.

131.

164

ROME

St.

D.W/.K;

S.

Peter's

Marien

132.

DRESDEN

How

high the Marienkirche towers above the city of Danzig!

this edifice

make

The

Frauenkirche

is

smaller than

S.

appear larger than

it

Peter's in
reality.

Rome. But

The

its

In reality

absolute proportions

houses around

it

seem dwarfed.

windows of the church are in greatest possible contrast to the

small normal window of the houses. They seem oversized, gigantic. Their
tall

verticality corresponds

which

also increases

The Frauen Kirche

in

This building belongs

proportion.
slender

with the verticality of the church's architecture,

its

height, optically, far

Dresden shows the same

to the

rising high

therefore, uses relative

of the edifice,

its

tall

windows,

its

above the towers, depart from the proportions

Those elements are, in fact, subject

The Frauen Kirche, combining both codes

of the relative scale.

portion.

reality.

effect of visual increase.

Baroque period and,

However, certain parts

dome

beyond

proportion, achieves an extraordinary

to absolute pro-

of

architectural

effect.

165

133.

PRIENEF/an

I'RIENE View
166

135.

PRIENE

Agora

Horizontality and verticality, as means of architectural expression, arc

closely related to the

two kinds of proportion. Southern

ties,

generally,

preferred horizontality; northern cities usually developed vertically. Priene

and Luebeck impressively

The

site of

illustrate these differing architectural

the original Priene

been covered with the

silt

is

unknown. Perhaps

of the river

Meander.

its

remains may have

But the

founded under the influence, and possibly with the help

it

was supported by Alexander alter

city stood

136.

on

PRIENE

rhythms.

of,

city

was

Athens, and

his victory over the Persians.

southern slope of the Mycale mountains, a

re-

site

This

chosen to

Theater

167

137.

LUEBECK

Plan

138.

EUEBECK

Aerial View

168

[39.

LUEBECK

View from Marli

protect the city from the disastrous effect of the flooding

The new

site,

however, had

removed and retaining

its

own

Masses

difficulties.

east to west

and are comparatively

north and south, are so steep that,

by

steps, a solution

The

some

The main

least,

little
its

The same
offset

ground
streets

cross streets,

had

or no

public

to

re-

run

running

be replaced

traffic.

buildings.

and appearance; the public buildings, some

are very elaborate.

LUEBECK

The

places, they

quite possible in a city of

where wide-open spaces

140.

at

level.

houses of Priene contrast sharply with

are modest in size

the Meander.

rock had to be

walls built in order to gain the even

quired for the square and the public buildings.

from

ol

ol

of

They

them

at

contrast appears in the city's plan,

the narrowness of the

streets

and the

Holy Ghost Hospital

169

VILLENEUVE-LES-AVIGNON

111.

closeness of the houses.

The

architectural concept

horizontal masses of the public buildings, the

is

horizontal.

gymnasium and

The

the stadium

below, the colonaded halls and sacred stoa at the Agora with the temple
of

Athena above

character of the

it, all these elements

city.

The

emphasize the horizontal terrace

natural features of the

site

are not eliminated

or neglected, but, on the contrary, are emphasized architecturally.

city

is,

at

one and the same time, in contrast

complete harmony with

to

its

The

landscape setting and in

it.

Luebeck, founded in the early Middle Ages, stands on a low, long island
in the river

Trave. This island, shaped like a low

part, slopes gently to the rivers at either side.

of

its

site

quite naturally and convincingly.

possesses the
parallel

same

logic.

Two main

them or follow contour

island lead

down

church stand
acterized by

at
its

to the rivers.

streets

The

Its

its

middle

architectural elevation

run north and south: others

hall, the

The

market
city's

view from the

skyline, accented by groups of church towers

higher in

plan of the city grew out

lines. All the streets

The city

the center of the city.

verticality.

hill, is

The

east

running across the

place,

and the main

architecture

is

char-

shows an impressive

and high

The remarkThe towers in-

spires.

able grouping of these spires gives the city individuality.

crease in height from the south to the north. Churches with twin towers are

impressively counterbalanced by churches with single higher spires, an

effect

170

which reaches

its

climax with the northernmost tower and

its

upward-

142.

MELK

beating spire.

The

verticality of the towers

of other buildings:

is

matched by

vertical elements

the high gabled houses, the turreted city hall and

hospital, the spire-like roofs of the Holsten gate. All these elements

together to produce an architectural

Large buildings on
entire city

may be

politically.

are elements important to the city architect.

hills

set in contrast to

one dominant

the hill

itself,

on

cities,

visually as well as

Large

important architectural influence.

on the

coast of Asia

gives the city significance.

stretched terrace,

It

is

a hilltop, in

contrasts with the city below.

also exert
city

a large cloister

An

edifice or building

Villeneuve les-Avignon in southern France

At Melk on the Danube

Greek

of verticality.

Medieval strongholds dominated their

group.

may

harmony

blend

good example.

mass

edifices

as large as

within a

city

At Halicarnassos, a

Minor, the great tomb of King Mausolos

lies at

the center of the city on a long-

and towers above the houses

built in

amphitheatre

for-

mation on the lower slopes of the mountainside.

The

possibilities of perspective in city architecture are well

Piazza

and

Piazzetta of

S.

Mark's in Venice.

The

shown

in the

Piazza viewed from

S.

Mark's seems to narrow toward the rear because the palaces enclosing the
space slant inward.

The

feeling of depth

ing palaces reenforce perspective to

it

actually

is

make

thus increased, as the convergthe square appear deeper than

is.

171

HAUCARXASSOS

143.

One might
from the
'This

expect that the opposite effect would be apparent, that, viewed

far

end

of the Piazza, the square

not the case.

is

The Mausoleum

The

would seem shorter than

reality.

free-standing campanile has been so placed that

the shortening effect has been neutralized. Again an impression of depth

is

The campanile enhances

achieved.

nary extent by interposing

Mark's

itself

pushed back

between the observer and

that

S.

still

further because the campanile

The

visually.
at

is

Mark's, so

S.

illusion of depth

some distance from

S.

is

increased

Mark's and

considerable height.

rises to a

The

is

depth to an extraordi-

this effect of

Piazza

enclosed on

is

right angles,

is

The

sides.

all

Piazzetta,

open toward the Piazza and

also

which adjoins

it

at

The

toward the lagoon.

contrast between the two squares increases the feeling of confinement of

the Piazza

seems

to

and emphasizes the openness

draw into the

total spatial view,

lying opposite, but also the

The

world, the scale of

him

all

The

and whole

of art.

The

clarity.

city

within the city

The world was made

Cities became, or

cities.

was conceived

as

for him,

and

S.

to build-

were considered, objects

an architectural unity.

was subordinated to

Every element

this unity.

Pietro in

Montorip,

at

Rome, may have

new centric space concept. The same

much larger scale, in Bramantes' plan for

earliest realization of this

principle appears again, on a

Peter's

trend

believed himself the center of the

was a centric concept of space applied

result

Bramantes' Tempietto of

been the

Man

Such ideas inevitably influenced the space concepts of the

only.

ings, squares,

172

Piazzetta

remote distance.

measurements.

Renaissance.

S.

The

Renaissance replaced the mysticism of the Middle Ages with

toward rationalism and

for

of the Piazzetta.

not only the island in the lagoon

and

its

square.

In this plan.

S.

Peter's

is

placed in the center

*..-

vMHihr

-"

."

144.

145.

VENICE

VENICE

Ptazza

Piazza

s.

and

Mail:

Piazzetta of

S.

Mark. Air Vie

173

%s **s&&it%
:

146.

BRAMANTE

P/h

of a large square

/oj- S.

Peter's

and

its

square

surrounded by colonaded porticoes. At each side are

exedras, similar to those of the cathedral

The

itself.

square represents the

outline of the edifice and embodies the total symmetry of

Bramantes intended

S. Peter's.

an adequate

to give the great edifice

setting.

He

planned that the low colonades should, by contrast, enhance the importance of the

main building.

"outside", from the formless

ished

its

S.

was

Peter's

beyond which

to

be separated from the

so easily

might have dimin-

significance.

Antonio Averulino

Filarete,

Maggiore

one of the

in Milano,

sculptor
first

and architect

community

of

the

hospitals, also

Ospedale

worked on

plans for an ideal Renaissance city, central and symmetrical in plan.

He

called his city Sforzinda after the Sforzas, the ruling family of Milano.*

In plan, the city was to be like an eight-sided

star,

two equal squares being

superimposed with the diagonal of one square bisecting the side of the
other.

In the city's center, he placed a square with a tower.

West

of the

square would be the prince's palace; east of the square, the cathedral.
Sixteen streets radiated from the central tower, leading alternately to the
city gates at the

obtuse angle of the star-shaped

of that wall at

its

right angles.

crossed by circular streets

city wall, or to the

towers

In the plan, those radial streets are

and alternating squares and churches mark

the intersections.
Filarete attained two things in this plan.

symmetrical ideal of the Renaissance

means

for

its

defense.

He

174

realized the centric

and

and he provided the structural

even took into account the new possibilities

created as the introduction of

* Filarete,

city,

He

gunpowder changed warfare and,

Antonio Averulino: Trattate delta architettura. Vienna, 1896

conse-

quently, the defense needs

in Filarete's plan,

From

the city.

ol

the towei in the city's center,

cannons could be aimed along the

the gaics, to prevent with their

fire

streets radiating to

any enemy entrance into the

city.

he

triangular bastions, which resulted honi the star-shaped pattern, would

make

possible a flanking

fire to

prevent invaders Erom coming too

became the model

The bastions were used for centuries

the gates. Filarete's plan

Europe.

More

a circular city,

as

means

city o! the

lose to

cities

ol

defense.

itv

edifice

is

the ideal

This was to

from which
of houses

itv wall.

Renaissance found

its

two

realization in

Palma Nova and Grammichele. Palma Nova was

cities:

Another row

the streets, or rather the rows of houses, radiated.

concept of the ideal

of

in a perspective sketch.

dominated by an elaborate centra]

was planned to run parallel with the

The

fortified

all

concerned with defense

less

Fra Giocondo, here presented

city of

be

and

architectural in scope

lor

<

end

built at the

of the sixteenth century after a plan by Yicenzo Scamozzi, as a fortified

place for the defense of Venice. It

is

a nine-sided

an hexagonal square

tower

at its center.

the middle of each side of the hexagon, a

to the bastions.

Connecting

is

polygon

main

radial streets.

Some

Grammichele,
It

Today, no longer

in Sicily

outer polygon,

of the streets cross

The

smaller squares at some distance from the main square.

later extended.

with

From

street leads to the gates or

streets parallel the sides of the

and these are intersected by other

were

in outline,

placed on this square.

fortifications

useful, they are falling into decay.

was built a hundred years

later

than Palma Nova.

replaced the old town of Occhiola, destroyed by an earthquake.

lavout

more complex than

is

that of

Palma Nova.

hexagonal part with an hexagonal square

rectangular parts, each with
square, six

main

its

is

secondary squares and leading

a geometric composition, this

is

Piazza of

city.

impressive than Palma Nova.

As the Reformation gave

change

the hexagonal center

As

much more

static

From

streets radiate, crossing the

of the Renaissance

The

In addition to an

at its center, there are also six

central square.

out to the unfortified edge of the

city

rise to the

counter-Reformation, the rationalism

was replaced with the super naturalism of the Baroque.

concept of the Renaissance changed into a dynamic one. This

well illustrated by the successive alterations of the Cathedral

S.

Its

Peter's in

and

Rome.

The

centric structure, based on the Greek cross, conceived by Bramante

and maintained by Michelangelo, was nearing completion when the decision was made, under Pope Paul V, to substitute the Latin cross plan

suggested by Raphael. Carlo

Maderne added

central edifice, following the pattern of

II

the extension in front of the

Gesu, the church of the Jesuits

175

147.

FRA GIOCONDO

1.48.

176

Ideal City

FILARETE Sforzinda.

Plan

19.

150.

PA I. MA

NOVA

GRANMICHELE
177

MICHEL ANGELO

152.

178

ROME

S.

Frier's

Hi* Concept

Square

oj S. Peter's

and

its

sqi

D.

153.

in

FONTANA

Proposed extension of

Rome. This church

of

S. Petri's

Square

Gesu became the model

II

churches of that time, no doubt because

lor

now

concept of a church to which the counter-Reformation was

Michelangelo's plan, like Bramante's, placed

But

square.

this idea,

dynamic concept.

too,

The

become an entrance

had

Piazza

to

be changed

it.

returning.

Peter's in the center of a

S.

accordance with the

in

no longer surrounds the

plaza leading to

most of the

gave expression to the medieval

it

edifice;

This new concept,

it

it

has

should be

noted, permitted the use of terrain differences in the site which both

Bramante and Michelangelo had completely neglected.

The

vast impressive Piazza in front of S. Peter's

This Piazza consists of an

one

at

each end of the minor

axis.

by two semi-circular colonaded

fountains on either side.

The

The

halls.

is

eliptical area

In the center

rising of the Piazza enhances the

beyond

its

partly enclosed

an obelisk, with

main

its

S.

Peter's rises

north and south

sides.

front of the cathedral

far

architectural value.

Dominica Fontana proposed the extension

as far as the Castle S.

angelo's

is

is

trapezoidal extension toward

with the rising terrain, as do also the buildings at

This

the creation of Bernini.

with two trapezoidal extensions,

eliptical area

Angelo

Dome and Drum

at the

of the eastern trapezoid square

Tiber. This would have

visible in their fullness.

It

made Michel-

would have revealed

the whole edifice to the eye of every beholder with startling clearness.
179

~w
IpJQiOlD

Bfc.
151.

\T RS

The most
is

...
\I

impressive feature of Versailles, besides

the three streets which traverse the city

They approach

Their arrangement

in relation to the square

dominant tendencies

pomp and

its

and lead

front of the palace.

lor

?:?

l.LKS r?Vu towards the radiating streets

palace and

to the large

the palace and have

of the Baroque:

its

it

its

park,

square in

always in view.

and the palace

realizes

dynamic movement and

its

both
trend

display.

This magnificent expression of the Baroque dynamic space concept was

widely copied.
scale,

The

princely residence of Rastatt imitated

180

on

a smaller

Christopher Wren, drawing plans for London after the Fire, reduced

the three streets to two.

155.

it

VERSAILLES

At Karlsruhe, the number

of streets was increased

them oriented toward

to nine, all of

the tower

ol

the palace; each

ol

tin-

nine streets had an important view, together they symbolized the omnipotence of the prince.

no claim, however,

Versailles can lav

They

streets.

Rome

from

to the

invention of these impressive

Flamina which

are, in a sense, only extensions of the Via

Rimini.

to

traveler Erom the north entered

Porta del Popolo which led to the large Piazza del Popolo.
streets penetrate the city

The

The

optically diverge.
of

from

this Piazza,

obelisk, at the Piazza's center

opening

it

in

impressive view

is

KARLSRUHE

As the Piazza of

at the

Three main

three directions.

marks the point from which these

streets

accentuated by the similar domes

two churches, each standing between two of the radiating

156.

Rome

streets.

Original City

S.

Peter's indicates, the space concept of the

Baroque does

not tend to enclose an object of importance as the Renaissance did.

object

is

led

rather to lead to the important focus;

The same tendency

it is

dynamic

Its

in character.

appears in the arrangement of squares so that, in a

series of squares related to

each other by an architectural composition,

each, by reason of contrast, enhances the other, sometimes dramatically.

Most remarkable in
architect E.
limits

squares of Nancy, built by the

Here de Corny when Nancy was extended beyond its old city
There are three

under Stanislaw Lescinski, prince of Lorraine.

squares.
its

this respect are the

The

south side

largest, the
is

Place Stanislas,

the city hall

and

is

monument

nearly square in shape. At

At its
the square and

in a central position.

north side a lower building group encloses an extension of

181

leads to a triumphal arch.

a long rectangle.

narrowness of

de

to the Place

this rectangle

is

la

Carriere,

increased by two

rows of trees on either side of the square whose intertwining

parallel

foliage

The

This arch opens

is

trimmed

to

form cubic masses which

are. in themselves, archi-

tectural elements.

At the north end

right angles.

extended by semicircular parts enclosed by colonaded

halls

It is

and dominated by the

than the Place de

la

palace.

of the Place, another square lies at

Both end squares are more elaborate

Carriere between them.

creases the architectural value of each square

The
and

resulting contrast inalso of the total space

composition.

That

square need not be enclosed entirely, that

it

may be

partly open,

that openness itself can be a vital element in city architecture, these ideas

157.

LONDON

were

first

Plan by Chr. Wren

when he planned the capitol square

wide stairway leads up to the square's platform

conceived by Michelangelo

on Rome's Capitol

Hill.

on which three palaces

stand.

The

Palazzo del Senatore

the square, in the axis of the stairway

palaces are at either side.

The

and opposite

is

at the far

it.

The

end

An

imposing

flight of steps leads

high rusticated basement of the Palazzo del Senatore.

The two main

floors of this palace are architecturally united by Corinthian pilasters.

tower

is

palazzos,

They

of

other two

antique statue of Marcus Aurelius, on a low

postament, stands at the square's center.

to the

to

placed in the Palazzo's center, behind

its

main

front.

The

lateral

without basements, are lower than the Palazzo del Senatore.

are two-storied

lateral palaces are

and are unified by Corinthian

pilasters.

These two

not parallel to each other. Their divergence causes a

widening of the square toward the Palazzo del Senatore and a narrowing
182

IF^gRis

158.

ROxME

Plan of the City, Northern part with Piazza del Popolo

159.

ROME

Piazza del Popolo. View towards the three Radiating streets

183

160.

NANCY

Place Stanislas

161.

NANCY

Place

184

Royak

toward

its

The

opposite end, which remains open.

Palazzo del Senatore

thus becomes free-standing, so that the square opens also

The

beyond the square are brought into

open and enclosed spaces merge. According

areas

itself;

the Palazzo del Senatore should appear (loser.

its
t<>

widei end.
the square

to rules of perspective,

Actually, in spite

and the tower which emphasizes

greater height

at

relation

thai

because of the openness of the square, appears farther away than

The more horizontal formation

is.

The

this effect.

spatial

of the

A new

make open

to

The

Rome

something more.

is

to great

reall)

ii

simultaneously

freedom

in

had thus
planning

space a recognized and important architectural factor.

Capitol Square in

Paris

is

possibility lor city architecture

been discovered which was to lead eventually

its

palaces increases

lateral

confinement of the capitol square

sustained and suspended.

and

two

ol

height, the Palazzo,

is

It

The Place de

a city square.

is

la

Concorde

related to nature and surrounded by

Originally, the Place was outside the city limits,

its

in
it.

two large buildings by

Gabriel used to house ambassadors and royal guests. These two buildings
are

at

and
rises

and are

the square's north side

square

is

bordered by the Seine;

at its west,

tecture.

by the Jardin des Tuileries;

by the Champs Elysees. Behind the buildings and

Montmartre, merged optically

square.

free standing. At the south side, the

at its east,

witli the

far

away

parks on either side of the

The Place de la Concorde is, however, still dominated by archiThe symmetrical arrangement of its buildings is emphasized today

by the central obelisk, the two fountains, and the Madeleine, seen between
the buildings

and

far

behind them.

In great contrast to the arrangement of the Place de

the Place of the Admiralty in

St.

la

Concorde

Petersburg (Leningrad)

is

that of

Here the

large

buildings are freely arranged with no dominating axis. In connection with

the wide square

heretofore

itself,

this

arrangement achieves unrestricted openness

unknow n.

This tendency toward openness

is

characteristic of

Baroque

The

cities.

may be open and connected with its landscape and

was an important one. The traditional concept had

discovery that the city

even merged with

been that the

city

it

must be

a closely built area, densely populated,

wholly separated from nature.

Changes
this

development.

at their

Now

in the structure of the state

border

that concept could be

and

in the

methods

Only places

abandoned.

of warfare aided

The great states beginning to emerge had

lines.

and

of strategic importance

to

be defended

needed

to

be

Most cities could develop without the limitations of defense requirements. Older cities could expand beyond their walls; new hies could
be built with no thought of fortifications. Kings and princes saw these new
fortified.

possibilities quickly

and took advantage of them.

Versailles

and Karlsruhe
185

162.

ROME

\6i.

PARIS

Capitol Sqi

Place del

186

la

Concorde

demonstrated

that the

even interpenetrated

new princel)

could be closel) related

(ii\

by, the Landscape

around

princel) palace

changed

like the

more

becoming,

freely developed.

court.

itv

The

were built

Rome

of those cities.

typical.

open, outside the old walled-in

in the

with entirely

is

new

<

ities,

Usuall) the\

around an innei

The Baroque

cities, ol ten in

palaces

connect ion

new itv developments. There was no longei a

hamper them. They could he opened up. and the\

cities

space limitation to

more open and

located within

block, or part of a block, and were built

Pallazzo Farnese in

large buildings,

the time,

palaces, all

had been influenced by the space limitations

occupied

and othei

iiies ol

The Renaissance

and

it.

During the Baroque period, the

in character,

to,

or

could spread out.

At

Versailles, the central part of the palace, as well as the

ings opposite

around

between the three radiating

it

U-shaped court.

palace, however,

still

The

one

open and

built

contain enclosed courts.

vertical to

tower toward which

is

long wings added later on either side of the

At Karlsruhe, the palace has no courts

central part:

streets,

two large build-

all streets

it

at all.

Three wings project from

toward the north, ending

in

its

the palace

are oriented; the other two extending

at

an

angle southeast and southwest, each parallel to one of the outermost

radiating streets of the Ian-shaped

The movement

164.

BATH

I'iew

to free the citv

city.

from

restriction

and domination reached

from Hedgemead Park

187

KARLSRUHE

165.

its

logical

climax

here which

made

View of the City from the Palace

at

Bath in southern England. Something new was born

use of the spatial concept of the Baroque, but did so

without making landscape and buildings subject

to

geometric pattern. This important contribution was

lather

and

son.

Its

influence

is

greater today than

it

any super-imposed

made by

Both the Woods worked on the extension of Bath. This

Those springs had,

since the days of the

Woods,

has ever been.

city

quite prosperous during the eighteenth century because of

springs.

the

its

had become
therapeutic

Romans, given Bath

reputation for healthfulness. As the town grew into a fashionable health

<*:+*

166.

188

ST.

PETERSBURG-LENINGRAD

Place of the Admiralty

resort, its

no room

population increased and expansion was necessary. There was

for the city to

expand on

its

original plain.

the north had to be pressed into use. At

in the

conventional manner, the

new

first

in

an entirely new way. For the

open country were

to

extension was carried out

section being laid out with streets

and squares. But Bath kept growing. And

problem

this

The sloping land

it

first

built, not for princes,

began, eventually, to solve

its

time in history, homes in the

but for ordinary people.

Free-

standing, large, crescent-shaped apartment houses were erected on

the

sloping hillside outside of Bath.

.:.

189

The
the

spaciousness of those buildings was as remarkable as their relation to

open country. Freed from the

the Baroque, which cared so

formalistic, super-architectural spirit of

little

for function,

buildings could develop according to their

own

law.

those crescent-shaped

They broke

the tradi-

city and found harmony with the topography of

There was harmony between the city and the landscape. Both
were equal in value. Together they achieved unity between the artificial
and the natural.

tional

confinement of the

their site.

C. N.

167.

The

LEDOUX Plan

of the City of

Chaux

Chaux was planned

as

Ledoux. Although only parts of

it

city of

Chaux

kind.

and

its

is

an industrial

were

built,

it

city

located at the crossing of two roads.

two parallel

streets are eliptical also.

to the eliptical square.

The

by Claude Nicolas

stands as the

Twelve

Its

shape

first

is

of

its

eliptical,

short cross streets lead

outer street and the connecting streets are

planted with continuous rows of

trees.

The

square

is

surrounded by

free-

Here the workmen live.

buildings are placed along the major axis of the eliptical

standing buildings, with gardens behind them.

The

factory

square.

Between them are buildings

for administration.

necting streets extend beyond the outside eliptical

possible extension of the city.
It

bridges past and present, as

trying to

He
190

make an

was, of course,

Chaux was planned

it

unifies city

Some

of the con-

street, indicating the

for a

new way
7

of

life.

and country. Ledoux was not

architectural display; he was intent on satisfying needs.

hampered by

the architectural concepts of classicism to

which he contributed
an architecture

he tried

as well as a city, to

influences of the past,

The works

greatly, but

of the

autonomous

make

in

its

to

go beyond

lassie

ism. to plan

this architecture tree

Erom the

present right.

Woods and Ledoux brought

great accomplishment of the

<

to its logical

Baroque period, the relating

conclusion the

of the city to the

landscape, the penetration of the city by the country. Unfortunately, their

vision was lost as our industrial age piled together the industrial cities
today, with their

inhuman mass concentration and

of quantity without quality.

and open

space,

their conglomeration

Instead of grasping the great heritage of free

our builders adopted

city architecture of the past, as

flage the

all

the decorative elements of the

though they hoped successfully

unbearable ugliness they had created. Growing too

indiscriminately, the

<>l

modern

became more and more

city

to

last

camou-

and too

chaotic.

City

building became a lucrative enterprise, whose entrepreneurs had no other

aim but

We

heavily

are

to satisfy the

have a

all

may

fatal

upon

us.

need of the day with no thought of the morrow.

inheritance in our

Their harmful

too evident to us today.

cities.

effects

We

on our physical and

can undo

take decades to perform the tasks that

our own age,

as the ages that

structure appropriate to

Their inadequacies weigh

this

harm

social

being

only gradually.

It

must be performed. Yet surely

have gone before, will one day find the

its cities,

the pattern

expression, and the relation between city

and form, the architectural

and country.

191

t^*&M5&iGg&*3Sff*^**teSGt *,ec*t*i
168.

INDUSTRIAL SETTLEMENT

Planing Problems
The city

of

our day

is

unlike

of the past. Industry

all cities

and mechanized

transportation have forced change, and misunderstanding of the effects of

these

new means

has permitted cities to expand so abnormally that chaos

has resulted. Traffic hazards, noise, air pollution, blight and slums have
increased,

and danger

to

human

to think that the extraordinary

but destroyed the

real cause of
ical

to

city.

our woe

is

development. The

adapt

itself to

health and

life

has mounted.

itself,

however,

is

not to blame.

all

The

the failure of the city to keep pace with technolog-

an ancient pedestrian age has

city built for

the requirements of our motor age. This failure

lined by countless surveys

and

statistics

on

traffic,

is

failed

under-

accidents, overcrowding,
still

unable

to reverse

disastrous course.

Traffic

and parking

restrictions,

smoke abatement, slum

clearance,

never solve the problem that faces

city. Its

and the

This problem concerns the

total

solution requires the rearrangement of the city's constituent parts,

relating of these parts to each other properly.

tegration of the city with

The

us.

and

They can

other strongly urged reform measures are palliatives only.

street

its

and block system on which our

been the same

all

It

requires the in-

environs.

recorded history and probably even older.

192

strange

advancement of our technology has

Technology

slums, housing, disease, crime. But the city seems

its

It is

through time:

it

cities are built

The

serves to

is

as old as

function of this system has

group houses together

in

blocks and to connect

them

to each other

and

to other parts ol the

ii\

l>\

a street system. This system functioned relativel) well until the

made
that we

the motor vehicle

it

mobile requires

replace this

out

coming ol
and dangerous. The speeding auto
antiquated plan l>\ one which elimi

ol date'

nates, insofar as possible, the death trap intersection.

This implies that we need

with a

new

city

to replace the archaic

element, a new settlement unit.

unit should be such as to permit

parts of the city

and

The structure

general solution

their relation to each other.

and unhindered urban growth.

community

block or gridiron system

It

should provide

Ii

all

ol

ol

such a

the different

should permit free

framework

for healthy

life.

and recreation

Residential, working,
city.

The problem

each

its

to

is

areas are the

main elements

develop each area according to

proper place, and so relate

to

it

its

ol

any

function, give

other areas and to the whole that

no area exerts an adverse influence on any other

area. If these conditions

are met, the result will be a well functioning unit, in which related areas

are within walking distance of each other and the need for mechanical
local transportation

The
all

unit

is

we propose

decreased or eliminated.

fulfills

those requirements

the essentials of a small community.

Its size

walking distances which would nowhere exceed

The number

and contains within itself

would be determined byfifteen to

twenty minutes.

would be determined
and factories which are part of

of people living within such a unit

by the number of people working in

the unit. Density

offices

would vary accordingly.

factors also will exert a determining influence on its size. As each

would contain all the essentials of a community, its population
should be large enough to meet the social and personal requirements of
the individual, large enough to offer variety in work and in life, large
enough to support necessary communal, cultural, and hygienic institutions. But it should also be small enough to preserve an organic community
life, so that democracy might prevail and each individual participate in

Other
unit

community activities.
In such a settlement unit, the industrial area should be placed
side of the transportation line.

arranged,

first,

a green belt,

buildings for

On

the other side of this line

commerce and administration

on one

would be

located within

and then, beyond them, the various types of houses of the

The residential area would be surrounded by a park, its

residential area.

natural recreation area, accessible without crossing streets. Schools and

public buildings would be located in this park.

would become part

established between

of the landscape,
city

Thus

the settlement

and an organic relation would be

and country.
193

169.

SETTLEMENT UNIT
C. Local
F.

194

A.

Industry, B.

Main

Traffic

Line,

Highways, D. Commerce and Administration, E. Residential area,

Apartment buildings, G. Schools.

S<5#

C>

^Q\

\\

H'm
170.

UNIT DETAIL

171.

UNIT DETAIL

o^

A^r-:iQ\M^y

<&%

195

Theoretically, the shape of this unit

would reduce

would be

minimum

such propor-

a rectangle of

amount of street area required. Functional organization of the street system would bring about
differentiation of traffic routes. There would be residential lanes for
pedestrians only. There would be main highways for automobiles only.
The lanes would connect the houses with streets leading to the central
streets of the unit. Those central streets would lead to the local highway
and to the working area. The local highway would connect units with
each other, and it would also, at convenient points, give access to the
main highway. All streets within a unit would be closed-end streets; there
would be no through traffic within the residential area.
The working and residential areas in each unit would be so placed that
tion that

it

to a

the

people could walk to and from their work.

Suppose a

man

he wants to
a

man

The

question

is

always asked:

chooses to live at a distance from his work? Suppose that

visit

friends

should be free

who

live outside his

to follow his

own

own

unit? Obviously, such

inclinations. Obviously also, fol-

lowing them would involve use of transportation

facilities.

use such facilities under greatly improved conditions.

any community within

But he would

The

residents of

ribbon settlement would be, so far

as

time

is

concerned, no farther away from those of other communities than the

suburbanite of today

The

is

from the sprawling metropolis.

buildings within the unit would be varied. There would be

single family

homes and apartment

houses.

To

secure the proper orienta-

tion for these dwellings, the units themselves could be arranged at the

proper angle; or the

still,

streets

within the unit could be so arranged;

or, better

the lanes leading from the houses to the streets. Garages could be of

three kinds: community, group, or individual. In the latter case, pedestrian walks

which did not

cross those provided for

motor

would

traffic

be needed to give safe access to the surrounding park with

its

schools

for the children.

Such a settlement unit would meet any requirement that might

it

arise;

would be appropriate for any settlement of any size or type or topogIt would provide maximum flexibility within itself and maximum

raphy.

variation in

its

combination with other

units.

No

matter

how many

units

were combined, the favorable conditions within each unit would remain
unchanged. All the problems involved in the planning of settlements
could be solved.

perfect solution for the problems of the motorist

would be accompanied by a safe solution for the pedestrian. A framework

for community life would be established. Schools could gain new significance as they became small community centers, their auditoriums available for meetings, concerts, plays; their libraries offering books for adults
as well as school children; their large halls

196

providing space for exhibitions.

172.

SCHOOL

It a

number

of these units

were combined

a ribbon-formed settlement

would

would

traffic line,

lie

on one

side of the

in a

result, in

because the industries would have

If this

need did not

along the main

Some

arise,

a traffic artery,

which the residential areas

the industrial areas on the other.

Such an arrangement would make possible

so.

row along

room

to

free industrial

expand

if

development

they needed to do

there might be two rows of settlements

traffic line.

industries use part-time as well as full-time workers.

Part-time

workers might be enabled to supplement their income by agriculture or

horticulture on land

made

might

also

better,

connected with their

173.

available for that purpose. Full-time workers

have vegetable gardens, placed within the park area

own house

lots.

The

latter

or,

much

arrangement would,

SCHOOL PLAN
197

74.

ROWS OF UNITS
of course, tend to reduce density, a result often very desirable. In our study

which deals with

this

problem, we have suggested that there be regular

units of lower density, with vegetable gardens attached to the houses, and,
across

and along the highway, the commercial buildings and

also units of

still

They would

farms attached.

factories

and

another kind. These would contain houses with small

give the part-time worker excellent oppor-

tunity to supplement his income.

The

density of such units would, of

course, be low.

Countless complaints have been voiced about industrial air pollution

and
it

is

its ill

effects

as great a

on health and on property

crime

to

pour poison into

values. Doctors proclaim that

man's lungs

And yet many industries are,

The smoke, soot, gas, smell, and

poison into his coffee.

sity, air

polluting.

as

it

is

pour

to

by nature and necesnoise which emanate

from them are not easily controlled.

Could anything be done to eliminate such pollution? There are two
answers to that question, two methods urged as the solution.
techno-chemical devices; the other

is

methods, well handled, can achieve

ever, are very expensive

required

remedy

is

is

costly

to

results.

The

artificial

uses

artificial

methods, how-

and seldom wholly adequate. The machinery

install

and

to maintain.

planning the use of natural means

industrial air pollution.

One

planning. Both natural and

It

The

only truly efficient

combat the

evils

of

may, of course, be advisable sometimes

to

to

combine with planning some use of the techno-chemical means. Certainly

the possibilities
fully

The

and limitations

means should be studied and

understood.

only completely satisfactory method of mechanical smoke abatement

would be

to replace coal with electricity for

thing short of this

198

of these

is

power and

for heating.

Any-

made by

advo-

too often, in spite of the large claims

cates oi techno-chemical devices, amelioration mostl)

than the lungs and nose! Even

industrial nuisances other than

noise

would remain.

these in

The

its

lull

electrification

smoke and

planning can provide

()nl\

key to this solution

fulfills its

prevailing"

may he

is

rid

ol

a solution vvhi< h includes

own

and

to the

whole

that each

function without impairing that of others. Study of

which residential areas

in

protected from the air pollution of industrial areas.

diagram.

lution

gel

planning's goal: so to develop and relate the

wind patterns shows the manner

The distribution
in a

would not

Oases and smells and

scope.

different parts of a settlement to each other

part

soot.

the eyes rathei

foi

is

more or

in the sector free

Different

of the air pollution caused by industry can be presented

The accompanying diagrams show how

less

extended within

from

a circle.

the sector of pol-

residential area placed

air pollution will, obviously, escape its influence.

wind conditions

result in different patterns.

in different parts of the country.

Our diagrams

The

patterns differ

must, therefore, he worked

out for each geographical location.

The
as

extent of the polluted area depends on the kind of industry as well

on the direction and

velocity of the winds.

be taken into consideration.

It is

known,

These

factors

must

also

for instance, that the smell of

199

/
/m
176.

INFLUENCE OF WINDS ON AIR POLLUTION and

177.

INTEGRATED INDUSTRIES Wind

of the residential

200

the Shape of Settlements

Conditions Necessitate a Separation

from the Industrial Areas.

chocolate factories

may (any for several

up to ten miles.

miles; stockyards odors are per-

ceptible for distances

When

prevailing winds are so distributed thai the

se<

not exceed half a circle, a ribbon like settlement

wind shadow, however, covers more than

tionol pollution does

is

possible.

II

it

does,

half a circle, as in our second

diagram, only fanshaped settlements can be formed, separated from each

other by the extension of the polluted area.

These two wind diagrams show extreme

many

be

variations.

But no matter how

far the

a satisfactory solution can always be found,

178.

polluted area

may

extend,

and our settlement unit can

COMMERCIAL AREA

be used, although
to

Between them there can

eases.

wind

its

rectangular shape

may have

patterns as well as geographical

to

be modified according

and topographical conditions.

Integrated industries, by their very nature, need a greater

workers than other industries.

If

number

of

the pevailing winds are favorable, the

residential areas for workers in stub

industries can be placed within

walking distance of the industrial area.

If,

however, the prevailing winds

we must remove the residential area beyond the area

of air pollution. This would mean connecting industrial and residential
areas by some mechanical means of transportation. Integrated industries
need not, however, form an uninterrupted ribbon. They cotdd. if their
do not permit

this,

character permits, be placed in groups of limited area.

dispersal

would be greater protection against

One

result of such

air attack.

201

The

units themselves

and the rows of

tain everything a small

community

units, single or double,

needs. Large cities

however, have their

own more complex

tor example, special

commercial areas to serve their

of the surrounding countryside.

main

side of the

on both

two-sided, there might be a railroad in the center,

ways on either

side, to

which

They must
own needs and

have,
those

placed, like the industrial settlements,

route, or

traffic

and metropolises,

requirements.

Such commercial areas might vary greatly

They could be

in their contents.

on one

would con-

local

sides of

If

it.

they are

supplemented by high-

highways could be joined. Commercial

and stores would then be placed along the local highways,

from one side to cars and trucks, and from the other, the res-

buildings, offices
accessible

idential, side to pedestrians.

Parking space could be provided by parking

or by garages under the commercial buildings. People coming into

lots

the area

on

foot could shop at their leisure, undisturbed by

residential area adjoining this

who work

The

traffic.

The

commercial center would house the people

in that center.

lay-out of industrial

and commercial areas depends on

quirements which vary with each individual

however, certain

facts are constant.

case.

These have

special re-

For a residential area,

to

do mainly with pop-

ulation density, and with the effect of sunlight and

penetration into

its

living rooms.

Population density

problem insofar
of people

life

as

it

and

is

as

it

both a social and a hygienic problem.

determines the type of building erected and the

who occupy

affects the

those buildings.

It is a

hygienic problem insofar

health of people by controlling the

air available in each

The main

needs of the people

We

amount

of space, light,

housing unit.

consideration in building our

exploitation of land.

It is a social

have had

who must

little

up

cities,

to

our time, has been

regard for the social and hygienic

live in those cities.

The

one-family house,

always recognized as the ideal form of family dwelling has. therefore,

been rejected in favor of constructions promising greater return on land

investment. Feeble attempts to cope with the evils of too great population

made through zoning laws, but these

wholly inadequate. They have not prevented, indeed,

density have been

prevent, the increase of population densities in

an extent that

social

them wide variations

in

are over-populated sections, where the density

greatest
in

202

and physical

our large

the same

cities to

such

diseases

population density. There

is

often so high as to cause

whose alleviation

problems of our time. There are also sparsely

cities,

they could not

and hygienic requirements are completely forgotten.

All cities have within

the social, moral,

all

laws have been

is

one

of the

settled sections

where density decreases sharply, where houses are

<ff

WINTER
50LSTICE
DEC. 21

APPROX

llt-Si.*-1

5PRINC

SUMMER

179.

TALL EQUINOX

SOL5TIC
JUNE 21 APPROX

5EPT.

2\

C MAR. 21

SUN CHARTS INDICATING THE ALTITUDE AND AZIMUTH ANGLES FOR LATITUDE
Winter and summer

December

Spring and Fall

Equinox March 21 and September 21. Approximately <>nr degree of the
altitude angles must be substacted for each degree in mote northerly
latitudes,

and added

built farther

solstice

for

more southerly

and farther apart

21

and June

21.

ones.

until the city loses

its

urban character and

gradually assumes the aspect of open country.

How

great a degree of density

is

consonant with good

city

planning? In

what ways does population density dictate the structures and arrangements suitable for

good settlement plan? What

factors related to density

mind as we plan?
we have dealt thoroughly with the problems of orientaand density and their inter-action. Here we shall make only some

must we keep

in

In other studies*,
tion

general and supplementary observations.

Raumdurchsonnung, Raumdurchsonnung und Siedlungsdichtigkeit. Moderne Bauformen,

& 1936. The New City, Chicago, 1944

Stuttgart. 1935

203

42

I80.-18I.

180.

181.

DIAGRAMS OF SUN PENETRATION ON DECEMER

EAST EXPOSURE

10 A.M. -12

SOUTH EXPOSURE

10

21

Noon

A.M.- 12 Noon

on December 21 an"<A South Exposure the

ivith East Exposure at a minimum.

.sun in a

room

is

at a

maximum,

Three diagrams with their respective apartment plans demonstrate the

on density, relating orientation, hours of sun penand number of stories. By an east-west orientation, lour hours

effect of orientation

etration,

of sunshine

may he

east orientation.
If,

attained with lower density than by a south or south-

For three hours

it

is

nearly equal for

all

orientations.

however, we reduce the duration of sunshine to one or two hours,

more advantageous than south or

south-east orientation. This assumption is however erroneous. At four
hours of sun penetration on December 21st, which is the criterion, the
the east-west orientation seems to be

204

DIAGRAMS OK SUN PENETR A ION ON [UNI

182.-183.

182.

EAST ENPOSURE

183.

SOUTH ENPOSURE
On June

21. with

would

A.M.-12 Noon

A.M.-12 Soon

South Exposure the sun

East Exposure at a

density

room

at a

minimum, with

The amount

less

than half that for

of sun penetration into

east-west would, in spite of decreasing density,

than for those with south or southeast orientation, because

less

the sun strikes the building at a flatter angle

the

rooms

To

gain the

and the facade rather than

gets the benefit of the sunshine.

maximum

must be determined
Sunlight

is

be, for the east-west orientation,

rooms oriented toward the

be

in a

Maximum.

the south or southwest orientation.

still

21

is

benefit of sunshine,

at critical

its

penetration into rooms

hours and at each season of the year.

available at a low angle

and

for a

minimum

time (approx205

SOUTH ORIENTATION

EAST WEST ORIENTATION

SOUTHEAST ORIENTATION

I
L
.

*"

4
j
i
t
t

?-

-i

:?'

j;
,<

-Z
2
/

z
Z

I
t

r_,

[7
tr
_r

II

-_-__,

,-'

/-

_,

r
7

PLAN A

184.

EAST-WEST ORIENTATION

Effect

imately four hours) on

its

of

their

is

21st.

maximum

206

respective

'

'

,1,

apartment

At the summer

'

Jp

plans

solstice

it

reaches

very low at sunrise in the northeast and

northwest and has a very high angle

rooms should, therefore, be oriented

a

Orientation

December

greatest duration; the sun

at sunset in the

PLAN B SOUTH ORIENTATION

THREE DENSITY DIAGRAMS

Demonstrating the

at

noon. All major

in a southerly direction to secure

penetration of sun in the winter and a

minimum

penetration

PLAN B

40 PEOPLE

"LAN

120

plan a

PEfi

ACRE

PEOPLE PEP ACRE

PEOPlE PER ACRE

i60 people

per acre

200 people per acre

^a

a
240 PEOPLE PER

i^tr

a~-

PLAN

PLAN A 300 PEOPLE PER ACRE

200 PEOPLE PER ACRE

plan c iSO people per acre

3E

3E

Hi

185.

it

APARTMENT BUILDINGS
and

in the
east,

their Effect

with

different

Plans

on Density

summer. Bedrooms might be oriented toward the south or southto a southern exposure. Living rooms

which would be equivalent

could be oriented southeast or southwest, preferably both. This

in every tree-standing house.

Bedrooms might

face east.

No

is

possible

room, how-

ever, should face west.

207

'

II

186.

EFFECT OF DIFFERENT DENSFFIES

208

on the Plans of Houses

ii

ii

few; >Si?****".

flfe

i.

*p
*

187.

To

^-

__

L-SHAPED HOUSES
achieve satisfactory conditions in housing developments

of zoning. If

we want

to achieve certain social

nection with population density,

we must

is

problem

and hygienic ends

in con-

strive to influence the factors

on which density depends. Building and zoning laws are means to these
ends, but such laws, up to now, have served merely to prevent the worst
abuses of buildings. They have given no constructive aid to real solutions.

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188.

HOUSES WITH VEGETABLE GARDENS

209

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189.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF APARTMENT AND HOUSE PLANS

We

shall

have

minimum requirements if we are to

One must be that dwellings be so insolated that

to establish certain

have adequate buildings.

the precious winter sun

is

utilized to

its

fullest extent.

There should be
where rela-

laws also limiting population density. In southern latitudes,

tively

higher densities are possible with sufficient insolation period, special

would be required.

laws limiting density

Far-reaching improvements can be achieved by laws based on such min-

They can encourage

imum

requirements.

to the

needs of people.

No

matter whether we planned a one-story building

210

would have

to

obey the

restrictions, very great

freedom.

or a multi-story one. the building

would have, within these

the erection of dwellings suited

laws.

But we

190.

PLANS OF CURVED APARTMENT BUILDINGS

191.

PLANS OF BENT APARTMENT BUILDINGS

211

192.

STUDIES OF ARCHITECTURAL VARIATIONS

by Maintaining the same Density

Multi-story buildings do not have to be rectangular in shape.

be greatly varied and

tion.

of

The

still fulfill

They can

the requirements of the desired orienta-

curved or bent apartments illustrated here are not expressions

some fancy whim. They are rather

practical results of structural con-

siderations. If apartments located along a corridor are to receive direct

sunshine and have cross ventilation, there can be only one row of apartments.
set also

The depth

of the building

on the number of

floors

is,

therefore, restricted,

which can be

curved or bent building, the possible number of

212

and

a limit

is

safely constructed. In a
floors

is

increased, be-

193.

STUDIES OF ARCHITECTURAL VARIATIONS

by Maintaining the Density

cause the bending or curving gives the structure greater stability. Such

buildings possess

still

another advantage. Each apartment in them has a

and unrestricted view, impossible

running parallel to each other.

free

To show how

high density as well as orientation

architectural character,

them
on an

to provide in rectangular buildings

we have taken four

six different studies. All have the

acre. All contain the

may

affect a settlement's

and developed on
one hundred people

city blocks

same density:

same number of apartments.

It

would seem
213

unavoidable that tne restrictions of orientation would result in monotony.

However,

we

as

shall see, there

within these limitations, freedom to

is,

plan with flexibility and variety.

The

first

study, with

apartment houses,

is

its

rows of two-storied

six south-oriented parallel

without doubt very monotonous.

The

second, which

doubles the height of the buildings and thus can double the distance be-

tween the rows

The

is,

third study

in spite of this,

monotonous

also.

quite different in scope. Here

is

been concentrated in two multi-story buildings.

all

apartments have

The apartments

are or-

iented toward the south, the south southwest, and the south southeast.

Their concentration

The

fifth

maximum

results in a

an openness in striking contrast

study makes this openness far

with narrowness. Here the

of

open

space, giving the plan

to the narroAvness of the first

number

more

effective

of apartments in the

it

buildings has

been decreased and the height of those buildings reduced.

One

studies.

by contrasting
tall

have been added rows of two-storied apartment buildings.

trast results:

two

And

there

double con-

created by the differing heights of the buildings, the

other by variations in spacing.

the higher buildings

is

now

The

large

open space

in contrast to the less

in connection with

open space between

the rows of lower buildings.

The

fourth study uses only

tall

buildings of varied shape, with apartment

orientation toward the south, the south southeast, or the south southwest.

Here again

is

double contrast:

a contrast

between the buildings, and

a contrast of space shapes.

The
is

final study, in

opposition to this formal, almost ornamental, solution.

very informal. Here buildings of varied height and length are placed

with reference to the shadow areas behind the buildings.

insolation

is

everywhere secured. Such a scheme

arrangement of buildings, and opens

Two

of these studies, the fifth

proper

results in a very free

possibilities for

and the

The

wide variation.

sixth, reveal extraordinary poten-

With
sizes and heights, they overcome
the monotony which seemed unavoidably connected with the requirements of orientation. They create architectural contrasts and a feeling of
spaciousness. The fifth study, however, does even more. When we apply
its underlying principle to a larger area, we begin to glimpse the possibility of achieving a new human environment. If we reduce the density
tialities.

their buildings of differing

by replacing the two-storied apartment buildings with single family

homes, we arrive at a solution which provides spaciousness, and provides

privacy as well.

Here are

single

homes with gardens

for families with

children; here are apartment houses with their free view over those gar-

dens for single people or childless couples. This mixed type of settlement
truly meets

214

human

needs.

It offers

man

perfect freedom to choose the

'

'A

-**-

mo*
4

SMALL COMMUNITY

194.

ST

Tf

j!*jVfw
*S*uSSi

it

**

X?

r^ S "'

fcjTw-j

re :.'>-

1:^.17 1, J. "i. -J

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*~^%

*.

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wf *^I |Vla
mfirj*?
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>

*,*

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'10

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&VM
3^ *

\*;i ?"<rt
J '\

"" "*

*"*

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i>\

bcV'V*'*"*! Vf"

'IV''' :%< 1

''"

v83

>

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ii'''><w

195.

-.-'-.*-.

"*t-

:'

'"'

..*

1$ r.^^&JU&4?a: 'S&

f .*

J^.--v--i.i:-:.: _ >._

>.?-

'

c --

^fMP"**-^

LARGER COMMUNITY
215

kind of dwelling he prefers. This may well foreshadow the community

of the future.

The mixing

of different kinds of building also has great architectural

and settlements here illustrated, the conand height, in shape and funceach other and to the enclosed or open space

value. In the building groups

trasting effect of buildings varying in size

tion, in their relation to

around them, presents new architectural

and

tions of orientation

possibilities.

In spite of

restric-

density, great variability of architectural

com-

position becomes possible.

The

settlement units

combined

into

we propose and

communities and into

their various derivations can be

city aggregates.

contains the essentials of a small community.

Each unit

in itself

combination of units

A city aggregation, combining

would be a diversified city. It would have
its special commercial area, and the administrative, educational, and cultural institutions which would meet its special requirements.
All communities include a working area which, as in the unit, provides
space for industry and commerce and also for parking. Such communities
might consist of any number of units. They would not be mere rows of
units, but would be limited in size, affording opportunity, however, for
would create a more complex community.
the elements developed,

all

the addition of
nity

were not

new

units as need arose. If the industries of such a

commu-

the industrial units could be located on

air polluting,

either side of the highway.

however, the industries of the community were air-polluting, they

If,

would have
studies.

be removed and placed

to

To

as

suggested in the wind diagram

the fan-shaped communities thus formed could be added

other non-air-polluting industries, with their residential units arranged

in

many

variations.

City aggregates could be developed in endless variety.

We

will describe

here two variants only: a somewhat formal one in which everything

more or

less

fixed;

and one

flexible

enough

to

make

is

possible any de-

sired change.

The one
areas.

On

its

On

aggregate used in

one

side of the

other side are,

ill.

main

first,

239 shows the arrangement of the different

traffic line

of units with non-extendable industries,

able industries.

with the main

The

and

216

still

farther, a

row

of extend-

which connects the

city aggregates.

These aggre-

any distance from each other. They might be adjoined

or surrounded by small farms, which would

of industry

and then, beyond, a row

areas are all connected with each other as well as

traffic line

gates could be at

are the air-polluting industries.

the commercial area,

make

possible the integration

and agriculture. Workshops could be provided

for the people

"-/'

*J
i

;zfj??p'***%

196.

197.

SMALL, FAN-SHAPED

COMMUNITY

LARGER FAN-SHAPED COMMUNITY with

Air Pollution and Related Industrie,

217

living

on these small farms, or they could work part-time in one of the

industries of the city aggregate.

The second
therefore,

more

Each of

useful.

new

parts by the addition of

of

The

row.

its

used in

city aggregate

its

ill.

240 seems

be more flexible and,

to

parts can easily be extended: industrial

units; the

commercial part by the doubling

second commercial row might become an administrative

or cultural center.

The

various working areas are here so located that

they are directly accessible from the areas of the small farms where part-

time industrial workers

necessary in a

Rural areas

city. It

as

Such a

live.

city

aggregate would possess

would have the added advantage

As more and more farms increase in

is

of decentralization.

unemployment problems.
become specialized and mech-

is

in

size,

jeopardy because

the great farm operated on an industrial basis.

it

On

cannot compete with

the large farms

much

done by migratory workers. New problems arise

problems must be solved if agricultural production is to be
and life continue to be good for the people who live on the

of the seasonal

stabilized

that

well as industrial cities have

anized, the family-sized farm

and these

all

work

is

farm.

As ruralization of the

city

would help

so also urbanization of the country

to solve

may

some

of the city's problems,

well be an answer to

some

of the

country's problems.

In any region there are usually several types of farm: the large farm pro-

ducing staple food; the subsistence farm supporting

a single family; the

small farm supplementing the livelihood of part-time industrial or migra-

Workshops and small

tory workers.

small farms of the

last

two

might be connected with

would increase the opportunity

factories

types; they

the
for

adequate earnings.

The

decentralized city aims to supplement industrial with agricultural

work. Rural planning aims to supplement agricultural with industrial

work. In both

dons

for all

cases, greater satisfaction

workers would

The planning

and more

result.

elements we have been discussing are only abstractions.

have kept them abstract in order to demonstrate

ciples,

and

tions in

to

stabilized living condi-

keep them

flexible

communities and

and adaptable

city aggregates.

We

their underlying prin-

in their various

combina-

In reality, these elements will

always be subject to modification by special natural features, by topography, and by

Let us

now

soil

conditions.

consider, with the use of the

accompanying

architectural possibilities of these structural elements.

are unlimited in their variety.

218

illustrations, the

These

possibilities

The

plan of a city

reality.
il

we

The

is

the horizontal projection oL

Both are aspects of the

are to achieve the ends

city.

we

its

mainly with the location of various

city areas, their

other and with the city as a whole by

three-dimensional reality.

much

mind

ot

Our

how

detail. It deals

connection with each

a traffic system.

however, always have some conception

its

in

seek.

usual city plan, quite naturally, does not go into

appear in

three-dimensional

Both must be kept constantly

The

his plan

planner must,

will eventually

settlement unit and

derivations simplify, not only the structure of the

city,

its

hut also

various

its

archi-

219

(9.

-'.

-.'-"

PARK BETWEEN SETTLEMENT UNITS

with

Community and Apartment Buildings

tectural problems. Because these units are limited in size, they can easily

be comprehended and conceived in their architectural entirety by any

planner with imagination.

It is

both structurally and architecturally important where what

Unless this fact

is

where everything

located.

understood, the result can only be optical disorder. Only

is

considered both structurally and architecturally

optical order attainable. City architecture

as

is

something superimposed on the

city. It

is,

however, not

to

is

an

be regarded

should grow out of the nature

* r ^a*** S7jr **

200.

COMMUNITY AROUND
220

A LAKE View

Only then

of things.

part has

its

will a free

development be

proper place according

parts together

form

to function

possible, in

which ever)

and importance, and

all

coherent ordered whole.

The spaee concept of our age tends toward openness and breadth. The
mixed type of building we have proposed provides means for the realization of this space concept. The single-family house, most desirable for a
family with children, should be unpretentious, built on one level, located
in a garden, and hidden by shrubs and trees. Community buildings and
apartment buildings

importance through contrast

will gain

to these

homes.

<*

201.

FAN-SHAPED COMMUNITY

Apartment buildings,
fere

tall,

View

free-standing, spaeed so that they

do not

inter-

with each other but assure a free view from each apartment, could be-

come important

Two

architectural elements.

illustrations

show how

this

ment buildings dispersed over

might be done. One shows uniform apart-

the residential area.

The

other shows build-

ings similarly dispersed, but these buildings differ in size, shape,

height,

and thus present

a quite different architectural

and

appearance. Those

apartment buildings might be combined into groups and located in parks

adjacent to or surrounding the settlement units. Because there are relatively

few of them, the

tall

buildings, whether dispersed or grouped, will

gain optical and architectural significance and will emphasize the feeling
of openness

have their

to enjoy the
to the

and

and breadth. People

own

living in the single-family houses

gardens; people living in the

tall

would

apartments would be able

view over these gardens, a view extending out over the parks

landscape beyond with

its fields,

pastures,

and

forests, its hills, rivers,

lakes.

Buildings for other than residential use can also contribute to the open221

202.

ing

UNIFORM APARTMENT BUILDINGS

up

of the city.

Two

dispersed within a Residential Area

variations of groups of dormitories, fraternities,

and apartment buildings planned for the Illinois Institute of Technology

show how this can be done. These buildings, differing in size, shape, and
height, are planned for a densely built area.
strates

that,

Their arrangement demon-

even under such adverse conditions, spatial aims can be

realized.

The

buildings for the Illinois Institute of Technology are relatively close

together. In contrast, the project for the University of Berlin

is

less

dense,

more open, and more diversified. The University is located within a

wooded area at the western outskirts of the city. North of the highway
leading into the city, are the departments of liberal arts, humanities, and
natural sciences. South of the highway, are the medical school with
hospitals

and the

institute of technology.

The

its

prevailing three-storied

classroom buildings contrast with lower buildings planned as auditoriums,

libraries, laboratories,

ings of each

and with the covered walks which connect the buildcourts. High above these buildings tower

group and form open

the dormitories, placed in front of the courts.

The

view from the highway bridge reveals the same idea

as that

lying the architectural development of our settlement units.

203.

222

DIVERSIFIED

APARTMENT BUILDINGS

under-

Here only

within a Residential Area

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PROJECT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BERLIN

t.-

the

tall

dormitories set back from the highway are visible. Like the

tall

apartments of our settlement unit, they accentuate the view and give

it

significance.

We

have become more and more concerned with widening and opening

the city and merging

We

are helped in

II

we achieve our

eventually, with the

open space

of the landscape.

this endeavor by certain forces tending to dissipate the

confinement of the
of his health of

it,

city, to liberate its

goal,

man

will again

body and mind, and

buildings from the

city's

be linked with nature,

to the benefit

narrowness.

to the benefit

and health

of society

as well.

225

Our

cities

How

must be changed.

can we change them?

How

can we elimi-

nate their defects and so transform them that they meet man's need for
health and safety? Could
city the

we

achieve this end by applying to the existing

planning principles we have established? Could we, in

this

way,

transform a city into a well-functioning organism? Could we, in so doing,

create lasting values?

Those questions, we
is

needed

is

firmly believe, can all be answered in the affirmative.

made and presented demonstrate

Studies already

the possibility. All that

a comprehensive plan, within

thing built, including

traffic

which every change, every new

could be integrated. Each step taken

routes,

would be an accomplishment in itself, serving the present and pointing the

way to the future. Gradually the whole city could be transformed.

To

illustrate this process,

we

parts of the city, to discover

Then we

shall

shall first apply

our planning principles

to

what might be achieved by such application.

apply the same principles to the replanning of whole

First, let us take a residential area in

Chicago.

Its

layout

is

cities.

determined by

the usual grid-iron system, characterized by numberless intersections. Con-

nected with this residential area

many

the

street intersections,

to this park,

and even

is

a park, its recreation space.

however,

to their schools.

it is

This could be done

If,

go

and schools without crossing

It

would then be

a single traffic street.

at relatively little expense.

however, we took one farther step and eliminated a number of blocks.

we could extend

the park and bring

it

into closer connection with the

residential area. Schools could be located in the

would everywhere

prevail.

new park

Such a solution comes very

posed settlement unit. But there Avould

still

be

have to rely

still

close to

ularly at the city's center,

traffic

its

people would

seem

to

and parking problems which,

city's center, that

and use

street-

which meets

resist-

private drivers be required to park outside the central area

to reach that center.

ance from the individual driver.

Is

partic-

be insoluble. Some planners have sug-

gested that the automobile be kept entirely out of the

and buses

our pro-

on mechanical transportation to their daily work.

All cities are today faced with

cars

strips. Safety

this great disadvantage.

Since no working areas are related to this neighborhood,

226

to

This danger could be very simply

eliminated by closing some streets and removing others.

possible to reach park

Because of

dangerous for children

This

is

a solution

there another solution?

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St.

Paul illustrates the development of the

tive effects

can have on

it

traffic

problem and the destruc-

Paul early established

a city. St.

as the

itself

trading center of a rich agricultural area, where furs and produce of the

expanding west were exchanged

The coming of

the railroad

made

automobile wrought

of the

made

more and more

for
its

manufactured goods from the

position

more

kind of change. As

a different

east.

But the coming

secure.

traffic

increase

commercial area, customers began to go elsewhere. Business declined. Land and

building values fell. The whole health of the city's economy seemed dependent on the provision of adequate parking space. Could this problem
it

difficult to find

space to park within the

be solved?

One

would be

theoretical solution

to place the

commercial center

in such

a way that it might be entered from two sides. Motorists could approach it
on one side, pedestrians on the other, without interfering with each other.
Motorists would come from the traffic street, enter the parking space and
then go into the buildings where they worked or had business. Pedestrians
would enter from the other side without having to cross the traffic street

or parking space.

The

would be
to

way

simplest

hold

to

all

into Avhich

to solve the traffic

and parking problems

of St. Paul

surround the commercial area by a parking space large enough

the cars. This parking space

other

all

feed.

Thus no

Such

a solution

would

cross the

seems very convincing.

advantages along with

trian entering the

its

circled by a traffic street

leading to the commercial area

traffic streets

traffic streets

would be

commercial

It has,

however, some serious

obvious advantages. In the

commercial area would have

would

area.

first

dis-

place, the pedes-

to cross the ring-like traffic

and the parking space. In the second place, the commercial area
would be forever limited in its size. Any future expansion would be effec-

street

tively blocked.

These disadvantages would disappear and greater safety would be provided if Ave placed the traffic street in the middle of the parking space. Cars
could then be parked alongside the

The commercial

area

reached from either

traffic street in

space provided for them.

would extend along this street. The area could be

by cars from one side, by pedestrians from the

side:

other.

The

functional value of such a solution

time, provide for present need

area needed to expand,

it

this solution
is

It

would,

for future expansion. If the

at the

same

commercial

not without

same favorable conditions always. Yet even

its

disadvantages. Since no special residential

provided for the people working in the commercial center, me-

chanical
226

is

evident.

could do so towards the northwest or towards

the southwest, retaining the

area

and

is

means

of transportation

would

still

be needed for them.

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229

Zurich, a Swiss

city,

nent buildings,

The

we

plan

fair

during the

'30's.

Some perma-

temporary ones, were contemplated.

present here, avoids the costly temporary buildings, useful

and replaces them with permanent structures which,

was hoped, might become the cultural center of the city. These buildings

only during the

it

planned a national

as well as the usual

fair,

are placed in a park which stretches along the lake shore.

large park, but
its vistas,

it is

is

not a very

increased optically, not only by the lake which opens

but also by the arrangement of the buildings, not in a wall-like

row but with open

which

It is

spaces between them.

feeling of openness results,

enhanced by the distance between the buildings.

This park, small

as it

is, is

crossed by a

traffic street

which cuts

it

into pieces

and which introduces an element of serious danger. In the plan which we

suggest this
buildings.

traffic street

would be removed and placed behind the new

As those buildings attract

them become

the whole area underneath

themselves,

traffic to

it is

logical that

a parking space. People could

park their cars there and enter the buildings directly from the parking
area.

The

present street behind these buildings would be widened and

connected with other

free of

traffic.

traffic streets

Unfortunately,

it still

of the city.

The

park would thus be

could be reached only by the crossing

of dangerous traffic streets.

This

is,

of course, only a general suggestion:

out locally with

all its

it

would have

to

be worked

implications and in full detail.

Replanning parts of the city residential, working, recreational may

achieve good results, but

we can never

whole merely by replanning parts of

own

it.

solve the problems of the city as a

Each part of

function as perfectly as possible. But

all

parts

a city should fulfill

must be related

its

to each

other so that mechanized transportation requirements are reduced to a

minimum. Only when we have taken

have replanned a
If

we can replan

city in a truly satisfactory

consideration shall

we

way.

part of a city by closing and taking out streets

replacing other city elements,

to the city as a

this into full

why should we not apply

the same

and by

method

whole, thus arriving at the same satisfactory solution on a

larger scale?

To

demonstrate

how

this

could be done,

bilities for several cities: a

let

us consider planning possi-

very small town, a medium-sized

city,

and two

large cities.

The town we have

chosen

is

Elkhorn, Wisconsin, the county seat and

market center for the adjoining agricultural area whose fairgrounds are
also located here. Elkhorn is quite a nice town. It has no slums, and it has
many trees. There is only one thing wrong with it: the highways which
pass through the

230

town and

cross each other in

its

commercial

area.

Once

209.

ZURICH, LAKE SHORE DEVELOPMENT View and

HP

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231

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those highways were an advantage to the town; today they are a dangerous

nuisance. Plans under

way

for the rebuilding of these roads provide

an

opportunity to remove them to the outskirts of the town. Secondary roads

could be provided to make these highways

still

convenient for the people

of Elkhorn.

This secondary road connecting with the highway should be

to

connect

town closed-end

streets.

of the residential streets

more through
by

make

other residential streets and to

all

traffic,

This could be

and

yet each

within the

achieved by taking out some

easily

and closing the

so placed as

all streets

rest of

them. There would be no

house in the town could be reached

car.

The

now

industries,

dispersed within the town, could be grouped and

placed across the railroad tracks where they belong according to their
function.

The

outmoded commercial area needs renovation. Perhaps

small

all

these

small business establishments could be placed in a single building, similar

shopping center. Such unification would combine the advantages of

to a

the big store

one

roof,

and the small

store.

Shoppers would find everything under

but the small shopkeeper could

have his own business and

Our plan shows such a build-

still

could have his independence by cooperation.

ing and some other commercial and public buildings between the town
and the highway. A parking space for shoppers from out of town might be
provided. Such a parking area placed close to the commercial area would

and even local traffic would be

reduced to a minimum because every part of the town would be within
walking distance of every other part. The town would be surrounded by a

relieve the

town

of all except local

traffic,

park in which schools would be placed.

pand

it

could do so toward the

east.

If

the

community needed

to ex-

All these changes could be brought

about gradually. Each step taken would be an improvement in

each step would bring a better future nearer. All that

is

needed

itself
is

and

a clear

concept of what the town might become, and a firm community will to

make

that concept reality.

Our medium-sized
trial

Originally, the

who came

ple

city

is

Rockford on the Rock River, the

largest indus-

settlement created in the development of that river valley.

Rock

valley was an agricultural area.

to find land

and

to cultivate

it.

It

was settled by peo-

There was some home

indus-

but most manufactured goods were imported from the East in exchange for wheal and lumber. Saw-milling and Hour-milling were Rocktry,

lord's first industries.

Both declined rather quickly because the small

were soon exhausted and wheat farming gave place

production of agricultural implements was the next step

forests in the valley

to dairying.
in

232

The

the city's development.

The

river,

not very well suited for transporta-

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ELK HORN REPEANNED

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Different stages

233

became a source of power. Dams were built. The first extensive development of this water power took place at Rockford, and Rockford became an industrial town. A mill race was built, and the power of the
waterwheel transformed directly to a rotating shaft connected to the machinery by power belts. This motive power ran the factories until the
tion,

application of hydro-electric power.

Rockford's

first

industries served the local market primarily.

the establishment of

its

Then, with

furniture industry, the city began to produce for a

becoming nation-wide. Walnut stands in the

valley bottom land provided materials for this industry which made Rockford famous. But these trees were soon depleted, and the furniture factories, forced to import raw materials, saw their costs increase. The indus-

distant market, a market

try declined,

though

Rockford and
tries

its

it

valley have few resources except skilled labor.

were introduced

leather

did not wholly disappear.

make

to

use of this

human

working industries were established;

New

indus-

resource. Textile

and

varied and flourishing

metal-working industry came into being. Materials for these industries had
to be

imported from the East: raw material

for Rockford's few

remaining

furnaces; semi-fabricated materials to be manufactured into machines,

tools, stoves,

hardware, and automotive

parts.

Rockford's older industries had been placed in the

The newer

plants sprang

of the central industries.

up

The

river.

and south

southern industrial area, where the factories

are adjacent to a railroad belt line,

Our

along the

city,

at the city's outskirts, west, north,

is

the most important.

and highways which cross

the city be relocated so that they by-pass it. One railroad and highway
would run parallel with the river on the west side. The others would cross
proposal for Rockford

is

the river south of the city.

that the railroads

The main

station

would be placed

at the

junction; other stations wherever they were needed.

The commercial

area

would remain

at its present site,

modified and given sufficient parking space.

The

but

it

would be

residential areas also

would be modified in structure, but not moved from their present position.
The main industries would be left, temporarily, in their present position.
But, as their buildings became obsolete, they would gradually be relocated
along the traffic line running parallel with the river. The air polluting
industries would be moved far enough away from the city to prevent their
vapors from poisoning the city

air.

They should be placed along

the

rail-

road tracks leading southwest, their exact location being planned according
to wind conditions. The industries dependent upon these major plants
could be moved to the same area.

The

old industrial areas within the city are obsolete.

should be evacuated.
234

The

people

now

They and

the slums

living there should be transferred

into a green area which might be extended along the river. This
like a bit of

an important industrial

mize

citv and, therefore, a potential target.

To

mini-

hazards during and alter an air raid, the citv should he open.

fire

should have open spaces between

we

four plans

show how the

city

and should extend

parts

its

become

as far as possible so that they

The

might, should aerial warfare become

It

prove to be the most practical feature of the whole plan. Rockford

reality,
is

luxurious planning.

may seem

su<

li

spaces

effective lire breaks.

present here are part of a comprehensive study.

could change

It

itself

The

gradually.

first

The)

plan shows the

present street pattern; the second and third two stages of transition; the

fourth the possible end state.

Plans two and three demonstrate the way in which the closing and elimination of streets,

and eventually

as a natural recreation area.

make

And

more

it

functional.

Through

distance, even local traffic

The

simplification of the street system

w ere related

residential areas

if

blocks, could create fire breaks useful also

The

fourth plan shows

could be completely avoided.

traffic

to their

would be reduced

how

working areas within walking

to a

minimum.

decentralization could be achieved with the

full vise of the existing city, its streets, its buildings, its utilities.

toward the accomplishment of such an

for

itself.

over-all plan

Each step

would be worth taking

Each new construction would be placed according

and would contribute

would

to this plan

to the transformation of the city.

Rockford's industries, producing for a national rather than a local market,

are subject to the fluctuations of that national market. Rockford workers,
therefore, are faced with periods of

these workers

unemployment or part-employment.

had vegetable gardens adjacent

of those slack periods

to their

would be cushioned. This

homes, the hardships

suggests that the density

of their residential areas should be as low as possible. Small farms

be provided for those able to handle them.

placed on the east side of the

Workers

living

traffic

line

on these farms could

We

If

might

suggest that such farms be

which runs

find part time

parallel to the river.

employment

in the

near-by industries.
It is in

the nature of the proposed plan that

all its

and new parts added whenever necessary or

would eventually involve the planning

communities within

it.

The

of the

valley could

parts can be extended

desirable.

Such extension

whole river valley and

all

the

become an economic unit with-

out the sacrifice of local independence.

metropolis seems to defy comprehensive replanning. So

are involved that

achieved. But

this

it
is

could be replanned,
West.

The

seems

as

factors

though nothing fundamental could be

not really true.

let

many

To

demonstrate how even a large

city

us take Chicago, the metropolis of the Middle

rapid growth of this citv during

its

short history

is

like a

symbol
?35

236

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237

and

all

Fortune favored Chicago's development. Strategically located from

its

of

our industrial

Chicago expresses

age.

fully all the advantages

the disadvantages of that age.

very beginning, the settlement's

of

function was to be the trade center

first

rich agricultural region, exchanging agricultural produce for the

its

manufactured goods coming in from the

The town was

East.

located

on

continental waterway, which via the Creat Lakes connects Chicago with
the East

and which, through

gives access to the South.

soon began to add

its

It

and the

a canal, the Illinois River

was an ideal position for

own manufactures

goods

to the

Mississippi,

a trade city

The coming

sold.

it

which

of the railroad enormously increased the city's trade function.

Chicago

between the coal of the South and the ore of the North.

lies

It

was

natural, therefore, that heavy industries, using the materials brought to-

gether here so easily, should

come

and

into being,

that there should also

be developed extensive and diversified manufacturing.

As industry developed, Chicago's population grew by leaps and bounds.

People from all over the world came to man the new mills and factories.
Chicago boosters began

forty-two million people within

They

city for that day.

casts.

The

passed

its

day

to talk of the

limits.

its

when their
They even
L

o have reached and even

the decline, though that of the metropolitan area

Let us

now

is still

city

proper

is

on

increasing.

consider the physical structure of the city in which this phe-

nomenal growth took

its

started to zone the

probable that the population of the

It is

would contain

were, fortunately, over-optimistic in their fore-

population of Chicago seems today

peak.

city

greatness

place.

and suited

Did Chicago ever

find a pattern

The

cannot be answered in the affirmative.

adequate to

This question certainly

to its varied functions?

city has

grown

so rapidly that

there has never seemed to be time to consider planning problems and to

develop planning principles.

To

plan at

all

So Chicago has grown without plan.

The

new land

its

for sale, has

determined

has seemed impossible.

gridiron, so useful for parceling

street pattern

and has become

guide to chaos. Streets and alleys occupy more than one quarter of Chicago's 212 square miles.

What

a waste of space!

What

a peril for people!

Since the advent of the automobile, every corner has become a death trap.

"The people of Chicago," wrote David H. Burnham*

his

famous plan

for

Chicago in 1909, "have ceased to be impressed by the

rapid growth or the great size of the

now

is,

How

are

we

living?

Are we

convenient place for business?

labor
*

is

sufficiently

Is it

238

comfortable to be

Burnham, David H. and Bennet, Edward

Chicago, 1909.

in the introduction to

city.

What

they insist

upon asking

in reality prosperous? Is the city a

good labor market

efficient

in the sense that

and content? Will the com-

H.: Plan of Cliicago. Edited by Charles Moore,

FUTURE PLANNING AREAS

or

CHICAGO

1942

STATUS
BLIGHTED AND
NEAR BLIGHTED

CONSERVATION
CONSERVATION

STABLE
ARRESTED DEVEL
PROGRESSIVE DEVE,

NEW GROWTH

NEW GROWTH

VACANT

PRESENT NON-RESIDENTIAL AREAS

215.

CHICAGO

Status of City

231
MlltS
Chicago pla* commission

=4= ^mn

alb
11

DP
old

^t
D

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r

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o a

lit

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htt
ftm

a'

D
UliillliL

'i!g!f!T l4:

II

SJI

ing generation be able to stand the nervous strain of city

competence has been accumulated, must we go elsewhere

fruits of independence? If the city does not become better
bigger, shall not the defect be remedied?

be brushed

aside.

everywhere

men

More than
answered.
larger,

They

These are questions

it

becomes

that cannot

have passed, and these questions are

more densely populated.

they

now contaminate

as

Burnham saw

Its difficulties

it.

Chicago

still

have increased even more

There

the countryside.
is

are

unrealistic

many

reasons for the

planning or no plan-

Uncontrolled growth has inevitably resulted in

social disorder.

prepared by the Chicago Plan Commission strikingly shows the

coincidence of factors indicative of blight and their effect upon the

shows the location of industries, some of the railroad

areas, the residential areas differentiated

the larger park areas.

slums.

un-

now much

is

Slums, eating into the city like a cancer, have spread until

growth of these slums. The most basic

at all.

to enjoy the
as

are the most pressing questions of our dav, and

The problem remains

its size.

ning

When

are anxiously seeking the answers."

forty years

than

A map

life?

The

industrial

Of

greatest interest

lines,

city. It

the commercial

according to their condition, and

is

the location

and the

size of the

areas designated as blighted or near-blighted are close to the

and commercial

areas; they

comprise nearly one-quarter of the

city's residential area.

Could our planning principles be applied to a metropolis like Chicago?

believe that they could and that, bv their use the citv could gradually
be transformed. Let us take first one part of the city and replan it, using

We

existing streets, utilities,

The

and buildings.

we have chosen for study extends from Madison Street to Lawrence Avenue and lies west of Western Avenue. It contains more than
area

forty square miles, nearly one-fifth of the entire city area.

Our
first

illustrations

show four

shows the present

ment before

stages in the

street pattern; the

the end state

is

reached.

development of

this area.

second the steps in

The

its

The

redevelop-

other two illustrations show

alternate arrangements for the final staler one with rectangular, the other

with square communities.

to the

The

traffic arteries,

from the residential lane

superhighway, are so planned that they serve the

time of transition as well as

when

city

during the

the desired replanning has been com-

pleted. Here, as always, an orderly progress

from step

to step serves

both

present and future.

East-west highways, separated from each other by three miles, are located
at

Madison

Street, Fullerton

Avenue, and Lawrence Avenue. The main

Western Avenue. At Central Park Avenue

will eventually be located a superhighway into which all highways leading
to the city will feed. Close to it is the main railroad line. Parallel to and
north-south highway

242

is

at

243

on each side of the main highway are local highways. These connect with
the main highway and collect all the center streets of the future units,
which will be half a mile apart from each other.

The

prevention of through

access to each house

is

traffic

in residential areas with retention of

an important and

solved here simply by closing street ends.

how

this

through

might be done. Only the center

difficult

The

lower

left

of

111.

The

come

could be
217 shows
still

lower right of the same

Illustration shows how, by the elimination of the blocks

future units, a park might

It

streets of the future units are

others are closed.

traffic streets; all

problem.

between the

into being, a naturally located recreation

area in which schools and other public buildings could be placed. This

park and the buildings

street.

in

would be

it

Children could go to school

The same

upper

illustration at the

ward the desired

longer through

The

pattern.

traffic streets;

accessible without crossing a traffic

safely.

shows

left

a further

important step

to-

center streets of the future units are no

they have been closed and

traffic

within the

future units has thereby been greatly reduced. Industrial and local com-

mercial establishments are

highways.

The

assume

future shape.

its

now

located at their logical position along the

park between two rows of units begins

The upper right

part of our detail shows the final stage.

in their desired shape. Every

to

emerge and

The

units are

now

traffic is

now

units are

part working, residence, and recreation is

within walking distance of the others. Local transportation

needed, and thus

to

The

greatly reduced.

is

no longer

parks between the rows of

united with the parks between the units, forming firebreaks

and providing" the recreational area necessary

for the activities of people

in a large city.

The communities, rectangular or square, will

be the end stage of the replan-

They will eventually be relatively independent of the city. Each

square community will contain between 50.000 and 70,000 people, which
ning.

is

equal to the average density of Chicago.

The working

as possible.
offices,

varied

stores,

and

factories, so that

employment and

ing space. Local

will not

be

density should be as low

communities

will provide space for

workers may have opportunity for

for a diversified

traffic will

all alike;

Each community

areas of these

The

be reduced

life.

There

to a

minimum. The communities

will

be adequate park-

they will vary in structure as they vary in function.

will present

have to be individually and

its

unique problems; and these problems

will

locally solved.

Since the communities are relatively independent and limited in area,

people

who

to create a

them have opportunity

community life, which the big
live in

same people can

244

to realize
city

now

common

interests

and

discourages. But these

also enjoy the advantages of the big city because the

com-

222.

PLAN OF CHICAGO

with rectangulai Communities

245

**f!

e
g
a.

e
<0

nq

connected with each other

nullities are

l>\

an integrated transportation

system.

Firebreaks separate the communities Prom each other. There

agreement

as yet regarding the desirable

know, however,
to give the city

maximum

bombardment.

aerial

width of such

wide

that the firebreak needs to be as

of such firebreaks

protection against

In two studies

would

).

One shows

affect the city.

We

barrier.

possible,

.is

do

it

il

is

hazards connected with

fire

220,221

(111.

general

n<>

is

we show how

tin-

width

firebreaks a quarter of a

mile wide; the other firebreaks a mile wide. In our plan for Washington,

we have

D.C.,

carried the idea farther, placed the communities lour or five

miles apart.

The
one

plans for Chicago here

(111.

222)

newer one

shown show

a possible

end

The

stage.

older

with rectangular communities, deals with Chicago only.

223)

(111.

The

with square communities, covers a larger area, extend-

Fox River Valley. Both plans are extenwe have worked out in detail. They in-

ing from Lake Michigan to the

sions or repetitions of the parts

clude, in addition, city areas with special functions

which must be incor-

porated in a total city plan. These special-function areas are mainly of

three types: the commercial area, the area for air-polluting factories, the

area for heavy industry.

The commercial

area has been

left in its

north and south in accordance with

be remodeled.
its traffic

Is

there any

way

to

present position, but extended

natural trend. This area needs to

its

make

it

adequate to

function and to

its

and parking" requirements? Today there are too many

dangerous

street crossings,

no adequate parking

are too close together; each deprives

the area are blighted;

some

facilities.

neighbors of light and

its

streets

The

and

buildings

air.

Parts of

parts are slums.

We suggest that these conditions could

be transformed

the present block

if

system were replaced by considerably larger blocks and a more adequate

street system.

might do

The

so

Every building should provide

if it

buildings

One

types.

used for parking

we

its

its

own parking

street-level floor

suggest for the commercial area

and

its

space,

basically of

ai~e

and

basement.

two

type requires large uninterrupted space. Stores, department

By the very nature of their

requirements, such establishments must depend largely upon artificial
and banks

stores,

light.

small.

The

fall

into this classification.

other type of building

They can be open

to light

is

suitable for office buildings, large

and

air,

using

artificial

and

lighting only in

winter.

The

solution presented in our diagram

of such a

efficient streets,

types

would

fulfill all

the requirements

There would be large blocks, fewer but more

adequate parking space. Combination of the two building

commercial

area.

would achieve openness.

247

At the lower

left,

at -A-,

our diagram shows the normal block and

system. In -B-, eight of those blocks have been

block. Instead of eight streets

and

four streets and four crossings.

street

combined into one

large

fifteen street crossings, there are

The

streets are

now

wider and differentiated

according to function. There could be a highway traversing the commercial area,

connected

necessary space for

building four or
floor provides

at
it

convenient points with the local

has to be provided.

five stories high,

parking space for

On

used for stores and banks.

visitors

and customers;

parking space for employees. -B- also shows

ings could be placed

on

traffic streets.

the larger block

how

its

is

The

placed

Its street-level

basement

is

the

free-standing office build-

top of the store building.

There might be one

of

these office buildings to correspond with each of the former blocks; or one
office

building on two of the former blocks.

might be

to place a single

half-blocks.

224.

248

CHICAGO

An

even better arrangement

building on space originally occupied by four

Commercial Area Replanned

'.".
.

225.

CHICAGO

Apartment Buildings

and

Parts -C-, -D-,

-E- of

in

Park Along Lake Michigan

our diagram show such free-standing buildings.

The amount
arrangements. The

In -C-, there are eight buildings; in -D-, lour; in -E- only one.

would be the same

oi office space available

number

of floors has

been increased

decreased to achieve this equality.

the ones

shown

here.

The

office

in all these

as the

number

Many

variations are possible besides

been

of buildings has

buildings could be mixed in type, but the

combination of two different building types into one would always follow

At the ground

similar plans.

floor

would be parking

space, inside streets,

shopping arcades with show windows and small shops.

would lead
rants

to the elevator core.

These arcades

roof garden with cafeteria and restau-

might be placed on top of the store building. Such combination of

building types, with appropriate differentiation, would achieve both compactness and openness, in use as well as appearance.

We

have already pointed out that the main parts of the new building

types, the offices, are so

or lour half-blocks.
relatively small area

formed.

The

planned that they could be started on one, two,

This means that the change could be begun on

and gradually extended

function of

until the

the commercial area would

whole area
at

is

trans-

no time be

dis-

turbed. Rebuilding could begin in the obsolete parts of the area, already
It woidd certainly take time to rebuild
remember that rebuilding is always going

ripe for rebuilding.

the

Vet ^ve should

on.

whole
It

is

area.

only
249

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250

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251

aran
lilii

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232.

252

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11.111

RE-PLANNED CHICAGO

'

pi

JVcw />w Lake Michigan

necessary to require that such rebuilding be executed within a plan for the

whole

ment

The

area.

The transformation

of a pattern adequate to

its

function would follow naturally.

residential section of Chicago's

nities, directly related to

it.

We

commercial area and the achieve

ol the

commercial area

propose

is.

in all

;is

that, since space

commu

lacking toward

is

the east, existing parks he extended north and south, and thai apartment

buildings be erected in these parks, far enough apart so that the park
character

is

People living in these park apartments would, of

retained.

course, have to use mechanical transportation.

To

protect the city from air pollution,

we propose

manufacturing

that

industries which, by their very nature, pollute the air he located outside
of the city, east

and west of the Fox River and along the

Illinois River.

Industries related to these factories could be placed here also.

would be
wind pattern.

dential areas for these plants

pollution because of the

The

They

working

in these mills

means

cal

to

in their

would be

The

residential

so placed as to

areas lor people

be free of

air pollution.

be connected with the industrial plants by mechani-

of transportation.

our plan, by

All parts of the city are connected, in

is

left

should, however, be broken tip and interspersed

with firebreaks for their protection.

They would have

resi-

situated in a triangle free from air

heavy industries in South Chicago and Gary would be

present positions.

The

major north-south

all east-west lines

connect.

The major

highway system. There

motor

line for long distance

railroad line

traffic,
is

with which

so located that

it

can serve the entire city without interfering with any particular area. This

major line connects

is

in the vicinity of

all

railroads leading into the city.

Madison

Street

Its

and Central Park Avenue. There are

other stations at the junction points of other

Major switching yards

lines.

and warehouses are provided.

220 shows how, eventu-

and

freight yards

ally,

existing railroads could be combined, the Pennsylvania

111.

western forming one through route with which

connected. This

is

central station

all

and the North-

other roads would be

not a good solution however, for this railroad would

'lave to traverse residential areas, a condition not to

airports have been enlarged

be tolerated.

Existing

and integrated into the city's transportation

system.

A more

detailed study,

made

at the

request of the South Side Planning

Board, show^s that part of the south side of Chicago which extends from
31st Street to 55th Street

and from Wentworth Avenue

This area forms one-half of a community such

cussed.

The same methods

as those

have been applied. For part of

this

as Ave

to

Lake Michigan.

have previously'

dis-

used in the studies of the north side

community,

details

have been worked

253

how

out to show
so that

the changes could be effected systematically and in stages,

slum areas might be replaced by new housing developments.

Diversified housing, commercial

industrial areas along the highway,

apartment buildings along the Lake, and schools in the parks are

tall

properly related.

all

If

and

Chicago were reconstructed

replaced by order.

No new

after

our suggestions, disorder would be

slums could grow.

No

wild suburbanization

n\a)Jbl

Zmt-

fe'^tl 7

at

v*f1

233.

PART OF WASHINGTON Opened

would take

place.

would have

at least

Traffic hazards

possible.

in a

254

much

as possible of the existing city.

Chicago would become a

its

and become what

Garden!

Parking problems

would prevent deterioration and make

might, indeed, with

goal,

would disappear.

found solution. Such change could be gradually accom-

plished, preserving as
stabilization

up by Fire Breaks

it

city healthy

and good

parks and gardens, achieve

has supposed

real

itself to be:

The

to live in.

at last its

Urbs

resulting

conservation
It

one-time

in Hortoa. City

-^

-^s-

K&fr
^S*'

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-.'

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'7

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234.

WASHINGTON

Decentralized

255

Ife.

In our plan for Chicago, we have

made

firebreaks

suggested that they might be even wider. While, as

do not agree on the proper width

should be

as

wide

of firebreaks,

The

as possible.

it

one mile wide and

we have

noted, experts

seems obvious that they

smaller individual settlements are in

themselves and the wider the spaces between them, the greater will be the
protection afforded the people
also
If

who

live there.

low population density

is

an important consideration.

Chicago

as

an industrial

city

needs to provide

Washington, the capital of the nation, needs

capital located

on the periphery

geous position.

St.

of a country

kind of protection,

even more.

national

not in the most advanta-

Petersburg (Leningrad), for more than two hundred

years the capital of Russia, was

Moscow because

it
is

this

abandoned

that ancient capital

seemed

as

the capital in favor of

in a less vulnerable position.

For the same reason, China's government was once removed from Peking
to a

more

location,

centrally located place. Washington, because of

is

in special

its

peripheral

need of the protection which decentralization can

give.

For

this decentralization,

we have

suggested the use of the same method

The city could and should be opened

up by means of firebreaks. Its decentralization could be carried farther
and the distance between its communities increased. A sketch map shows
how effectively this could be done. The Washington of that sketch has
been reduced to the size and condition of one hundred years ago. The
city has become primarily a national monument, in which the Capitol and
the White House regain their original prominence. All governmental
departments have been moved and arranged to form new communities
with their residential areas and the necessary community and commercial
buildings. Those communities vary in size according to their functions.
They are located along the Potomac and the ocean inlets. Distances between them would be four or five miles. They are all connected with each
employed in our plan for Chicago.

other and with Washington by the existing railroad and highway system.

256

The

first

phase of our industrial age has been characterized by concen-

and

tration

specialization of production, exploitation ol resources, both

human, and a high degree of material progress. City and

country became separated. Serving different ends, they came to be in opnatural and

position to each other. Will the second phase of our industrial age reverse

marked by decentralization and diversification of production, both industrial and agricultural; by the intergration of these two kinds of production and of the city with country? Will
the city become more rural, the country more urban, and both more
these tendencies? Will that phase be

human? Will

exploitation of resources be replaced by their planful use

and careful preservation?

These things could come

And

to pass.

if

they did,

human

beings,

longer regarded as means to an end, could again be able co seek that

improvement which might,

with the ethical ideal of

come secondary,
of others

We

at last, replace the ideal of

human

material progress

might be-

welfare. Egotistic self-interest

in such a world, to the altruistic concept of the welfare

and of the community

whole.

as a

cannot foresee the future. Yet we

human

ideals will

know

depend on the mind and

that the realization of these

will of

man. And we may add,

with assurance, that the very survival of civilization as

depend on the degree

to

which man approaches

we know

it

gaining more and more

is

reinforced

momentum,

may

this ideal.

Decentralization already exists as a trend, not to say as an established

It is

no

self-

especially

now

fact.

that the trend

by the new concept of defence and security.

Defence

necessity forced the concentration of cities of the past; defence necessity

may force the dispersal of the present city. Incredible as it may seem, we
may be on the way to realizing our human aims in an effort to save ourselves

from military destruction!

It is

strange,

but

true, that

developments which would solve some of our greatest

soci;tl

the very

problems-

decentralization, diversification of production, the creation ot self-sustain-

ing regions are also the developments required by defence necessity in

this

Atomic Age.

How

will decentralization affect

a far larger

degree than

we

far largely undirected, there

our

cities? It

is

already affecting them to

are willing to admit. Since

is

real

danger that

its

it

has been thus

chief effect

may be

to

257

bring into the countryside the chaotic conditions and the blight character-

our

all

We

of our cities.

istic

can see

this

uncontrolled process going on around

cities.

If it is to

planned.

be effective and

The

to create lasting values, decentralization

planning elements, communities and

must be

now

are

we have never been

able, as

we

city aggregates

We

have developed may prove helpful means to achieve such planning.

before, to concentrate

what needs

to

be concentrated: for example, the great industries for which concentration

is

essential.

We

are also able to decentralize

We

be decentralized.
is

to disperse

what should

should avoid the assumption that smallness, per

minimum

better than bigness,

should rather be

and

to find the

size

optimum

maximum

than
size,

Our

size.

according to

its

se,

intention

need, for each

settlement.

Integration of industry and agriculture will influence the city as

decentralization.

If

the unlimited city

is

much

superseded by the limited

as

city,

and country will come into closer relationship. Then the space
to grow food for the city's population can be directly related to the
city. The distance between any two cities will be determined, in that
event, not only by topographical and geographical features, but also by
the extent of agricultural area needed to feed their people. This would

city

needed

inevitably tend to disperse the

to

own

develop their

cities.

It

would make

it

possible for cities

close connection with agriculture.

If

they

come

to

be surrounded or directly connected with small farms for part-time industrial

workers,

this, too,

would lead

to further dispersion.

Integration between industry and agriculture

is

an important tool for

Such an integration should be twofold

decentralization.

In the larger agricultural areas,

farms of varying

size

in

its

function.

should be concerned

with providing the food needed by the inhabitants of the region. In areas

where industry
wardens for

is

dominant, small farms for part-time workers, vegetable

men employed

in industry,

waes and also add richness to

the larger farms at

life.

would supplement and

stabilize

Subsistence farmers could work on

peak seasons, or they could find employment

in the

processing of agricultural products. Such division and integration of

should be more
farmer.

satisfactory for both the industrial

work

worker and the small

higher living standard would be possible lor each.

A more

more balanced economy would be attained.

more adequate to the real needs of man.
be
would
Living conditions
There would be sunshine in every house and clean air everywhere. There
Avould be no slum-infested cities. Life would become vigorous and healthful once more. Personal security and independence would be fostered,
to the benefit of the individual and of the society of which he is a part.

oeneral Avell-being and a

258

Decentralization and the integration of agriculture and industry are, by

their very nature, problems of regional planning.
of the city

become

of which the city

part of a
a part.

is

The planning problems

more comprehensive planning

Two

lac tors

determine

for the region

plan lor a region:

the physical structure of that region, and the use to which

to

put

its

potentialities

To comprehend

man

intends

and resources.
and

a region's physical structure

development, a thorough-going survey

its

Such

required.

is

deal with natural factors such as geography

potentialities lor
a

survey must

and topography, climate,

vegetation, growing seasons, water, mineral and other resources.

must deal

also with

man-made

soils.

But

things: with the distribution of people

and transportation

their occupations; with the existing settlements

it

and

routes;

with production, agricultural and industrial.

Analysis of those factors will determine the use of the region, so far as
its

industrial

development

is

concerned. Study of

ditions will be the basis for a land use

of the area could be put

soil

and climate con-

map, showing how the various parts

to the best possible use;

which parts should be

Whether the land and its resources

will actually be so used depends, however, on the human factor. Man has
freedom to choose and to act. He may exploit the resources and exhaust
them. He may exploit the land and destroy its productiveness. Or he may,
on the other hand, use the resources wisely, in conformity with the laws
of nature. He may learn to think of his region as a living entity, capable
of supporting and maintaining life. He may come to understand that,
striving to make the legion useful in the present, he should strive also to
preserve its usefulness for generations to come. Whatever man does inarable land, which grassland or forest.

fluences his region

and influences

which he and

also the life

his descend-

ants can create there.

What

exactly

is

How

a region?

can

shall

merely summarize

A region may
to the parts

and can support

be determined and defined? These

as

an organic

entity, in

parts to the whole.

life.

Pattern."

Here we

this discussion.*

be defined

and the

it

"The New Regional

questions are fully discussed in

region

is

It is

which the whole

is

related

something which can

an interrelated section of

exist

a country, a

natural unit, self-contained by reason of a balanced production based

a diversified agriculture

and an industry devoted

on

to the processing of the

raw materials which the region provides.

balanced regional economy can, obviously, be established only through

diversification of

employment and production. In some

conditions prevent
*

Hilberseimer. L:

this.

There

The New Regional

are,

regions, natural

for example, regions

which must

Pattern. Chicago, 1919

259

depend on the exchange

of their principal natural resources for food

and

other needed goods.

Such regions are the exceptions, however. They

change our regional economic concept only in degree, not in principle.

Trade

indispensable.

Its true function, however, is to supplement the

one region with the abundance of another. Regional
economy merely suggests that a region ought to produce and consume a
is

deficiencies of

larye proportion of the food

it

might produce

it is

itself.

unable to produce

among

regions and

It

and goods

itself.

needs, importing nothing that

its

surpluses for those things

of goods on this basis, among all

would eventually bring about a new and

Exchange

countries,

all

it

should exchange

sound world economy.

To show how

decentralization on a large scale might affect the country,

we have developed
coal fields
It

a sketch

and the ore

also indicates

industrial cities

map

of the Eastern United States.

deposits, the

It

shows the

waterways and the main railroad

how manufacturing

industries,

now

concentrated in the

between the northeast coast and Lake Michigan, could

be decentralized within that area and extended toward the South.

tendency

to

lines.

move

industries

We

from the North

to the

The

South for economic

moving also to decentralize for defence

reasons, realizing that people and industries concentrated in our industrial
cities are dangerously vulnerable to air attack. Economic forces also are

reasons already exists.

working toward

are

this decentralization.

Decentralization of the kind

distribution of population

we

and

establish a close relationship

suggest could bring about a

more even

a better spread of industries.

It

between industry and agriculture,

these two important aspects of our

economy might,

could

so that

in their integration,

stimulate each other and bring about a higher productivity. This process

would eventually lead

to a true regionalism,

a regionalism relatively self-sustaining

less

The

vulnerable to any dangers which

both economic and cultural,

and self-supporting and,

may

lie

therefore,

ahead.

we have suggested are located along main railroad

lines and waterways. Some are close to coal fields but must import their
iron ore. Our main source of iron ore is now the Mesabi range in Minnesota. But this rich deposit may, it is said, be exhausted in one more
industrial belts

There would then be no comparable deposit in the United

except the abundant low-grade ore in the Mesabi range which is

generation.
States,

expensive to process.

dor and

in

important.

We might

then have to look to the deposits in Labra-

Latin America. Water transportation will again become very

The

realization after

Lawrence Seaway, which now seems on the way to

years of delay, may prove of both economic and strategic
St.

importance. Like the railroads and highways along with our industrial belts
260

ORE DEPOSITS

235.

COAL FiELOS

$&&[

INDUSTRIES

EASTERN UNITED STATES

are located also the waterways

DECENTRALIZED-

EXTENSION OF INDUSTRIES

Industries Decentralized

would assume new

and Extended

to the

South

significance for our future

industrial development.

The

industrial belts

would have

developed wherever necessity

to

arises.

be supplemented by branch belts

They would,

of course, be modified

according to their purpose and the geographic and topographic conditions

of the area.

We

have developed diagramatically some studies showing different

Diverse as they are, they are

all

based on the planning elements of the com-

munities and aggregates we have already discussed.

variety of arrangements

belts.

They

indicate the

which could be achieved.

261

236.

In

SETTLEMENT DEVELOPMENT ALONG AN IXLET

its

simplest form, a belt might consist of communities developed,

perhaps, on either side of an inlet, varying in size according to their

diversified functions.

Highways could be separated from them but con-

nected with them. Since the industries of these communities are powered
by electricity, there would be no problem or air pollution and the com-

munities could be very freely placed.

287.

262

DECENTRALIZED CITY

IX A

RIVER VALLEY

However, some manufacturing industries have

industries which

cause air pollution. Such

separated from their communities.

to be

plants

The study of

supplemented with
would have to he-

a belt

in a river valle)

shows communities adjoined by settlements of small farms.

The

air pollui

ing industries are located toward the east, along the highways that (loss
the valley. Special commercial and administrative communities appear
the

The

highway
belt

.it

crossing.

developed on

hilly

ground

consists of a

number

of fan-shaped

ti

238.

INDUSTRIAL COMMUNITIES

communities, placed along a

topography of the area.

An

Developed on Hilly Grounds

traffic

line, in locations

determined by the

administrative and commercial area beside

a lake serves also as a cultural center for the adjoining settlements.

In another study,

The main

belt

we have used

surrounded by small farms.

formed by these aggregates stretches along the

two lakes and a

river,

ward the lake and the

grated and

city aggregates

connecting them. West of the main

river, are the air-polluting factories

heavy industries.

The wind

east side of

traffic line, to-

and the

conditions in this area are

inte-

much
263

239.

BELT OF CITY AGGREGATES

Surrounded by Small Farms

more favorable than in the area mentioned before. Therefore the integrated and heavy industries can be within walking distance of their
residential areas. This main belt is crossed by a minor belt, more rural in
character. Commerical, administrative,

where these

Our

and cultural centers are located

belts intersect.

next study, a belt along a river, shows

developed.

The

city aggregate use

made

pose. Its parts can be

The working

is

how

freely such belts could be

and adjustable

flexible

larger or smaller to

fit

to

any pur-

any requirement.

area of these settlement units are in direct connection

with the areas on small farms, so that part-time workers living on

those farms can find
aggregates, as well as

employment

The open

main

the obnoxious industries

river,
belt.

and

main transportation

their subsidiaries, each with

At the south, the main

the east,

it

belt

is

crossed by a

consists of smaller aggregates,

some dispersed towns,

is

its

minor

line, are

own

belt.

residen-

Towards

towards the west a belt of

located. Factoris

shops provide part-time work for the people

264

forest

forming a natural recreation area for the

East of the

tial area.

small farms, with

space between the

between the small farms, are penetrated by a

which stretches along the

settlements of the

there.

who

live

and work-

on these farms.

The

last

diversified in size

and shape according

communities may prove

oped.

They

They can
rigidness

around an

study, a decentralized city

to

inlet,

uses communities,

to their function.

It

seems that those

be the most useful planning elements devel

are flexible in themselves and adaptable to any conditions.

easily

be extended

and can be spaced

if

the necessity arises.

so as to

fulfill

They

are free from any

any defence requirements. Veg-

etable gardens are attached to every house and small farms, for part-time

workers, could be placed wherever necessary.

Each community has

tories, stores,

and

its

own working

offices.

Towards

area which provides space for fac-

the north

and the south

special ad-

ministrative and commercial centers are located, to which cultural centers

are attached. At the east side there

240.

BELT OF CITY AGGREGATES

is

Along

a university

community which

pro-

a River

265

241.

DECENTRALIZED CITY AROUND AN INLET

266

vides, besides

and rain

residential areas, also space for dormitories

iis

ties.

These studies aim

at a ruralization of the city.

urbanization of the country.

cities
all

II

They may achieve

the active forces

now concentrated

also

an

in large

could be more evenly distributed, activity would be spread through

the country. City

and country, coming

closer to each other,

would

in-

fluence each other to their mutual benefit, materially and spiritually.

What

Healthy conditions would be everywhere restored.

citv life

advantages of each way of

life

adjoining

To

and meadows, they would form

keep the cultivated landscape in

With

production requires

and

be constantly

soil,

maintained. These elements, with the sun, are the sources of

live

without

steel,

the

productive landscape.

a state of active

that certain natural recpiirements, such as water

could learn to

dis-

forests

penetrating into the settlements,

lakes,

better recreation spots than costly city parks.

fields

The

life.

would disappear. The woods and

along the river and around the

would become

pleasant in

is

could be combined with the pleasantness of country

never without food.

Man

life.

has no

We

power

over the activity of the sun, but he has learned to manipulate water and
soil,

make them

to

serve

him and

to

support his

He

life.

has also the

power, however, to disrupt the interaction of water and earth and, in so

doing, to create a desert in once fruitful land.

Like the natural landscape, the cultivated landscape depends on the maintenance of the hydrologic cycle, the result of alternating precipitation and

To

evaporation.

maintain

this cycle, ridges, hills,

and mountains should

always be covered with woods and forest, slopes with grassland, so that
rain water

is

stored and does not so quickly run off that

it

causes erosion.

Naturally concentrated and dispersed woods and forests not only protect
watersheds, but they also preserve wild

needs of the region.

Cut

care.

If this is

trees

The

life

and furnish timber

timber, of course, should be harvested with

should always be replaced by the planting of new ones.

carefully done, a continuous supply of

timber can be assured for

present needs and for those of coming generations.

beside a river or lake protect

Soil

of

is

Woods and

windbreaks and thus prevent wind erosion.

also as

its

animate and inanimate

life.

The

forests act

Trees and shrubs

banks and shores.

not a mere mechanical mixture.

the source of

for the

forces.

It is

Not only

interaction of the

the result of the interaction

is it

soil

full of life;

material,

its

it

is.

in truth,

physical

and

chemical constituents, the sub-soil conditions, water and sunlight: these

are the factors

depend

own

which make plant growth

for their food.

Man

possible.

On

plants, animals

depends on both animals and plants

for his

existence.

267

according to their constituents, and according to their degree

Soils differ

of maturity.

They

are also affected by the vegetation they support,

influenced by climatic conditions, by the

elevation.

Some

soils

fications: forestland, grassland,

is

we can

and arable

and

grass; others

divide land into three

among

these three

cannot be expressed in any formula.

it

that the relation will vary

classi-

land.

always a certain relation and interdependence

kinds of land, although

and

of rainfall, by their

are better adapted for growing trees

for various kinds of crop. In general,

There

amount

and be influenced by the character

We

know

of the soil,

by the climate, and by the geography and topography of a given landscape.

Regional planning requires the study of the ecology of a region, the

analysis
ical,

and mapping

of

the examination of

its soil.

physical features, geographical

its
its

rainfall, its climate, its

and topograph-

wind conditions, and

Only through such study and charting can we discover how the

land can best be used and

how

usefulness can be preserved for the

its

present and for the future.

But regional planning deals not only with the physical structure of a region,
but also with the use

made

of

it

and with the sub-divisions created

This may well become

serve this use.

to

political-economic problem,

involving understanding of the means of agricultural productions, the tools

and machines being applied. For example,

into subsistence farms or large estates.

for division

may be

a given area

suitable

Each solution

possible and practical. But a solution better than either of these

be a combination of both.

added small holdings

of both size

prevent the

To

of the

how

it

all

Islands,

an

essentially rural region.

shows better than an unlimited area

and

industrial,

diversification

all its

all

We

chose an island

the advantages

and

implications.

Production, both agri-

was diversified and well balanced.

and that balance have been destroyed.

Islands produce

to

one-crop farming inevitably leads.

the Hawaiian Islands were self-sustaining.

cultural

large estates could be

a rural area could be developed, let us take Maui, one

disadvantages of the use of land in

Once

and

Crops might be planted in rotation

exhaustion to which

Hawaiian

because

the small farms

for the agricultural workers, there could be diversity

and production.

soil

illustrate

If to

is

would

Today

that

The Hawaiian

two main crops: sugarcane and pineapples. These crops

dominate the highly specialized production. Since they require the use of
practically all the arable land of the islands, the people living there have
to

import most of the food they need.

work well at first. Then, as new plantations are

new areas, competition comes into play. Desirable in itself, this
competition may have disastrous effect on a specialized region. The
Specialization seems to
started in

268

242.

HAWAIIAN ISLAND MAUI

View

price of the specialized product goes

ported remains at

its

former

level.

eventually, can not be balanced.

down; the price

of foodstuffs im-

The inevitable result is a deficit which,

The system which once worked so well

can become a total failure.

When

the Hawaiian Islands were discovered in 1778, their population

may have been around

250,000. Continual warfare

among

epidemics and disease brought by the white man, reduced

around 50,000.

hundred years

after

its

feudal chiefs,

this

number

to

foundation, the sugar industry,

facing a shortage of native labor, was bringing to the islands workers from
all

over the world. By 1900, the population had risen to 154,000;

close to 500,000

covered.

Maui,

now, twice

as large as

Maui had 63,479 people

like the other

Hawaiian

it

one

Islands,

The

is,

dis-

was formed by volcanic activity

The

island has two

rising to 6,000 feet; the larger

one

These mountains give Maui an 8-shaped form. The wide

the mountains

may be

in 1938.

and, to a lesser degree, by reef-building corals.

tains: the smaller

it

was when the islands were

agriculturally, the

most useful part of the

prevailing winds are trade winds from the northeast.

moun-

to 10,000 feet.

valley

between

island.

The

rainfall

is

highest on the northeast side of the island because the moisture-laden

blown against the mountains here precipitate their moisture.

Rainfall on the slopes of the smaller mountain is especially heavy. Its
cliffs and canyons, formed by rain and wind, cause updrafts which increase
the precipitation. The perennial streams are mostly on the northeast, or
trade winds

trade-wind, side of the island.

Other streams appear

in times of heavy

rain, are waterless during dry seasons.

About one-seventh

of Maui's total land area

is

arable land under cultiva269

I
243.

MAUI

Topography

244.

MAUI

Annual Rainfall

270

245.

MAUI

Types

of Soil

:;*->
l

246.

MAUI

Lflwd Utilization

271

tion.

The

rest

vated land

is

grassland, forest,

is

and wasteland. Two-thirds

of the culti-

given to sugarcane. Five-sixths of the remaining third

planted to pineapples. Only one-twentieth of the total arable land

is

is

used

for diversified farming.

This over-specialization

is

economy

Import exceeds export and the whole economy

of the Islands.

The

out of balance.

already having a disadvantageous effect on the

is

production of more varied foodstuffs and the intro-

duction of some local industry would help to restore the balance and
create a stable economy.

Our

proposal

Maui be

that the plantation workers of

is

own, where they can engage

of their

settled

in diversified farming.

upon land

The

land

assigned for such farming should be increased to at least one-fifth of the

arable land. Each family should

on

it

food for

own

its

work a farm

of about four acres, raising

use and, possibly, some surplus produce for those

The

living in the denser settlements.

position of the agricultural workers

would thus be made more secure and their lives would have more stability.
In our plan, these small farms form ribbons, running parallel with the
contour lines and along the traffic route. The great sugarcane and pineapple plantations

lie

between these ribbons, within easy reach of the

workers.

The

small farms could also be placed close together, around the com-

munities in which the agricultural workers

could be on

walking distance of the larger

If this

live.

Or

island

is

to fulfill

estates

only for goods

it

on which they are employed.

our concept of

which produces most of the goods

cannot produce,

sary diversified production.

it

needs

still

homes
would be within

the workers'

their small farms. In either case, the workers

a self-sustaining region as

and exchanges

itself

its

more land should be given

one

surplus

to neces-

Since one-crop farming always exhausts the

and that soil is the only natural resource Maui has,

become the general rule on the larger estates. Those

fertility of the soil

diversification should

who

think that land

is

made

the future will not

welcome

behind" seems

the

If

still

to

be exploited and

this

maxim

who

take

no thought

for

suggestion. "Never mind what we leave

of the exploiters.

considerations of welfare and conservation are not cogent enough to

bring about the change, however, there are other considerations which

cannot so lightly be thrust aside.

The Hawaiian

strategic position, a defense post of

first

important naval

oped on the

stations.

Islands.

During World

The

well

Islands are in a vital

rank. Pearl

War

established

II,

Harbor

is

one of our

a food shortage devel-

and calculated system of

exchange broke down because no ships were available for transportation.

The military authorities, brought face to face with this crisis, began to
272

247.

MAUI

Proposed Plan

advocate the raising of subsistence crops to feed the population.

need did not disappear with the close of the War.

for

Hawaii

248.

MAUI

is

diversified

This

economy

important to our security.

Different

Arrangement

of Small

Farms

273

,)'
"

\
'

>

.1

249.

INDIA

Villages with Small

Farms

INDIA

250.

For India, our proposal

is

Villages xuith

directly opposite to that

Proposed Larger Farms

made for Hawaii. We

we take land away

suggest that, instead of giving small farms to workers,

Why

from the small Indian farmers.

During the period

village

this

seeming inconsistency?

of British rule, the rights of the

autonomous Indian

were suppressed. Village industries, therefore, declined, and the

balance between production and consumption was disturbed.

sufficiency of the

Indian community was

increased. Already small land holdings

became

inefficient; life

lost.

had

to

The

be sub-divided. Production

was impoverished.

Now that India is free, she is eager to raise production

Her Prime Minister Nehru*

is

essential to relieve the pressure

and living standards.

convinced that "rapid industrialization

on the land,

to

combat poverty and

the standard of living, for defence and a variety of other purposes."

significantly adds:

"I

am

trialization

and

to avoid

those

made

for the

and

many
its

United

if

274

Nehru

of

we

are to reap the full benefits of indus-

its

dangers." His proposals for decentral-

integration with agriculture are not unlike

States

by Henry Ford.**

Nelmi, Jawaharlal: The Discovery of India. London,

My Life and Work. New York. 1922

Ford, Henry:

is

raise

equally convinced that the most careful planning

and adjustment are necessary

ization of industry

self-

Meanwhile the population

1951

The

first

step in the achievement ol these aims

would

be,

we

believe, the

consolidation of small land holdings into parcels adequate to the tools

employed. As the agricultural

efficient ones,

tools

now

in use arc

replaced with

optimum

units for eilieient

cultivation.

needed

work the

diversification of production

to

possible.

The

more

land in the villages could be further consolidated to form

land,

and

Fewer people would then be

would become

surplus agricultural population would furnish workers

foi

These new industries should be of optimal si/e: small,

new
medium, and large according to function and need. The smaller industrial aggregates could be placed in the villages where the surplus populaindustries.

tion

now

lives.

plots for their

own

their livelihood
plots also to

Workers
use;

and

in these

new industries could be given garden

by cultivating these the workers could supplement

diversify their lives.

Farmers could have such garden

supplement the produce of their agricultural holdings. These

farmers might find part-time employment in the village industries. Farmseasonal

and

upon those who engage

ing, especially in India,

is

off-seasons of idleness.

People released from agriculture

find

work

forces

in the village industries could

communities could

also

it

not

be settled in new industrial com-

munities, placed along existing or planned highways.

industrial

who could

in

Dwellers in these

be given garden plots connected with

their houses.

Produce from these gardens would supplement industrial

income, and

their

cultivation

would provide

relief

from

industrial

monotony.

251.

INDUSTRIAL VILLAGES ALONG HIGHWAYS

275

The planning

elements and planning principles we have developed are

many

based on research and investigation. These elements are capable of

combinations. Their flexibility makes them adaptable to any purpose, to

any location,

We have,

to

any geographic or topographic condition.

in this study, applied

to plan

new

ones.

decentralization of industries
East coast

to increasingly

We have used them to replan old cities

We have suggested their application to

complex problems.

and

our principles and elements

now

concentrated in the

and Lake Michigan and the extension

would

the South. Such a rearrangement

and regions
bring about

between our

cities

of these industries into

result in a

more even

distribution

of these industries, in their closer relation to agriculture, in the integration

of industry and agriculture.

ment
and

would

lead, eventually, to the establish-

of the self-sustaining region essential today for our national defense

for the security of

The diagrams we

our people.

have presented make no claim to be complete solutions

They

of the problems involved.

possible solutions
cities

It

are rather a framework within which

may be found. They

and regions do not

exist.

are abstractions only;

and abstract

Until they are put to use, the elements

we

have developed and their manifold possibilities of combination must

remain

in the

realm of theory. Such theory provides the necessary starting

Our purpose has been

planning problems we must face.

point for the discovery of sound methods of work.

encourage discussion about the

to

Understanding of

problem and

its

implications

is

any accomplishment. Only when we have reached

the real

work

of planning begin.

then be modified by
fulfillment of

Planning
jacket,
is

is

reality.

human

The

to create a

fixes

is

not an abstract

needs, the realization of

and

restricts.

Some

On

understanding can

application of our principles will

For planning

often misunderstood.

which

always prerequisite to

this

human

believe

it

task.

It is

the

aims.

to

be a kind of

strait

the contrary, the purpose of planning

framework within which the

city

can develop

framework should provide for the development of each

restricting others. It should facilitate

freely.

city area

Such

without

any desired extension, while main-

taining everywhere the proper relation of the city's different parts.

If

the decentralization of industry and

were

to

become an accepted

toward the attainment of

276

goal, then

this goal.

its

integration with agriculture

our every

effort

Each step of such

should be directed
a transition

should

be an accomplishment in
end.

itself, as

The method we have

well as an advance toward the desired

suggested for the replanning of Chicago, whose

we demonstrated in some

different stages

well to the replanning of a region.

could he applied equally

detail,

Each

street

we

closed or eliminated,

each block we took out, each street or highway constructed, each

ment, factory, or

office

to serve a present

need

that a city

The problem of the

end. The same thing

shape that transition toward a desired

to

The

a region.

Are

only difference

our world today,

there, in

ideas, concepts, forces

and which may make

There

all,

is, first

difficult

this

the concept of a

moving our

beyond our power

is

is,

human

are!

needs,

its first

stage to

finally,

its

We

second.

we think

of

it

as

the force of defence neces-

ignore only by jeopardizing our lives and our security.

human

to realize long-neglected

New

aims.

force decentralization of industry, hasten

and thus bring into being

is

well drive us

may

defense requirements

integration with agriculture,

its

work we are
the work of human

related to the kind of

performing. As the process of production

more and more

may

human environment.

a better

dissatisfaction with life

beings becomes

There

as sentimental, too

Fear of possible catastrophe, stirring our will to survival,

Our growing

is

true for

also the evolutionary force

is

taking place; too often

There

to shape.

And this we can

from

industrial age

are aware that this transition

sity.

better adapted to

life

be practical. There

costly to

planner
is

which support our

realization possible?

its

concept has too often been brushed aside

and

inevitably

of

noted

in the region's greater complexity.

lies

regional concept

though

We

as well as to effect a final transformation.

always in a state of transition.

is

settle-

building built was, in our Chicago plan, designed

is

perfected,

monotonous, impersonal.

repetititive,

Workers, no longer able to act according to their

will,

become instruments,

parts of the machines they tend. They have their place in industry only

because the machine

the
is

machine comes

added

faction,

once

is

not yet so perfect

closer

and

but he must not lose

existence

is

becomes

The

it

for

on

it

without
this

As

unemployment

his livelihood depends.

Man cannot live

He tries to escape

it.

entirely.

job he does gives him no

a curse.

threatened by

man

closer to perfection, fear of

to the worker's frustrations.

a blessing,

as to displace

it,

satis-

Work,

but his very

dilemma

in every

possible way.

Improvement

of

methods of production has made possible the decrease of

working hours, the increase of

no longer knows how

it

to

creates mechanically.

so-called leisure time.

spend

his leisure.

He

But mechanized man

tries to solve

the problems

Canned entertainment has become

canned food. Twentieth century

of spectator, even in sports.

man

as staple as

increasingly prefers the passive role

His leisure-time

activity, losing creativeness,

277

is

too often merely an escape from

a frantic search for a

If

self.

he can afford a

car,

nights, thinking of his discontent with his life

and

his play,

such a

man may,

perhaps, sometimes

come

to

work and
himself and discover,
his

dimly, the sources of his frustration. But does not frustration

diminish man's ability to deal with frustration?

modern

of

life,"

While the

reliable authorities

If this is

the

the situation

end
is

to

is

result of the progress of

Human

grave indeed.

No

of any country.

many

claim that the nearer one

metropolitan area, the more likely he

national health

to the conclusion that

on the road

cities, is definitely

Selective Service recognized

now

become

look at the problem of

it

human

center of a

insane."

which we have been

so proud,

beings are indispensable resources

is

possible unless the people of the

needs from

aside, calling

ing, disintegrating effects of

its

may depend

If

we

we can
The de-humaniz-

point of view, surely

this

solution sentimental.

our mechanical age present us with

today on whose speedy solution

to

reasons for rejection,

lives to the

nation are kept in physical and mental health and vigorous activity.

no longer push

itself

"Almost any investigation

Jonathan Forman* wrote, "leads

white man. with his machines and his

insanity.

in

it

work, worrying

his

about losing his job, brooding on the lack of satisfaction in

at least

he uses

dreamland. Back in his slum apartment on sleepless

problem

the survival of our country,

even the survival of mankind.

society as

complex

as

ours could probably never get along without

the labor market which brought our great cities into being. But the im-

portance of that market

encouraging a trend

may

diminish. Both labor and

in this direction.

Many an

industrialist

It

and many

are

could bring important ameliora-

market on the

tion of the effects of the labor

management

city.

corporation will agree with Henry

Ford's** statement that "the overhead expenses of living and doing busiIt places
is becoming so large as to be unbearable.

ness in the great cities

so great a tax

upon

life

ailments from which

.

...

[The
is

that there

we today

is

no surplus

to live on.

suffer originated

and center

in the big cities.

idea] that an industrial country has to concentrate

not well founded. That

Industries will decentralize.

is
.

All the social

its

industries

only a stage in the industrial development.

.The modern

today bankrupt, and tomorrow

it

city has

will cease to be."

been prodigal,

They may

it

is

also agree

that "the best possible conditions, as far as employees are concerned, are
also the best possible conditions

from the manufacturing standpoint."

Forman, Jonathan: Biological Truth and Public Health.

In: Cities are Abnormal. Oklahoma. 1946
** Ford, Henry. My Life and My Work. New York, 1022
*

27C

The pension plan

which the unions arc striving today

for

will itscll fostei

decentralization. Such a plan presupposes stabilized production

lized

employment. This means

less

opportunity lor the worker

employment. While younger men may change

do today, the older men with families
are workers to do in

What kind

frequently as they

jol>s as

down. But what

those industries which cannot provide work the \cn
have to

will

settle

compensation can be provided lor their security?

of

opinion, only land can do

Ford when he

said,

this.

"The men

their jobs in the factory.

This

will

fact

have plots of ground or farms

Then we

shall

idea was expressed

rights.

In oui

was well understood by Henry

as well as

have the combination of

culture and industrialism and the entire absence of

The same

stabi-

to shili his

They cannot change their jobs without losing pension

around?

tration."

and

more than

agri-

the evils of concen-

all

half a century ago by

Peter Kropotkin.*
Patrick Geddes*

has discovered an interesting parallel between prehistoric

and contemporary periods. In the Stone Age, he

of

writes,

two

distinct phases

development can be distinguished: the Old Stone Age and the

New

Our industrial age shows

society, new and more refined

Stone Age; the Paleolithic and the Neolithic.

a similar

means

development. As

in the ancient

of production, resulting

from

are replacing older, rougher means.

when complete,

will

scientific

Geddes believes

humanize industry and

"Simply substituting -technic for

still

that this transition,

living conditions.

we may distinguish
Age as Paleotechnic,

-lithic,

and ruder elements of the Industrial

and

and technical achievement,

He

says:

the earlier

the

newer

often incipient elements disengaging themselves from these as

Neotechnic."

The

Paleolithic

Age was characterized by

hunting, and by war, but

tion.
its

The

it

was not without

rough stone implements, by

its

vigor of artistic presenta-

Paleotechnic Age has been characterized by

steam engines and railroads,

smoke

its

filled,

its

It

mining towns,

concentrated and overcrowded cities-

soot covered, slum infested

blight the landscape.

its

and reaching out endlesslv

has been characterized by degraded

human

to

lives,

by instability of employment, by waste and exploitation of resources, by

imperialism and wars.

The

Age brought the use of polished stone implements, cultural

as pottery and weaving, the domestication of animals
and the cultivation of grain and fruit trees all elements of a more peaceful
development. It may well be that the Neotechnic Age will be known as
the age of electricitv and the motor vehicle in which became possible deNeolithic

advances in such arts

* Kropotkin, Peter: Fields, Factories and Workshops. London, 1898

** Geddes. Patrick and Branford, Victor: The Coming Policy.

London, 1917; Geddes. Patrick:

Cities in Evolution.

London. 1915

279

and

centralization, the integration of industry

and conservation
ment.
life,

If so,

and

for

"As there

agriculture, the preservation

of resources, the stabilization of production

man may

the skill of

Geddes*

life.

no need

will be

once again be directed by

words

states in these

of peace will be a positive

environment and then of

replace war.

and constructive rebuilding,

society.

For

"When

towards

first

The
of

task

man's

social health, as for individual

must not the essential matter be hygiene?

That is the hygiene of Peace."

health,
jardin.

life,

his vision of that future:

may

for aggression, peace

and employ-

cultiver son

77 faat

become developed in the art of selfHenry Ford,** "business will once more become service.
be no competition, because the basis of competition will have

the peoples of the world

all

support," wrote

There

will

The

vanished.

varied peoples will develop

nature of monopolies and not competitive.

have exhibited distinct strains of genius.

and drop

basis of natural specialities

sooner

we

peace.

Trying

which

skills

will be in the

From the beginning, the races

The sooner we get back to a
.

this free-for-all

system of grab, the

be sure of international self-respect and international

shall

to take the trade of the

world can promote war.

It

cannot

promote prosperity."

Times

of transition are times of creation as well as trouble.

from the Paleotechnic

to the

Patrick Geddes expected

lems. Technical
rate,

and

as

it

and human

one

lags

Neotechnic

to be.

The

transition

not proving as peaceful as

is

There are many unsolved human prob-

possibilities

behind the other,

do not move forward

conflict results

at the

same

which sometimes

seems insurmountable. Times of transition are always pregnant with conflict.

Sometimes everything

headlong down the path

symptoms

gets out of balance

to war.

of such dislocation that

from which the symptoms

arise.

We

and we seem

to

be rushing

are so deeply concerned with the

we cannot

or will not look at the causes

Future historians may very well see in the

two World Wars the expression of inevitable transition; they may go

farther

and

see in

them the instruments

We all hope there will be no other war.

of necessary

influence reality, cannot actually control

wisdom

it.

In times like these,

to prepare for the worst, while continuing to

What does
we have to

such preparation

mean

Decentralization,

and

What

it

is

for the best.

What means do

could we do to make our-

safe as individuals?

combined with the integration

and the creation

hope

in terms of planning?

help us meet an emergency?

selves invulnerable as a nation

ture

and desirable change.

Hopes, however, though they may

of self-sustaining regions,

is

of industry
a

and

agricul-

complete answer to our

problem. Providing relative security in time of war, such planning would

* Quoted from: Boardman, Philip: Patrick Geddes. Maker of the Future. Chapel Hill. 1944
Ford Henry: My Life and My Work. New York. 1925

280

also establish the

Frame work for a better and more satisfactory

would cushion the destruction

time

life in

at the

same

time, relieve people from the destructive impact of our industrial age.

The

of peace. It

life

an individual and

of

This

is

of society

no vague Utopia. This

our defence.

It

is

of war.

It

would,

would gain new health and freedom.

the most practical course

has always been costly.

We

We

take for

go on inventing and producing expensive

weapons which may become obsolete before they come

line.

we can

cannot be followed without large expenditure; but defence

have to spend money

it

we want

security.

assembly

off the

The money we might

spend on decentralization, however, would be money soundly invested.

We would get something lasting for each dollar spent.

our investment would amortize

itself

In a very real sense,

and our money come back

to us with

interest.

From

the Chinese Wall to the Maginot Line, protecting walls have pro-

vided

men

a refuge in time of danger.

Attacked by enemies,

men

have

sought to protect themselves in a walled place of refuge, a walled town or

city;

they have even tried to protect a whole nation with one vast wall.

Those protecting walls became outmoded

as

weapons

of attack changed.

community carried always the heavy burden of keeping

repair, moving them, rebuilding them. This was always a

defence-seeking

its

walls in

costly undertaking.

Today

that expense

is

no longer a burden. Indeed, the advent

airplane and the development of atomic weapons have

made

of the

obsolete, not

only the city wall, but also the concentrated city that wall recpiired.

Highly concentrated centers of production, communication, and govern-

ment

today, instead of providing safety, invite their

upon such

attack

centers might, at one

own

destruction.

and the same time, cripple

duction, destroy defence possibilities, and so lower morale as to

An
pro-

make

continued resistance impossible. Today we can find security only through

the dispersal of cities

more

and

industries.

As new weapons become more and

destructive, security can be attained only

if

decentralization

bined with the integration of industry and agriculture, only

if

is

com-

there are

created relatively self-sustaining regions able to provide for the needs of

their people in

war or

The development

in peace.

of atomic

weapons

will effect the spacing of

our com-

itself. Donald Monson*

summary of the latest facts available which will effect the spacing
of new cities. There are mainly two factors which have a decisive influence:
the blast damage and the radioactive fall-out. For the effect of the blast

munities and city aggregates but not their structure

gives a

Monson, Donald:

Is

Dispersal Obsolete?

281

damage of a twenty megaton bomb he refers to Knapp* who estimates

it would extend over an area of fifteen miles radius from point zero.

that

the

If

bomb

the radius

increased to the limit of tbe chart at forty five megatons,

is

would be about twenty

miles. Increasing the curve by crude

projection to one hundred magatons (assuming that the scaling laws hold),
the radius

would be about twenty-five

miles, the curve seemingly

becoming

asymptotic at that point.

Lapp** points out

that the extent

and degree

of radioactivity of the

fall-

out depend on several factors: the power and composition of the bomb,
height of explosion, velocity, and direction of the wind, and composition
of the debris.

The

worst problems occur

are set off close to the earth's surface.

when bombs

The

of high

occur down-wind and will be scattered by the combined

surface winds
tosphere.

The

and the

characteristic forty to sixty knot

radioactive

shadow

will

megatonnage

however, normally

fall-out will,

effects of the

winds of the

extend over an area of

fifty

stra-

miles

within the area of the wind direction.

In order to demonstrate, diagramatically,
will effect the spacing

population,
tends to

we

and the

how

size of cities in a

these defence

demands

given area with a given

take the industrial area, centered in Chicago, which ex-

Milwaukee

in the north, to St. Louis in the southwest,

and Indian-

apolis in the southeast. It contains approximately 80,000 square miles

it

and

inhabited by thirteen million people of which nine million live in

is

cities

over ten thousand. These people

as well as their industries

have

to

be redistributed.

main diiections of the compass the four

between them were added making a total of eight wind diiections. The
wind may blow in any of these directions however, at different times.
Therefore, it seems to be the most reliable solution to have around the
In our wind diagrams, to the four

cities

an open area of

radioactive fall-out.

fifty

Then

miles radius lor the absorbtion of the possible

in

our area we would have forty

cities,

each

with a population of two hundred and twenty-five thousand. Cities of such

a size are
cities

apart,

still

an inviting

and decrease

target. If

however we increase the number

their population and, by spacing

we would have two hundred

cities

of

them twenty miles

each with a population of forty-

If one of these should be bombed, then only forty-five thouwould

be exposed to the full effects of the bomb. An additional
sand people
forty-five thousand, or in some cases ninety thousand, depending on the
direction of the wind, would be subject to the radio-active fall out. This
means that on the average one hundred twelve thousand five hundred
people, only half as many would be exposed to the effects of the bomb and

five

thousand.

Knapp, Harold A. [r. South Woodley Look at the H Bomb

lap]), Ralph E. Civil Defence Faces New Peril
Bulletin of Atomic Scientist's, Chicago. Dec, Oct., and Nov.. 1954

282

issues

of this

number

effects.

To bomb

only approximately one third would be exposed

these two

hundred

cities effectively,

t<

its

lull

two hundred bombs

would be needed. Consequently, the smaller ities would be a less inviting

target and therefore much safer. Though the danger /one of the radioactive fall-out may increase in size, decentralization remains the only wav
in which relative protection may be seemed.
(

These

252.

cities

do not need

EFFECT OF H-BOMB

to be alike.

They could

be varied according to

on the Size and Distribution of Cities

283

around an

their function, as for instance the decentralized city

inlet

(111.

241) demonstrates. Such a re-distribution of people and their industries

quite possible in the United States with

However,

density.

Europe and

of

would be impossible

it

its

is

low population

relatively

in the over populated countries

Asia.

we propose were accepted with all its implications,

that would be needed to make the concept reality would be a comprehensive plan, with a new concept of zoning, and the determination to
the regional concept

If

all

follow this plan.

we have

The planning problem

involved

twofold.

is

There is, as
and its

seen, a physical problem, the actual planning of a region

But there

settlements.

and administrative problem.

also a legislative

is

The two phases of the planning problem are, of course, closely interrelated. The most important legislative-administrative task would be the
unification of the region in such a
a

maximum

way

maintain diversity and retain

as to

degree of local independence.

Perhaps our planning ideas could help solve these intrinsic problems.
non-partisan agency,

immune

and economic

to political

pressure,

might

be able to create an administrative system able to balance the divergent

independence and dependence. Such an agency could

forces of

which would determine the use

a zoning ordinance

tenance of a balanced regional economy with

tions,

and which would

also

also create

of land for the main-

all its diversified

implica-

WHERE WHAT could or should

determine

be built.

Because of the financial problems involved, decentralizaiton seems an

But

unrealizable, chimerical undertaking.

tion

once

and

less

is

bring

it

said:
to

problem of money than

to pass.

Adolph A.

Berle,

it
is

it

only seems
of will.

when he was

Decentraliza-

Determination can

Assistant Secretary of State,

"In finance there are techniques which are

rehouse the United States

so.

as they are able to

as able to rebuild

equip an army. They

have not been used primarily because there was no compelling desire to
use them."

Today

has come.

It is also a

the compelling necessity for the use of these techniques

surprising fact that the

decentralization a reality

After the Second

and thus

to relieve the

our

We

in

cities.

plans were

units.

It

was the aim of

housing shortage and to eliminate vast slum areas

do not know exactly how many of these housing units

were built without

and without regard

284

this

to construct 12,600,000 units within ten years

were built, perhaps half of those originally planned.

that they

make

made and money appropriated

non-farm housing

national housing program

to

already provided for at least in theory.

is

World War,

for the construction of

money needed

to future

comprehensive plan

development.

We

to

But we do know

govern their location

can, moreover,

as

William

Wheaton* points out "afford to channel new growth into the decentralized pattern. The volume of such growth is prodigious: twenty-five billion
dollars last year (1950) lor new plants and equipment, 1,500,000 new
homes, enough for five million people, with roads, water, sewers, schools,
and other

stores

services to

go with them.

This annual increment

growth, properly guided, could relocate a

filth

new

ol

or a third ol our urban

population with their factories in each decade."

We

are lacing the necessity of rebuilding our highway system.

become obsolete because

must now

it

was not designed for the heavy truck

made

In a survey

carry.

1910,

in

Commissioner of Public Works, found

federal

Thomas

that,

It

has

traffic it

MacDonald,

II.

out of the 40,000 miles

of our most heavily traveled roads, only 1,900 miles are adecpiate for the

immensely increasing motor

five billion dollars a

dollars, to replace

our obsolete highways and bridges. This money,

Other undertakings could be added

sums of money,

for instance,

soil

on

list.

We are constantly spending

and conservation, on the

fitted into a

decentralization.

Some

on

irrigation,

on land reclamation and reforestation.

coordinated and

too,

sound plan.

in accordance with a

to this

on

vation and control of water resources,

control,

spend

to

year for fifteen years, a total of seventy-five billion

might achieve the placing of these roads

large

we need

estimated that

It is

traffic.

preser-

and erosion

flood

these projects were

If

comprehensive plan, they too could further

of these projects are, by their very nature, national

or even continental in scope. Others are determined by regional or local

needs.

There are two ways

There
of

the piecemeal

is

which such

in

method which

one project upon another or

The

result

is

is

also another

comprehensive aim in view,

tasks

for the

If

no consideration

such

a spirit

method:

to

to coordinate the

toward the achievement of

future.

gives

may be

executed.

to the effects

to the relation of the projects to a whole.

the eternal perpetuation of confused

But there

ditions.

vast undertakings

could be

and unsatisfactory con-

do things with

many

diverse

real value for the present

made

to prevail,

a clear

and

and necessary
and

for the

unlimited possibilities

accomplishment of our desired ends would be opened.

Decentralization would no longer need to be considered an impractical

dream.

It

could become practical

now

ready to our hands.

tion

and

It

What

is

reality.

The means

needed

is

to

accomplish

it

are

the will to plan their integra-

their use.

would be

wonderful thing

if

some magician were

to

perform a miracle

and, with one wave of his wand, transform things as they are into things
*

Wheaton, William L. C: Federal Action Toward a National Dispersal Policy Bulletin of

Atomic Scientists. Vol. VII. No. 9. September, 1951

the

285

as they

ought

to be.

perform the miracle.

And we

cannot hope

however, we recognize that planning

great technical

and economic

toward that miracle.

We

But there are no magicians.

These

is

to

perform

forces of

our time, we

end that the region may

function in the national

its

people.

abilities are

life

If,

shall

be moving

and

their settle-

will eventually reshape them. It

task to plan wisely and in harmony with nature, to use

of

over night.

basically the interpretation of the

forces shaped the regions

ments into their present form; they

available, to the

it

must ourselves

find again a

and become capable

Governmental powers, technical

abundantly available for our

use.

all

technical

is

our

means

form suitable

to

its

of fulfilling the needs

skills,

administrative

Have we

the will to use

them? Have we, within ourselves, the determination which

is

the magic

agency alone capable of bringing the dream to fulfillment, of making the

miracle a living reality?

286

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