Speculative Building as Morally Disturbing in Early Stuart London

Sik, Daniel [UCL]

The explosive demographic growth in Early Stuart London, paired with the escalating value of land, resulted in tens of thousands of landlords. Amongst them were aspiring speculative developers, who were confronted with high building costs. Their concerns are addressed in the 1654 publication ‘The Purchaser’s Pattern.’ The author asserts that a property development only needs to exceed a ‘sleeping hole’ as much as it allows the land to yield profit - how to build was primarily dependant on economic factors. However, this was an attitude that disturbed the existing social order, an order held steadfast by ethical frameworks, which we can generally categorise as twofold. The first is well demonstrated Stow’s ‘Survey of London,’ where he nostalgically reads histories of chivalric charity into the built fabric of London. In his opinion, the feudal virtues of estate ownership were disrupted by its economic commodification; to place virtue for sale was not only avaricious and usurous, but also deeply uncharitable. The second is demonstrated in the humanist ambitions for a Magnificent capital, notably affirmed by the court. Magnificence, Aristotle reminds us, is a virtue. Thusly, the architectural ambitions of the classically inclined had distinctly ethical dimensions; precepts transgressed by building developers who they deemed vulgar - lacking in taste and decorum. These species of moralising architectural criticism span an impressive range of literary sources (e.g. legal records, city comedies, and ethical treatises). Through a cross-examination of these records, I will reveal in this paper how the moral inclinations of London’s speculative builders were lithified in the city’s built environment, as well as how this environment was perceived by Londoners.