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The lecture will look at the industrial river Thames and consider the changing needs of shipping with the transition from sail to steam and the impact on London as a port.
How might the study of the first 1,500 years of London's port history (encapsulating profound changes ranging from location, infrastructure and technology to variations in river levels) help when making predictions for the future?
The lecture will examine the changing shape of the Thames Valley (the London end in particular), evidence of population movement and urban growth and the appearance of agricultural and industrial activity from the earliest times to the arrival of the Romans.
Queen Victoria was the first constitutional monarch. The Crown had become the symbol not only of British nationhood but also of Empire. How did this come about?