Sevenoaks 1790–1914 | University of Hertfordshire Press Skip to content
search
menu
  • UH Press
  • About UH Press
  • Browse our catalogue
  • How to order
  • Join our mailing list
  • News
  • Events
  • Author biographies
  • Book proposals
  • Open Access
  • Follow us on social media
  • Contact us
  • Ebook options
University of Hertfordshire
University of Hertfordshire Press
  • UH Press
  • About UH Press
  • Browse our catalogue
  • How to order
  • Join our mailing list
  • News
  • Events
  • Author biographies
  • Book proposals
  • Open Access
  • Follow us on social media
  • Contact us
  • Ebook options
Home > Economic History New releases Social History > Sevenoaks 1790–1914
Section menu

Sevenoaks 1790–1914

Risk and choice in West Kent

Author: Iain Taylor, David Killingray

Price: £14.99 (free postage)

"

“The authors successfully develop and explain the idea of risk and choice factors and their effect in West Kent in the period 1790-1914. It is a well written, beautifully produced book, with a wide selection of photographs and other illustrative material, backed up by an excellent use of contemporary evidence.”

-George Buswell,
The Local Historian

About the book

This book offers a fresh perspective on British history in the long nineteenth century through the lens of a study of Sevenoaks and the surrounding area of West Kent. It considers, in particular, how the risks faced by the people of this region, and the choices they made to try to mitigate them, shaped their lives and relationships.

During a period of often dramatic change, the economic, social, political, religious and cultural interests of individuals were subject to different risk factors; the responses they made (and the reasons for those choices) provide valuable insights and enable the writing of highly nuanced local history.

The authors pinpoint the fundamental risk factors affecting the lives of West Kent's inhabitants (especially the poor): the struggle to obtain the four bare necessities of shelter, food, fuel and clothing, without which their survival was threatened.

  • More about the book

    Other risks abounded too, from abysmal sanitary conditions and the dangers of giving birth, to industrial injuries and being a victim of crime. Secure work and strong family networks were essential to limiting risks – often forming part of the ‘makeshift economy’ – as well as charity, education, health insurance and access to medical care. For many, not all these options were available – or not until much later in the period.

    Choice was central to religious and political struggles. The examination of beliefs and values reveals the immense impact such issues had across West Kent society, and how and why it divided as a direct result. Finally, the authors consider the advent of motor vehicles, which combined both risk and choice in exciting but potentially dangerous ways.

    This innovative approach provides a fruitful new way of writing history and offers a model for future local history studies.

  • Read a sample chapter

    Read an extract from Sevenoaks 1790–1914

  • About the Author/s:

    Iain Taylor

    Iain Taylor has a PhD from the University of London and is a Trustee of the British Association for Local History (BALH). He has published a number of articles on the history of the Sevenoaks area in the nineteenth century.


    David Killingray

    David Killingray is Emeritus Professor of Modern History at Goldsmiths, and Senior Research Fellow at the School of Advanced Study, University of London. A recent chairman of the BALH, he has published many books and articles on aspects of Kent history.

ISBN: 978-1-912260-61-4 Format: Paperback, 296pp Published: Dec 2022

Other titles you may enjoy

Shaping the Past
Shaping the Past
St Albans: Life on the Home Front, 1914-1918
St Albans: Life on the Home Front, 1914-1918
The Industrious Child Worker
The Industrious Child Worker
A Caring County?
A Caring County?

Any questions

Contact us at UH Press if you have any queries or would like to find out more about this book.

Top of page
  • Assembling Enclosure
  • Custom and Commercialisation in English Rural Society
  • Farmers, Consumers, Innovators
  • Under Fire
  • Wearmouth and Jarrow

Contact us

Switchboard

tel +44 (0) 1707 284000

Admissions Office

tel +44 (0) 1707 284800 fax +44 (0) 1707 284870

Email

ask@herts.ac.uk

Postal Address

University of Hertfordshire Hatfield Hertfordshire, UK AL10 9AB

Location by postcode

College Lane Campus: AL10 9AB de Havilland Campus: AL10 9EU Park and Ride: AL10 8HS

© 2023 University of Hertfordshire

  • HR Excellence in Research logo
  • QAA Quality Mark thumbnail
  • Stonewall logo
Top of page