Post by Waverley on Jan 4, 2010 9:54:09 GMT 1
I have a rather battered and chewed copy of C A Oakley's excellent book 'The Second City' which I have been referring to in recent weeks re my research into Glasgow's history. Amazingly I keep coming across stuff that I had obviously forgotten about or simply never realised the importance of it the first couple of times that I read it.
Written in 1946 it deals with the dramatic rise of Glasgow from being a small ecclesiastical town in the 18th century to the remakable position of being 'the Second City of the Empire on which the sun never set' at the turn of the 20th century. Sadly whilst we of our generation bemoan how the city has fallen from Grace over the last 50 years or so the city was already beginning to spiral downwards from it Zenith on the eve of the First World War.
Whilst Oakley doesn't put the blame at anyone's door in particular he does however highlight several possible reasons why Glasgow seemed to miss out, on a lot of economic revivals after both World Wars, due to the politcal scene and lack of investment by big buisness in the area...stating that in general Glaswegians tended to blame everyone apart from themselves for the city's misfortunes. Certainly if one reads of the advances made in commerce and industry during Victorian times it certainly seems that the use of the old 'protestant work ethic' certainly worked for Glasgow back then when idleness was seen as a sin and certainly ungodly.
I will try and serialise the book in some of the topics on here as I am sure that it will act as a catalyst for some serious discussion in regards to Glasgow's illustrious history but also the make up of your average Glaswegian today.
Written in 1946 it deals with the dramatic rise of Glasgow from being a small ecclesiastical town in the 18th century to the remakable position of being 'the Second City of the Empire on which the sun never set' at the turn of the 20th century. Sadly whilst we of our generation bemoan how the city has fallen from Grace over the last 50 years or so the city was already beginning to spiral downwards from it Zenith on the eve of the First World War.
Whilst Oakley doesn't put the blame at anyone's door in particular he does however highlight several possible reasons why Glasgow seemed to miss out, on a lot of economic revivals after both World Wars, due to the politcal scene and lack of investment by big buisness in the area...stating that in general Glaswegians tended to blame everyone apart from themselves for the city's misfortunes. Certainly if one reads of the advances made in commerce and industry during Victorian times it certainly seems that the use of the old 'protestant work ethic' certainly worked for Glasgow back then when idleness was seen as a sin and certainly ungodly.
I will try and serialise the book in some of the topics on here as I am sure that it will act as a catalyst for some serious discussion in regards to Glasgow's illustrious history but also the make up of your average Glaswegian today.