Few historians have written about walking, despite its obvious centrality to the human condition. Focusing on the period 1800-1914, this book examines the practices and meanings of walking in the context of transformative modernity. It boldly suggests that once historians place walking at the heart of their analyses, exciting new perspectives on themes central to the ¿long nineteenth century¿ emerge. Walking Histories, 1800-1914 adopts a global perspective, including contributions from specialists in the history and culture of Great Britain, North America, Australia, Russia, East-Central Europe, and South Asia. Critically engaging with recent research, the contributions within offer fresh insights for academic experts, while remaining accessible to student readers. This book will be essential reading for those interested in movement, travel, leisure, urban history, and environmental history.

Examines the practices and meanings of walking in the context of nineteenth-century modernity

Introduction: Modern Walks; Chad Bryant, Arthur Burns and Paul Readman.- PART I: WALKING, SPACE, AND BOUNDARIES.- 1. Walking the Boundaries between Modernity and Tradition; Robert Gray.- 2. Strolling the Romantic City; Chad Bryant.- 3. Rites of Passage; Simon Sleight.- PART II: THE OPTICS OF WALKING.- 4. Walking as Labour in Henry Mayhew's London; Elizabeth Coggin Womack.- 5. 'Efficiency on Foot'? The Well-Run Estate of Nineteenth-Century Britain; Julie Hipperson.- PART III: WEEKEND WALKING, OR NOT.- 6. Accidents Will Happen; Arthur Burns.- 7. 'A Good Walk Spoiled?' Golfers and the Experience of Landscape during the Late Nineteenth Century; Clare V. J. Griffiths.- 8. Urban Space and Travel on the Jewish Sabbath in the Nineteenth Century; Barry Stiefel.- PART IV: WALKING, CONTEMPLATION, AND THE SELF.- 9. The Saints Who Walk; Iqbal Sevea.- 10. Walking in Andrei Bely's Petersburg; Angeliki Sioli.- 11. Walking and Environmentalism in the Career of James Bryce; Paul Readman.