City of Sin

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If Paris is the city of love, then London is the city of lust. This vibrant chronicle explores London's relationship with sex through the ages, revealing how England's capital has been associated with desire and the sins of the flesh for over a thousand years. Richard of Devises, a monk in 1180, noted the prevalence of obscenities, while as early as the second century AD, London was infamous for its raucous festivities and disorderly houses. Award-winning historian Catharine Arnold examines the city's vice-laden history, showcasing how London has always traded in the currency of sex. From pornographic publishers on Fleet Street to courtesans in Haymarket, the streets have witnessed a range of colorful sexual behaviors. Arnold's accessible style takes readers on a journey through London's fleshpots, featuring buxom strumpets, louche aristocrats, and Victorian flagellants. The narrative captures the city's oscillation between sexual exuberance and moral panic, swinging from Puritanism to hedonism. With later chapters delving into Victorian London and the twentieth-century sexual underground, this chronicle presents a fascinating look at the raw and ribald aspects of the city.