The Peasants of Marlhes

Moving to the City: Migration to London and Paris in the Nineteenth Century

“…Some analysts have argued that only individuals with some experience of life in an environment similar to that of a large city are likely to take the risk. Anderson's studies of internal migration in Russia confirm this view (Anderson, 1977;1980). She discovered that migrants to Moscow and St. Petersburg, the two largest cities in the country, came from relatively modernized areas.…”

“…The immigrants to the major cities of northwest England were thus drawn from the populations of the surrounding towns rather than directly from the rural population. Armengaud (1976) and Lehning (1980) suggest that a similar pattern may have occurred in France. We will see, then, whether these findings can help account for the regional variation in rates of migration to London and Paris.…”