First published in 1986. Victorian London is a classic site of the slum. This study looks at the process of slum clearance. It covers the development of policies and programmes from their initiation through Cross’s Act (1875) to the abandonment of clearance by the London County Council at the end of the Victorian period in favour of a suburban solution. It is concerned with the manner in which such policies related to the nature of the slum and its place in the urban structure. The discussion ranges from contemporary understanding of such matters to the detailed content and repercussions of policies, which required the designation of unfit houses, the compensation of property owners, the displacement of tenants, and the rebuilding of sites.