"Instauratio Urbis": How to Preserve a City. Debates on City Planning in the Netherlands in the First Half of the 20th Century

At the turn of the 20th century, the issue of urban development was one of the key problems discussed by European architects. Architects were haunted by a fear of an expanding, sinister Metropolis that would trample humanity, make life in the city unbearable, and undermine traditional values and human interactions The need to clear out the urban space seemed to be the primary task for architecture, and along with it questions were raised about expanding historical cities and building residences for socially defenseless residents. Among the proposed solutions, the concept of "instauratio urbis" (reiteration, restoration) was articulated-a traditional notion that one should restore the cultural significance of architecture as a repository of historical experience.