Take a trip back in time with us as we dig through some of the oldest photographic images ever taken of the world’s capital cities, ranging across six continents. Some of these cities look surprisingly similar to how they do today, but others have transformed beyond all recognition down the decades.
Click through this gallery to see these bustling modern metropolises as they looked in the mid to late 19th century...
One of the first photographs ever taken, this image of the Boulevard du Temple in central Paris was taken by one of photography's earliest pioneers, Louis Daguerre, in 1838. It is also thought to be the earliest image containing a person, as two men are visible in the bottom left of the image. Paris at this time was a hugely important political, commercial and cultural city, but it had not yet experienced Georges-Eugene Haussmann's sweeping urban renewal programme, which would soon transform its overcrowded city centre with wide avenues, grand buildings and leafy parks. And it would be 50 years before the Eiffel Tower came to dominate the Parisian skyline.
One of the very first photographs of London, this daguerreotype image was taken in 1839 by French photographer Monsieur de St Croix as a demonstration of Daguerre's new technology, which saw images formed on silver-plated copper. It depicts the statue of a mounted Charles I at Charing Cross – still there today – with the Royal Banqueting House in the background. It was taken just two years after the young Victoria. William Lamb was prime minister, whose first wife Lady Caroline Lamb famously had a scandalous affair with poet Lord Byron.
An archaeologist and pioneer of European photography, Joseph-Philibert Girault de Prangey took some of the first ever photographs of classical ruins in Europe and the Middle East, including some in Rome. This daguerreotype shows the Italian capital's skyline and the Pons Aemilius or Ponte Rotto (broken bridge) in 1842. It is the oldest stone bridge in the city, and was restored numerous times over the centuries. When this image was taken the bridge still had two stone arches – now only one remains.
Girault de Prangey took the first pictures of Athens too, travelling here in 1842 and capturing some melancholy images of the Acropolis, including this one of the Erechtheion. The temple was in a dilapidated state, as was much of Athens, which had only just become the Greek capital following independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1832. Just a few decades before this image, the British ambassador to the Ottomans, Lord Elgin, famously removed marble sculptures from the Parthenon and from other structures on the ancient citadel. Known as the Elgin Marbles, they controversially remain in the British Museum in London to this day.
This 1846 daguerreotype is the earliest known photo of the Capitol building in Washington DC – captured by John Plumbe when James K Polk was president. The building still had its old copper-sheathed wooden dome, built by architect Charles Bulfinch. This would be replaced not long after by Thomas U Walter's towering iron dome, which was constructed between 1856 and 1866 and remains the Capitol's most recognisable feature. At this time Washington DC, which was founded as the capital in 1790, was still small. After the Civil War the population boomed and the city expanded into Georgetown and surrounding rural areas.
Taken in 1884, this early autotype shows Vienna's Ringstrasse, an elegant sweeping boulevard lined with palaces, museums and stately public buildings, many of which were constructed in the 19th century. The imperial city was one of Europe’s most important cultural centres at the time, home to celebrated artists and composers including Johann Strauss. Franz Joseph was the emperor of Austria – and king of Hungary (1867-1916) – at the time, with the magnificent Schonbrunn Palace his main place of residence.
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The ancient treasures of Egypt held great fascination for the Victorians, and through the 19th century affluent Europeans started visiting as part of their ever-more adventurous travels to the East. When this autotype image of Cairo’s Citadel was taken in the late-19th century, Egypt was part of the Ottoman Empire. In 1882 the Anglo-Egyptian War saw the British occupy Egypt to protect their financial interests there, notably the Suez Canal. After the conflict, Britain established a 'veiled protectorate' over Ottoman Egypt that lasted until the First World War.
Dating from the late-19th century, this photo shows Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul) around the time of the first Greco-Turkish War. The waterfront city was a stunning sight then as it is now, with the spires of the 19th-century Ortakoy Mosque visible on the banks of the Bosphorus, dotted with rigged sailing vessels. At the time Constantinople held great fascination for Victorian Britain, particularly after the Prince of Wales visited as part of a royal tour in 1862. It was also a major hub for goods passing between Europe and Asia and became even more critical with the opening of the Suez Canal through Egypt in 1869.
This autotype print shows Mexico City in 1884. This year saw the beginning of Porfirio Diaz's second stint in charge of Mexico – he was the country's longest-serving president and infamous for corruption. He undertook a major modernisation of Mexico’s capital city, modelling it partly on Paris’s 19th-century transformation. The vast public square, Plaza de la Constitucion, widely known as the Zocalo, was then and continues to be at the heart of the city.
A horse-drawn carriage bumps along the cobbles of Grafton Street in Ireland’s capital in 1892. The thoroughfare was built on an old country lane in the early 18th century and became a bustling trading street over the following decades, home to many merchants and well-to-do homes. It was run-down and renowned for prostitution by the mid-19th century, and hosted some of Europe's worst slums. Today Grafton Street is pedestrianised, and is again one of the city’s most handsome high streets.
Grassmarket is one of the most historic parts of Scotland's capital – a market square where livestock was traded in the 15th century and which later became a site of public executions. This is how the area, nestled at the foot of Edinburgh Castle, looked in the late 19th century. You can see the square's original Black Bull Inn and a 'tobacco and snuff manufactory'. You won't find much snuff in Grassmarket today, but you will still find one of the city’s oldest public houses, the White Hart Inn.
Taken by early British photographer Francis Frith, this image shows the old city of Damascus in 1857. This was Frith's second overseas photographic tour, after he embarked on one along the River Nile in 1856. One of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world, the Syrian capital's labyrinthine alleys, mosques and souks would have captivated Victorian society. Some are still visible today, though the Syrian Civil War has caused damage to some districts of the city.
This photo shows a view of Moscow’s skyline in 1852 captured by British photographer Roger Fenton, who took some of the earliest photos of Russia's landmarks as well as Britain's. He travelled to the country with his friend Charles Vignoles to document his work as lead engineer on the construction of a suspension bridge across the River Dnieper. In the distance you can see the Great Kremlin Palace, the official home of Russian emperor Nicholas I, which had only just been built at this time. The very next year Russia would initiate the Crimean War, and Fenton would become the world's first war photographer by documenting the conflict.
Another image captured by Roger Fenton on his first tour of the Russian Empire, this image shows a church on Andriivs'kyi Descent in Kyiv in 1852. The Baroque church was built in the 18th century in honour of St Andrew the Apostle and has five distinct domes. Through the 19th century Kyiv became an important trade and transportation centre thanks to the railroad and the Dnieper River. It was here that Fenton's friend Charles Vignoles was building the Nicholas Bridge, the first multi-span suspension bridge in Europe.
Backpackers and buzzing rooftop bars were nowhere in sight in this view of Bangkok, capital of the kingdom of Siam. But the city still had the same bustling markets, boat-clogged canals and vast temples. This photo was taken from Wat Cheng Temple in 1893 – a temple on the banks of the Chao Phraya River that is now known as Wat Arun. At this time King Chulalongkorn ruled the country – the son of King Mongkut, who was later immortalised by the musical The King and I. It was only in the 1960s that tourism began to take off in the country, which was renamed Thailand in 1939.
One of many early pictures of Peking (now Beijing) captured by Thomas Child in the 1870s, this albumen silver print depicts a line of shops. Child moved to the city to work as an engineer for the Imperial Maritime Customs Service and took many early photos of the city, also snapping famous landmarks like the Summer Palace and the Great Wall of China. Child left a description of this fascinating image: '[a] kettle in the fire for making tea, next to that is a shop that deals in cotton wool with its sign of wool balls hanging out, and the fine-looking shop with the man standing at the door is a pastry cook's'.
One of the first images taken of the Australian capital, this photograph dates back to around 1920, when only a few public buildings were in place. It wasn’t until the 1930s that the purpose-built capital really took shape. The site, then home to outback sheep stations, was chosen as the location of the new Commonwealth of Australia’s capital in 1908 as a midway point between Sydney and Melbourne. However, the First World War, the Great Depression and the Second World War caused major delays to construction. Designed by American architects Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin, it now has a population of around 478,000 and is one of the world's youngest capital cities.
A fascinating vignette of late-19th century Madrid, this photograph shows Plaza de la Puerta del Sol, the elegant square that stands at Madrid’s centre. The square was once the eastern gate of the city, and its striking semi-circular shape and many of its graceful buildings date to the mid-19th century. In this image, horse-drawn trams cross the square – this modern mode of transport revolutionised the city on its debut in 1871. On the right you can see the Real Casa de Correos (the post office building) with its famous clock where Madrilenos gather on New Year’s Eve.
These incredible photos show what the world looked like in the 19th century
One of Germany’s early photographers, Leopold Ahrendts, captured many images of Berlin in the mid-19th century. This one was taken around 1856 while the city was the capital of the kingdom of Prussia – it only became capital of a unified Germany in 1871. The image shows perhaps Berlin's most beautiful Baroque building, the Zeughaus on the Unter den Linden boulevard. Originally an armoury, it became a war and weapons museum dedicated to the Prussian army in 1875, but was then severely damaged during the Second World War. Today, the restored Zeughaus is home to the Deutsches Historisches Museum.
Taken in 1870 by British-born photographer James Bragge, this photo looks out over Lambton Harbour and Queens Wharf in Wellington, just after the city became New Zealand’s capital in 1865. Sitting at the southern tip of the North Island, the site was chosen to replace Auckland as the colony’s capital because of its favourable terrain, sheltered harbour and central location. Known as Te Whanganui-a-tara by the Maori, who established hilltop pa (fortresses) around the harbour, the area drew British settlers in the 1840s. The settlement was initially called Britannia but was quickly renamed in the Duke of Wellington's honour.
The distinctive French architecture of the Boulevard de la Republique (now the Boulevard Che Guevara) in Algiers, pictured here around 1880, dates from the city's time as capital of French Algeria. The North African city had begun attracting wealthy and intrepid Victorian travellers at this time, drawn by its perceived exoticism and classical history. The French invaded Algeria in 1830 and the country was eventually annexed. Algeria, Africa’s largest nation by area, only gained its independence in 1962 after the eight-year Algerian War.
A lofty view of Lisbon, taken from Sao Jorge Castle in 1895, this image looks down on the city's historic centre, with ships strewn along the Tagus River. The view of the old town won’t have changed dramatically, although the city’s famous 25 April Bridge now straddles the river. The ancient port city has been fought over for much of its long history, but at this time it was the seat of the Portuguese monarchy. The city has plenty of royal remnants: the Neoclassical Ajuda National Palace was the official royal residence for the second half of the 19th century, and remained so until the end of the monarchy in 1910.
Taken around 1890, this photograph shows Cuban capital Havana with the 16th-century Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi in the foreground, one of many beautiful churches built by the Spanish. Along with Puerto Rico, Cuba was one of Spain's two remaining colonies in the Americas at this time, and it underwent a population boom in the late 19th century when hundreds of thousands of Spanish migrated to the island, the majority settling in the port of Havana. Cuba gained independence after the Spanish-American War in 1898, but US forces then occupied the island until 1902.
An extremely early photo that reportedly dates back to 1840, this daguerreotype shows Ulfeldts Plads in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was taken by Peter Faber, a poet and telegraphy specialist, and is thought to be the oldest known photo of the country. The square, now known as Grabrodretorv, is in the old town, and at this time had a market building where the city's butchers traded. Although you can't tell from the photo, the houses feature colourful facades. Renowned writer Hans Christian Andersen was living in the city at this time, and three years later the city's famed Tivoli Gardens opened.
This street scene was taken around the year 1900 when Singapore was well-established as an important outpost of the British empire. With a strategic position on the Malacca Straits, modern Singapore was founded in 1819 by Sir Stamford Raffles as a trading post for the British East India Company. It became even more important after 1869 with the completion of the Suez Canal, which increased shipping. In the background of this image sits Government House, which was also completed in 1869. When Singapore attained self-government in 1959 it was renamed the Istana ('palace' in Malay) and is now the official residence of the president of the Republic of Singapore.
The work of celebrated amateur photographer Louis-Pierre-Theophile Dubois de Nehaut, this 1850s photograph shows the old town of Brussels, where he lived and worked. He captured portraits of himself and others; streetscapes around his house; train stations; and studies from the city's zoological garden. At the time the burgeoning country was ruled by Leopold I of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who became the first King of the Belgians in 1831 after its secession from the Netherlands. He ruled the northern European country until his death in 1865.
Pictured here in the 1920s, this photo shows the construction of the Viceroy's House in New Delhi, centrepiece of the new capital of British India. Right next to Old Delhi, the foundation stone for the new city was laid by George V, who declared that the capital would be moved from Calcutta (now Kolkata). This photograph is one of a series taken by Arthur Gordon Shoosmith, who went out to India in 1920 to be the man-on-the-ground for esteemed city architect Edwin Lutyens. The Viceroy's House would be renamed Rashtrapati Bhavan (President's House) in 1950 when it became the official residence of the president of independent India.
This is the ancient city of Hanoi as it looked in the late 19th century, when it was under French rule. The Vietnamese capital was conquered by the French in 1873, who left a lasting impact on its tree-lined boulevards and squares. In 1902 Hanoi was made capital of French Indochina, which incorporated modern-day Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. The city began life as a small community called Thang Long ('rising dragon'), growing to become Vietnam's main capital until 1802, when the Nguyen dynasty moved the honour elsewhere. It was renamed Hanoi ('between two rivers') in 1831, and was declared capital yet again after the Vietnam War in 1976.
This sweeping view over Lima's historic centre was captured in 1860, while the country was still finding its feet following independence in 1821. Peru was among the last of Spain’s mainland colonies to declare independence, and long-serving president Ramon Castilla was coming towards the end of his tenure at this time. On the right side of this image you can see the Cathedral of Lima, which was completed in 1605 and has been rebuilt numerous times after earthquakes. Today, the vast city sprawls far beyond this shot.
Sitting at the confluence of the Ottawa, Gatineau and Rideau rivers, Ottawa has always been an important trading town, especially in the 19th century when lumber and the fur trade flourished. Its position on the border between English-speaking Ontario and French-speaking Quebec saw it named the capital of the Province of Canada in 1857 and then of the British Dominion in 1867. This early autotype taken in 1884 shows the city’s Chaudière Falls, at first a navigational hazard, but ultimately a source of hydroelectricity that helped it boom.
After fire ravaged the primarily wooden buildings of Bern in 1405 it was rebuilt with sandstone and the historical centre has changed very little since. The city’s medieval landmark tower, the Zytglogge, was already over 500 years old when this vintage photo was taken in the late 19th century and, combined with the equally famous Marksman Fountain built in 1543, it’s a vista still familiar to tourists visiting the Swiss capital to this day.
Starting at the imposing Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy, Calle Bartolome Mitre runs for 44 blocks and is one of the most important thoroughfares in the Argentine capital. When this photo was taken in 1880 it was known as Calle Piedad and was only renamed after the first president of unified Argentina in 1901. Here we see it passing through one of the most prosperous and affluent sections, known as ‘The City’, home to the capital’s banks at a time when Argentina had the fastest growing economy in the world.
Here we see the Colombian capital at a pivotal moment in its history – the inauguration of Bogota’s first tramway on 24 December 1884. The service was financed by a group of US businessmen and ran from Plaza de Bolivar to Chapinero. It only cost five centavos to ride and opened up new areas and new opportunities for the city. Initially carriages were pulled along wooden tracks by mules, but in 1910 the service was electrified.