The war on motorists: the secret history of a myth as old as cars themselves

Charles Stewart Rolls (back left) in a Rolls Royce in 1905. He founded the car maker the previous year with Henry Royce. Photograph: Hulton Archive/Getty Images

In 1905, when there were still only about 15,000 motor vehicles in the entire UK, their impact was sufficient to leave a deep impression on Evelyn Everett-Green, a prolific, hugely popular author of improving books for children, with titles such as Tom Tempest’s Victory.

“All the plants under glass were spoiled, all the flowers were spoiled, all the strawberries and grapes were spoiled,” she lamented. “I had an inflamed throat all the summer and my eyes were very troublesome. I had got new typewriters in 1902 and I had to change them again this year, they got so gritty.”