Planning as deliberate preparation for future action is as old as human history. Agricultural land allocation and cities were always planned, as were military warfare and defence. With the growing complexity of society in the 19th century, however, planning became a discipline and profession. Since then, not only has the perception of planning and its role in society undergone significant change, but its instruments and methods have also evolved. This collection of classic papers by leading individuals of their day reflects how thinking about planning has changed over time. It also includes seminal papers on the methodology of planning to show how sophisticated techniques have been developed to meet the diverse demands of planning in a rapidly changing world.