From Roman sewage systems to smart shower WCs, we’ve come a long way since the dreadful chamber pot – here, we delve into the history of the toilet…
“Gardyloo!” shouted Scottish servants to passers-by in the Middle Ages, before emptying a chamber pot – a bowl in the bedroom that served as a toilet – into the street. And while the exact origin of the word has not been determined – some say it comes from the French ‘gardez (or regardez) l’eau’ meaning ‘mind (or look at) the water’ – it’s what many believe the word ‘loo’ to have derived from (although that’s also debatable).
Whatever the semantics, chamber pots were the closest we had to a WC until the 19th century when indoor flush toilets started replacing them.
The first installation of a flush toilet
According to history, the very first installation of a flush toilet goes way back, to 1592, as Rikki Fothergill, bathroom design expert at Big Bathroom Shop, discusses with me. “Known in some circles as the ‘saucy godson’ of Queen Elizabeth I, Sir John Harington invented a water closet featuring a raised cistern and a small downpipe for the flushing of waste, and fitted the device in his home near Bath. Some say Harington’s invention was born to impress the Queen herself, though she refused to use it on account of it being too noisy.” (Now you know why it’s called ‘The John’.)
Plumbing
Of course, it was the ancient Romans who brought plumbing into the UK during the Roman invasion of 43 AD – they had, after all, already built the Cloaca Maxima, one of the world’s earliest sewage systems. “The Romans introduced a variety of water systems in the UK, including underground pipework, public baths, latrines, aqueducts and sewage systems,” says Rikki.
Fast forward to a few centuries later, and the indoor flush toilet has – rightfully and thankfully – cemented itself as our go-to sanitary facility. (Remember, it wasn’t that long ago people had to do their business in a privy – toilets in makeshift outdoor sheds!)
English plumber and businessman Thomas Crapper played an important role in the history of the toilet, starting a plumbing and sanitary engineering business in 1861. He’s also considered to have opened the world’s very first bathroom showroom in 1870. And you can still buy his cisterns today, with the brand being synonymous with traditional aesthetics.
But in 2025, alongside Crapper’s classic styles, you’ll find many more designs, from close-coupled to back-to-wall to wall-hung and even shower toilets, which combine the functions of a WC, bidet and air dryer in one single fixture (what would Crapper think of these, I wonder). “There’s now a toilet type available to cater to different lifestyles, personal preferences and environmental considerations,” muses Rikki.
What to expect in the future
So, what does the future hold for the toilet? “There have been articles reporting on Japanese firms being in the process of creating toilets for use in hospitals,” says Rikki. “These toilets are said to be designed to check for abnormalities in urine flow that could signal bladder or prostate conditions. Imagine, in five to 10 years, we could have self-diagnosing toilets!”
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