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January in Jane Austen’s World

Posted in 18th Century England, 19th Century England, Austen Events, Georgian London, Jane Austen's letters, Jane Austen's life, Jane Austen's World, Marriage Mart, Regency, Regency Life, Regency London, Regency society, Regency Winters, Upper Class on January 12, 2024| 7 Comments »

Today marks the start of a new series, in which I highlight several important events and details that happened in Jane Austen’s novels, letters, and lifetime during each month of the year.

We’ll kick off Jane Austen January (aka “Jane-uary”) by examining passages and situations in each of her novels that occur in January. While some of the novels have no mention of January, others do—with interesting results! Next, we’ll note where Austen was and what she was doing in January by checking her letters for January dates and details. Finally, we’ll highlight events and anniversaries that occurred in January that directed affected Jane Austen or her family.

All of this can help us better understand Austen’s life and times as we look at specific dates, events, and details in the context of months and seasons.

Snowdrops at Chawton House in January, courtesy of Chawton House.

January in Regency Times

One of the highlights of January for Jane Austen’s family was surely Twelfth Night (also known as Epiphany), which falls on January 5th.

Maria Grace, in her article “Celebrating Twelfth Night–Jane in January and You,” explains its religious importance: “Epiphany or Twelfth Night … was the exciting climax of the Christmastide season… It was a feast day to mark the coming of the Magi bearing gifts to the Christ child, and as such was the traditional day to exchange gifts.”

She also explains the social side of Twelfth Night: “In Jane Austen’s day, the party of the year would generally be held on Twelfth Night.” (Austen Variations)

During the Regency Era, people hosted parties and balls to celebrate Christmas and especially the last day of the Christmas season. The entertainment often involved guests playing assigned parts for the evening, dressing up in costumes, eating “Twelfth Cake,” and eating and drinking.

Rowlandson, “Twelfth Night Characters,” Creative Commons, 1811.

In a letter to Cassandra on December 27, 1808, Austen writes about an upcoming ball between Christmas and “Twelfth-day” at Manydown:

I was happy to hear, chiefly for Anna’s sake, that a ball at Manydown was once more in agitation; it is called a child’s ball, and given by Mrs. Heathcote to Wm. Such was its beginning at least, but it will probably swell into something more. Edward was invited during his stay at Manydown, and it is to take place between this and Twelfth-day. Mrs. Hulbert has taken Anna a pair of white shoes on the occasion.

Austen’s Letters (December 27, 1808)

Later, on January 10, 1809, she writes, “The Manydown ball was a smaller thing than I expected, but it seems to have made Anna very happy. At her age it would not have done for me.”

Manydown Great House, Wikipedia Commons, 1833.

January Travel in Jane Austen’s Novels

In Austen’s novels, January is primarily mentioned in the context of parties and travel. Anne Elliot goes to Bath for January and February, Miss Crawford is invited for “a long visit” to see her friend in London in January, Mrs. Jennings goes to her own house in London in January, and Mr. Bingley, Mr. Darcy, and Bingley’s sisters all go to London (when Bingley leaves Netherfield) and stay for the winter.

In Sense and Sensibility, Lucy Steele and her sister, Anne, go to “town” (London) in January to stay with relatives (and subsequently move from house to house throughout the season as socially advantageous opportunities become available):

I had quite depended upon meeting you there. Anne and me are to go the latter end of January to some relations who have been wanting us to visit them these several years! But I only go for the sake of seeing Edward. He will be there in February, otherwise London would have no charms for me; I have not spirits for it.

Sense and Sensibility

Mrs. Jennings, who “resided every winter in a house in one of the streets near Portman Square,” invites Elinor and Marianne to come with her to London in January when her thoughts begin to turn toward home after Christmas.

Portman Square, London, Wikipedia Commons, 1813.

The London Season

So why do so many of Austen’s characters travel to London in January? Wouldn’t the weather make travel difficult? Wouldn’t they prefer to stay home (and inside) where it’s cozy?

These are fair questions, but after Christmas, a large portion of the genteel class moved “to town” during the winter months for the London Season, which coincided with England’s political schedule, for entertainment and socializing. The Season had previously started in the fall, meaning most people went to London before the bad weather set in, but with the improvement of roads and travel during Austen’s day, the season slowly shifted later.

Here’s an explanation of the London Season from Jane Austen’s House Museum:

The London season coincided with the sitting of Parliament, beginning at some point after Christmas when fashionable families would move into their London houses. The men would attend Parliament, whilst the women shopped, visited, and found husbands for themselves or their daughters. It lasted until early summer, when the ‘beau monde’ would return to their country estates, escaping the city’s stifling heat and pungent smells.

The season was a whirlwind of court balls and concerts, private balls and dances, parties and sporting events. On a typical day, ladies would rise early to go riding in Hyde Park, before returning home to breakfast and spending the day shopping, dealing with correspondence and paying calls.

The Season, Jane Austen’s House Museum

Most villages had assemblies and balls during the winter, but all of the most important social occasions happened “in town.” In Pride and Prejudice, we’re told that the Bennet sisters have little to do “beyond the walks to Meryton” in January and February, when conditions are “sometimes dirty and sometimes cold” (Ch. 27). It makes sense that many young women longed to go to town in the winter, at the height of the London Season and “marriage market,” when the majority of the parties, balls, and social events were held.

Rowlandson, Drawing Room at St. James’s Palace in London, Wikimedia Commons, 1810.

January in Jane Austen’s Letters

January often brings rain, cold weather, and even snow to the various locations where Austen lived and traveled. Austen kept her spirits up, but January in England, especially in homes without central heating or today’s insulation, could not have been entirely comfortable. Balls and assemblies, visits and travel, kept Austen busy and content during the winter months.

Austen’s entries follow below and give us a glimpse into the miserable weather conditions during one particularly snowy and wet January:

17 January 1809 (Castle Square):
“Yes, we have got another fall of snow, and are very dreadful; everything seems to turn to snow this winter.”

24 January 1809 (Castle Square):
“This day three weeks you are to be in London, and I wish you better weather; not but that you may have worse, for we have now nothing but ceaseless snow or rain and insufferable dirt to complain of; no tempestuous winds nor severity of cold. Since I wrote last we have had something of each, but it is not genteel to rip up old grievances.”

In the same letter, Austen describes her writing:
“I am gratified by her having pleasure in what I write, but I wish the knowledge of my being exposed to her discerning criticism may not hurt my style, by inducing too great a solicitude. I begin already to weigh my words and sentences more than I did, and am looking about for a sentiment, an illustration, or a metaphor in every corner of the room. Could my ideas flow as fast as the rain in the store-closet, it would be charming.”

On the topic of the store-closet, she writes this:
“We have been in two or three dreadful states within the last week, from the melting of the snow, etc., and the contest between us and the closet has now ended in our defeat. I have been obliged to move almost everything out of it, and leave it to splash itself as it likes.”

30 January 1809 (Castle Square):
“Here is such a wet day as never was seen. I wish the poor little girls had better weather for their journey; they must amuse themselves with watching the raindrops down the windows. Sackree, I suppose, feels quite broken-hearted. I cannot have done with the weather without observing how delightfully mild it is; I am sure Fanny must enjoy it with us. Yesterday was a very blowing day; we got to church, however, which we had not been able to do for two Sundays before.”

And a final update on the flooded closet:
“The store-closet, I hope, will never do so again, for much of the evil is proved to have proceeded from the gutter being choked up, and we have had it cleared. We had reason to rejoice in the child’s absence at the time of the thaw, for the nursery was not habitable. We hear of similar disasters from almost everybody.”

If you’ve ever dealt with water damage or burst pipes due to cold weather, you know how awful and destructive it can be. Austen makes light, but one can imagine it caused quite a bit of damage.

Snow at Jane Austen’s House Museum, January 2021.

January in Jane Austen’s Lifetime

And finally, let us turn our attention to some of the most important dates and events that happened (or were celebrated) during the first month of the year in Jane Austen’s lifetime. In December 1800, Reverend Austen decided to retire and remove his family to Bath. Austen’s letters in January 1801 prove an interesting read as she and the Austen family prepare to move later in the year:

3 January 1801 (Steventon):
Austen writes that her mother wants to keep two maids and quips about their plans to have “a steady cook and a young giddy housemaid, with a sedate, middle-aged man, who is to undertake the double office of husband to the former and sweetheart to the latter.”

Austen discusses three parts of Bath where they might live:
“Westgate Buildings, Charles Street, and some of the short streets leading from Laura Place or Pulteney Street.” She writes extensively about each neighborhood and several others, giving her opinion and hopes about each. She details which pictures, furniture, and beds they are choosing to keep or leave behind and asks Cassandra’s advice. And she shares plans for the family to travel to Bath a few weeks from then.

Austen shares own thoughts on their move to Bath:
“I get more and more reconciled to the idea of our removal. We have lived long enough in this neighborhood: the Basingstoke balls are certainly on the decline, there is something interesting in the bustle of going away, and the prospect of spending future summers by the sea or in Wales is very delightful. For a time we shall now possess many of the advantages which I have often thought of with envy in the wives of sailors or soldiers. It must not be generally known, however, that I am not sacrificing a great deal in quitting the country, or I can expect to inspire no tenderness, no interest, in those we leave behind…”

The letter is full of useful information and well-worth a read. You can access it HERE.

14 January 1801 (Steventon):
Austen speaks of the many visitors they’ve received in response to the news that Rev. Austen is retiring and the family is moving to Bath. She says, “Hardly a day passes in which we do not have some visitor or other: yesterday came Mrs. Bramstone, who is very sorry that she is to lose us, and afterwards Mr. Holder, who was shut up for an hour with my father and James in a most awful manner.”

4 Sydney Place, Bath.
Plaque outside 4 Sydney Place, Bath.

January Dates of Importance

This brings us now to several dates that would have been quite important to Austen personally:

Celebrations/Birthdays:

9 January 1773: Jane Austen’s sister, Cassandra Elizabeth Austen, born.

23 January 1793: Edward Austen’s first child, Fanny, born.

Goodbyes/Sorrows:

January 1796: Tom Lefroy leaves Ashe for London (and never returns) and Tom Fowle (Cassandra’s fiancé) sets sail for the Indies, where he later dies.

21 January 1805: Rev. George Austen (Jane’s father) dies suddenly in Bath.

Writing:

28 January 1813: Pride and Prejudice was published, by Thomas Egerton (Whitehall, London).

21 January 1814: Austen begins writing Emma.

The Joys of Sleuthing

I hope you’ve enjoyed this first installment of our month-by-month exploration of Jane Austen’s world. I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was so much more to research and explore about the month of January than I anticipated. I enjoyed sleuthing around, following my nose, and discovering what I could uncover–just with the word “January.” If I’ve missed anything major related to January, or if you have ideas about what I might pursue for February, please share it in the comments. It takes a village with this type of research!

RACHEL DODGE teaches college English classes, gives talks at libraries, teas, and book clubs, and writes for Jane Austen’s World blog. She is the bestselling author of The Little Women Devotional, The Anne of Green Gables Devotional and Praying with Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen. Now Available: The Secret Garden Devotional! You can visit Rachel online at www.RachelDodge.com.

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Regency Women: Beauty Behind the Scenes

Posted in 18th Century England, Clothes, Fashions, Georgian hairstyles, Georgian Life, Georgian London, Jane Austen's World, personal hygiene, Regency fashion, Regency Life, Upper Class on August 9, 2021| 9 Comments »

Regency women went to great lengths to achieve an effortless, romantic look with long, flowing lines to their dresses and hairstyles. Even their dresses, which appeared to have little underneath, had several layers hidden below the surface. As with everything, nothing in the Regency era is quite as simple as it seems.

And behind the scenes of every genteel woman’s daily beauty regime were servants who made it all possible. Without today’s modern household appliances, a whole team of people were required to make a household run smoothly. There were servants who laundered, mended, ironed, and polished. Maids who buckled, tied, boosted, and smoothed; carried clean, hot water for bathing; and emptied bathtubs and chamber pots. Men and women cleaned, cooked, served, polished, and dusted. All so that life could go on smoothly and seamlessly.

Women in Jane Austen’s world were expected to be many things, especially when it came to their personal appearance, but what went on behind the scenes to make these women appear so effortless and graceful?

Evening dresses, fronticepiece, The Mirror of Graces,, 1811
Evening dresses

[Mr. Bingley] came, and in such very good time that the ladies were none of them dressed. In ran Mrs. Bennet to her daughter’s room, in her dressing gown, and with her hair half finished, crying out:

“My dear Jane, make haste and hurry down. He is come—Mr. Bingley is come. He is, indeed. Make haste, make haste. Here, Sarah, come to Miss Bennet this moment, and help her on with her gown. Never mind Miss Lizzy’s hair.”

“We will be down as soon as we can,” said Jane; “but I dare say Kitty is forwarder than either of us, for she went up stairs half an hour ago.”

“Oh! hang Kitty! what has she to do with it? Come be quick, be quick! Where is your sash, my dear?”

Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen

It took time to achieve the polished look of a Jane Austen heroine; thus, I’ve also included additional links for each of the topics below for those who want to delve deeper. Let’s look behind the scenes:

Bathing

Cleanliness then wasn’t quite what it is today. Bathing only became common during the 18th century in wealthy households. In Jane Austen’s time, baths were taken once a week (more or less depending on the season) with sponge baths in between. This was usually done by sponging off with a pitcher of water and a little basin on the bedroom dresser. To bathe, people sat in a larger tub or stood in a smallish tub on the floor and washed with a pitcher of water. (The Family, Sex & Marriage in England 1500-1800 by Laurence Stone)

A portable bath shower from the mid 19th c.

Affordable soaps of the time were soft and more caustic than the soaps, lathers, and body washes we enjoy today. Firm, refined bar soaps were scented and more costly (and therefore less frequently used). As for a woman’s hair, the same soap used for the body was also used for the hair, and the hair was washed far less often than today.

Oral Health

As for dental health, tooth brushes and tooth powder were used. In Sense and Sensibility, we read this: “He was giving orders for a toothpick-case for himself, and till its size, shape, and ornaments were determined, all of which, after examining and debating for a quarter of an hour over every toothpick-case in the shop, were finally arranged by his own inventive fancy…”

Toothpick Case, National Maritime Museum, 1806

From Austen’s own letters, we know that dentistry in her time was a grisly business:

The poor girls and their teeth! I have not mentioned them yet, but we were a whole hour at Spence’s, and Lizzy’s were filed and lamented over again, and poor Marianne had two taken out after all, the two just beyond the eye teeth, to make room for those in front. When her doom was fixed, Fanny, Lizzy, and I walked into the next room, where we heard each of the two sharp and hasty screams.

The little girls’ teeth I can suppose in a critical state, but I think he must be a lover of teeth and money and mischief, to parade about Fanny’s. I would not have had him look at mine for a shilling a tooth and double it. It was a disagreeable hour.

Jane Austen’s Letters, Henrietta St., 15 Sept. 1813

The advent of modern dentistry, and the use of anesthetics, wouldn’t come until long after Austen’s lifetime. I, for one, feel much more enthusiastic about my next dental cleaning after this. For more on the topic of Regency dentistry, you can read this JAW article on Dental Hygiene in the Regency Period.

Dressing and Undergarments

For the latest fashions, women often shared patterns and new fashions. Those who had lately traveled to London or even Bath brought back descriptions, clippings, and patterns to share with their friends and family member. In Pride and Prejudice, we read this about Mrs. Gardiner’s visit: “The first part of Mrs. Gardiner’s business on her arrival, was to distribute her presents and describe the newest fashions.”

Underdrawers belonging to the Duchess of Kent, 1810-1820

As fashions evolved, so did women’s undergarments. Under their slim, empire-waisted Regency dresses made of thinner material than previous years, women wore a shift, stays, a waist petticoat, stockings, and more. With so much to lace up and buckle, women needed help getting dressed. On the topic of stays, we know that Jane wrote this to Cassandra:

I learnt from Mrs Tickar’s young Lady, to my high amusement, that the stays now are not made to force the Bosom up at all; that was a very unbecoming, unnatural fashion.

Jane Austen’s Letters, September 1813

However, women did not yet wear “underwear,” drawers, or pantaloons. Drawers were considered immodest and improper, something only men wore, until the early to mid 1800s. Slowly they caught on, and by the mid-1800s they were a matter of course when hoop skirts became popular. You can find more here: Ladies Underdrawers in Regency Times: Regency Underwear.

Cosmetics

In terms of cosmetics, a more natural Romantic look took hold during Austen’s life, in large part aided by the blockade during the Napoleonic Wars. Ladies were still, nevertheless, never too far from their rouge pot (Beauty and Cosmetics, 1550-1950 by Sarah Jane Downing). Regardless of one’s complexion or skin tone, a rosy glow was part of achieving that healthy romantic look.

As for covering up body odor, deodorant was not yet used, while the perfumes of the time tended toward sweet, musky scents. To find out more about cosmetics and how they were made (many times out of materials we now know are dangerous), you can read this article: A Deadly Fashion: Beauty and Cosmetics 1550-1950 – A Review.

Hair

During Jane Austen’s lifetime, hairstyles for women became more natural and graceful. This meant instead of powder, wigs, and elaborate updos, the natural hair color became popular again. Women wore their hair swept up into simple twists, buns, and chignons with locks of hair curled around their faces. Curling tongs and curling papers and cloths were used to create this effect.

The fashions and hairstyles all came from the Greco Roman styling that became popular during Austen’s day. You can read more here: Greco Roman Influences on Women’s Hairstyles During the Georgian Era.

Combs used as hair accessories

With the bonnets and caps used at the time, curls were used to frame the face. For evening and dinner parties, accessories such as combs and ribbons were used. Often a maid helped fix a lady’s hair each morning and before an evening dinner or party. What might look like a very natural hairstyle could take quite a bit of time to perfect beforehand. For more, you can read about Regency Hairstyles and their Accessories. Additionally, you can view Vic’s stunning Pictorial History of Regency Hairstyles.

A Look Behind the Scenes

The world of a genteel Regency woman was complex and nuanced. Next month, I’ll discuss “Privy” Matters: Regency Feminine Hygiene, Bodily Functions, and Childbirth. We’ll take an even closer, behind-the-scenes look at a genteel woman’s private life in Jane Austen’s time. All to help us understand the real-life world of carriage rides, balls, dinners, and courtship that we so enjoy in Austen’s novels.

As much as I love dressing up for a Jane Austen event, all of this information reminds me, as ever, that as romantic as everything looks in a Jane Austen film, life for women of her time was anything but simple—even for those who were part of the landed gentry.

When I’ve dressed for the ball given at past JASNA AGMs, my outer layer tends to be the most historically accurate. I’ve yet to invest in undergarments, and I usually “make do” with my own homemade hair accessories, jewelry, and ballet flats. One day, I’d like to invest in a bonnet. As one wise woman once told me at an AGM, “It takes years to build your Regency wardrobe – just take it one piece at a time.” Do you own any Regency clothing? If so, what do you enjoy wearing most? -Rachel

RACHEL DODGE teaches college English classes, gives talks at libraries, teas, and book clubs, and writes for Jane Austen’s World blog and Jane Austen’s Regency World magazine. She is the bestselling author of The Anne of Green Gables Devotional: A Chapter-By-Chapter Companion for Kindred Spirits and Praying with Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen. Her newest book The Little Women Devotional is now available for pre-order and releases December 2021. You can visit Rachel online at www.RachelDodge.com.

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Romantic London and Horwood’s Map

Posted in Ackermann, Georgian London, Jane Austen's World, Malton's Picturesque Tour, Microcosm of London, Romantic London, Select Views of London, tagged , , , on March 17, 2021| 19 Comments »

Inquiring readers, I can’t gush enough about this website, which started out as a research project by Matthew Sangster “to explore the life and culture in London in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.” I discovered the site when I wanted to trace Jane Austen’s trip from her brother Henry’s house on Henrietta Street to Carlton House, the home of the Prince Regent, after the Prince’s librarian, James Stanier Clarke, invited her to visit in 1815, just as she was completing the final touches on Emma. I found the route in Horwood’s Plan of the Cities of London and Westminster in the Borough of Southwark, and Parts Adjoining Shewing every House (1792-99).

Logo of the title

Horwood’s Plan of the Cities of London and Westminster in the Borough of Southwark, and Parts Adjoining Shewing every House (1792-99).

Romantic London, the website, is divided into a number of topics of vast interest to historians, lovers of Jane Austen and the Regency era, authors, researchers, and teachers and students. In addition to Horwood’s Plan, Sangster offers tabs entitled Harrris’s List (1788), Antiquities (1791), Picturesque Tour (1792-1801), Modern London (1804), Microcosm (1804–10), Life in London (1821), and Wordsworth’s Prelude (1850). He includes a blog and provides an email address for those with questions.

It is worth your while to read the introduction to each section, starting with Introducing Romantic London. I’ll describe a few of the wonderful features on this site, and will leave the rest for you to discover on your own.

Horwood’s Map (1792-9):

Image of the full Horwood Map

Notice the 32 pages that comprise Horwood’s Map. Image from Sangster’s website.

The entire map, as drawn, is composed of grids or 32 sheets. All one needs to do with this digital map is to place a cursor over an area. I chose one near Mayfair, and pressed “+” until I honed in on Carlton House. Click anywhere on this map and explore to your heart’s content.

Closeup of Carlton House and surroundings, with pale coloration of grass, trees, and squares

Detail of Carlton House, Carlton House Gardens, St. James’s Square, and Kings Mews.

The level of detail in this close up image is simply amazing. We see Carlton House and Carlton House Gardens in a bird’s eye view. All houses, with their back yards, stables or mews, common areas and gardens are delineated. Pale colors mark squares, grassy areas, and trees.

Included in this tab is a history and texts that show how Sangster uses Horwood’s Map for his and our benefit. As an example, let’s study the tab, Modern London, which is an 1804 guide to the city, published by Richard Phillips.

Modern London (1804):

While the guide was written by Richard Phillips, the 22 views of key buildings and landscapes were engraved from designs by Edward Pugh and images of street traders and seller by William Marshall Craig. Many of us are already familiar with these images, but where were they exactly located? This tab answers that question in detail.

Orange markers and gray arrows superimposed over the entire Horwood's Map

Markers showing the locations described in Modern London

Superimposed on Horwood’s entire map are orange hiker tabs and gray arrow tabs. Hover your cursor over one, and the location is identified with a title of the images created by Pugh or Craig.

Black and white engraving of Greenwich Park with crowds celebrating Easter

Greenwich Park with the Royal Observatory on Easter Monday, Modern London, Edward Pugh

A street trader image:

Image of woman, dressed in red and blue, pushing a wheelbarrow with new potatoes past Middlesex Hospital

New Potatoes, Middlesex Hospital, by William Marshall Craig

Other tabs of note:

All the tabs lead to information for those of us interested in Austen’s era. In this section, I will detail only a few—those with images of and information about London created during Austen’s life. Each tab is designed like the one described in Modern London. You will first see Horwood’s Map with corresponding tabs, and then the engravings or lithographs and their descriptions (if they exist).

  • Antiquities (1791-1800) by John Thomas Smith shows plates of buildings, architectural details, and objects found in London.
  • Malton’s Picturesque Tour (1792-1801) consists of black and white engravings of major buildings and thoroughfares. 
  • Microcosm of London features images of Rudolph Ackermann’s famous Microcosm of London (1808-10). 
  • Select Views, or Select Views of London; with Historical and Descriptive Sketches of Some of the Most Interesting of its Public Buildings (1816) compiled by John B. Papworth and published by Rudolph Ackermann. 

Sir Paul Pinders Lodge in Half Moon Alley, Antiquities.
Melbourne House, White Hall, Malton’s Picturesque Tour.
Ackermann colored lithograph of Drury Lane Theatre, Microcosm of London
Colored engraving of Lansdowne House in Berkeley Square, Select Views

In conclusion:

One reason this site excites me is that with Horwood’s map I can trace Austen’s visits to the places she and her family mentioned while staying with Henry in London, such as the Wedgwood Shop in Regent’s street. In the accompanying images that sit at the bottom of the various tabs, I can view how London looked in her day, and read contemporary accounts about these locations.

I am struck by how quickly London turns from city streets to rural surroundings; how closely houses are stacked together in the city’s center, each with their own chimneys and need for refuse removal. I can imagine how, on dry windy days, the dust from unpaved streets must have settled everywhere, and the smell of urine and feces from horses and cattle driven by drovers to Smithfield Market must have permeated through every nook and cranny, and windows and door cracks on hot summer days.

This map and the accompanying images, along with current accounts and subsequent histories, provide us (as readers and authors), with a way to follow the movements of historical and fictional people who resided in the largest city in Europe. It will also allow me to map my next visit to London, and choose specific locations to visit as I learn more about the time in which Jane Austen and her contemporaries lived.

Resources

British Library: Online Gallery: Plan of the Cities of LONDON and WESTMINSTER, Richard Horwood, 1795, includes a zoomable image, full size printable image, and a short history.

Layers of London: London Maps: Choose historical maps of London, and overlay them with information about a range of topics and themes.

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Book Review: The Journal of a Georgian Gentleman, by Mike Rendell

Posted in 18th Century England, art, Biography, Book review, Georgian Life, Georgian London, Jane Austen's World, Regency Transportation, Working class, tagged , , , , , , on September 27, 2020| 32 Comments »

Reviewed by Brenda S. Cox

The Journal of a Georgian Gentleman: The Life and Times of Richard Hall, 1729-1801 provides fascinating insights into Jane Austen’s England.

The Journal of a Georgian Gentleman, by Mike Rendell, explores 18th century life in England

Richard Hall was a tradesman, a hosier who made stockings in a shop near London Bridge. Like the Coles in Emma, he “was of low origin, in trade,” but moved up in society as he became wealthier. Hall accumulated his fortune through hard work, marriage, inheritance, and investments. From selling silk stockings, he moved into selling fine fabrics, silver buckles, and other fashionable accessories. Hall eventually owned several estates, and retired as a country gentleman. 

I asked the author, Mike Rendell, to tell us more about how he wrote this book.

Rendell says he inherited “a vast pile of old family papers, . . . stuffed into tea chests and boxes in the back of the garage” in his grandmother’s house. He focused on the papers related to Richard Hall and found it “a fascinating voyage of discovery.” 

This trunk was full of papers from the eighteenth century.

Rendell continues, “For instance, if he [Richard Hall] recorded in his diary that he had ‘visited the museum’ it made me research the origins of the British Museum, realizing that he was one of the earliest visitors. Which led on to researching what he might have seen, etc.”

He adds, “Writing my first book opened my eyes to a great deal about the world in which Jane [Austen] was brought up. I love her works – especially P&P and I must admit to binge-watching the entire BBC version in a single sitting, at least twice a year!”

In the context of Richard Hall’s story, Rendell tells us about many aspects of life in the eighteenth century, based on his extensive research. For example:

Religion

Richard Hall was a Baptist, one of the Dissenter (non-Church of England) groups in Austen’s England. This meant that even though Hall loved learning, he was not able to attend university. Oxford and Cambridge, the two English universities, would not give degrees to Dissenters. Hall could have studied in Holland, but his family decided to bring him directly into their hosiery business instead.

Richard Hall’s grandfather and father were Baptists, and Richard attended a Baptist church and listened to sermons by the famous Baptist preacher Dr. John Gill for many years. Richard also collected printed sermons by Dr. Gill. However, it was not until Richard was 36 that he “gave in his experience” and was baptized. Rendell explains that “giving in his experience” meant “explaining before the whole church at Carter Lane in Southwark how he had come to faith in Christ.”

Some of the leaders of the English Baptists of the time are part of Hall’s story, as well as disputes and divisions between Baptist churches.

Hall sometimes attended Anglican churches, and was even a churchwarden for a time. Rendell comments, “The fact that he was a Baptist did not mean that he was unwilling to attend Church of England services – just as long as the gospel was being preached.”

Methodists were another important movement in Hall’s England, though they were still part of the Anglican Church for most of Hall’s lifetime. One of Hall’s relatives, William Seward, became an early Methodist minister, preaching to open-air crowds. Rendell writes that Seward “died after being hit by a stone on the back of the head while preaching to a crowd at Hay-on-Wye, on 22 October 1740 – one of the first Methodist martyrs.”

Silhouette of Richard Hall, probably “taken” (cut out) by his daughter Martha. In 1777 Martha “gave her experience” and was baptized in a Baptist church, as her father had done.

Science

Rendell often explains advances in science that affected Hall’s life (and Jane Austen’s). He writes, “By the standards of his day . . . Richard was a well-educated man. Above all, he was a product of his time – there was a thirst for knowledge all around Richard as he grew up. There were new ideas in religion, in philosophy, in art and in architecture. This was the age of the grand tour, of trade developments with the Far East, and a new awareness of the planets and astronomy as well as an interest in chemistry and physics. It was a time when the landed gentry were experimenting with new farming methods – inspired by ‘Turnip’ Townsend and Jethro Tull – and where a nascent industrial revolution was making its faltering first steps.” Richard wrote down many scientific “facts”—or fictions—some of which are listed in an appendix.

Surprisingly, Richard Hall records several times that he saw the Aurora Borealis in southern England. Apparently, the aurora was sighted many times in Austen’s England, though it has since migrated northward.

Rendell also tells us about an invention that greatly improved transportation: the development of macadam roads. These were named for the Scotsman John McAdam who invented the process. When bitumen (tar) was added in the nineteenth century, such roads were called “tar-macadamised”: a word eventually shortened to “tarmac.”

Travel was quite an adventure in Austen’s time. Richard Hall made this detailed paper cutout of a coach and four, showing one of the fastest means of transportation available at the time. Hall also did cutouts of a coach and four about to crash because of a boulder in the road, and a one-horse coach being held up by a highwayman.

Medicine

Richard Hall’s small daughter was inoculated against smallpox, which meant she was given the actual disease. She had “between two and three hundred pustules.” But Richard writes that about three weeks later, “Through the goodness of God . . . the Dear Baby finally recovered from inoculation.” 

About ten years later, inoculation–giving the patient a hopefully mild case of smallpox–was replaced by vaccination. Dr. Edward Jenner developed this technique, where patients were given cowpox rather than smallpox to develop their immunity. However, Jenner became a member of the Royal Society (of scientists) not for his work on vaccination, but for his observations of cuckoos and their habits! He also experimented with hydrogen-filled balloons. The “naturalists” (not yet called “scientists”) of this age were interested in topics that nowadays we would separate into many different branches of science.

When Hall’s first wife, Eleanor, died of a stroke, he cut this tiny Chinese pagoda in memoriam, with her name, age, and date of death. Rendell says it is “like
lace. It is just an inch and a quarter across and most probably fitted in between the outer and inner cases of his pocket watch. In other words it was worn next to his heart. Very romantic!”

Weather

Hall also noted the weather. In 1783 he refers often “to a stifling heat, a constant haze, and to huge electrical storms which illuminated the ash cloud in a fearsome manner.” These were the effects of a huge volcanic eruption in Iceland, the Laki volcano. This eruption, the most catastrophic in history, caused an estimated two million deaths worldwide, and wiped out a quarter of the population of Iceland. In England, the harvest failed, cattle died, and about 23,000 people died of lung damage and respiratory failure.

Highwaymen were another danger in Austen’s England. In this paper cutting by Richard Hall, a criminal, possibly a highwayman, hangs on the gallows while spectators are unconcerned.

Language

Richard Hall wrote a list for himself of words that sound different than they look. He gives the spelling, then the pronunciation, which helps us see how people in his area and level of society spoke. A few examples:

Apron—Apurn

Chaise—Shaze

Cucumber—Cowcumber

Sheriff—Shreeve

Birmingham—Brummijum

Nurse—Nus

Dictionary—Dixnary

The history of some words are also explained. For example, the word “gossip” was a contraction of “God’s siblings.” Such women helped mothers in childbirth. The “gossips” offered sympathy, kept men away, and chattered in order to keep up the mother’s spirits throughout her labor.

Museums and Exhibitions

Rendell describes several museums and exhibitions that Hall visited. One of the most intriguing is Cox’s Museum, which Hall and his wife visited the year Austen was born. It featured rooms full of “bejewelled automata.” The most famous was a life-size silver swan, still a popular exhibit at the Bowes Museum in Durham (northern England). The Museum says it “rests on a stream made of twisted glass rods interspersed with silver fish. When the mechanism is wound up, the glass rods rotate, the music begins, and the Swan twists its head to the left and right and appears to preen its back. It then appears to sight a fish in the water below and bends down to catch it, which it then swallows as the music stops and it resumes its upright position.” No less a personage than Mark Twain admired this swan and wrote about it in The Innocents Abroad.

Richard Hall’s upbringing stressed values which still resonate with many people today. Rendell writes, “. . .from an early age it had been instilled into Richard that there were only three things which could help stop the fall into the abyss of poverty, sickness and death. The first was a strong belief in the Lord, and that without faith you got nowhere. The second was the importance of education. The third was that you got nothing without working hard for it. These were the cornerstones of his upbringing – and of the whole of his subsequent life.”

Richard Hall was an artist of paper cutting. He cut out everyday objects and scenes. Many, like this finely-done rapier, were found among his books and journals.

And Much More

The Journal of a Georgian Gentleman is full of treasures for those of us who love reading about Jane Austen’s time period. We learn about guilds, clothing, food, disasters, transportation, prices, medical advances, explorers, and much more. 

To Rendell, Richard Hall “came across as a bit of a joyless, pious individual but then I thought: hang on, he had to face exactly the same problems as we do today – illness, worries about the business, problems with a son who was a mischief maker at school, problems with the drains etc etc. When he re-married  he fell out with his children because they didn’t approve of his new bride – and they excommunicated him [avoided and ignored him] for the rest of his life. In that sense his life was just as much of a mess as the ones we lead today!”

While Rendell originally wrote this story for his own family, when he decided to make it widely available he found he needed to promote it. He ended up in a surprising job. He says, “I had never before tried public speaking but quickly found that I loved it – and ended up with a totally new ‘career’ as a cruise ship lecturer (when Covid 19 permits!) travelling the world and talking about everyday life in the 18th Century. . . . These talks include talks about Jane Austen – in particular about the different adaptations, prequels, sequels, etc. of Pride and Prejudice – as well as talks about the venues used in the various films of Jane’s books. I also write articles for Jane Austen’s Regency World. . . . One thing led to another and I have now had a dozen books published, with two more in the pipeline.”

Mike Rendell’s books include topics such as Astley’s Circus (Astley’s is mentioned in Emma and in one of Jane Austen’s letters), Trailblazing Women of the Georgian Era, Pirates and Privateers in the 18th Century, and more. 18th Century Paper Cutting shows the illustrations used in this article, along with other lovely paper cuttings by Richard Hall. See Mike Rendell’s blog at mikerendell.com for more of Mike’s books and blog posts.

The Journal of a Georgian Gentleman is available from amazon in the US and the UK. It is offered on kindle unlimited. If you order a paperback copy from Mike Rendell (Georgiangent on amazon.co.uk), he says, “if anyone orders a copy I will ask (through amazon) and see if they want a personal dedication/signed copy before popping it in the post.” (It is listed there as a hardback but is actually a paperback.)

By the way, Rendell pointed out that Jane Austen’s nephew, James Edward Austen-Leigh, also did paper cutting (or silhouettes). You can see examples of James’s work in Life in the Country. There is also a well-known silhouette of Jane’s brother Edward being presented to the Knight family; that one was done by a London artist, William Wellings.

The Journal of a Georgian Gentleman gives us valuable insights into the life of an Austen-era tradesman who became a country gentleman. What would you most like to know about the life of such a person?

___________

Brenda S. Cox blogs about Faith, Science, Joy, and Jane Austen, and is currently working on a book entitled Fashionable Goodness: Christianity in Jane Austen’s England. You can also find her on Facebook.

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Rowlandson’s Characteristic Sketches of the Lower Orders at the British Library

Posted in Georgian Life, Georgian London, Jane Austen's World, tagged , on November 18, 2018| 5 Comments »

Landing page to Rowlandson's characteristic Sketches of the Lower Orders, intended as a companion to the New Picture of London, with an image of Drayman.

One of the privileges of using technology is our ability to peruse original editions online. We no longer need to travel to major city and university libraries to hunt down sources, or travel to distant states and lands, although viewing Jane Austen’s letters at the Morgan Library exhibit in New York gave me an unexpected thrill and feeling of awe.

Thomas Rowlandson is one of my favorite artists/caricaturists of the Georgian era. I hold him and the French caricaturist, Honoré-Victorin Daumier, in the highest esteem. As soon as I discovered this link I wanted to share it with you, the readers of this blog.

The following link leads directly to Rowlandson’s characteristic Sketches of the Lower Orders, intended as a companion to the New Picture of London. Published in London in 1820, the 54 scenes of London street life would have been very familiar to Jane Austen and her family. In fact, to understand the world she lived in, one must view the lives led by all the social orders in her era.

Rowlandson's "Chairs to Mend" detail of man, dog, and potential customer

One reason I love Rowlandson cartoons is the attention he pays to details – the dog reacting to his street cries, the chair mending materials he carries, the old woman in the background holding a chair to mend – with deft lines he recreates a noisy, raucous street scene. This image from the British Library is in the public domain.

Jane, who traveled to Bath and London and other large towns, was no simpering Miss. She must have been exposed (infrequently, perhaps) to scenes such as the one depicted in “Strawberries.”  If she did not view them as an eye witness, she might well have come upon to the many caricatures publicly hanging for sale in print shop windows or printed in publications.

Detail of "Strawberries" from Rowlandson's characteristic Sketches of the Lower Orders, intended as a companion to the New Picture of London

Rowlandson incorporates rich story telling into his masterful drawings. The strawberry seller in the front of this detail has packaged her fruit tidily in small baskets, which the customer at right carries away with some satisfaction. The strawberry seller in the background at left sells her fruit loosely, allowing the male customer to bend over and ogle her bosom while grabbing for her berries, a not so subtle jab at the many streetwalkers (both day and night) occupying London at the time.

Jane’s pugnacious sense of humor, evident from her juvenilia and in a more sophisticated fashion in her later novels and letters, makes sense, given her talent, the way in which her family nurtured her budding talent, and the influence satiric novels and cartoons of the day must have had on her. No matter how gently bred a young lady might be (except for the most shielded), there was no escaping the dichotomy between the rules of etiquette for the gently bred and the general licentiousness of the Georgian era.

Rowlandson depicts both worlds masterfully in the hand-colored plates we are privileged to view in this online resource.

Two pages in Rowlandson's characteristic Sketches of the Lower Orders, intended as a companion to the New Picture of London, depicting Door-Mats seller and Earthen-ware seller.

I love how Rowlandson draws details of every day life that no longer exists: the maid choosing a new door mat and another maid scrubbing the front stoop, while she is ogled by an old man. In ‘Earthen-Ware,’ a lady of quality inspects the pots and bowls for sale. This is a straightforward depiction of merchants trying to make a sale, one in which I can readily imagine Jane Austen as the customer. This public domain image was taken from this link on the British Library website.

 

Image of a lady selling poodle pups to a couple in Rowlandson's characteristic Sketches of the Lower Orders, intended as a companion to the New Picture of London.

One of the sweeter drawings in Rowlandson’s book. Public domain image from the British Library/

One can learn so much from these illustrations about early 19th century London and a life once lived and now lost. Heartbreaking scenes (such as those with the chimney sweepers and coal heavers) are interspersed with a sweet depiction of a young gardener showing his wares to a pretty woman or a funny scene of a woman crying “sweet lavender” while holding a screaming baby. These images help me understand Jane Austen’s London experiences better, while making me appreciate the sheer artistry of the man who created them.

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