I am an unabashed romantic. That being said, I do not require the majority of the books I read to end happily ever after. In fact, all of my favourite romances from history and literature have been tragic. I grew up reading Arthurian legends, Thomas Hardy, Shakespeare’s tragedies, and more. I must be frank with you, I have… Read on
Naseby is a small village in rural, picturesque Northamptonshire, England. With curving country lanes, and rolling hills of farmland sprawling into the distance, it’s tranquil and quiet, only interrupted by the sounds of passing vehicles on the motorway nearby. But it wasn’t like that during the Battle of Naseby, during the English Civil War, which encompassed the surrounding… Read on
My good friend, Oscar, who lives in The Netherlands (and who is an ardent monarchist like I am) sent me a lovely present, which I received this morning. I thought it was too cute not to share with you all. It’s gorgeous, isn’t it? A silver desk standee of King William III, who was of course Stadtholder and… Read on
My article, “The Allure of the Royal Mistress” is now available on The Huffington Post. Below, I have images of the women I mention in the article: 1) Aspasia, mistress of Pericles: 2) Queen Cleopatra of Egypt: 3) Diane de Poitiers: 4) Anne Boleyn: 5) Nell Gwynn: 6) Barbara Palmer (Villiers): 7) Madame de Montespan: 8) Madame de… Read on
I only realised recently that I have spent an enormous amount of time at Kensington Palace over the past four years, yet I have very few photos to show of my favourite palace. Let’s fix that, shall we?! I’ll begin with the oldest part of the whole building which was used for Queen Mary II. So, here is… Read on
I recently went to the amazing “In Fine Style: The Art of Tudor & Stuart Fashion” in the Queen’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace. I had just finished tours at Kensington Palace and then took the Number 9 bus (a Routemaster) from Palace Gate to Green Park and then walked across the beautiful Green Park towards Buckingham Palace. I… Read on
Elisabeth Charlotte von der Pfalz, also known simply as Liselotte, Duchesse d’Orléans, was quite a character and is rather popular amongst Early Modern historians to this day. Liselotte was born on this day the 27th of May, 1652. Some people think Liselotte was a lesbian, as she was certainly a tomboy. Neither feminine, beautiful, nor particularly interested in diversions… Read on
Salads, or sallats/sallets, are lovely and usually really healthy, and the information we have from the late 1600s showed their increasing popularity upon the Restoration table. The most rudimentary study of the history salads would lead one to John Evelyn’s Acetaria, which was first published in 1699. This was an extraordinary book, pretty much the first of its… Read on