I had a glorious trip to the lovely Blakesley Hall yesterday and I had a truly spiffing time. The sun was out, it wasn’t raining or blowing a gale, so I was well pleased. I was, as some of you know from my tweets, quite disappointed to discover that most historic houses here in the Birmingham area are… Read on
One of my favourite essayists is Francis Bacon (1561–1626), & it irritates me to no end that people think I’m referring to the weird modern artist (1909–1992) when I’m talking about him. The artist is now, and I think lamentably, more popular than the first famous Francis Bacon; and so my aim with this article is to make you… Read on
I’m not being funny. Fleas had a notoriously important impact on life in the 17th-century (hello, Great Plague!) and many deaths stemmed from their parasitic habits. I remember at Paleis Het Loo in The Netherlands, the audio guide stated that fleas and lice were a problem for everyone, regardless of their place in society. I already knew this, but it… Read on
I’m always keen on a worthy historical cause, and this one came to my attention a few days ago in an email from the National Portrait Gallery. Van Dyck, as many readers of this website already know, was a very important Flemish painter during the early-to-middle part of the 17th Century and famously produced many portraits of the… Read on
My assignment for my online course, in case you were interested! The Seventeenth Century was a remarkable time in the history of the world. It was a time of growth in terms of economy and global trade, colonial expansionism, and at the same time, the roots of the modern world took hold. Both conquerors and conquered peoples had… Read on
From early notes on 17th-century slavery for THE MANOR: Three Centuries at a Slave Plantation on Long Island. I came to this book through the boxwoods that I saw behind the house when I rowed up Gardiner’s Creek on Shelter Island and reached the 1737 house that stands near the water. I soon came to realize they were… Read on
Today on The Seventeenth Century Lady, we welcome Rob Benbow who is campaigning to get a statue of major 17th-century Admiral Benbow. According to their official Facebook page: The aim of this campaign is to get an exhibition and statue to honor Shrewsbury’s famous son Admiral Benbow, a legend of his time who has been forgotten in his… Read on
Adrian Tinniswood is one of the best living 17th-century historians, and I’ve long admired his work. Not only is he a great historian, but he happens to be one of the friendliest chaps I’ve had the pleasure of communicating with since moving to the UK. I was very excited to learn that he agreed to contribute a guest… Read on