-
10 lesser-known medieval and early modern places in Greater London
By Spike Gibbs Spike is a first year PhD student in working on office-holding in late medieval and early modern England. London can appear to be an overwhelmingly modern city with its towering 20th century office blocks and grand Victorian architecture. Whilst there are some very famous medieval landmarks such as the Tower of London,…
-
‘I got drunk – fie upon it’ – A look back at early modern alcohol consumption and guilt
By Alex Wakelam @A_Wakelam With the passing of the first month of the year many people across the country will be able to return to their vendor of choice and dispel their sobriety as Dry January ends. As a modern practice Dry January has its detractors but most agree that it’s a sensible idea to take a…
-
The Case of Betty John – gender ambiguity in a late eighteenth century small-claims court
By Alex Wakelam – @A_Wakelam Alex is a PhD candidate in the Faculty of History. His thesis is entitled “Imprisonment for Debt and Women’s Financial Failure in the Long Eighteenth Century”. Before the eighteenth century, it was potentially possible to stand at the window of an English townhouse and gaze out across the milieu of different classes, ages, and ethnicities…
-
From ‘liquid flesh’ to chocolate – a brief history of Easter Eggs
by Elly Barnett – @eleanorrbarnett Elly is an MPhil student in Early Modern History. Her current research focusses on the links between food and the English Reformation. For most of us, the long Easter weekend was filled with family, drink, and an excessive amount of chocolate. Of course, Easter Sunday is the principal Christian feast in the…
-
History from below: fashion, freedom, and the female form
By Carys Brown @HistoryCarys Attempts to shape the female form are nothing new, as current exhibitions at the V&A and York Castle Museum show. Neither is the particular concern with the posterior, demonstrated today by an increased demand for buttock implants. Such permanent “improvements” are beyond the financial reach of most people. The less wealthy (or less…
doinghistoryinpublic.org 