What have ball games got to do with weddings, I hear you ask? Well, in some parts of North England, Scotland and France there was a tradition dictating that the bridegroom had to contribute either a ...
The personal, or visiting, card is the representative of the individual whose name it bears. It goes where he himself would be entitled to appear, and in his absence it is equivalent to his presence....
Hello everyone,today Im reviewing three old detective stories, written by three masters of the genre: Edgar Wallace, Anna Katherine Green and Eden Phillpotts. I was familiar only with Wallaces works,...
When we think of ancient Rome, one of the first images that comes into our minds is men and women bathing in the thermae. Bathing was an important part of Roman life and culture. The Ancient Romans d...
Thanks to the influence of Beau Brammel, the arbiter of fashion in Regency England, finely-arranged neckcloths became a must for any fashionable gentlemen. But not everyone was a fan. There were thos...
Did Marie Antoinette really eat lots of macaroons and sweet pastries like portrayed in the Sofia Coppolas movie? Or did she have simpler tastes? Viva La Reine shares what the Queens favourite foods w...
Doomed Queens by Kris Waldherr is one of those books that everyone, young and old, will enjoy even if they are not history geeks. Waldherr briefly sketches the lives of 50 royal women, from biblical ...
Hello everyone,are you curious to see what dress styles were fashionable in the summer of 1817? Unfortunately the images below are in black and white, but I hope you will enjoy them anyway. I think t...
Synopsis:On the eve of her ninth birthday, unassuming Rose Edelstein bites into her mothers homemade lemon-chocolate cake and discovers she has a magical gift: she can taste her mother’s emotions in ...
In 1795, famous portraitist Elizabeth Vigée LeBrun travelled to St. Petersburg, where she was introduced to the Empress Catherine The Great. Heres how the painter recalls their meeting in her memoirs...
A few days ago, we talked about what life was like in the hospital wards of English prisons. Today Ive thought itd be interesting to take a look at how French prisoners lived. Heres how Peter Kropotk...
All things Ruffnerian shares the rules of etiquette posted by Empress Catherine the Great at her Hermitage: 2. Orders of precedence and haughtiness,and anything of such like which might result from t...
Creeling The Bridegroom was a curious wedding custom carried out in Scotland until the beginning of the nineteenth century. This tradition takes its name from the creel (basket) the groom had to carr...
After the execution of Louis XVI, the revolutionary journal Thermomètre du jour published an inaccurate report of the event. The paper stated, among other calumnies, that the King had to be led to th...
Hello everyone,today Im gonna review three spy and international intrigue stories. Not my favourite genre, but its nice to step out of your comfort zone and read something different for a change, don...
Have you ever wondered what toys the Ancient Romans had and what games they played? Surprisingly (or maybe not), they are pretty similar to the ones we play with nowadays. Of course, there were no vi...
Six years in the prisons of England was written by an anonymous English merchant who committed a crime in order to save his business from bankruptcy. A robust and healthy man, his life in prison seri...
Bloody Mary is the nickname history has given to Mary I of England, the daughter of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragorn. But is it deserved? Nancy Bilyeau ponders the question and expl...
Born on 27th Semptember 1651, Sophia Alekseyevna was the daughter of Tsar Alexei I and his first wife Maria Miloslavskaya. Because of her rank, she was destined to lead a very solitary and confined e...
Hello everyone,today I thought wed take a look at what styles of dresses were popular in December 1831 in both England and France. It seems that ugly huge sleeves were still popular, which is a shame...
Synopsis:Seventeen year old Veronica "Ronnie" Millers life was turned upside-down when her parents divorced and her father moved from New York City to Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. Thre...
In her memoir, famous painter Madame Vigée Le Brun shares her recollections of the Duke of Berry, younger son of King Charles X of France, and his wife, Caroline of Naples and Sicily:As for the Duke ...
In the Victorian era, children, unless they were rich, didnt have many toys to play with. A lot of them worked, but they still had time to play outdoors (their houses very too small and their familie...
Life Takes Lemons has an interesting post about the life of a ladys maid. To quote:A lady’s maid’s day, unlike that of her peers, starts as soon as her mistress wakes. The hour is variable, depending...
During the nineteenth century, the bride and groom would give their friends and acquaintances wedding cards to invite them to their new home. The form and wording of these cards changed throughout th...
John Law was a Scottish economist who became the financial adviser to the regent of France in the early 18th century and was appointed Controller General of Finances of France under King Louis XV. Wh...
Hello everyone,today Im reviewing three old historical romance novels, two of which are actually quite enjoyable. Ready? Lets get started:Dangerous Passions by Kat MartinIt doesnt happen often that I...
Have you ever wondered what the ancient Romans ate? Poor people usually ate only what was available locally, and thus cheap, but rich Romans could afford to buy expensive food that came from all part...
Lady Harriet Julia Jephson, an Englishwoman, was living in Germany when World War I broke out. In a short war diary that she kept during that period and which she later published, titled A War-time J...
Marie Antoinette is still believed by many to have said, when told people were rioting because they had no bread, "Let them eat cake". On his blog, Gareth Russell dispels this myth. To quote:...
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