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By Philippa Jane Keyworth I want to thank English Historical Fiction Authors for having me here. It is a real privilege to guest post, and I want to thank them for giving me the opportunity. Today I want to write about a well-known primary source, The Mirror of Graces by a Lady of Distinction. This book was first published in London in 1811, and, presumably due to its popularity, it was subsequently re-printed in New York in 1813 and 1815, in Edinburgh in 1830 and then again in Boston in 1831. The copy that I own is an enlarged photo-reprint and spans some 239 pages or more. At such a length, I can hardly say that this article will cover the entirety of the book or will be a full analysis of the source. However, I wanted to share a little something about this captivating text which I am currently studying. Specifically, I have been drawn to the passage entitled, 'ON THE PECULIARITIES OF DRESS, WITH REFERENCE TO THE STATION OF THE WEARER'. It strikes me that when reading a Rege...

During the Regency Period, fencing became the formalized sport that we know today instead of simply a means to defend oneself in a duel. Standard rules and forms began to be applied and gentlemen fenced, not just to stay in shape for combat but for sport and enjoyment. The Weapons (right to left) Medieval Longsword; Rapier; two Smallswords; Classical Epee, Foil, and Radellian Sabre; modern Epee, Foil, and Sabre From http://www.sallegreen.com/regency.html According to Salle Greene LLC, Domenico Angelo founded the Angelo School of Arms in 1763. His grandson, Henry Angelo, was the third generation of that family to teach fencing to the haute ton of England’s elite, training gentleman fencers during the Regency.    In my novel, HOW TO TAME A WILLFUL WIFE, I take the liberty of allowing my leading lady to fence. This is relatively unlikely in the state of the world at the time, but my heroine is the daughter of a military man, a girl raised as much by her father’s veterans a...

By Maria Grace Period dramas have left many of us with the notion that ladies of the landed gentry in the Regency era had little to do but dress in lovely gowns, embroider and gossip.  Reality could not be farther from this image. In general, both masters and mistresses of the house did a great deal of work around the estate, often working alongside the servants in the efforts to get everything done. Labors tended to be divided along gender lines. So much so that single men sought female relatives to manage their households. Bachelors looked to sister or nieces while widowers often called upon daughters or the dead wife’s kin.  So, even if a woman did not marry, there was a very strong possibility she might take on the responsibilities of a household sometime in her lifetime.  Gentlemen tended to respect the household mistress’ authority; her contributions to the home had worth equal to his. Responsibilities of the Mistress The role of an estate’s mistress was the equival...

This week marks the 200th anniversary of the publication of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. It actually was on Monday, January the 28th. Today, though, is my day in our haphazard rotation, and as I have mostly presented pieces of history from the Regency era, this is one of them. Often we equate John Murray (1778-1843) as a preeminent publisher of the period. He was. His father, also John (1745-1793), had started the famous publishing business. John II brought forth such works as Scott's Marmion , Byron's Childe Harold ,   The Quarterly Review  with the help of future prime minister George Canning . Still, John Murray was not the first publisher of Austen's works, and not the publisher of Pride and Prejudice. This fell to Thomas Egerton. A man who did publish Austen's Sense and Sensibility. Jane Austen began the writing of her most famous novel in 1796 and finished this novel then called First Impressions in August of 1797. On November 1 Austen's father, Ge...