Regency England Research - post 2 - The Ton, The Season and their Beauty Regime

Hi again. So, in my last post I shared the definition of the Regency period and the titles of peerage.

And now, we take a look at the Season...

The Season

At the beginning of my book, Lady Anne enters the marriage mart, so I thought a brief explanation of The Season may be in order.

Men returning to London for the sitting of parliament after Easter would often take their families with them. Their sons or daughters of marriagebale age would then enter The Season (the time when London would come alive with entertainments and opportunities for the young people to mingle). This is what the marriage mart was, really.

I might as well make mention here, as I shan’t be talking much of parliament. The Act for the Abolition of the Slave Trade in Great Britain was brought into effect in 1807 – huzzah!

Of course, one is speaking of the Beau Monde or The Ton here. The poor people are sadly neglected in my pages here; sorry. My research focussed on the nobility as that’s of whom one was writing. Although, there will be a post on servants later.

Incidentally, the marriageable age could be when a young lady showed signs she was ready to breed i.e. when her period started – yes, I know, it’s all rather distasteful and I blush to mention it. But, we must face facts here. The age of consent was just twelve years old (*shudders*). This was brought into practice in 1275. It was raised to thirteen in 1875 and then taken up to sixteen in 1885, where it has remained ever since in Great Britain. If you’re writing about Ireland, you may want to check further as they had slightly different laws.

Whilst I’m on the topic of periods, there’s an article here on early sanitary wear; tampons were sort of a thing. It’s quite surprising and informative. However, most young ladies (who wore no knickers by the way) seemed to have gone without. Some may have used old rags tied on, as per Queen Victoria. But in the Regency, letting it run free was stomach-churningly common. But, bear in mind, thanks to a poor diet, their flow wasn’t as heavy as ours.

Right, enough yuck!

Courting

Happily, the Regency folks had started marrying off their daughters more towards the age of twenty.

But, there were many rules and guidelines, of course. One didn’t merely meet a random boy at a party and shack up. But nor were these formal marriages necessarily the arranged ones of the previous generation. Love had started to be accounted for (*gasp*), so long as it was to a person of appropriate standing, of course.

There’s a fabulous outline of the courting process can be found here.

With such strict guidelines, one was not able to openly flirt with the hotties. So, the youth formed their own secret code. Fans and parasols or umbrellas had their own language for flirtations.

Around this time, flowers began to be given meanings, but the Victorians went on to develop this further. Bouquets were a bit different, but a suitor would be expected to produce one, or at least a posy.

Fun fact; this Sir Thomas Lawrence painting was my Lady Anne inspiration



Beauty and Cosmetics

Well, one must look at one’s best whilst attending balls and gatherings. The Georgians before the Regency period had cottoned onto the fact that their make-up was killing them – literally! Oops! The heavy white paint used previously contained lead along with horse manure and vinegar – eww. Mercury was put into lots of things too. Oh dear!?

So, out went the dangerous make-up and in came the ‘natural look’. Pale complexion; those bonnets kept the sun off as well as looked pretty, with slightly pinked lips and cheeks were in vogue. Perhaps a slight darkening of the brows.

Ladies and their maids would buy periodicals such as La Belle Assemblée, The Lady’s Magazine, or the super rich could subscribe to the one Queen Charlotte did, The Gallery of Fashion. Some housekeeping books also were in circulation. Most of these would contain recipes for the maids to make cosmetics. The first Woman’s Own or Good Housekeeping mixed with Cosmopolitan, eh?

There’s an excellent blog post here for the Regency take on cosmetics.

But those wishing to look further back can see the Georgian’s regime here or one can hop forwards to the Victorians.

Be warned – they did not use the term “make-up” until around 1870. They had cosmetics and embellishments. I was very cruel and gave Lady Anne a spot just so I could use some of these intriguing concoctions. Am I weird for finding this fascinating? Perhaps it’s only natural, as I’m a trained beauty & holistic therapist.

Shampoo was coming in, and I was delighted to discover Pears soap had just been invented (I love the smell of this stuff!).

Hair was no longer made too big to fit carriages. Again, this was more natural. Ringlets looked cute about the face whilst wearing bonnets. And it was quite pleasant to wear plaits whilst dancing. There’s a hair style article and a hair accessory blog for you.

Fed up with teeth falling out, tooth brushes made of boar bristles and an ivory handle (noooo!!! Why did they not think of the elephants??? *sobs*). Funny how we learn things through history, eh? Sometimes, we humans learn lessons.

Now, these tooth brushes were not as wonderful as today, and their diet was quite rich (more on that in a later blog). One’s breath could still be left a little wonting for freshness (*heurgh*). So, there were breath-freshening tablets (cachous) available. All sorts of pleasant flavours were used, such as cardamom, musk (deer!), ambergris (whales!), rose, cinnamon and liquorice. Lady Anne favours violets. That may or not be because her author likes Parma Violet sweets. 😉

Sadly, deodorant and antiperspirant were still a ways off. And dancing was really quite an active affair. With no air-conditioning in a crowded hot room. Am I painting a picture? Quite whiffy!

So, men would wear cologne to help mask the err…let’s face it, stench. They used ingredients such as bergamot, rosemary, clary sage and orange blossom. Yum! More on this can be found here. The women would use things such as more violets and rose, but would also use some of the same items from men’s cologne in their perfumes.

They even started to do keep-fit exercises. They weren’t obsessed with being thin, by any means. A young lady should be well-rounded. But the Regencies were carrying everything to excess, and the first reducing diets started to creep in (*sigh*).

That’s one’s appearance sorted. Time to end this blog post and think of the next.

Always in love and light,

TL

lalala...my Regency Love – Reflections of a Young Lady book...lalala



Regency England Research - post 1 - Nobility; ranks of peerage

Hello there.

One has now finished and is publishing a rather spiffing Regency Romance, if I say so myself.

Should you require knowledge of that book, it may be found in your favourite online store.

However, that is not the purpose of this blog post. During my research for this splendid novel, I performed a mahoosive research project. I was paranoid about the use of correct terms which were in use in 1814.

("slightly" doctored photo of me - lol)

Instead of allowing all that amassed knowledge to go to waste now my book is done, I thought I’d run a series of blog posts, starting with this one, sharing what I discovered and links to sites I found most useful.
So, without further ado, let us begin our journey through Regency England.

When was the Regency period?

Well, strictly speaking, it ran from 1811 to 1820. Prince George (often referred to by comedians as “the fat one”), ruled Great Britain by proxy as Prince Regent whilst his papa, King George III went a bit mad (as portrayed in the marvellous film The Madness of King George, wot wot).

What happened then? Well, poor old King George III died, and his son became King George IV.

However, many Regency romances are set after this time, as the term became a more general one. In fact, it can span 1795 to 1837 (ending with King William IV). At that point Queen Victoria ascended the throne and launched the Victorian era, funnily enough.

Who was who?

Now, Prince George (aka Prinny) was rather a dissipated fellow who enjoyed cavorting, drinking and gambling. He was the leader of the Carlton House Set, who seemed to take hedonism to the extreme and ran up massive debt in their pursuit of fun. Incidentally, Beau Brummel, chief of the dandy crowd, was in their number.

You will often hear the Ton or Beau Monde mentioned in Regency romances. These were the hoy paloy / hoi polloi of Society (capital S – the important, wealthy people; the upper class!). See below for class structure.

Oh, and don’t forget the Duke of Wellington (aka Welly).

For posts on The Ton, try here and here.

Let us look into the nobility here. Now, most Regency romances will have young women of varying pedigree chasing after dukes. My own book features the daughter of a duke. However, these were not in abundance, despite all this.

In fact, during the Regency period, there were only about 30 dukes in the kingdom. Bearing in mind, many of these would be old and married already. But it’s fun to fantasise about these folk who are basically royalty, so please forgive us writers for using them.

Earls were far more common; there were around 140 of them. And 120 barons. These are rough numbers, but you get the idea.

If you want to there’s a list of real dukes listed here for you to view.

And don’t go thinking their life was all easy, either. Look here for a general idea and here for more detail on what duchesses had to do. Mind you, with a big house, servants and horses, I might not turn down the offer 😉

Peerage titles in Great Britain can get a trifle confusing, so let me list them in order for you:

Royalty – upper class
Referred to as “Your Highness”

Ø  King – wife is a queen

Ø  Prince

Members of the Peerage (allowed a seat in the House of Lords) – nobility 

       Ø Duke – wife is a duchess – referred to as Duke of… (title) or Your Grace

The following are referred to as Lord and Lady … (title)
       Ø Marquess – (marquis in Europe; I shan’t go into details as this gets confusing) – wife is a marchioness
       Ø Earl – wife is a countess 
       Ø Viscount – wife is a viscountess
       Ø Baron – wife is a baroness

Gentry (commoners; not nobles) – second class

      Sir (first name, surname - often addressed as Sir with only first name) and Lady (surname)

Ø  Baronet (hereditary, non-peer)

Ø  Knight  

Mr. and Mrs. (surname)

Ø  Landed squires

Ø  Gentlemen

Labourers
Third class   

Ø  Doctors

Ø  Bankers

Ø  Clergy

 Fourth class

Ø  Lawyers

Ø  Teachers

Ø  Ship owners

Ø  Artists

Ø  Builders

There is an excellent website with full details on how to address each of these here . I cannot recommend it enough. It was a vital page for me as I was writing.

And one can always consult Debrett’s who have long been established as the experts on such matters.

There’s a rather good summary here.

Inheriting the title is not as straight forward as you may think. And for those wishing to write first sons out of wills; just don’t. It was extremely difficult, if not impossible to do so. There’s a link to the procedure here for inheritance.

For fans of Pride and Prejudice

So, all those madly in love with Mr Darcy; he was an ordinary fella, a mere gentleman, hence the ‘mister’. 😉 He was a landowner, but a rich one. My Lady Anne wouldn’t even look at him twice – lol.

Interestingly, his aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh (aka Lady Catherine aka that old cow; I may have made that last one up) must be of the nobility, given her use of full name and title. Whereas Lady Lucas has no first name, as she’s married to Sir William, a recently appointed knight.
I found putting them in this context help sort the muddle in my head.

It’s all jolly confusing. But then that’s why I wrote the little poem “The Naming of Aristocrats” at the beginning of my book. Yes, it was inspired by “The Naming of Cats” by TS Elliott 😉

 ---

Alrighty, that’s probably enough info for one post. I don’t want your head to ‘splode with all the stuffs.

More posts with points of interest shall follow soon.

Always in love and light,

TL

(psst...don’t forget to check out my Regency Love – Reflections of a Young Lady book!)

REVIEW - The Zen Detective - ooommmm

Date read: 4th August 2019

My rating: 4.5*

Genre I reckon: Detective Mystery

Buy link: Amazon






This book reads like an old-time smokey detective agency story, but with all mod cons. Marvellous!

Will was injured, well killed, on duty. Understandably, PTSD ensued. He's not undead or anything, by the way. They saved him; he just died for a moment.
He turns to Zen Buddhims, or at least meditation to help overcome said PTSD.

A mysterious woman seeks him out as he's on sick leave, and thus begins a most intriguing case.
Full of peril, drugs, a smidge of violence, prostitutes, mystery, cops...it's all here in wonderful detail.

Really well written. The author has really honed their craft in the making of this tome. Rounded characters that I felt invested in. Fab plot.

A 4.5* from me, along with a definite recommendation (obviously, as it's here on my blog; genuine recommend to a friend books only here).

Always in love and light,
TL

REVIEW - SE6 - sexy

Date read: 12th July 2019

My rating: 4.5*

Genre I reckon: NA romance

Buy link: Amazon





Well, this doesn't happen very often! I read X Y, Z (book 1) in April. Lo and behold, the sequel just came out and I grabbed it straight away and set about reading asap.

SE6 is a great sequel.
Whereas book 1 looks at first time experience and young love, this book follows that through to what happens after that as they mature and develop both as people and in their relationship.

I adore Alex and Zoe; such a sweet couple. But all is not plain sailing. Their relationship comes up against some scary challenges in this book. Can they weather the storm? It's set in London - no idea why boats came into this review!? 
Alex is a rising star, but that comes with its own problems, especially when he's well fit. 

Anyway, this is a fab book and if you want a young love story you should definitely give both of these a go. 
Well written, likeable characters, interesting plot - what more can you ask for?

Always in love and light,

TL

REVIEW - Cecilia - you're breaking my heart

Date read: 27th June 2019

My rating: 5*

Genre I reckon: Classics 

Buy link: not included






Oh my very goodness!! 😨
How does one even begin the attempt of reviewing such a novel.

It was published in 1782, and the language is very much of its time. But one does get accustomed to such flowerings of words so that, in time, it is not at all a trial to read. Indeed, it is most intriguing.

I read Cecilia as I loved Evelina before (review of that here).
And as I'm writing my own Regency romance (currently with beta readers so I was free from too much influence of this fine lady), I took the opportunity of perusing this tome.

As one has come to expect of this author, I was treated to some incredibly well illustrated characters.
They take their time to come to fruition, so you will need patience.

Fanny was, in real life, a courtier. She became "Keeper of the Robes" to Queen Charlotte (wife of George III). She had therefore some insight then into the different factions of Regency life, and was not shy of holding back in her satirisation of them. Having come from relatively humble beginnings, I wonder if she too encountered such prejudice as described in this novel when she married a French exile.

Talking of pride and prejudice, there is a section where Dr Lyster mentions this several times over:

Knowing Jane Austen was a fan, the title of arguably her most famous book seems to have been influenced from this. There's even a Miss Bennet in this story, although of a very different nature. And Miss Larolles, a tiresome chatterbox, is cited in Emma.

Anyway, back to THIS story...
Cecilia is an heiress. Sorry, HEIRESS. Little acquainted with London life, she is situated with a dissipated guardian. But then her other two potential guardians are worse; one is a miser who could rival (the later) Scrooge himself. The other is so extremely proud as to be irksome.

Thus Evelina is set upon a tragic course. Deeper and deeper she sinks into strife the harder she tries to maintain her precious innocence, as instructed in youth.

There's a particularly good masquerade scene, which is thrown with shade as well as humour.

Shock after shock befalls our heroine.

But then she makes a few friends, largely with thanks to her inherent goodness.
A wonderfully odd character enters the scene too. He seems to be a prophet of some sort.

Why, when she is all goodness will nobody hear her when she speaks only truth? Oh, fair Society, so little used to such merits is forever in doubt of anything which it hears which is against its wishes.

Twists and turns abound. And just as you think she is coming clear, another ill-timed entrance throws her back into turmoil. Oh, such hardships!

Her strength of character is exceptional under such duress. Burney shows in her own way, just how incredible Cecilia is. How she frets over indiscretions or possible wrong actions is a reflection of her purity. And how sorely it is tried.

I would not give the ending away for all the world, but fair reader, I urge you to have an entire box of tissues at the ready if you enter this lengthy read. Believe me; it is entirely worth your endeavours. I can't recall the last time I sobbed so hard at a book. Actually sobbed!! 😭 Oh monstrous perfidy!!!

Like its predecessor, Evelina, I thoroughly recommend this book.

It is funny, Fanny is quoted as being fearful of writing this novel, not certain of succeeding the success of her first. She needn't have worried; it exceeds even her own excellence.

All that is left is for me is to fear publishing my own Regency romance. Oh, how it pales in comparison to this mighty work. Even my beloved Jane Austen does not succeed her in my estimation (*gasp*). I know; sacrilege! But trust me, it really is THAT good.

(I'm making my very slow way through her entire collection, but will review on Zon once all books are completed.)

Oh, fellow writers, this section is rather marvellous....

"The assailants of the quill have their honour as much at heart as the assailants of the sword"

OK, so that's all I have to say about this amazing, and I mean AMAZING novel.

Always in love and light,
TL

Fantasy Book Giveaway - open now

Hey,

Happy Summer Solstice/Litha! 💛

100, yes one hundred fantasy authors have been selected to take part in this awesome giveaway.
And there's even the chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card!
Check it out now (click here)

My own award-winning, Love Bites is included, just in case you've not grabbed it yet.
A rich tale of witchcraft, elinefae and a dragon.

Always in love and light,
TL

REVIEW - The Scarlet Letter - a dreary tale

Date read: 1st June 2019

My rating: 3*

Genre I reckon: Classics (a dark one)

Buy link: not included




Now, I only ever review books on here that I'd genuinely recommend to a friend. Does this book belong here then? Maybe, maybe not. I can't decide, so here it is, just in case you want to know about it. Make your own mind up.

The Scarlet Letter is one of those books you've heard about, and feel you OUGHT to read.

btw - skip The Custom House preamble. It's utterly pointless.

This is a hard one to rate.
It is, of course, very well written. And a great insight into 17th century Puritan life (but written in 1850).
Incidentally, the same could be said of me as I'm currently writing a Regency romance. Similar distance in the future of the time in the book! 😲 Weird!!

Anyway, the language is therefore is of its time, and can feel a bit of an effort to wade through.

Hester Prynne is a sinner (*points accusing finger*). She's had a baby, and it's clearly not her husband's. 😱 Enter the scarlet letter itself.
The story is basically of her atonement for this DREADFUL sin. And the suffering spreads further than merely to herself. She is an outcast. (*points more forcefully*)
And that's the long and short of this book; suffering, misery and more suffering.

The daughter is a wild contrast of all this. But not necessarily in a good way. She is often caste as a demon child.

And yet, I found myself intrigued and compelled to reach the conclusion.

I understand many school children have been forced to read this, and I pity them. It must be quite an ordeal to pick this apart.
However, as an adult with no other agenda than to read the book as is, it's an interesting one.

Fancy a real reading challenge? Here it is!
Want a fun, light-hearted book; avoid!
lol


Always in love and light,
TL