School Terms During the Regency Era + PreOrder of “The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess” + a Giveaway

The above is an example of the school terms found in one of author Suzi Love’s books, but I wished to share it as a marker of when the children during Jane Austen’s England would have returned to school, and what each term meant, for in my latest Austen-inspired tale, The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess, much of the action in compacted between the Easter Term and the Michael Term and there are three children, two of them young boys whose schooling plays a part of in the plot line. My British readers will wonder why I bother, while I hope my American readers will be able to make more sense of such details in the tale. 

Before we get into specifics of each boarding school and the terms, let us first revisit some givens as to the education of both males and females, though my story has a young boy who is the colonel’s nephew and the heroine also has a brother of 10 years of age. So most of what I am sharing is dealing with the male education. 

At around the age of five, children no longer had a “nurse,” but rather came under the care of a “governess.” There was no rule of thumb as to whether a governess addressed only the education of the young girls, so I chose to have the governess in my story tend the boy and his sister, for they are twins. Such a person was sometimes referred to as the “nursery governess.” Generally though, the word “governess” is for girls and “tutor” is for boys. 

Boys, especially as I have written my young lad as an earl, would require lessons in reading, writing, arithmetic, history, geography, etc. Girls would receive much the same, but would also learn as they say in Pride and Prejudice . . . 

“A woman must have a thorough knowledge of music, singing, drawing, dancing, all the modern languages, to deserve the word; and besides all this, she must possess a certain something in her air and manner of walking, the tone of her voice, her address and expressions, or the word will be but half deserved.”

Later education included languages, such as French, Greek, and Latin, geography, science, astronomy, philosophy, business, literature, and traveling abroad, as well as social graces such as dancing, music, etc. Some boys, before they left for school, studied in the home of a learned man. Jane Austen’s father supplemented his income by educating boys in his home. Ironically, though the schools catered to the landed gentry and the aristocracy, the curriculum did not include land management and bookkeeping. Sons of the men of trade learned those skills. 

We must recall, in the Regency, a boarding school was called a “public school,” meaning the boys received their education outside of their homes. The public schools were Eton, Harrow, Westminster, Charterhouse, Shrewsbury, Winchester, and Rugby. Between ten and twelve seemed to be the age boys went out to school. 

Okay, we have an overview of the curriculum, though with both the colonel’s and Mr. Darcy’s help, in my story, my young Lord Vincent learns many other necessary skills which will serve him as the earl when he able to sit in the House of Lords. Now, let us look at the school terms: 

The School Terms, as you can see in the example at the top have specific names. These names are, as are the court sessions, associated with the church calendar. 

Michaelmas Term (a word we are all familiar with because Mr. Bingley let Netherfield before Michaelmas, which is one of the four quarter days, meaning “taxes” to be paid. The Michaelmas runs for eight weeks after the Feast of St Michael, which falls on 29 September. Generally, the Michaelmas term begins the first few days of October, depending on whether it is a weekend or not.

Hilary Term is the second of the school terms at Oxford and Dublin universities, not at Cambridge. It runs from January to March and is named “Hilary” after St Hilary of Poitiers, which is celebrated on 13 January and falls within this academic term. The term lasts 10 weeks after the feast of St Hilary. 

Trinity Term varies some because of the”movement” of Easter. Many schools, universities and law courts had Easter terms.  The fact that Easter was a moveable feast meant that one could not always tie the terms to the calendar nor have them be the same length every year. All were closed for Holy week preceding  Easter and then most did not reopen until the Wednesday after Easter as Monday and Tuesday were holidays.

Many other dates were calculated as being so many days after Easter.

Additionally, the periods when the schools and law courts were not in session were called vacations, not holidays, despite contemporary English usage.

Nancy Regency Researcher describes it this way: 15 Sundays to 21 Sundays after the fest of St Hilary (6 Sundays) with Trinity Sunday as the first Sunday after Pentecost or Whitsunday (as it is called in the UK. Pentecost is celebrated seven weeks (50 days) after Easter Sunday, since its name. Pentecost falls on the tenth day after Ascension Thursday. 

Eton had terms called “Halves.” These were the existing parameters: 

September to two weeks before Christmas

Christmas holidays: a fortnight before and after Christmas

January to Palm Sunday.

Easter holidays were a fortnight from Palm Sunday.

Week after Easter to end of July The Summer holiday from the end of July for five weeks.

* Senior boys returned later.

Meanwhile, Cambridge did not have a Term called “Trinity.” Their Easter Term was longer. 

As the Darcys lived in Derbyshire, and I have placed members of the Fitzwilliam family in Derbyshire (Earl of Matlock) and the eldest son (at William’s Wood in Lincolnshire), and the young earl’s estate in North Yorkshire, we may assume all within my story attended or will attend Cambridge. We know Darcy and Wickham and the colonel all attended Cambridge, from Chapter 35 of Pride and Prejudice. 

“Mr. Wickham is the son of a very respectable man, who had for many years the management of all the Pemberley estates, and whose good conduct in the discharge of his trust naturally inclined my father to be of service to him; and on George Wickham, who was his godson, his kindness was therefore liberally bestowed. My father supported him at school, and afterwards at Cambridge—most important assistance, as his own father, always poor from the extravagance of his wife, would have been unable to give him a gentleman’s education. “ . . . 

“For the truth of everything here related, I can appeal more particularly to the testimony of Colonel Fitzwilliam, who, from our near relationship and constant intimacy, and, still more, as one of the executors of my father’s will, has been unavoidably acquainted with every particular of these transactions. “

Let us look at some of the school terms for years during the Georgian/Regency era as samples of what to expect. (Note: Part of this was shared on Nancy Regency Researcher, but I added specific dates for the calendar and school term. 

1804 (taken from A Pocket Companion for Oxford)

10 October 1803 to 17 December 1803 – Michaelmas Term 

14 January 1804 to 24 March 1804 (ends on Saturday before Palm Sunday) – Hilary Term

11 April 1804 (the Wednesday after Low Sunday, which is the Sunday after Easter) to 17 May 1804, which is the Thursday before Whitsunday (the Pentecost) – Easter Term

30 May 1804 (the Wednesday after Trinity Sunday, which is the Sunday after Whitsunday) to the Saturday after Act Sunday. In 1804, 1 July was the first Sunday of the month. Therefore, the term would end on 7 July 1804. 

Bear with me on this explanation of Act Sunday. I am taking this from the footnotes of a lecture on Newman Reader via The National Institute of Newman Studies – copyright 2007 – based on the works of John Henry Newman. 

Footnote #2 [Act Sunday. “The candidate,” says Huber on the English Universities, “emancipated from his teacher, makes himself known to the other teachers by taking part in the disputations in the schools. These services afterwards become formal public acts, disputationes, responsiones, lecturæ cursoriæ. A more especially solemn Act formed the actual close of the whole course of study. The licence was then conferred on him by the Chancellor. A custom arose that all the final and solemn exercises should fall in the second term of the year (hence called the Act Term), and be closed on the last Saturday in term by a solemn general Act, the Vesperiæ, by keeping which the candidates of all degrees in their different Faculties were considered qualified and entitled to begin the exercises connected with their new degree upon the following Monday. This fresh beginning (inceptio) took place with the greatest solemnity, and formed the point of richest brilliancy in the scholastic year. In Oxford it was called emphatically ‘the Act,’ in Cambridge ‘the Commencement.'” {Abridged from F. W. Newman’s translation.) The Act Sunday is or was the Sunday next before the Act, which falls in the first week of July.]

Again, thanks to Nancy Regency Researcher and to the following for their input on the subject

Education and Other Forms of Child Torture in the Regency Era

Eton College During the Regency

Reading the Regency – Education, Part 1

Schools in Regency England Part 2: The Middle and Upper Classes 

The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess 

Rather than be forced to marry a man not of her choice, Miss Jocelyn Romfield runs away. She believes spending her life as a governess would be superior to a loveless marriage. 

An arrangement has been made by his father for Colonel Edward Fitzwilliam to marry a woman related to his Aunt Catherine’s last husband, Sir Lewis de Bourgh. Yet, how is Fitzwilliam expected to court his future bride, who has proven to be elusive during each of his attempts to take her acquaintance, when the governess of his brother’s stepchildren fills his arms so perfectly?

Jocelyn has no idea the man she has purposely avoided is the same one who fills her heart with love. 

Kindle https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CZZCMWW7

Available to Read on Kindle Unlimited 

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D11KC196

BookBub   https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-colonel-s-ungovernable-governess-a-pride-and-prejudice-vagary-by-regina-jeffers

Giveaway: I have 3 eBooks available for those who comment on any of the posts associated with The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess release. Winners will be chosen May 9, 2024, and prizes will be delivered on May 10, with the book’s official release.

The Use of a Magnifier and Tweezers in Medical Emergencies + Preorder for “The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess” + a Giveaway

In my latest Austen-inspired release, Mr. Darcy asks for a magnifier and tweezers to have assurances that one of the character’s wound is clean from debris of clothing. Now, before any of you start to criticize me for making Darcy’s personality practical, a bit of an intellectual, and dependable, forget it. I shan’t listen, and you shall be wasting your breath. I have always written Darcy (and even Elizabeth upon more than one occasion) as being a bit ahead of his times, but when it comes to magnifiers and tweezers, the gentleman from Derbyshire was not.

The Optimax website tells us, “Ancient History: From ancient times, man has wanted to see things far smaller than could be perceived with the naked eye. Although the first use of a lens is a bit of a mystery, it’s now believed that use of lenses is more modern than previously thought. However, it has been known for over 2000 years that glass bends light. In the 2nd Century BC, Claudius Ptolemy described a stick appearing to bend in a pool of water, and accurately recorded the angles to within half a degree. He then very accurately calculated the refraction constant of water. During the 1st century AD (year 100), glass had been invented and the Romans were looking through the glass and testing it. They experimented with different shapes of clear glass and one of their samples was thick in the middle and thin on the edges. They discovered that if you held one of these “lenses” over an object, the object would look larger. These early lenses were called magnifiers or burning glasses. The word lens is actually derived from the Latin word lentil, as they were named because they resembled the shape of a lentil bean. At the same time, Seneca described actual magnification by a globe of water. “Letters, however small and indistinct, are seen enlarged and more clearly through a globe of glass filled with water.” The lenses were not used much until the end of the 13th century when spectacle makers were producing lenses to be worn as glasses. Then, around 1600, it was discovered that optical instruments could be made by combining lenses.”

There is more on this site about the development of microscopes for those who are interested. I just did not want someone to call me out in a review for using the magnifying glass, though I imagine it has been used previously (actually I read several stories where the hero uses a magnifying glass to look at insect specimens, etc.).

In addition to the above, we have Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek (24 October 1632 – 26 August 1723) who was a Dutch microbiologist and microscopist in the Golden Age of Dutch science and technology. A largely self-taught man in science, he is commonly known as “the Father of Microbiology”, and one of the first microscopists and microbiologists. Using single-lensed microscopes of his own design and make, Van Leeuwenhoek was the first to observe and to experiment with microbes.

Anthonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723). ~ Public Domain ~ Wikipedia

Now, I am not expecting Darcy even to think of looking for microbes, but I find it reasonable that he would want to know confidence the wound was clean from a loose thread or fabric fiber.

As to tweezers, the earliest evidence of tweezers dates back to the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. These early tweezers were made from sea shells or animal bones and were primarily used for removing hair. They were simple in design, with two pointed ends that were aligned to grip the hair. During the medieval period, tweezers evolved into a more complex tool. They were made from metal and were used for various purposes, including medical procedures. The design was more intricate, with the tips curved and pointed, allowing for a better grip.

The word tweezer comes from etwee which describes a small case that people would use to carry small objects (such as toothpicks) with them. Etwee takes its origin from French étui “small case” from the Old French verb estuier, “to hold or keep safe.” Over time, the object now known as “tweezers” took on this name because the tool was commonly found in these tiny carrying cases. Eventually, the word “tweeze” was accepted as a verb in the English language.

I am not sharing an excerpt today, for I do not wish you to know who Mr. Darcy must attend with his burning glass and tweezers. You must find out by purchasing and reading the book, but when you do read the scene, you will know I did my research before I added either tool to the script, though I must admit it is a bit ridiculous to spend so many hours of my life in research for a few details, which many will simply overlook. Yet, it is important to me to have everything correct (or as correct as I am able to determine).

The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess 

Rather than be forced to marry a man not of her choice, Miss Jocelyn Romfield runs away. She believes spending her life as a governess would be superior to a loveless marriage. 

An arrangement has been made by his father for Colonel Edward Fitzwilliam to marry a woman related to his Aunt Catherine’s last husband, Sir Lewis de Bourgh. Yet, how is Fitzwilliam expected to court his future bride, who has proven to be elusive during each of his attempts to take her acquaintance, when the governess of his brother’s stepchildren fills his arms so perfectly?

Jocelyn has no idea the man she has purposely avoided is the same one who fills her heart with love. 

Kindle https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CZZCMWW7

Available to Read on Kindle Unlimited 

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D11KC196

BookBub   https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-colonel-s-ungovernable-governess-a-pride-and-prejudice-vagary-by-regina-jeffers

GIVEAWAY: I have three eBook copies of The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess available to those who comment on any of the blogs involved in this book’s release. The giveaway will end May 9, 2024. Prizes will be delivered on May 10, 2024, when the book officially releases.

“The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess” on PreOrder + a Bit on the Story’s Background + a Giveaway

When I am writing a Jane Austen variation, I often write Colonel Fitzwilliam’s elder brother, as suffering from hemophilia. In that manner, the colonel can eventually become the earl. I have done so in several of my tales, but I, generally, do not describe his brother’s symptoms enough for my readers to recognize the disease. In The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess, I do.

Most of us have heard hemophilia called the Royal Disease.

The Hemophilia Federation of America provides us this bit of history of the disease:

1000

The first description of an inherited bleeding disorder is referenced in the Talmud, an ancient body of Jewish law, compiled in the 2^nd century AD.

“An incident occurred where a woman had circumcised her son and he died. Her sister circumcised her son, and he also died. The third sister brought her son before the Rabbi Yohanan, who said, “Go and circumcise your son. Two occurrences is not enough to establish presumption [that the child will die.]”

Rabbi Abaye said to him, “You must be certain that you are accurate, otherwise you may be permitting harm to the child.”

1600 – 1900

1639. The first European with a bleeding disorder arrives in the American colonies.

1791. Isaac Zoll from Virginia dies at age 19 from a minor cut on his foot. He is regarded as the first American with hemophilia.

1803. Hemophilia is first named.

1839. The book Domestic Medicine is published. It includes treatments for hemorrhages and internal bleeding.

To address the research of the time period in which my story is set, as a reader, you will notice I mention this history that would be known at that time (March 1814). Hemophilia.org tells us, “In 1803, John Conrad Otto, a Philadelphia physician, was the first to publish an article recognizing that a hemorrhagic bleeding disorder primarily affected men and ran in certain families. He traced the disease back to a female ancestor living in Plymouth, New Hampshire, in 1720. Otto called the males ‘bleeders.’ In 1813, John Hay published a paper in the New England Journal of Medicine proposing that affected men could pass the trait for a bleeding disorder to their unaffected daughters. Then in 1828m Friedrich Hopff, a student at the University of Zurich, and his professor Dr. Schonlein, are credited with coining the term ‘Haemorrhaphilia’ for the condition, later shortened to ‘Haemophilia’.”

As I said earlier, the disease is sometimes called the Royal Disease. We learned a great deal about it during the reign of Queen Victoria of England. During Queen Victoria’s reign and before her time on the throne, the British royals came from other European countries. As to hemophilia, for the purposes of my story and the time period in which I write, the royal families of England, Germany, Russia, and Spain, notably suffered from the disease. Many consider Queen Victoria of England to have been a carrier of hemophilia B, or what is now referred to as factor IX deficiency. Victoria passed the trait to three of her nine children. At the age of 30, her son Leopold died of a hemorrhage after a fall. Victoria’s daughters Alice and Beatrice carried passed it on to several of their children. Beatrice’s daughter married into the Spanish royal family. She passed the gene to the male heir to the Spanish throne. Alice’s daughter Alix married Tsar Nicholas of Russia, whose son Alexei had hemophilia. The young man Alexis was treated for bleeds by the mysterious Rasputin, known as a “holy” man with the power to heal. Their family’s entanglement with Rasputin, the Russian mystic, and their deaths during the Bolshevik Revolution have been chronicled in several books and films. Among them, one may find the fascinating story of this royal family is told in the book Nicholas and Alexandra by Robert Massie (the father of a son with hemophilia).Hemophilia was carried through various royal family members for three generations after Victoria, then disappeared.

Other Sources:

The Hemophilia Handbook

Midwest Hemophilia Association

The National Library of Medicine

Enjoy this excerpt from chapter one where we learn of the condition and find out the Earl of Matlock INSISTS the colonel marry. Then add a comment or two below to be a part of the giveaway. NOTE: When I posted this excerpt, final editing had not occurred. Overlook any obvious typos, they have been fixed.

Late March, 1814 

“It is time,” his father said with that typical gruffness the earl often used with his sons, but especially with his youngest. Edward Fitzwilliam understood. The Earl of Matlock carried around the guilt of what affected his eldest, the heir to the earldom. Though nothing could be done to change Roland Fitzwilliam’s future, Martin Fitzwilliam meant to ease Roland’s inevitable demise and secure the earldom through Edward. “Roland and Lady Lindale will take some time together, staying on at Guernsey, in preparation for how they will proceed. Lindale’s episodes appear more severe, and things must be arranged for her ladyship when your brother passes.” 

“And the viscountess’s children?” Edward asked. His brother Roland had married a widow, Lady Elaine Babcock, who had delivered her late husband a daughter and a set of twins, another daughter and a son, but the boy, who was supposedly “dumb,” by all who spoke of him, would never be permitted to inherit his father’s title, if Lord Babcock’s brother had a say in the matter. Edward thought Jennings’s posturing was simply a means to keep his foot in the door of the earldom, but he supposed the man could have more sinister motives. History had story after story of “wicked uncles, such as  Claudius in Hamlet or Creon in Antigone. Even if the boy was named as the earl, his uncle had already petitioned to be named “Regent” of the Babcock holdings until the boy either assumed the earldom when reaching his majority, or if truly weak-minded, passed.. 

Therefore, the former Lady Babcock had welcomed Roland’s offer of his hand in order to save face, despite everyone understanding Roland and Elaine’s joining was a means for both families to “create” a story all of society would accept. Unlike him, Philip Jennings, the second son of the Earl of Babcock was now the heir apparent to the Babcock family peerage, while Roland was the Matlock heir, if his brother lived long enough.

In truth, Edward was not happy to be required to assume the earldom anytime soon or, at all, for that matter. When he and Roland were young, they always played at king and soldier. Ironically, Roland had always been the soldier and Edward, the king, that is, until one day the father demanded they switch roles. Frustratingly, Edward had wanted to be the next earl and was upset to learn he was meant for another occupation. 

On that fateful day, Roland had fallen and cut his hand. A small cut. Yet, it had taken multiple days to stop the bleeding. Not profuse. Just constant seeping blood.

Naturally, when this abnormality occurred a second time, Matlock had employed an army of physicians and surgeons to explore both the cause and the remedy. 

While the search for information went on, Edward found a “new” companion, his first cousin, Fitzwilliam Darcy. The roles reversed slightly, for at Maitland Manor, Roland had been the eldest, but at Pemberley House, where Edward had become accustomed to spending his school holidays, he was the eldest. He was two years older than his cousin, and three years older than the steward’s son, George Wickham, a fellow, who over the years, Edward had come to despise, but, in the beginning, both he and Darcy had welcomed the fellow into their “adventures.” 

“Do I have a choice of brides?” Edward asked, while attempting to keep a hint of stubbornness from sneaking into his tone. Often, a “dogged and unwavering persistence,” as his mother called it, ran through both father and son. Generally, Edward took his father’s advice, though this was not one of those times.

“Your Aunt Catherine . . .” the Earl began, but Edward cut him off before Matlock could finish. 

“Not Anne!” Edward said in emphatic tones. “I adore my cousin, but not enough to spend the remainder of my days with her at my side and do not attempt to convince me Anne could survive the rigors of child birth. If I am to replace Roland as the heir, I will require a wife who can deliver forth my heir to sustain the Fitzwilliam name.” 

“If you would kindly permit me to finish,” the earl hissed. He paused to wait for Edward’s nod of acceptance before saying, “Lady Catherine suggested Sir Louis’s niece, the daughter of de Bourgh’s youngest sister. Miss Celine de Bourgh married a baron, Lord Romfield. The baron and his family have been on the Continent since Miss Romfield was but a small child, as Romfield has been serving as a diplomat representing Great Britain all those years. Their daughter was not yet three when they departed England.” 

“How long have the Romfields been away from Great Britain?” Edward asked. “I do not recall encountering those members of Sir Louis’s family since I was perhaps nine or ten, and I barely recall something of Lord Romfield marrying Sir Louis’s sister. Aunt Catherine’s husband has been gone somewhere near twenty years, has he not?”

“Hard to believe it has been that long,” his father said with a heavy sigh. “As to the girl, she was quite small. I believe Romfield has been in Europe for some fifteen, perhaps sixteen years.” 

“Miss Romfield is a bit more than ten years my junior,” Edward surmised. 

“Yet, of age or nearly so, as I have been told” the earl countered. “And even if Miss Romfield has not reached her majority, we can assume the chit’s education is likely more ‘liberal’ than a young lady raised by a proper governess on English soil. Those raised upon the Continent, and, especially, in the war years, have been presented their heads. You may be required to take the girl in hand. Nor am I aware of whether or not she has been properly presented to society.” 

Although his father would think otherwise, Edward had never been impressed by the insipid young girls making their Come Outs. He privately thought a girl of the nature of his cousin Darcy’s wife would better suit him. Elizabeth Darcy had had a most unusual education, and she was not one simply to permit her husband to make all the decisions for their future. The lady had a voice and opinions and was not the type to bend to all of Darcy’s “pompousness.” Far from being a harridan, the woman encouraged her husband to lead, as long as she walked hand-in-hand at his side. In Edward’s opinion, Darcy had become a kinder, yet, more excellent sort of man because of his choice of brides. 

“Then I suppose I should call upon the lady. Will you or her ladyship be making the introductions, though know if I do not think the lady and I will fit, I will not be made to speak a proposal. I mean to craft my own versions of the earldom. I do not speak my words as a criticism, but I could never be you. Though none care to speak to the matter, the aristocracy is changing. This war has changed Great Britain. Men, not of the gentry or aristocracy, have achieved rank and prestige in both the army and the navy. They will not readily be willing to step back into their previous roles in society, and such does not address the nouveau riche. Men such as Darcy’s friend Charles Bingley can afford an estate and a house in Town and a university education, where many aristocrats cannot manage more than the education, though they often treat Oxford and Cambridge as social clubs.” 

His father did not comment on Edward’s assertions, the absence of which spoke volumes regarding the earl’s opinions. “Your mother,” Matlock said instead, “insists we also travel to Guernsey. You know she has always blamed herself for your brother’s condition,” his father explained. 

Since those days, the earl had paid to learn something of Roland’s condition had unearthed a highly esteemed paper by a Philadelphia physician, Doctor John Otto in 1804, Lady Matlock had come to the conclusion she somehow was the source of her eldest son’s unusual condition. Doctor Otto had written an account regarding “a hemorrhagic disposition” existing in some families. Otto found the condition affected mostly males and was inherited through their mothers, though the mothers were considered perfectly healthy and would not have recognized the possibility of the condition until after giving birth. The fact he had not also been afflicted had been a source of many arguments in the Fitzwilliam household for nearly a decade, but only last year, a man named John Fay published his findings in another American journal. That research said the affected males could pass the disease onto their unaffected daughters, proving Lady Matlock had likely unknowingly presented her eldest the disease. All the medical reports had convinced Roland not to beget a child of his own. Such was the real reason for the arrangement with Lady Babcock after her own husband’s passing. 

For a time, some thought Roland preferred men, but the marriage to Lady Babcock settled that rumor, at least for the foreseeable future. When Roland and Lady Elaine did not conceive a child immediately, it could be stated that she had been too old to conceive again or that she had suffered some sort of problem when she had carried her twins. Eventually, Roland would pass from the disease and before his “natural” time, and Lady Elaine would be praised and criticized both for having two husbands. The marriage was also designed to save the boy from Philip Jennings and prepare the lad to assume the Babcock earldom. Both families won by the joining between Lindale and Lady Babcock. 

If truth be known, more than one row at Maitland Manor had occurred, over the years, because of his brother’s condition; yet, though he sometimes took unnecessary risks, Edward had come to admire Roland’s determination to live while he might, as well as not to pass on the disease to an innocent child. 

“Is Roland so severe?” Edward asked in concern. 

“One of his elbow joints has swollen greatly,” the earl explained. “No one believes your brother has a foot in the grave, but the number of days he has remaining appears is always an issue with each small bump or bruise or cut. Lady Lindale attends him, which is quite admirable. The Babcock family should know shame for the manner in which they treated Roland’s wife, as well as the late earl’s children. It was brave of both Roland and Lady Elaine not to consummate the marriage. Your brother wished none of his children or grandchildren to suffer, as has he. If Lady Elaine delivered another ‘sickly’ child, the blame for the birth of two children, not well or fully developed, would be placed squarely on her ladyship’s shoulders.” 

The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess 

Rather than be forced to marry a man not of her choice, Miss Jocelyn Romfield runs away. She believes spending her life as a governess would be superior to a loveless marriage. 

An arrangement has been made by his father for Colonel Edward Fitzwilliam to marry a woman related to his Aunt Catherine’s last husband, Sir Lewis de Bourgh. Yet, how is Fitzwilliam expected to court his future bride, who has proven to be elusive during each of his attempts to take her acquaintance, when the governess of his brother’s stepchildren fills his arms so perfectly?

Jocelyn has no idea the man she has purposely avoided is the same one who fills her heart with love. 

Kindle https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CZZCMWW7

Available to Read on Kindle Unlimited 

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D11KC196

BookBub   https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-colonel-s-ungovernable-governess-a-pride-and-prejudice-vagary-by-regina-jeffers

Giveaway!! Leave a comment on this post on any associated with the book’s release to be a part of the giveaway. I have three eBook copies available for the winners. The giveaway ends May 9. Winners will be chosen by Random.org and will be notified on May 10, 2023, the day the book officially releases.

Georgian Era Lexicon – We Are Up to the Letter “H”

In the singular form the lexicon of a particular subject is all the terms associated with it. The lexicon of a person or group is all the words they commonly use. As a plural noun, a lexicon is an alphabetical list of the words in a language or the words associated with a particular subject. To distinguish lexicon from a dictionary, it is an alphabetical list of the words in a language or the words associated with a particular subject.

These examples are a mix of what one might hear upon the lips of the aristocracy, as well as examples of Cant used upon London’s streets and those terms used by farmers and like in the country.

Haberdasher – a man who dealt with small items for sewing, such as thread, needles, buttons, ribbons, etc.

Haberdasher of Pronouns – a schoolmaster or bookseller

Hack – a general-purpose riding horse; not used for hunting or military purposes

Hackney coach – one for hire; the taxicabs of the early 1800s

Ha-Ha – a landscaping technique; a dug trench or sunken fence, not easily seen unless one was close to it

Ha-ha protecting the lawn at Hopetoun House, West Lothian, Scotland. Note how the wall disappears from view as it curves away to the left of the photograph ~ via Wikipedia

Hair Ring – a ring made from the hair of one’s sweetheart

Half a Hog – (slang) sixpence

Half Crown – an English coin worth two shillings and sixpence

Half Pay – a payment which kept military men on the active list; a step toward retirement

Hams (or) Hamcases – breeches

Hand-Basket Portion – a woman whose husband receives frequent presents from her father or family is said to have a hand-basket portion

Hand and Pocket Shop – an eating shop, where ready money is paid for what is ordered

Handsome – a term used during the period to describe women, buildings, dresses, etc. (but not so much when it came to men, though it is possible to find it used thusly); Generally meaning agreeable to the eye or to a distinctive taste.

Hanger On – a dependent

Hangman’s Wages – was thirteen pence halfpenny, which according to the “vulgar” tradition was supposedly the amount allotted for an execution (one shilling for the executioner and three halfpence for the rope): The true stare of this matter is, that a Scottish mark was the fee allowed for an execution, and the value of that piece was settled by proclamation of James I at thirteen pence halfpenny.

Hanker – to long for something

Ha’Penny – a halfpenny

Hardtack – biscuits for sailors

Harridan – a strict, bossy, or belligerent old woman

Harrow – a frame with iron teeth which broke up the earth after the plowing was completed

Harvest – the cutting of the corn crop (Note: hay was “made” rather than cut)

Hatchment – a shield bearing the coat of arms of recently deceased person; was displayed on the front of the house and then in the church

The Funerary Hatchment of Sir Thomas White, 2nd Baronet of Tuxford and Wallingwells in the White mortuary chapel in St. Nicholas, Tuxford ~ via Wikipedia

Hedgerow – a row of hedge which served as a barrier to keep cattle/sheep from moving about too freely upon the land

Hell – A gambling establishment. Typically not an elegant establishment, but rather a more disreputable, often secret, den of gaming. A young “pigeon” was more likely to fall victim to a dishonorable “shark” at a hell than at an elite gentleman’s club.

Heir Apparent – the heir to property, regardless of any contingencies that might occur

Heir Presumptive – the heir who would inherit if certain contingencies did not occur

Hempen Fever – a man who was hanged is said to have died of hempen fever; in Dorsetshire, however, it is said the man was stabbed with a “Bridport dagger,” for Bridport is a place famous for manufacturing hemp into cords

Hessian boots – long boots worn by German mercenaries who fought the colonists during the American War of Independence; were popular in the early part of the 1800s

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hessian_boots_%28PSF%29.png

High-Lows – a type of lace up boots

High Ropes – to be on the high ropes is to be in a passion

Hob – beside the grate; a place to put kettles to keep them warm

Hob or Nob – “Will you have hob or nob with me?” was a question in fashion at polite tables. This was a question asking if one would drink a glass of wine with the person who proposed the question. If the person being challenged answered, “Nod,” he would choose wether the wine was red or white. This custom is said to have originated in the time of Queen Elizabeth I, when great chimneys were in fashion. You see, there was a corner of the hearth or grate where a small elevated projection could be found. It was known as a “hob.” Behind it was a seat. In the winter, the beer was placed on the “hob” to be warmed, The cold beer was set on a small table, said to called the “nob.” Thus the question, “Will you have hob or nob?”

Hobson’s Choice – Hobson was a famous carrier who let horses to the gentlemen at Cambridge, but the students had no choice of their mount. Hobson allotted each man the horse he thought best suited the young man’s manner of riding and the treatment of the animal.

Honeymoon – the honeymoon actually meant the first time a couple had marital relations (not necessarily the journey celebrating their marriage); frequently, the bride’s sister or a close friend accompanied the couple

Honourable – a title used for all members of Parliament; also a “courtesy title,” one not accompanied by any legal rights (bestowed on viscounts and barons and the younger sons of earls)

Horse Guards – the cavalry who guarded the monarch; nicknamed the “Blues”; had barracks at Whitehall

via Wikipedia

Hosteler – originally a name for an innkeeper, with inns being an Old English word called ‘hostels’

Hostler (or Ostler) – tended to the horses of travelers at inns

Hot Flannel – Beer, gin, eggs, sugar and nutmeg mixed together and served as a warm drink

Housekeeper – the top ranking female servant in a household

Housewife – a small case for carrying around items such as needles and thread to mend clothing (pronounced “huzzif”)

Hoyden – an uncontrollable girl

Hubbub – a noise, riot, or disturrbance

Hulks – old ships pressed into use in 1776 as “temporary” floating prisons; not abolished until 1858

Hundred – an ancient English unit of government, being the unit next down from a shire

Hunter – a horse bred specifically for fox hunts

Hunting the Squirrel – an amusement practiced by postboys and stage-coachmen, which consists in following a one-horse chaise and driving it before them, passing close to it, so as to brush the wheel, and by other means terrifying any woman or person that may be in it.

Huntsman – the man at a hunt who kept the dogs under control and on the scent

Hussars – a cavalryman who wore a flamboyant uniform

via Wikipedia

Hyde Park – a 388-acre park in London’s West End; was the most fashionable park of the time

Private Theatricals During the Regency, a Guest Post from Ann Hawthorne

We usually associate private theatricals with half-baked, somewhat childish business, but in the Georgian and Regency era, it was taken extremely seriously.

The great and the (sometimes less-than-) good of the era indulged in it, with the sorts of production budgets that could have made a professional theatre producer envious. It had been extremely popular with the audiences, too. On one occasion in 1787, a motion in the House of Commons was deferred because too many parliamentarians were in attendance at a private performance of Arthur Murphy’s The Way to Keep Him at Richmond House!

Other members of the ton kept up – in the late 1770s, one private theatre was erected by the Earl of Barrymore in Berkshire at the cost of £60,000. The building was modelled on Vanbrugh’s King’s Theatre in the Haymarket, and could fit in no less than seven hundred spectators.

Private theatricals were not always performed by households, however – sometimes they were organized by schools. One establishment on French Street, London, was especially famous for that. The school’s headmaster, George Whittaker, helped his pupils to stage amateur theatricals for charitable causes. In 1807, Home’s famous tragedy Douglas was acted to encourage donations for the British prisoners of war in France, and the ‘house’ was reputedly completely packed.

‘Italian Opera House (King’s Theatre), built by John Vanbrugh, at the Haymarket. William Capon’.

Of course, the theatricals at Steventon in Jane Austen’s youth were on a rather more modest scale than either of those. However, what Jane and her relatives lacked in funds, they made up in enthusiasm – a number of comedies and one tragedy (more of this one later) had been performed by the ‘young folks’ of the household through the late 1780s. Private theatricals were likewise beloved by her glamorous cousin, Eliza de Feuillide, a French countess.

In her letters, Eliza regaled her family with tantalizing tales of those were organized in France – she had been acting in those performances organized by her aristocratic friends there for years. At one point, she claims that she has ‘promised to spend the Carnival, which in France is the gayest Season of the year, in a very agreeable Society who have erected an elegant theatre for the purposes of acting Plays amongst ourselves’.

’18th century stage backdrop, possibly by Carlo Antonio Buffagnotti’.

Not every member of the Austen household was enchanted by the notion and keen on taking part in the theatricals, however – and the same must have been true of any household. The reasons were not always so lofty as a commitment to modesty and propriety – sometimes, the ladies in question were just plain shy and nervous. For example, Jane’s older relative by the name of Philadelphia Walter claimed that ‘I should like to be a spectator, but am sure I should not have courage to act a part, nor do I wish to attain it’. The livelier Eliza assured her that she must not worry – ‘Do not let your dress neither disturb you, as I think I can manage it so that the Green Room should provide you with what is necessary for acting.’ The Green Room reference was, of course, ironic – in professional theatres, this term referred to a kind of waiting room or lounge for the actors.

On occasion, the barn at Steventon was fitted for the theatricals. The shy Philadelphia wrote in 1787: ‘My uncle’s barn is fitting up quite like a theatre and all the young folks are to take their part’. Which sounds a far cry from the ‘elegant theatre’ of Eliza’s circle, but likely a solution that was much wider (for the given value of wider) in use than purpose-built spaces. The same can be said of the number of spectators – one of Eliza’s letters mentions that ‘only a selected party of friends will be present’. That circumstance, again, was likely much more common than the sight of the star-struck crowds that gathered in Richmond House in the same year.

Never lacking in ambition, at one point the Austens decided to put on a whole five-act tragedy in their dining parlour (Matilda, a play in five acts by Dr Thomas Francklin).

The future novelist did not seem to be amused by the subject matter, though (a love triangle melodrama set during the Norman Conquest) – or even by the genre in general. The plot of the tragedy surely sounds dramatic enough – it’s set during the Norman Conquest, but the two brothers, Edwin and Morcar, apparently have no greater concerns than feuding over the lovely titular heroine, Mathilda. Mathilda chooses the kind-hearted Edwin, then Morcar the Evil Brother separates the lovers and tries to woo her, only to end up announcing his sudden reformation, reuniting the couple, and reconciling with Edwin.

In her juvenilia, Jane Austen noted later that a different play, but one written in a similar tone to Mathilda, The Tragedy of Jane Shore, is ‘a tragedy and therefore not worth reading’.

One can see the roots of her more future irony over certain Gothic novels here!

Perhaps, the brother and the sister thought similarly, at least when their tastes in plays was concerned – Mathilda ended up being the first and the last tragedy performed in Steventon. The rest of their repertoire mostly consisted of comedies like Susanna Centlivre’s lively play, The Wonder: A Woman Keeps a Secret. The spirited heroine, Donna Violante, played by Eliza, had to use her wits a lot to protect her friend Isabella from the horrors of an arranged marriage to a very unpleasant man. 

One doesn’t want to jump to conclusions, but it’s rather tempting to wonder whether Eliza’s famous cousin might have recalled that particular plotline years later during her own work… 

Sources:

Jane Austen and the Theatre, by Paula Byrne

About the author:

Ann Hawthorne specializes in closed-door Regency romances where the sparks fly in the ballroom, not the bedroom. You can find her and her books at http://annhawthornestore.com 

Black Monday Tragedy

 Black Monday was the Monday after Easter on 13 April 1360, during the Hundred Years’ War (1337 – 1360). The Hundred Years’ War began in 1337; by 1359, King Edward III of England was actively attempting to conquer France. In October, he took a massive force across the English Channel to Calais. The French refused to engage in direct fights and stayed behind protective walls throughout the winter, while Edward pillaged the countryside.  By 13th April he had sacked and burned the suburbs of Paris and was now besieging the town of Chartres.  

At nightfall, a sudden storm came upon Edward’s troops, who were camped outside Chartres. Unfortunately, for Edward, their tents provided little protection. The temperature dropped. Lightning. Freezing rain. High winds. Hailstorms. Many of the soldiers abandoned the encampment. 1000 English soldiers and some 6000 horses were killed by the intense hail storm. Horses also fell to the storm; many stampeded. The casualties were larger than any previous battle. Two of the English commanders met their death. King Edward was on his knees begging for God’s mercy. 

The carnage was described as “a foul day, full of myst and hayle, so that men dyed on horseback [sic].”

From the contemporary French Chronicle of Jean Froissart:

... for an accident befell [Edward III] and all his army, who were then before Chartres, that much humbled him, and bent his courage.

During the time that the French commissioners were passing backwards and forwards from the king to his council, and unable to obtain any favourable answer to their offers, there happened such a storm and violent tempest of thunder and hail, which fell on the English army, that it seemed as if the world was come to an end. The hailstones were so large as to kill men and beasts, and the boldest were frightened.

The king turned himself towards the church of Our Lady at Chartres, and religiously vowed to the Virgin, as he has since confessed, that he would accept of terms of peace. He was at this time lodged in a small village, near Charters, called Bretigny; and there were then committed to writing, certain rules and ordinances for peace, upon which the following articles were drawn out.

France after the Treaty of Brétigny – French territory in green, English territory in pink John Richard Green – Taken from History of the English People, Volume 2 Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons ~ Public Domain

Edward rushed to pursue peace with the French and as a direct result of the killer storm, on May 8, 1360, the Treaty of Bretigny was signed. By this treaty Edward agreed to renounce his claim to the throne of France in return for sovereignty over Aquitaine and Calais. The French agreed to pay a handsome ransom for the release of their king John II who was held captive in England.

Fighting resumed nine years later, when the king of France declared war, claiming Edward had not honored the treaty. The last phase of the Hundred Years’ War did not end until 1453.

The legacy was mentioned in Shakespeare:  

“It was not for nothing that my nose fell a- bleeding on Black Monday last, at six o’clock i’ the morning.” —Shakespeare: Merchant of Venice, ii. 5.

Sources: 

Encyclopedia of the Hundred Years War (Google Book) by John A. Wagner

Historic UK 

History ~ Stack Exchange

This Day in History 

Wikipedia 

Georgian Era Lexicon – The Letter “G” Can Stand for More than “Georgian”

In the singular form the lexicon of a particular subject is all the terms associated with it. The lexicon of a person or group is all the words they commonly use. As a plural noun, a lexicon is an alphabetical list of the words in a language or the words associated with a particular subject. To distinguish lexicon from a dictionary, it is an alphabetical list of the words in a language or the words associated with a particular subject.

These examples are a mix of what one might hear upon the lips of the aristocracy, as well as examples of Cant used upon London’s streets and those terms used by farmers and like in the country.

gaiters – knee-high leggings that buttoned on the side; a master would wear these over his clothing to protect them from mud, dirt, and rain

galimaufrey – a hodgepodge made up of the remnants and scraps of the larder; never the same no many times it is served

gallery – a long narrow room in a country house where ancestral portraits were displayed

galley-foist – The earliest known use of the noun galley-foist is in the late 1500s. A barge of state: sometimes specifically applied to the barge in which the Lord Mayor of London formerly went in state to Westminster.

https://civiclondon.wordpress.com/2020/11/09/lord-mayors-show-1620-lms1620-round-up/

gallipot – a nickname for an apothecary

galop – an energetic dance that later became part of the quadrille’s movements

gambado – a horseman’s leggings; stiff leather style cases used in Devonshire instead of boots; they are fastened to the saddle and encase the leg with shoe and all

game – any form of robbing

gamekeeper – oversaw the protection and breeding of game on an estate

gaming – gambling

gaming hell – a gambling establishment, less respectable than the elite gentlemen’s clubs, providing opportunities for gambling and betting.

gamon – to deceive; to tell lies

gander month – that month in which a man’s wife lies in (before the birth of a child); during that time the husband may plead a sort of indulgence in matters of gallantry toward his wife

gangway – the passageway about halfway down the House of Commons that connected the rear and the front benches

gaol – the Regency way to spell “jail”

garret – an attic; attic, loft, and garret all describe the upper areas of a house; An attic is typically unfinished and used for storage, while a loft is a finished space that can be used as an extra room or living area. A garret is a small, often cramped, space located under the eaves of a home.

Garret comes from the old French word guerite, which means “watchtower” or “sentry box.” These days, a garret has nothing to do with war.

modern day garret with blown in insulation

garter – the Order of the Garters was the highest order of knighthood; members outranked baronets; generally bestowed only on peers

“When founding the new college of St George at Windsor Edward III associated with it a small group of knights, each of whom was provided with a stall in the chapel. This comprised twenty-five men in all with the king at their head and was entitled the Order of the Garter after the symbol of the garter worn by its members.

“The use of what seems – to modern sensibilities – such a curious emblem has given rise to a popular legend about the foundation of the order. According to this, the Countess of Salisbury lost her garter during a court ball at Calais and Edward III retrieved it, rebuking those who had mocked her embarrassment with the words “Honi soit qui mal y pense” – shame on him who thinks evil of it – But this phrase, the motto of the order, actually refers to the king’s claim to the French throne, a claim which the Knights of the Garter were created to help prosecute. As to the emblem of the Garter, it may perhaps less interestingly, derive from the straps used to fasten plates of armour.”

https://www.stgeorges-windsor.org/about-st-georges/history/the-order-of-the-garter/

gate – to be gated was to be confined to the grounds of a college; a punishment for undergraduate students at a university

Gazette – a nickname for the London Gazette; a publication that listed governmental appointments and bankruptcies (“to be gazetted” was to have received a government appointment) (“to be in gazette” was to have gone bankrupt)

Genteel Poverty – usually the state for widowed or single women; being able to associate with the gentry, but living in a second-class manner

General Post – mail going out from the Central London Post Office to the populated rural areas of England

gentleman craft – that of shoemaking, so called because it was once practiced by St Crispin

gentlemen – male members of the landed gentry, along with noblemen and those of lesser titles (knight or baronet)

Gentleman Farmer – a man who farmed a sizable amount of lass but less than 300 acres; came below the gentry in social hierarchy

Gentleman’s Gentleman – a valet

gentry – landowners below the nobility in the social hierarchy; owned at least 300 acres

gibbet – a corpse hung in chains at a crossroads as a deterrent to passersby

giblets – so said of a man and a woman who cohabit as husband and wife, but without exchanging marriage vows

gig – a one-horse carriage; highly popular with young wealthy men; could carry two passengers; light weight two-wheeled carriage; a two-person horse-drawn carriage that was light-weight, inexpensive and driven by one of the two passengers

via Wikipedia

gimlet eyed – squinting

glazier – a man who installed window glass

glaymore (or claymore) – a Highland broad sword

Glebe – also known as “Church furlong” or “parson’s closes”; an area within a manor and parish used to support the parish priest; an area of land belonging to a benefice in both the Roman Catholic and the Anglican church; the property, along with the parsonage house and grounds, assigned to support the priest; granted by the lord of the manor in which the church was situated; the holder of the benefice could retain the glebe for his own use (usually agricultural endeavors) or he could lease it to others and retain the rents as his own income

George III – (4 June 1738 – 29 January 1820) King of Great Britain and King of Ireland beginning on 25 October 1760; later made King of Hanover on 12 October 1814; during his reign, Great Britain defeated the French in the Seven Years’ War; became the dominant European power in both North America and India; lost the American War of Independence to the colonists; and defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in June 1815

George IV – (12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also King of Hanover after his father’s death; from 1811 until his accession, he served as Prince Regent during his father’s mental illness

Georgian England – a period of British history, which takes its name from, and is normally defined as spanning the reigns of the first four Hanoverian kings of Great Britain: George I, George II, George III, and George IV; covers the period from 1714 to 1830 (with the sub-period of the Regency from 1811 to 1820, when George IV served as the Prince Regent); occasionally, the short reign of William IV (1830-1837) is included in the period; the term “Georgian” is used chiefly in referring to social history and architecture

Gordon Riots – on 2 June 1780, 50,000 rioters marched on Parliament in opposition to the Roman Catholic Relief Act of 1778; the act removed some of the more extreme discriminatory measures officially taken against the Catholics, especially requiring military recruits to swear an oath of allegiance to the Church of England

via Wikipedia

all-a-gog – impatient; anxious; desirous of a thing

gorm – lower-class slang for “goddamn”

gout – a hereditary disease, which is aggravated by the consumption of too much protein; results in swollen joints

governess – a woman hired to educate the children of the household; She was usually a gentlewoman that had to resort to working due to lack of financial support (from a husband or family). Though educated herself, she was considered lower in rank to the family she worked for, but higher in rank compared to the rest of the house servants.

Grand Tour – when a young made graduated from the university or finished his formal education, he often went on a Grand Tour: a journey across Western Europe, which included Italy and France; an opportunity to learn modern languages (French, German, Italian, etc.); associated with wealthy and titled families on the Continent; toured famous cities and sites; attended numerous parties where he learned something of exotic foods and foreign customs; lasted between 2-4 years

grange – an isolated farmhouse owned by a member of the gentry

greatcoat – a large overcoat worn outdoors; had several short collars known as capes about the shoulders

greengrocer – a man who sells fruit and vegetables

Gretna Green – a village in the south of Scotland on the old coaching route from London to Edinburgh; a popular spot for those ignoring English laws of marriage and eloping; “being married over the anvil”

grey parson – a farmer who rents the tithes of the rector or vicar

groat – nickname for a fourpence

groom – the servant who tended the horses

Grosvenor Square – a fashionable square in London; a part of Mayfair

gruel – a food staple of the peasant class; made from some sort of cereal (oat, wheat, rye, rice, millet, hemp, barley, chestnut flour, or in the case of the English, corn) boiled in water or milk; often given to invalids and recently-weaned children; used in institutions and workhouses because it was a “hearty” sustenance and cheap to make

guinea – a coin worth 21 shillings; last issued in 1813

gyp – a college runner or errand boy at Cambridge; at Oxford he is referred to a “scout”

Who Is Persuaded in Jane Austen’s “Persuasion”

 Jane Austen writes plot-driven masterpieces, and all her God-given skills come together in Persuasion. In Persuasion we find a twist of pathos, not present in her other novels. We can view Austen’s growth as a writer. She provides her reader the promise of a wider scope of understanding. In Scribner’s Magazine (March 1891), W. B. Shubrick Clymer says, “Persuasion does not…echo with the distant hum of the whole of human life; it is, however, a ‘mirror of bright constancy.’ Jane Austen’s observation, unusually keen always – and this is no mean qualification, for has not humor its source in observation? – here unites with the wisdom of forty to make a picture softer in tone, more delicate in modeling, more mellow, than its companions of her girlhood, or than its immediate predecessors in her later period. The book marks the beginning of a third period, beyond the entrance to which she did not live to go. It is not pretended that she would, with any length of life, have produced heroic paintings of extensive and complicated scenes, for that was not her field; it may reasonably be supposed, had she lived, her miniatures might, in succeeding years, have shown predominantly the sympathetic quality which in Persuasion begins to assert itself.” 

So how often do we encounter “persuasion” in Jane Austen’s last novel. But who is under the powers of persuasion? 

In Chapter 1, Lady Russell speaks to Anne of the Elliots’ need to economize and asks Anne’s assistance in persuading her family to do what is necessary. Lady Russell realizes Anne is the most reasonable of the lot, and, moreover, Anne possesses skills she has learned over the years to do the impossible when it comes to her obstinate relations. “If we can persuade your father to all this,” said Lady Russell, looking over her paper, “much may be done. If he will adopt these regulations, in seven years he will be clear; and I hope we may be able to convince him and Elizabeth, that Kellynch-hall has a respectability in itself, which cannot be affected by these reductions…” 

In Chapter 1, Anne desires her father clear all his debts. Anne considered it Sir Walter’s duty, which demonstrates how much more mature she is to those who claim dominance over her. She wanted it to be prescribed, and felt as a duty. She rated Lady Russell’s influence highly, and as to the severe degree of self-denial, which her own conscience prompted, she believed there might be little more difficult in persuading them to a complete, than to half a formation. 

In Chapter 1, when Sir Walter and his eldest daughter Elizabeth refuse to economize, the idea of their quitting Kellynch-hall to a smaller residence is suggested by Mr. Shepherd, Sir Walter’s man of business. Although Anne and Lady Russell have said the same thing, Sir Walter might be persuaded by another man. The hint was immediately taken up by Mr. Shepherd, whose interest was involved in the reality of Sir Walter’s retrenching, and who was perfectly persuaded that nothing would be done without a change of abode. 

In Chapter 4, Anne reflects on why she chose to end her engagement to Captain Wentworth. She had trusted her confidante and now knows the result of such trust; yet, she does not place the blame for her misery on others.  …but Lady Russell, who she had always loved and relied on could not, with such steadiness of opinion, and such tenderness of manner, be continually advising her in vain. She was persuaded to believe the engagement a wrong thing – indiscreet, improper, hardly capable of success, and not deserving it.

In Chapter 4, Anne has second thoughts about giving up Captain Wentworth, realizing she would have known happiness with him, even if they had floundered for awhile before becoming established financially. Unlike her father, she and the captain would have known how to proceed. She did not blame Lady Russell, she did not blame herself for having been guided by her; but … She was persuaded that under every disadvantage of disapprobation at home, and every anxiety attending his profession, all the probable fears, delays and disappointments, she should yet have been a happier woman in maintaining the engagement…

In Chapter 6, Anne’s family appeal to her to “tame” Mary’s tendencies for hypochondria. Again, the lesson Anne has learned is she is the steadying force in the Elliot family. It is a role she has accepted, but not necessarily one she views for herself. Known to have some influence with her sister, she was continually requested, or at least receiving hints to exert it, beyond what was practical. “I wish you could persuade Mary not be always fancying herself ill,” was Charles’s language; and, in an unhappy mood, thus spoke Mary; – “I do believe if Charles were to see me dying, he would not think there was any thing the matter with me. I am sure, Anne, if you would, you might persuade him that I really am very ill – a great deal worse than I ever own.”

In Chapter 6, Anne takes the acquaintance of the Crofts and learns Mrs. Croft expects a brother to visit them at Kellynch-hall. Can we not all imagine the anxiousness Anne must be feeling at meeting anyone connected to Captain Wentworth? Anne was left to persuade herself, as well as she could, that the same brother must still be in question. She could not, however, reach such a degree of certainty, as not to be anxious to hear whether any thing had been said on the subject at the other house, where the Crofts had previously been calling. 

In Chapter 7, Mary refuses to stay home and tend to her son when there are entertainments at the main house. Again, Anne’s family proves how self-centered they are. Could not this book also be known as “Sense and Sensibility”?  “I mean to go with you, Charles, for I am of no more use at home than your are. If I were to shut myself up for ever with the child, I should not be able to persuade him to do any thing he did not life.“

Also in Chapter 7, Anne uses the excuse of little Charles’s accident to avoid meeting Captain Wentworth again. She now knows Captain Wentworth has proven as successful as he declared himself he would be. He would have succeeded. They would have succeeded. They would have known happiness, something she will likely never know. This is a hard lesson indeed. Anne was now at hand to take up her own cause, and the sincerity of her manner being soon sufficient to convince him, where conviction was at least very agreeable, he had no farther scruples as to her being left to dine alone, thought he still wanted her to join them in the evening, when the child might be at rest for the night, and kindly urged her to let him come and fetch her; but she was quite unpersuadable; and this being the case, she had ere long the pleasure of seeing them set off together in high spirits. 

At the end of Chapter 7, Captain Wentworth criticizes Anne Elliot before members of her family. His pride knows no forgiveness. Wentworth is still angry with her choice. He cannot forgive her, but the reader also realizes she cannot forgive herself either. She had used him ill; deserted and disappointed him; and worse, she had shewn a feebleness of character in doing so, which his own decided, confident temper could not endure. She had given him up to oblige others. It had been the effect of over-persuasion. It had been weakness and timidity. 

In Chapter 10, when the Musgrove sisters mean to go for a “long” walk in order to encounter Captain Wentworth again, Mary intrudes. How hard it must have been to view Louisa Musgrove’s pursuit of the man Anne still loves. “Oh, yes, I should like to join you very much, I am very fond of a long walk.” Anne felt persuaded, by the looks of the two girls, that it was precisely what they did not wish, and admired again the sort of necessity which the family-habits seemed to produce, of every thing being to be communicated, and every thing being to be done together, however undesired and inconvenient. 

In Chapter 10, Louisa Musgrove claims “independent” thoughts before Captain Wentworth. Anne overhears their conversation of how Louisa made certain Henrietta greet their cousin/beau. Louisa is proving as manipulative as was Anne’s family. She is also naming any woman who is easily persuaded as not worthy of the captain’s attentions. Wentworth praises her independence, but within earshot of Anne. “And so, I made her go. I could not bear that she should be frightened from the visit by such nonsense. What! – would I be turned back from doing a thing that I had determined to do, and that I knew to be right, by the airs and interference of such a person? – or, of any person I may say. No, – I have no idea of being so persuaded. When I have made up my mind, I have made it. And Henrietta seemed entirely to have made up hers to call at Winthrop today…” 

In Chapter 10, Louisa lets it slip to Captain Wentworth how her brother Charles proposed to Anne before he married Mary. He learns indirectly how Anne’s family and Lady Russell also disapproved of a man who would inherit a country estate. “I do not exactly know, for Henrietta and I were at school at the time; but I believe about a year before he married Mary. I wish she had accepted him. We should all have liked her a great deal better; and papa and mamma always think it was her great friend Lady Russell’s doing, that she did not. – They think Charles might not be learned and bookish enough to please Lady Russell, and that therefore, she persuaded Anne to refuse him.” 

At the end of Chapter 10, the Crofts speak to Anne of Wentworth’s desire to marry. Mrs. Croft wants Frederick to be as happy as are she and the Admiral. Anne views a couple who came together quite quickly, but have known happiness despite the length of their initial acquaintance. This is further proof such love is possible. “We had better not talk about it, my dear,” replied Mrs. Croft pleasantly; “for if Miss Elliot were to hear how soon we came to an understanding, she would never be persuaded that we could be happy together. I had known you by character, however, long before.”

At the end of Chapter 11, Anne attempts to drag Captain Benwick from his doldrums. Above all, Anne has a kind heart, but she also knows the result of grieving for what might have been. He was evidently a young man of considerable taste in reading, though principally in poetry; and beside the persuasion of having given him at least an evening’s indulgence in the discussion of subject which his usual companions had probably no concern in, she had the hope of being of real use to him in some suggestions as to the duty and benefit of struggling against affliction, which had naturally grown out of their conversation. 

In Chapter 12, Henrietta and their  cousin are hoping for a curacy for Charles Hayter so they may marry sooner. Henrietta says Dr. Shirley should retire. Although not directly related to Henrietta and Charles’s relationship, this is a statement on the adamancy found in “persuasion.”  “…And as to procuring a dispensation there could be no difficulty at his time of life, and with his character. My only doubt is, whether any thing could persuade him to leave his parish”

Two paragraphs later, Henrietta is still speaking. She remarks on Lady Russell’s ability to persuade another. It is a bit of irony, Austen added to the tale. “I wish Lady Russell lived at Uppercross, and were intimate with Dr. Shirley. I have always heard of Lady Russell, as a woman of the greatest influence with every body! I always look upon her as able to persuade a person to any thing!” 

In Chapter 12, Wentworth advocates for Anne to stay with Louisa while either he or Charles Musgrove goes after the elder Musgroves to tend their daughter. Although Wentworth realizes Anne is the better choice, the drama of the moment causes Charles to reject the idea. Charles agreed; but declared his resolution of not going away. He would be as little incumbrance as possible to Captain and Mrs. Harville; but as to leaving his sister in such a state, he neither ought, nor would. So far it was decided; and Henrietta at first declared the same. She, however, was soon persuaded to think differently. 

At the end of Chapter 12, Anne bemoans Captain Wentworth’s folly in admiring “firmness of character.” Louisa’s determination has her near death’s door and has him needing to speak his proposals if the girl survives. Wentworth’s rash behavior has proven his undoing. Anne lack of rashness proved hers years earlier. A balance was required, and they both now privately realize they could have assisted each other in such ways. Anne wondered whether it ever occurred to him now, to question the justness of his own previous opinion as to the universal felicity and advantage of firmness of character; and whether it might not strike him, that like all other qualities of the mind, it should have its proportions and limits. She thought it could scarcely escape him to feel that a persuadable temper might sometimes be as much in favour of happiness, as a very resolute character. 

At the beginning of Chapter 13, Anne is at Uppercross, proving herself of use to the Musgroves. The household receives word of Louisa’s lack of recovery from Charles. Just as she has done with her own child, Mary neglects her sister-in-law, leaving Louisa’s care to a woman they barely know. In speaking of the Harvilles, he seemed unable to satisfy his own sense of their kindness, especially of Mrs. Harville’s exertions as a nurse. “She really left nothing for Mary to do.” He and Mary had been persuaded to go early to their inn last night. 

Also in Chapter 13, Anne does her best to persuade Louisa’s family to go to Lyme. Anne is proving sensible again. Anne was to leave them on the morrow, an event which they all dreaded. And so much was said in this way that Anne thought she could not do better than impart among them the general inclination to which she was privy, and persuade them all to go to Lyme at once. 

In Chapter 14, Anne has joined Lady Russell at the woman’s cottage upon Kellynch’s estate. They have received word from Mary of Louisa’s improvement, and although Anne does not ask of Wentworth, she learns something of him. Once again, she accepts the fact Wentworth is likely to marry Louisa. Her chance to know happiness has slipped through Anne’s fingers once more. As Louisa improved, he had improved; and he was now quite a different creature from what he had been the first week. He had not seen Louisa; and was so extremely fearful of any ill consequence to her from an interview, he did not press for it all; and, on the contrary, seemed to have a plan of going away for a week or ten days till her head were stronger. He had talked of going down to Plymouth for a week, and wanted to persuade Captain Benwick to go with him; but, as Charles maintained to the last, Captain Benwick seemed much more disposed to ride over to Kellynch.

In Chapter 18, Anne worries Wentworth and Benwick’s friendship will suffer with Benwick’s proposal to Louisa Musgrove. Despite Mary claiming otherwise, Anne believes Benwick’s character required the man to love someone. Anne feels sorry for all three involved, but she realizes Louisa’s temperament, the one Captain Wentworth so much admired, is as mercurial as he once thought hers to be. She did not mean, however, to derive much more from it to gratify her vanity, than Mary might have allowed. She was persuaded that any tolerably pleasing young woman who had listened and seemed to feel for him, would have received the same compliment. He had an affectionate heart. He must love somebody.

In Chapter 20, at the opera house, Anne hopes to speak to Captain Wentworth privately. Their earlier conversation had sparked a bit of hope in her heart. Her resolve to speak to him again even when the expression on Lady Russell’s countenance says the woman has taken note of Wentworth’s presence in the room and does not approve. The first act was over. Now she hoped for some beneficial change; and, after a period of nothing-saying amongst the party, some of them did decide on going in quest of tea. Anne was one of the few who did not choose to move. She remained in her seat, and so did Lady Russell; but she had the pleasure of getting ride of Mr. Elliot; and she did not mean, whatever she might feel on Lady Russell’s account, to shrink from conversation with Captain Wentworth, if he gave her the opportunity. She was persuaded by Lady Russell’s countenance that she seen him. 

At the end of Chapter 21, Mrs. Smith explains to Anne why the woman did not speak out against Mr. Elliot sooner. Anne has come close to being persuaded by Lady Russell to marry a man with no scruples simply so Anne could remain in the family estate when Sir Walter dies. How foolish Lady Russell’s advice appears under those circumstances. Anne could just acknowledge within herself such a possibility of having been induced to marry him, as made her shudder at the idea of the misery which must have followed. It was just possible she might have been persuaded by Lady Russell! And under such a supposition, which would have been most miserable, when time had disclosed all, too late? 

In Chapter 22, we learn Elizabeth’s vanity will not permit her to entertain the Musgroves, Captain Harville, the Crofts and Wentworth at their home in Bath because she does not want them to view the Elliots retrenching. Elizabeth was, for a short time, suffering a good deal. She felt Mrs. Musgrove and all her party ought to be asked to dine with them, but she could not bear to have the difference of style, the reduction of servants, which a dinner must betray, witnessed by those who had been always so inferior to the Elliots of Kellynch. It was a struggle between propriety and vanity; but vanity got the better, and then Elizabeth was happy again. These were her internal persuasions.

Later in Chapter 22, while visiting in Bath, Charles Musgrove encounters Captains Harville and Wentworth. He brings them back to the hotel to reunite with his family. Anne hopes for a renewal of the conversation she had with Wentworth at the concert hall.  …Charles came back with Captains Harville and Wentworth. The appearance of the latter could nto be more than the surprise of the moment. It was impossible for her to have forgotten to feel, that this arrival of their common friends must be soon bringing them together again. Their last meeting had been most important in opening his feelings; she had derived from it a delightful conviction; but she feared from his looks, that the same unfortunate persuasion, which had hastened him away from the concert room, still governed. He did not seem to want to be near enough for conversation. 

In Chapter 23, Mrs. Musgrove describes for Mrs. Croft the history of Louisa’s engagement to Captain Benwick. In many ways, Anne feels Captain Wentworth has been misused by his friend, despite the fact Benwick marrying Louisa releases Captain Wentworth from doing so.  Anne felt she did not belong to the conversation, and yet, as Captain Harville seemed thoughtful and not disposed to talk, she could not avoid hearing many undesirable particulars, such as “how Mr. Musgrove and my brother Hayter had met again and again to talk it over; what my brother Hayter had said one day, and what Mr. Musgrove had proposed the next, and what occurred to my sister Hayter, and what the young people had wished, and what I said at first I never could consent to, but was afterwards persuaded to think might do very well,” and a great deal in the same style with every advantage of taste and delicacy which good Mrs. Musgrove could not, could be properly interesting only to the principals. 

Toward the end of Chapter 23, Anne and Wentworth have reconciled, but as is the like, they revisit the years of separation and their recent coming together. “To see you,” cried he, “in the midst of those who could not be my well-wishers, to see your cousin close by you, conversing and smiling, and feel all the horrible eligibilities and proprieties of the match! To consider it as the certain wish of every being who could hope to influence you! Even if your own feelings were reluctant or indifferent, to consider what powerful supports would be his! Was it not enough to make the fool of me which I appeared? How could I look on without agony? Was not the every sight of the friend who sat behind you, was not thee recollection of what had been, the knowledge of her influence, the indelible, immoveable impression of what persuasion had once done – was it not all against me?”

“You should have distinguished,” replied Anne. “You should not have suspected me now; the case so different, and my age so different. If I was wrong in yielding to persuasion once, remember that it was to persuasion exerted on the side of safety, not of risk. When I yielded, I thought it was to duty; but no duty could be called in aid here. In marrying a man indifferent to me, all risk would have been incurred, and all duty violated.” 

Georgian Era Solar Eclipses in the Kingdom of Great Britain

First, permit me to say, I was hoping to come across a solar eclipse during the Regency era in Great Britain’s history, but I struck out. Neither did one occur during Jane Austen’s lifetime, though I suppose I should have known such to be true, for surely, Austen would have added it to one of her stories.

This will be the first total solar eclipse to cross the United States since August 2017, and the path of totality is expected to run straight through Indianapolis, Indiana; Cleveland, Ohio; Buffalo, New York; and Burlington, Vermont.

Here in North Carolina, where I live near Charlotte, Tapoco to the west is set to see the highest eclipse magnitude at 88.5%, and Bald Head Island to the east will see the least at 75.5%, according to Eclipse2024.org. Everyone in between will see a partial eclipse within that range. I am excited.

I have my solar glasses at a ready for today event. If you have no solar glasses DO NOT LOOK UP TO THE SUN.

Those in Great Britain today, have a chance at seeing a partial eclipse visible from parts of Britain just before sunset.

Remember: A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. A total solar eclipse occurs when the Moon’s apparent diameter is larger than the Sun’s, blocking all direct sunlight, turning day into darkness. Totality occurs in a narrow path across Earth’s surface, with the partial solar eclipse visible over a surrounding region thousands of miles or kilometres wide.

Those in England have the following chances of solar eclipses through 2030 (list provided by Wikipedia).

• 8 April 2024
  • A partial eclipse may be visible from parts of Britain just before sunset.
• 29 March 2025
  • Partial ranging from 40% partial in Kent to about 50% partial in the north-west of Scotland.
• 12 August 2026
  • An eclipse which is total across Iceland, the Atlantic Ocean and Spain results in a very large partial eclipse across Britain with western Ireland the most favoured, at around 96% in Cornwall falling to 91% in Aberdeen.
• 2 August 2027
  • Partial ranging from about 30% partial in the north of Scotland to almost 60% partial in the south-west of England. Total eclipse from Gibraltar.
• 26 January 2028
  • About 40% partial at sunset.
• 1 June 2030
  • About 50% partial at sunrise.

BUT WHAT OF THE TWO SOLAR ECLIPSES TAKING PLACE DURING THE GEORGIAN ERA?

The first arrived on 3 May 1715. It was a Total Solar Eclipse and could be seen from Cornwall in southwestern part of England to Lincolnshire and Norfolk in the east.

Observations from Cambridge, England, drawing of the corona around the eclipsed sun. ~ Public Domain book ~ via Wikipedia

It was known as Halley’s Eclipse, after Edmond Halley (1656–1742) who was the second man to be appointed Astronomer Royal, predicted this eclipse to within 4 minutes accuracy. Halley observed the eclipse from London where the city of London enjoyed 3 minutes 33 seconds of totality. He also drew a predictive map showing the path of totality across the Kingdom of Great Britain. The original map was about 20 miles off the observed eclipse path, mainly due to his use of inaccurate lunar ephemeris. In astronomy and celestial navigation, an ephemeris is a book with tables that gives the trajectory of naturally occurring astronomical objects as well as artificial satellites in the sky, i.e., the position (and possibly velocity) over time. Historically, positions were given as printed tables of values, given at regular intervals of date and time. [“ephemeris”. American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (3rd ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 1992.]

A predictive map made by Halley for the path of the Moon’s umbral shadow ~ Public Domain

Portrait of Edmond Halley (1656-1742) ~ Public Domain ~ via Wikipedia

After the eclipse, Halley corrected the eclipse path, and added the path and description of the 1724 total solar eclipse. [Westfall, John; Sheehan, William (2014). Celestial Shadows: Eclipses, Transits, and Occultations. Springer. p. 115.]

Drawing upon lunar tables made by the first Astronomer Royal John Flamsteed, William Whiston produced a more technical predictive eclipse map around the same time as Halley. Both Halley’s and Whiston’s maps were published by John Senex in March 1715. [Pasachoff, J. M. (1999) “Halley and his maps of the Total Eclipses of 1715 and 1724“ Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage (ISSN 1440-2807), Vol. 2, No. 1, p. 39–54.]

The eclipse was also observed in Ireland, where large crowds turned out in Dublin to watch it: the weather in Dublin was exceptionally cold and wet, and the eminent judge Joseph Deane caught a fatal chill as a result, [Mason, William Monck The History and Antiquities of the Collegiate and Cathedral Church of St. Patrick’s Dublin Dublin 1820], although Elrington Ball more prosaically states that his death was probably due to gout. [Ball, F. Elrington The Judges in Ireland 1221-1921 John Murray London 1926.]

Note: Great Britain did not adopt the Gregorian calendar until 1752, so the date was at the time considered 22 April 1715.

The second solar eclipse arrived 22 May 1724. This solar eclipse crossed Ireland and Great Britain near sunset, northwest to a southeast track, from Galway to southern Wales and Devon in the west, eastwards to Hampshire and Sussex, but passing to the south of London. It was to be 203 years before a total solar eclipse was next witnessed from the British mainland, which had previously seen a total eclipse just nine years before, and Ireland will not see a total solar eclipse until 2090. [Littmann, Mark; Espenak, Fred; Willcox, Ken (July 17, 2008). Totality: Eclipses of the Sun. OUP Oxford. accessed via Google Books]

https://read.dukeupress.edu/modern-language-quarterly/article-abstract/22/2/149/16842/Observations-on-Dancourt-s-L-Eclipse?redirectedFrom=fulltext

From the NASA Astrophysics Data – The Observatory ~ abstract ~ Lynn, W. T. (June 1892). “The total solar eclipse of 1724”. Correspondence. The Observatory. 15: 263–264. https://adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1892Obs….15..263L

Wikipedia has a list of solar eclipses visible from Great Britain, showing those from the 5th Century to today’s and listing those through the 22nd Century.

Georgian Era Lexicon – We’re Up to the Letter “F”

In the singular form the lexicon of a particular subject is all the terms associated with it. The lexicon of a person or group is all the words they commonly use. As a plural noun, a lexicon is an alphabetical list of the words in a language or the words associated with a particular subject. To distinguish lexicon from a dictionary, it is an alphabetical list of the words in a language or the words associated with a particular subject.

These examples are a mix of what one might hear upon the lips of the aristocracy, as well as examples of Cant used upon London’s streets and those terms used by farmers and like in the country.

face making – begetting children

to face it out – to persist in a falsity

no face but his own – a saying of one who has no money in his pocket

It won’t fadge – it won’t do

to fag – to beat someone

fag – used in English public schools; denoted a younger boy who ran errands for an older student (to become “fatigued” by doing these errands)

faggot – a grouping of sticks tied together and used for fuel

fakement – a counterfeit signature; a forgery

fallow – farmland left temporarily unplanted

to famgrasp – to shake hands; figuratively, to agree or make up a difference

fancy man – a man kept by a lady

faro – a gambling game; players bet on the order of the cards being turned over by the dealer

farrier – a blacksmith

fartcatcher – a valet or footman: from his walking behind his master or mistress

A Father’s Legacy to His Daughters – a guide book by John Gregory (1774), which served as a young lady’s guide to conduct; Dr. Gregory suggested that women should hide their knowledge and wisdom to avoid appearing superior.

fat headed – stupid

faulkner – a tumbler, juggler, or shewer of tricks; perhaps because they lure the people, as a faulconer does his hawks (Cant)

feague – to increase the liveliness of a horse by inserting an irritant, such as a piece of peeled raw ginger or a live eel, in its anus

to feather one’s nest – to enrich oneself

feint – a sham attack on one part, when a real one is meant at another

fellow – a member of a college at Oxford or Cambridge; constituted the governing body of the college

female education – no standard curriculum existed for women; women were instructed in penmanship, reading, basic arithmetic, homemaking; sewing, manners, dancing, art, and music

fen – an area in and around Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire; low, swampy area ~ A fen is similar to a marsh, a mire, a swamp, or a bog. In all of these wetland ecosystems, the water level tends to rise and fall, leaving them constantly soggy to some degree. Fens are distinguished by the kinds of plants that grow there, including tall grasses and moss, and by the acidity of the water. The word fen comes from the Old English fenn, which means “mud, mire, dirt, or marsh.”

fence – to pawn or sell to a receiver of stolen goods

fender – a protective grate to keep sparks from falling out onto the floor/carpet

Andrea Ferrara – the name of a famous sword-cutter: most of the Highland broad swords are marked with his name: whence an Andrea Ferrara has become the common name for the glaymore or Highland broardsword ~  Sir Walter Scott notes that the name of Andrea de Ferrara was inscribed “on all the Scottish broadswords that are accounted of peculiar excellence”.

Andrea Ferrara was born in Fonzaso in Italy (which is located in the province of Belluno-Dolomiti) and was an active and esteemed producer before and after his staying in Scotland (the ruins of his workshop are still in Belluno in the place called Busighel, near the river Ardo). This confirms the general belief reported by Scott that Ferrara was a Spanish or Italian artificer who was brought to Scotland in the early sixteenth century by James IV to instruct the Scots in the manufacture of the high-quality steel blades current in Renaissance Europe.

According to some sources the name of the manufacturer was Andrea dei Ferrari of Belluno, according to others, Andrew Ferrars or Ferrier of Arbroath.

https://www.reliks.com/andrea-ferrara/

to ferret – is to search out or expel one from his hiding place

fête – a large fancy party (fete champetre was a large outdoor party)

fichu – used as a head or shoulder covering by women; especially for low cut gowns

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/170109

figure – an isolated dance step or a series of related steps, especially when referring to a country dance or a quadrille

fingerpost – road signs (usually at cross roads) in the shape of a finger; a post at a road junction from which signs project in the direction of the place or route indicated

Wikipedia

finger post – a parson, so called because he points out a way to others which he never goes himself

it won’t fit – it will not suit or do

flagon – a container for drinking alcohol; had a spout, handle, and lid

Fleet Prison – a prison housing debtors

fly – a rented horse and carriage

fly-flapped – whipped in the stocks

flying giggers – turnpike gates

fob – a cheat, trick, or contrivance: I will not be fobbed off so.

fogel – a silk handkerchief or neckerchief (slang)

foot pads – (also called “low pads”) – rogues who rob on foot

Fordyce’s Sermons (or) Sermons to Young Women – by Dr. James Fordyce (1765); explained within a Christian framework how a woman must please a man in order to earn his hand in marriage; women were taught to be docile, soft, and obedient; the sermons emphasizes beauty over education; women were told to avoid exercise

In the novel Pride and Prejudice (1813) by Jane Austen, Mr Collins, a clergyman, attempts to read the book aloud to the women during a visit to the Bennet household. The youngest of the five Bennet daughters, Lydia, interrupts him “before . . . three pages” leading him to stop reading, with the comment, “how little young ladies are interested by books of a serious stamp, though written solely for their benefit. It amazes me, I confess;—for certainly, there can be nothing so advantageous to them as instruction.”^[3]

Additionally in the 1775 play The Rivals, by Richard Brinsley Sheridan, Fordyce’s sermon on Sobriety is mentioned.

Forlorn Hope – a gamester’s last stake

foolscap – 13″ x 17″ paper; bore a watermark of a fool’s cap and bells

Foot Guards – the infantry which guarded the sovereign; there were the Coldstream Guards, the Scots Guards, and the Grenadier Guards

footman – an indoor male servant; cleaned and trimmed the lamps, waited the meal service, and escorted the ladies of the house when the women made calls; normally wore a livery; were matched in height if more than one footman was employed in a household

foundling – a child dropped in the streets and found; is educated at the parish’s expense

fox – a sharp, cunning fellow

to foyst – is to pick someone’s pocket

franking – in reality, only members of Parliament (until 1840) could “frank” a letter, meaning to send the post for free (carrying on Parliamentary business without cost to the MP); the MP was to add his name and the date to the address; the letters were to weigh no more than one ounce; the privilege was often abused, however

freeholders – the landowners in a community

French Cream – brandy; so called by the old tabbies and dowagers when they drank it in their tea

French disease – venereal disease (also called the French pox)

Fribble – an effeminate fop; a name borrowed from a celebrated character of that kind, in the farce “Miss in Her Teens” by Mr. David Garrick

frigate – one of the smaller boats of the British Navy; used for reconnaissance, not part of the line

Wikipedia

front – a small hairpiece worn above the forehead (usually by women)

fudge – nonsense

Fulhams – loaded dice are called high and lowmen or high and low fulhams, by Ben Jonson and other writers of his time; either because they were made at Fulham

furlong – equivalent to 660 feet; came from the phrase “furrow long”

fusiliers – infantry armed with fusils; later, fusiliers were outfitted as was all other member of the infantry, except they wore busbies

fustian – coarse cotton fabrics, such as corduroy or velveteen; usually in a dark color