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Monthly Archives: February 2013

Argo won Best Picture at the Academy Awards last night, a movie about government intelligence and secrets and cunning and daring. I was holding out for Les Miserables, but, oh well.

Cato_Street_Conspiracy193 years ago, on Feb 23, 1820, government intelligence of the domestic sort and an almost revolution of the French sort played a crucial role in an event that became known as the Cato Street Conspiracy.

The times were unsettled. The end of the Napoleonic Wars and the shift from the rural agricultural society to an Industrial one set off economic hardships. Events such as the Spa Field Riots in 1816 and the Peterloo Massacre the previous August showed the social unrest and the call for parliamentary reform. The government’s response to the unrest were The Six Acts, repressive measures which were aimed at limiting the freedom of the press, preventing large meetings, and otherwise attempting to prevent the possibility of an armed insurrection.

When King George III died in January, 1820, a revolutionary organization called the Spencean Philanthropists saw an opportunity. They hatched a plan to barge in on a dinner to be held by Lord Harrowby and slaughter the entire British cabinet and the Prime Minister, Lord Liverpool. The man who suggested the plan was George Edwards, second-in-command to the leader, Arthur Thistlewood. The killing of the cabinet ministers would be the first act an overthrow of the government and would spark a revolution similar to the French Revolution. Or that was the plan.

The problem was, it was a set-up. George Edwards was an agent provocateur, a government spy. While the conspirators gathered at a house on Cato Street to launch their attack, a Bow Street Magistrate and twelve of his Bow Street Runners were waiting across the street. At 7:30 pm they apprehended the conspirators. In the ensuing brawl, Thistlewood killed one policeman. All the conspirators were apprehended at the scene or later.

NPG D36701; A May Day Garland for 1820 published by Samuel William ForesFour of them, including Thistlewood, were hanged and beheaded. Others were transported.

The government used this event to justify the Six Acts but in the House of Commons, Matthew Wood MP argued out that the government had used entrapment to smear the campaign for parliamentary reform. Had the government merely set the whole thing up or had their clandestine activities prevented a collapse of the government?

That could be the difference between the endings of Les Miserables and Argo!

What movies did you want to win at the Oscars? Which movie stars? (I was glad Ann Hathaway won)

I love Regency Fashion plates.  Who doesn’t?  We love our costumes, sometimes flattering, sometimes over-the-top.  Going through the extant pages from Ackermann’s Repository or La Belle Assemblée, is not so different from watching the red carpet show before the Academy Awards or going through the best- and worst-dressed photos aver the event.   Who gets it right?  Who is setting a trend?  What would we be wearing if we were there?

When we started on a site redesign at The Republic of  Pemberley (Yes.  I know, I’m always talking about Pemberley.  But, in my defense, I spend a lot of my life there and it’s a major point of reference) in 2011, we decided to try to use era fashion plates as a guiding theme of the new design.  In preparing for this, I discovered another wonderful facet of Regency fashion plates: their topicality.  Of course, the clothes are the focal point of the illustrations and that’s why they were published, but a closer look reveals wonderful little vignettes in many of them.  In general, it was the vignettes I focused on when looking for the appropriate image for each of our discussion boards.

Want to see some?

Emma

Emma

 

Who can forget Emma‘s many half-finished drawings and determination to take Harriett Smith’s likeness.

 The sitting was altogether very satisfactory; she was quite enough pleased with the first day’s sketch to wish to go on. There was no want of likeness, she had been fortunate in the attitude, and as she meant to throw in a little improvement to the figure, to give a little more height, and considerably more elegance, she had great confidence of its being in every way a pretty drawing at last, and of its filling its destined place with credit to them both — a standing memorial of the beauty of one, the skill of the other, and the friendship of both; with as many other agreeable associations as Mr. Elton’s very promising attachment was likely to add.

 And how lucky to find a plate (albeit French) of one woman drawing another.

Sense & Sensibility

Sense & Sensibility

“Dear, dear Norland,” said Elinor, “probably looks much as it always does at this time of year. The woods and walks thickly covered with dead leaves.”

 “Oh!” cried Marianne, “with what transporting sensations have I formerly seen them fall! How have I delighted, as I walked, to see them driven in showers about me by the wind! What feelings have they, the season, the air altogether inspired! Now there is no one to regard them. They are seen only as a nuisance, swept hastily off, and driven as much as possible from the sight.”

 “It is not every one,” said Elinor, “who has your passion for dead leaves.”

The fashion plate we found for Sense & Sensibility plays off Marianne’s sensibility, translating her passion for dead leaves into a stormy landscape featuring two women.  For what is S&S but a story of the sisters?

Persuasion

Persuasion

Persuasion took us to the seaside as Anne Elliot, the Musgroves and Captain Wentworth traveled to Lyme Regis.

Anne found Captain Benwick again drawing near her. Lord Byron’s “dark blue seas” could not fail of being brought forward by their present view, and she gladly gave him all her attention as long as attention was possible. It was soon drawn, perforce, another way.

What would you take to walk on the cobb and examine the ships coming into port?  A telescope, naturally.

Mansfield Park

Mansfield Park

Speaking of the sea, for Mansfield Park, we thought that we’d place our beloved Fanny Price at Portsmouth, her birthplace and the scene of one of distress and realization.

“I have to inform you, my dearest Fanny, that Henry has been down to Portsmouth to see you; that he had a delightful walk with you to the dockyard last Saturday, and one still more to be dwelt on the next day, on the ramparts; when the balmy air, the sparkling sea, and your sweet looks and conversation were altogether in the most delicious harmony, and afforded sensations which are to raise ecstasy even in retrospect. ..”

Northanger Abbey

Northanger Abbey

For our last two novels, we chose, not vignettes but individuals.  Northanger Abbey is Catherine Morland’s novel and the fashion plate we chose, a young woman from the back, makes me think of Catherine during her first visit to the Upper Assembly Rooms.

The company began to disperse when the dancing was over — enough to leave space for the remainder to walk about in some comfort; and now was the time for a heroine, who had not yet played a very distinguished part in the events of the evening, to be noticed and admired. Every five minutes, by removing some of the crowd, gave greater openings for her charms. She was now seen by many young men who had not been near her before. Not one, however, started with rapturous wonder on beholding her, no whisper of eager inquiry ran round the room, nor was she once called a divinity by anybody. Yet Catherine was in very good looks, and had the company only seen her three years before, they would now have thought her exceedingly handsome.

Pride & Prejudice

Pride & Prejudice

For Pride & Prejudice, who else but Fitzwilliam Darcy?  I dare say that, when Pride & Prejudice is mentioned, not a one of us does not first think of Mr. Darcy.  How could it be otherwise?

Mr. Bingley was good-looking and gentlemanlike; he had a pleasant countenance, and easy, unaffected manners. His sisters were fine women, with an air of decided fashion. His brother-in-law, Mr. Hurst, merely looked the gentleman; but his friend Mr. Darcy soon drew the attention of the room by his fine, tall person, handsome features, noble mien, and the report, which was in general circulation within five minutes after his entrance, of his having ten thousand a year. The gentlemen pronounced him to be a fine figure of a man, the ladies declared he was much handsomer than Mr. Bingley, and he was looked at with great admiration for about half the evening, till his manners gave a disgust which turned the tide of his popularity; for he was discovered to be proud, to be above his company, and above being pleased; and not all his large estate in Derbyshire could then save him from having a most forbidding, disagreeable countenance, and being unworthy to be compared with his friend.

The process of finding the right fashion plates for each of the discussion boards on the Republic of Pemberley site was a lot of fun and revealed things about the novels and about the fashion plates that we might not have noticed before.  We also enjoyed finding just the right plate for each of our non-Jane boards.

I imagine we all have different images in our minds for Jane Austen’s settings and characters. What would you picked for each of the novels?

 

 

 

 

First, a reminder to Lil. You have won a copy of The Redwyck Charm. Please send your snail mail address to elena @ elenagreene.com (no spaces). And now to my post….

I’ve been feeling down this winter, between life issues and several bouts of the flu. It’s been hard to get good blocks of writing time, which I need in order to be productive. (And yes, I’ve tried writing in small pockets of time. It always backfires on me because I get so frustrated having to stop just when the words begin to flow.)

Recently I decided to start playing piano again, because it’s something I can enjoy, even if it’s just ten or fifteen minutes. I’m not that good and never was, but since I’m playing just for myself, it doesn’t matter. What I really need is some sort of creative outlet to lift my mood on days when I can’t write.

Sometimes I envy the life of a lady of leisure, with time to perfect her music.  Maybe it would be scary to be expected to perform, but on the other hand, it would be nice to have an appreciative listener. Maybe someone like Colonel Brandon listening to Marianne Dashwood or even Darcy listening to Elizabeth, who sounds like she was a dabbler just like me.

pianoSometimes I live vicariously through my heroines. In one scene from The Incorrigible Lady Catherine, the hero catches her playing Beethoven (considered inappropriate for young ladies) when she thinks no one is around. While writing, I listened to a recording of the sonata she is playing. I could only play it in my dreams!

There was a pause. He took a few steps toward the drawing room, but stopped as he heard Miss Arndale begin to play again. This time it was a darker music, rippling and cascading, the end of each phrase accented with forceful staccato notes. Full of passion. He’d never heard anything like it before.

He peered through the threshold of the drawing room as she began another movement, slow and reflective, with an understated pathos. She looked so very lovely, her eyes half-closed, her slim body swaying ever so subtly in time with the music. He didn’t dare interrupt. He didn’t even want to breathe as he watched her silently from the shadows beyond the doorway.

The slow melody ended, and she launched into an exuberantly lively tune which sounded like the finale. Philip listened in wonder as she transitioned from a bold, intricate passage to a contrasting theme as tender as a love song. He saw the flush of concentration on her face as she returned to the earlier bold theme, her look of exultation as she drove out the final notes, rising, mounting to a glorious final chord.

A critique partner said she was expecting Catherine to smoke a cigarette at this point, which I took as a compliment.

Do any of you enjoy making music, amateur or otherwise?  Do you enjoy musical heroes or heroines?

Elena

P.S. The painting is by Edmund Blair Leighton.

Posted in Music, Regency, Writing | Tagged , | 6 Replies

So here I was tearing out my hair. February 21 is not a particularly auspicious day when it comes to exciting births, deaths, or events. So I thought I’d go and look up some newspapers for February 21, 1813. After a spectacular fail at a site where I would have had to pay, I found that, joy of joys, The Georgian Newspaper Project is once again online, with archives 1770-1800 of The Bath Chronicle. Or maybe it always has been and I’d mislaid it. Thank you, thank you, to all the volunteers who put this together.

455553I had a quick look to see what was going on in February in Bath in various years. Some of it was the stuff of scandal–look at this from February 8, 1770: Finance: Robert Yeeles of Longdean, Wilts repudiates liabilities of his wife Mary Yeeles, from date of advert. She has eloped & is not to be trusted.

The city was a hotbed of crime. This, and most of the examples below are from February 2, 1786. I think this is interesting because of the variety of fancy goods available in one shop. Crime: robberies – from Wm Moore’s shop, Orange Grove, Bath. Shell inkstand mounted in silver & 2 silver pens (12 months ago); pearl jessamine fancy pin – value 4 guin (1 month ago); 4′ 6″ oilcloth umbrella (on 22 Feb). Reward 5 guin each item on recovery & conviction, or 2 guin/ea if being pawned or sold.

Then there’s the case of the great horse exchange. While robbers looted Mr. Moore’s shop, criminals roamed the countryside. Crime: horse theft – iron grey gelding stolen on 30 Jan, the property John Brittan, Dyrham, Gloucs. Reward for information leading to conviction from John Brittan of 1 guin over amount allowed by Act of Parliament. But on the same day, this notice was posted: Notices: abandoned horse – brown mare left in field where iron grey gelding removed (property of John Brittan, Dyrham). Owner requested to reclaim.

While in Bath, you’d probably order tea, coffee and candles (tea and coffee, yes, but candles in the same shop?) from Coles tea warehouse. Goods: fine fresh teas, Coles tea warehouse, 7 Northgate St, Bath. 16 varieties tea. Best Bohea 2s, Congou leaf 2s 6d, Congou tea 3s, very good do 4s, very good Souchong 5s, v fine do 6s, superfine do 7s, fine green 3s 6d, fine single 4s 6d, v fine do 5s. But another ad mentions imported cowslip flavour 10s. That surprised me. Although you’d expect to find herbal teas for medicinal use, you wouldn’t expect to find them in a tea and coffee (and candles) store. Cowslip tea’s main use is as a sedative. And imported from where? It’s native to England.

More luxury goods. I almost feel sorry I’m two centuries late for this sale: Fashion: sale of silks by James & Peter Ferry, retiring silk weavers & mercers, cnr Gallaway’s Bldgs, Bath. Remainder of stock at a quarter less than any shop or warehouse in England, includes crepes & bombasines.

Posh arrivals to Bath were announced in the newspaper. Visitors: arrivals in Bath – Hon Mr Williams [no other titled people], Admiral Collins. Sometimes “no other titled people” was shortened to NOTP.

The fashionable churches demanded reservations: Churches: Octogon Chapel – no access to pews for visitors unless seats reserved via clerk, Mr Bullman at Mr Herschel’s in New King St, Bath; or at vestry 1 hr before services on Sundays, Wednesdays & Fridays. And yes, that is Mr. William Herschel, organist, composer, and astronomer whose house on New King Street is now a museum.

_41353654_bath_chron203And if you wanted to leave the city of luxury and pleasure, you’d turn to the newspaper: Travel: coaches Bath to London, summary – a) Bristol & Bath mailcoach from Three Tuns at 5.30pm; b) coach from Lamb Inn at 4pm; c) coach from Three Tuns & Lamb Inns at 4am. Inside passengers only £1 10s. Perfomed Willimas & Co Bath, Wilson & Co London.

I love this stuff! What do you think the story is behind the eloping Mrs. Yeeles or the great horse exchange?

Posted in Research | 5 Replies
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