London, 1782. Desperate for her politician husband to return home from France, Caroline ‘Caro’ Corsham is already in a state of anxiety when she finds a well-dressed woman mortally wounded in the bowers of the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. The Bow Street constables are swift to act, until they discover that the deceased woman was a […]
Sex, swords and incest: the many scandals of ‘Mad Jack’ Byron
The poet Lord Byron wasn’t the only member of his family to be “mad, bad, and dangerous to know”, as Emily Brand found when she wrote The Fall of the House of Byron. She tells Historia about how she tried – but failed – to rehabilitate his notorious father. On 10 July 1823 the notorious […]
The Fall of the House of Byron by Emily Brand
In the early 18th century, Newstead Abbey was among the most admired aristocratic homes in England. It was the abode of William, fourth Baron Byron – a popular amateur composer and artist – and his teenage wife Frances. But by the end of the century, the building had become a crumbling and ill-cared-for ruin. Surrounded […]
Five surprising facts about Charles Edward Stuart
It’s the 300th anniversary of his birth Prince Charles Edward Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charlie, if you insist) was born 300 years ago on 31 December, 1720 (New Style), in the Palazzo Muti complex in Rome. Why is this surprising? Because, although ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’ is one of the most recogisable names in UK history, featuring […]
A Cornish Betrothal by Nicola Pryce
Eighteen months have passed since Midshipman Edmund Melville was declared missing, presumed dead, and Amelia Carew has mended her heart and fallen in love with a young physician, Luke Bohenna. But, on her 25th birthday, Amelia suddenly receives a letter from Edmund announcing his imminent return. In a state of shock, devastated that she now […]
Review: A Cornish Betrothal by Nicola Pryce
The internationally best-selling author Nicola Cornick reviews A Cornish Betrothal, the fifth book in Nicola Pryce’s Cornish Saga series. A Cornish Betrothal by Nicola Pryce is a historical novel set in Cornwall at the turn of the 18th century (the clue is in the title!). Historical novels of this era and with this setting, particularly […]
The Covent Garden Ladies by Hallie Rubenhold
In 1757, a down-and-out Irish poet, the head waiter at the Shakespear’s Head Tavern in Covent Garden, and a celebrated London courtesan became bound together by the publication of a little book: Harris’s List of Covent Garden Ladies. This salacious work – detailing the names and ‘specialities’ of the capital’s sex-workers – became one of […]
The Foundling by Stacey Halls
London, 1754. Six years after leaving her illegitimate daughter Clara at London’s Foundling Hospital, Bess Bright returns to reclaim the child she has never known. Dreading the worst, that Clara has died in care, Bess is astonished to be told she has already claimed her. Her life is turned upside down as she tries to […]