Tabby
“An old maid; either from Tabitha, a formal antiquated name; or else from a tabby cat, old maids being often compared to cats.”
Category: Regency
Friday Favorites: The Waltz with David Tennant
Happy Valentine’s Day! How many of you are going dancing with your sweetheart this weekend? Or have read about a glorious waltz at a Regency Valentine’s ball?
How many of you have actually danced the waltz?
For those of you that haven’t, here’s a look at the modern process. Actors David Tennant and Jessica Hynes learn together for a scene in Doctor Who.
.
And here’s a look at the finished product, set in England just before the beginning of the First World War.
Regency Word Wednesday
Suds
“In the suds; in trouble, in a disagreeable situation, or involved in some difficulty.”
Philip Astley: Equestrian, Showman, and Entrepeneur
Ever read a Regency romance involving a visit to Astley’s Amphitheater? My good friend and Regency novelist Susana Ellis has written this wonderful post about the life of Philip Astley and his equestrian show. Check it out:
Early Life
Philip Astley was born in Staffordshire (about 150 miles from London) on January 8, 1742. When he was around eleven years old, his family moved to London, where his father had a carpentry shop near Westminster Bridge. In 1759, he went to be trained in horsemanship in Wilton at Lord Pembroke’s estate, where he showed extraordinary promise. Soon after, in search of excitement, he left his family and joined a regiment of light dragoons called Eliot’s Light Horse, later the 15th Light Hussars.
Astley’s Military Service
Astley was assigned to care for and train the horses to be “bomb-proof”, i.e., not to take off in fear at the sound of gunshot.
Read the rest of the article at Susana’s Parlour.
Regency Word Wednesday
Dog Latin
“Barbarous Latin, such as was formerly used b the lawyers in their pleadings.”
Friday Favorite: Georgian Jewelry
This week’s Friday Favorite is a haven for history lovers and jewelry enthusiasts of all stripes. The Three Graces is an online jewelry store specializing in authentic period jewelry (including Georgian and Regency-era pieces), along with modern jewelry that reproduces or is inspired by pieces from the past. Here’s just one example:
“Halley’s Comet jewelry is usually in the form of a small brooch almost always 1-1/4 inches (3.2 cm) or less in length. This fabulous jewel is a pair of matched earrings with that motif. Each of the fiery 10k yellow gold comets sport two (2) faceted natural garnets in crimped collet mounts. Typically Georgian in construction, the gems are foiled and set closed back.
Date: Circa 1835.”
For more period jewelry pieces, visit The Three Graces website.
For more information on Halley’s Comet jewelry, check out this post by Kyra Elliott for the Pennington Planetarium in Louisiana. Or this one at Art of Mourning.
Regency Word Wednesday
Hobnail
“A country clodhopper: from the shoes of country farmers and ploughmen being commonly stuck full of hob-nails, and even often clouted, or tipped with iron.”
Friday Favorite: Greenwood’s Map of London, 1827
Our Favorite this week is a resource I’ve used countless times, both as a writer and a reader. It’s a clickable, interactive map of London originally published in 1827 and based on a survey of the city that took the previous two years. The scale is eight inches per mile, so the detail is amazing. And Bath Spa University (who hosts this particular version) has done a phenomenal job digitizing the map–you can zoom in several times and still get a beautifully clear picture.
Click the picture for more information:
Regency Word Wednesday
Black Book
“He is down in the black book, i.e. he has a stain on his character. A black book is keep in most regiments, wherein the names of all persons sentenced to punishment are recorded.”
Regency Word Wednesday
Aground
“Stuck fast, stopped, at a loss, ruined; like a boat or vessel aground.”
Cora Lee, Regency Romance Author 