Tag Archives: 17th Century

Guest Post: ‘Library of Dreams’ by Dominic Pearce

Library of Dreams When I wrote about Queen Henrietta Maria I found surprises such as the attempt by parliament to kill her, then to impeach her. Yes the killing came first, as it were. Happily it failed. I should not mislead anyone by implying parliament sent an executive order to do away with the turbulent lady. What happened… Read on

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Book Review: ‘The World of Isaac Newton’ by Toni Mount

Isaac Newton is one of the most well-known personages of the Stuart and Georgian periods due to his towering intellect and his role with the Royal Society. When we think of those amazingly multi-talented Stuart people, Newton is definitely one of them. Toni Mount, the prolific author of The Sebastian Foxley Medieval Murder Mystery series of books, is… Read on

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Cromwell Museum’s Winter Lecture Series

Hear ye! Earlier this evening, historian Paul Lay was the first speaker in the Cromwell Museum’s Winter Lecture Series and gave a really fascinating talk about the West Indies during the time of the Cromwellian Protectorate, with figures such as Admiral William Penn and Robert Venables. I’m honoured to have been asked to be the second speaker in… Read on

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Book Review: ‘Mistresses’ by Linda Porter

Mistresses: Sex and Scandal at the Court of Charles II, written by historian Linda Porter and published by Picador in 2020, is the second book on the Stuarts of the seventeenth century by Dr Porter, the first being, Royal Renegades: The Children of Charles I and the English Civil Wars. Porter previously wrote several books on Tudor history,… Read on

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Anna Belfrage’s ‘Glory and Gore’ Blog Event

Acclaimed historical fiction author Anna Belfrage kindly invited me on a blog event entitled, ‘Glory and Gore: The Dichotomy of the Glorious 17th Century’, and I’m honoured to have been the first guest in her line-up! Other authors of works set in the seventeenth-century will be posting in the forthcoming days and I’ll be adding links to them… Read on

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“Weekend Warriors: Bringing History to Life”: A Guest Post by Margaret Cooper Evans

It’s eight thirty am, the drummers in full uniform march through the soldier’s camps drumming ‘call to arms’. A rapid brrrr…umph, brrrr…umph on their drums. This is closely followed by our Sargent shouting “Kings Guard, form up in fifteen minutes.” There follows a rapid dressing session. My husband is always late for parade sometimes even running to join the… Read on

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New book contract! “Sex and Sexuality in Stuart Britain”

Hear ye! For those of you who haven’t already seen my announcement via Twitter, Instagram, and/or Facebook, my news is that I have been commissioned by Pen & Sword Publishing to write Sex and Sexuality in Stuart Britain! This will be part of a new series of history books that “explores our ancestors’ ingenious, surprising, bizarre and often… Read on

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TSCL/Waterstones Special Discount for Leanda de Lisle’s “White King”

Hear ye! Hear ye! I have great news for you lovely readers of The Seventeenth Century Lady. I’ve just received word from Waterstones that my followers are entitled to a special discount on Leanda de Lisle’s fantastic new book, White King – but for a short time only! Here are the details: Available from today for two weeks… Read on

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Book Review: “Nathaniel’s Nutmeg” by Giles Milton

In the present day, most of us can easily find spices such as nutmeg, mace, and much more at our local supermarkets. It certainly wasn’t always that easy to obtain such exotic spices – and, thanks to this book, I’m never going to look at my spice rack in the same way again. Nathaniel’s Nutmeg, originally published in… Read on

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The Mystery of the Dobson Triple Portrait – A Guest Post by Nicola Cornick

The Mystery of the Dobson Triple Portrait Recently there has been some excitement at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford generated by the arrival of a splendid 17th century portrait by William Dobson, court painter to King Charles I. A dramatic work, it features three leading Royalist commanders including Prince Rupert of the Rhine and Colonel John Russell, commander… Read on

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Review: “Pleasing Mr Pepys” by Deborah Swift

Pleasing Mr Pepys is the newest work by Deborah Swift and set to release this September (2017), and I was fortunate to have been given an advance review copy. To me, Swift brought Deborah Willet, the Pepyses, and the London of the 1660s to life in an exciting and sometimes touching way. I found this to be a really enjoyable story, with its various… Read on

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The Golden Boy of the Jacobean Age: A Guest Post by Sarah Fraser

The Golden Boy of the Jacobean Age: first Prince of Wales of Great Britain, is this perhaps one of the greatest Kings we never had?   Discovering Henry Stuart, Prince of Wales (1594-1612), the drama, excitement and heartbreak of his all too brief life enchanted me. I have sons. I recognised in Henry the same young man’s insatiable… Read on

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“Maria Merian’s Butterflies” at the Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace

The Queen’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace recently opened their latest exhibition, Maria Merian’s Butterflies on the 15th of April, 2016. According to the Press Office: “The exhibition will tell the extraordinary story of 17th-and-18th-century artist and explorer Maria Sibylla Merian through the superb collection of her work in the Royal Collection. In 1699, at the age of 52, Merian… Read on

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Relaunch of The Seventeenth Century Lady Podcast!

Hear ye! Hear ye! Today marks the relaunch of The Seventeenth Century Lady Podcast on iTunes, which we started back in 2013. What accounts for the two-year delay? Well, I started writing and my husband and I moved from one end of the country to the other. We’re aiming to deliver a professional, quality podcast to you every… Read on

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Review: Spirit of the Highway by Deborah Swift

I received this copy of Deborah Swift’s new book in exchange for an honest review. I first came across Swift’s work (The Lady’s Slipper) when I was browsing in Victoria Station, London, a few years ago. I was happily surprised to find a traditionally published book set in the seventeenth century. Deborah is now the author of five… Read on

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The Basilica di San Marco, Venice, Italy

Two Sundays ago (my how time flies!), I attended the 8am Easter Sunday service at the iconic Basilica di San Marco by the Piazza San Marco, Venezia, Italy. In this, the first of a series of articles from my recent trip to Venice, I would like to briefly cover a fraction of the history of this building and… Read on

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George Jamesone: The ‘Scottish Van Dyck’ – Guest Post by Alison Lodge

Good day to you! Today we have Art Historian Alison Lodge as our guest writer on The Seventeenth Century Lady! I’ve known Alison for several years now on Twitter, where she mainly tweets about 18th-century topics. Today, however, she’s in our century with a wonderful, fact-filled post on George Jamesone: The Scottish Van Dyck! George Jamesone: The ‘Scottish Van Dyck’… Read on

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Blenheim: The Battle for Europe by Charles Spencer

Although the Battle of Blenheim took place in the 18th Century, the historical persons involved were extremely important in Late 17th-century European history. This book, published in 2005, was the second work by historian Charles Spencer that I have read, the first being his Killers of the King: The Men Who Dared to Kill Charles I, published last year… Read on

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‘Rubens & His Legacy- Van Dyck to Cezanne’ Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts

Yesterday I visited the current Rubens exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts on Piccadilly, London. This was my first time visiting this world-renowned place, and I would like to now share my observations and personal impressions, if I may. Artistic taste is very subjective, as I am well aware, but if you are looking for this to be… Read on

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Review: Life in a 17th Century Coffeehouse

I just read Life in a 17th Century Coffeehouse by David Brandon and, by and large, I enjoyed it. This is a quick read as it is short (8 chapters and 90 pages long), but it is jam-packed with information and written in a very readable, entertaining style. The chapter on “The Everyday Life of a Coffee Shop” was… Read on

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