A STUDY IN THE VICTORIAN ERA Study Two

Never before had the "Class Divide" been so clearly seen before, the rich and the poor living side by side. Yet again, like the Georgian Era, this was a time of great change, not just with the new inventions but also with the new Laws, passed by the government of the day, to actually help the daily lives of the ordinary people. The upper classes were beginning to "feel" for their poorer fellow human beings and many did a great deal to try to change society as it was back then.

This is the time of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle who wrote the fantastic Sherlock Holmes novels. As mentioned before, Jack the Ripper prowled the streets of London for a few months, murdering woman after woman, each murder more gruesome than the one before, the first serial killer that we know of in Victorian London and who knew he would never get caught.

Like the Era before, "Madame Fashion" changed and because of the modern invention of photography, we have some really beautiful examples of the fashions of the day, even if the photographs are in black and white and / or sepia.

"Takeaway" food, although different to what we are used to today, was widely available and this was often the only way some had a 'decent' meal. No doubt an exciting treat for the group of upper class people who have just seen a performance at the theatre, the food stall was a necessity for the working class, and they could choose dishes from oysters to hot potatoes to bread and cheese. We have to remember that the Victorian kitchen was no-where the same as our kitchens today, and often a family would live in one room, where they slept / bathed (if they could afford it) / cooked and "lived" --- in this one room. For the man of the family it was easier to eat out than have his few morsels pinched by the ever-hungry children. A whole world away from our lives today !

A STUDY IN THE VICTORIAN ERA Study One

                                             "Could you have lived in the Victorian Era ?"

Possibly one of the most well-known of all the Eras, certainly very well documented, and we know more about this Era than the Georgian Era. On the one hand, a very exciting time in which to live with all of the new inventions, with even Queen Victoria taking an interest in photography. On the other hand, one of the worst times in which to live, with the very real Jack-The-Ripper terrorizing the streets of London, and the slums and workplaces in which was found the extreme poor.

 A dark shade within England's history which eventually changed life, making life more bearable and the Law more in favour for the "People". The darkness turned gradually into light even as night turns slowly into day, and we should be grateful for these changes as they directly affect us today.

 There is a great deal of information about the wealthy and even the middle-classes within this Era. Queen Victoria herself kept an extensive diary which gives us an insight into the privileged world of that time. With the invention of photography, there is a treasure trove of almost every aspect of life within the Victorian Era.

 Yet we get the best "Picture" of the poorer classes lives from the authors of the day. Perhaps the best known is Charles Dickens whose novels mirrored real life and the scenes he himself witnessed. Charles Dickens worked at the age of twelve in a blacking factory, whilst his family was in the debtor's prison. The author did not have a charmed life !

THE GEORGIAN ERA --- CONCLUSION

At this time, childbirth was beginning to be a safer time for mothers. Forceps were starting to be used and the understanding of cleanliness was showing its head. New roads were being dug and old ones fixed making travel safer. Clothes were more comfortable and more sensible to wear. The Laws of the Land were changing in order to make life better for the ordinary people. The overall change in life had made our lives what they are today.

          So, "could I have lived in the Georgian Era ?" I can honestly answer : "Possibly!?!"

THE GEORGIAN ERA

                                                       WEDDING BELLS AND BREEDING

In the Georgian Era, to be married and to have children was the only career choice for a woman. Society judged harshly premarital sex and no woman wanted to be left a spinster, relying on the charity of relatives for the rest of her life.  Here also did society start to ever so slowly change. Whilst a good position and money always came into a marriage suite, the woman now had a choice and a lot of couples were now marrying because they either loved each other or at least liked each other. The problem for the single lady was in finding a suitable young man, as the constant wars at this time, seemed to take every male available. There was also still the fact that the woman came under her husband's control, as he 'owned' everything that belonged to her.

Anyone under the age of twenty-one had to get their parents ' consent, although minors could marry by publication of the banns. The age of consent was fourteen for a boy, twelve for a girl. Most did not marry until their early twenties. Apprentices were not permitted to marry which is why so many young men did not marry until their late twenties. Whether rich or poor, all weddings took place in a church. The rich showed off, the poor had a good time. All weddings were conducted between 8am and 12pm, a law which stood until 1886.
There were a fair number of couples from the "lower classes" who didn't marry but lived together as this was easier than trying to find the money to pay the church fees. Life could be difficult for them though, with even the clergy looking down on them. What a different world when compared to today!

MADAME FASHION

          During the Georgian Era, "Madame Fashion" showed how unique "She" could become !

We have often seen the pictures of the very extreme gowns --- wider and wider --- with the amazing hair-do's (wigs), some of which were very high and very heavy --- it was not unusual for "scenes" to be designed on top of these wigs --- from farmyards to boats!

This is how you could tell the very rich from the middle class. These sights must have seemed alien to the extreme poor, many of whom wore the same clothes until they were literally threadbare and could not modestly cover the body anymore.
The rich, and even some of the middle class, could afford to have new clothes especially made. The poorer classes "made do" with hand-me-downs and buying from 2nd hand stalls or travelling salespersons. Every girl was taught sewing and was able to make dresses and adapt older clothes, re-inventing them. France, of course, lead the world in Fashion, "Madame Fashion" also changed, with gowns becoming much plainer, smaller (not necessarily shorter) and the style became naturalistic following the classical style. This is the style of dress we recognize in Jane Austen's novels, who herself was very adaptable in sewing.

At this time, the textile industry shifted into factories as technology moved forward. More clothes were made from new cotton fabrics and dyes made the clothes more colourful. All of this we take for granted today, but in the Georgian Era these things were new inventions and, often, the rich young lady was very excited to be the first to wear a new fabric in a new style in a never before worn colour, always with the necessary "corset."

The Corset has always ruled women's fashion, young girls starting to wear them from a very young age and always too tight. The "stays" or "corset" were made of pliable whalebone (baleen) or cane. By 1785, the corset was becoming less popular, prompting one doctor to say :"We now rarely see ladies fainting in public places." Perhaps women now started to dress for comfort instead of just for "Madame Fashion!"
The magnificent Hair-do's of the beginning of the Era, changed to much simpler and shorter styles and not just because the style of dress changed. Fashionable women cut their hair short in sympathetic imitation of the victims' hair before they were guillotined during the French Revolution.

What Did The Georgians Eat ?

Most meals were still cooked on an open fire ot spit. However, towards the end of this Era, kitchen ranges came in, copper pans replaced clay cooking pots, china, silver and pewter was used for eating. Metal knives, forks and spoons came into general use and was affordable to all but the poorest classes.
Most people had an adequate diet as food was becoming more easily affordable as a lot of food was now being cultivated in England.

The upper classes had huge meals. Breakfasting around 10am, lunch was rarely taken, with Dinner being a grand affair --- 6pm in the countryside / 8pm in town --- plus a light supper. Roast beef and vegetables became popular. The new improved ranges and ovens allowed for more sophisticated cooking. For those who could afford it, the cooking became very "rich" with lots of butter, cream and eggs, but the portions did appear small.

At this time, sugar came into its own and was used in sweet and savoury dishes. Sugar became affordable and was starting to be used in drink also, for example, tea. Potted meat was preserved in sugar and extremely popular.
Spices also became popular --- nutmeg, cardamom, cloves and peppers. Nutmeg was expensive though and generally found in the kitchens of the wealthier classes. Potatoes and tomatoes were now being eaten. Fruit was used for jam-making, jam being first made in England in the 1730's. Chocolate was now popular, being drunk rather than being eaten.
Food presentation became very important and without the modern equipment we have today in our kitchens, it is amazing to see some of the creations presented at the Dinner table. Dinner was laid out as "a work of art."

The Georgian Era ------CHILDHOOD AND EDUCATION

Whether rich or poor, most children "grew up" between the ages of twelve and fourteen. If a family was extremely poor, the children were expected to start work at a younger age, sometimes as young as even or eight. Whilst those born into a rich family could play with toys and be educated, their schooling still finished at fourteen and a lot of the young boys were sent into the Navy. Once again, it was the boys who were given the schooling and college and / or university. However, it was at this time that Academies for Young Ladies started to form, and young ladies of quality were expected to have some form of education. Jane Austen, for example, was sent away to be schooled, only returning home ahead of her finished studies because of finances. This was a marked difference from other Eras, when girls were expected to "keep house", get married and have children. Although this was still sought after, in the Georgian Era education for girls was no longer frowned upon, even if it was still a new concept for the older generation to accept.
Some of the toys within the Georgian Era we recognize today --- marbles, spinning tops, dolls --- others we have never heard of --- spillikins, bilbocatch. It was at this time that books for children became popular, especially amongst the wealthier class, who could afford educational books / toys such as jigsaw puzzles which taught geography.

Children were taught to write on slates with soft slate pencils and progressed to paper, pencil, pen and ink. Some of us remember teachers using blackboards and whiteboards at school. Today, computers, laptops and tablets are used. Will the future generations be taught to write with pen and ink? An interesting question to ponder ---





Compared to the children of today, those raised during the Georgian Era had a hard life, and even those born into the rich families still had to "grow up" at a very young age.  The idea of being an adolescent just did not exist and children were children for a very short space of time.

THE GEORGIAN ERA

It is interesting to note that England was at peace for only 12 years and 8 months during Jane Austen's lifetime (1775 - 1817), the rest of the time wars seemed to rule with different countries. Novels were a fairly new art form and Jane Austen wrote about what she observed of contemporary English society. Her novels and letters provide realistic glimpses into the way of life within this part of the Georgian Era, be it largely the privileged end of society.

Defoe, in 1709, roughly summarized the social strata as "The great, who live profusely; the rich, who live plentifully; the middle sort, who live well; the working trades, who labour hard but feel no want; the country people, farmers, etc. who fare indifferently; the poor that fare hard;  the miserable, that really pinch and suffer want." What needs to be remembered is that England, at this time, was not overcrowded, as in 1801 the entire population was approximately that of London today. As in other Eras, peoples personal diaries open up their world to us readers, helping us to have some kind of understanding as to how people lived in the Georgian Era.

THE GEORGIAN ERA

                                                "Could I have lived in the Georgian Era?"
I must admit that this is one Era I knew very little about, other than it produced Jane Austen. The research was interesting and, as I read book after book, it dawned on me how much this Era was a turning point in English history, and how some of the inventions and medical practices we start to recognize today. Unlike the Tudor and even the Elizabethans Eras, whose way of life was so far removed from our own, with the Georgian Era we start to see a way of life which started to resemble our own today. The way of life --- what people did  / ate / when they did things / even the clothes they wore --- started to change. There was still the great "Class" divide but it was starting to slowly change. A great deal of this change can be credited to the Kings who ruled at the time, especially King George 111 who was a very "modern thinking" King and who had the courage to carry out his convictions.

The Georgian Era covers from 1714 to 1830 --- The Hanoverian Kings --- King Georges 1 to 1V, and it often extended to include King William 1V who died in 1837. During this time there were changes in the Arts / Religion / Social Reform as well as Politics and Social Revolts. A very slow but very real movement towards life we know today.

King George 1              1660 - 1727

King George 11              1683 - 1760

King George 111            1738 - 1820

King George 1V                  1762 - 1830

King William 1V                  1765 - 1837

The throne was passed onto his niece --- Queen Victoria