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 !