In many of my Regency books, my characters find themselves at parties where gambling and card-playing is a part of the entertainment. The Chinese invented playing cards around the 9th century, and cards made their way to Europe via Islamic merchants from Egypt around 1360. At this time, playing cards were made by hand and carefully […]
In my new Regency Historical, A Courtesan’s Advice, the hero searches for his missing brother, rumored to be held on a prison hulk. A prison hulk was a former vessel modified for convicts. The hulk is afloat but incapable of going to sea, whereas a convict ship is afloat and seaworthy and used to transport convicted
England’s 19th century Prison Hulks Read More »
John Nash is one of England’s most infamous architects. Nash was commissioned by the Prince Regent, later King George IV, to design many buildings and gardens in England. Among those commissioned was the Royal Pavilion, located in Brighton’s seaside town on England’s southern coast. The Pavilion is a magnificent structure, and if you aren’t aware
Royal Pavilion in Brighton, England Read More »
In my next Regency release, Turbulent Beginnings the hero and heroine visit Vauxhall Gardens for a masquerade. Kate Bancroft’s long-lost father comes in search for her in the gardens, but there are selfish motives behind his hunt to find her. Wearing masks to conceal ones identity has been around for centuries. The first noted masquerade was held
Masquerades in England Read More »
The Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens were located in London on the south bank of the River Thames. The gardens were only accessible by boat until the Vauxhall Bridge was constructed in 1816. Vauxhall Gardens covered 12 acres and was considered one of the largest entertainment venues during Regency England. It’s also the place where my heroine
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In my next Regency release, Turbulent Beginnings, the heroine Kate Bancroft is abducted and taken to the London dockyard. The villains plan to steal Kate away to America and gain hold of her sizable inheritance. The London dockyard was revolutionized beginning in the 1800’s due to the influx of ships sailing into the Thames. The overcrowding
London Dockyards in Regency England Read More »
Circulating libraries were popular during the Regency Period. Books were costly in the 19thcentury, which brought about the birth of this new business. The circulating library made a profit by lending books to readers for a fee. To use the circulating library you had to pay a subscription that many of the lower classes could
Circulating Libraries in Regency England Read More »
In my Regency Historical Courtesan series, the Marquees of Chatham, Byron Copley, learns that he fathered a child nearly a decade ago. He sets out to make the child his ward. But first he has to remove Timothy from the abusive and criminal man Winkleton, who is Timothy’s father by law. In Regency England adoption wasn’t a
Guardians and Wards in Regency England Read More »
During England’s Regency period, people often married for love, arranged marriages had become a tradition of the past, except when it came to the members of the Royal Family. Nevertheless, ladies and gentlemen from the higher classes picked their spouses from a select pool; meaning they picked a partner from the same social sphere in
Finding a Spouse in Regency England Read More »
A Frost Fair was a celebration that took place on the River Thames. Every so often the Regency people would suffer through a harsh winter that left the river frozen over. When the tideway section of the Thames froze, people took to the ice to slide with skeetes (ice skate), sled, perform puppet plays, race
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