Tag Archives: social history

Book Review: “A Brief History of Life in Victorian Britain” by Michael Paterson

Posted on by

After reading countless books about the murder and mayhem of the Wars of the Roses, I was ready for something completely different. This book happened to catch my eye on my bookshelf. The subtitle of the book is “A Social History of Queen Victoria’s Reign”. It is a part of a “brief history” series by the publisher Running Press.

After medieval history, the Victorian era is one of my favorites and social history is always of interest. Not only is the life of the Queen and her family appealing but all of the changes in society as well as the advances in industry, transportation, communication, fashion, literature and the history of the empire are interesting. The first chapter of this book covers the life of the Queen, Prince Albert and their children. The author calls her the “symbol of an age” and indeed, she gave her name to an entire era.

There is lots of good information in this book. Chapters cover things like what Victorians ate, their taste in art, architecture, how they furnished their homes and what the houses were like, household management, arts and crafts, and landscaping. The Victorians crossed over from using candles for interior lighting to gas. The subject of cholera is discussed, along with child labor, crime, the life of servants in the Victorian home and also the role of workhouses in society.

The chapter on transportation explains how Victorians went from walking and riding horse and carriage to the building of railroads and how this transformed society in countless ways. The introduction of the bicycle changed not only how people got around but how they dressed and how it liberated women. Ships went from being wind propelled to steam. Even the Underground got started during the Victorian era.

Other chapters cover religion, etiquette and fashion, office work, how Victorians spent their leisure time, the press and literature, arms and the world. The description of the work of clerks is fascinating and brings to mind Bob Cratchit in Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”. He briefly covers the Indian Empire and how it related to trade and the Boer Wars. The book has some photos of regular Victorians demonstrating how they dressed, a lengthy introduction and recommendations for further reading. If you are looking for an introduction into the era, this is the book.

Book Review: “The Cambridge Illustrated History of France” by Colin Jones

Posted on by

illustrated history of France book cover

Based on the recommendation of a friend, I found a used copy of this book and ordered it. In my quest to read as much French history as possible before my trip to France, I had read “La Belle France”, another overall survey and wondered if this book would cover the same ground. I was pleased this author takes an entirely different course.

Jones writes more from a social history standpoint in this book. I very much enjoyed the chapters on France before the Romans and Roman Gaul. His chapters on the Franks and the Middle Ages cover a lot more ground than the other histories I’ve read so far. The later chapters covering the Revolution, Enlightenment, World Wars I and II and modern times have less detail but are still erudite and interesting. Occasionally Jones gets a little technical and wandering when discussing certain political situations. One thing I admire in his writing is his attention to the status of women in France throughout the ages.

I can’t say enough about the illustrations. This is what the Cambridge Illustrated Histories are known for. There are numerous maps illustrating different elements of France and its history. The maps clarify countless aspects such as where French dialects were spoken, delineating where Roman law and customary law were practiced, gene pools, agricultural and urban areas, different political boundaries, kingdoms and regions of France, where barbarian tribes invaded, etc.

There are photos of art and architecture, illuminated manuscripts, engravings, paintings, drawings and photographs of key points in French history, all with excellent, well written captions. In every chapter there are also insets with more details about select people and events. Some examples are on Blanche of Castile, the troubadours, the court of the Dukes of Burgundy and so on. All of these images really enhance the text. This is another well-written, informative history of France and I highly recommend it.

Book Review: “Paris: The Secret History” by Andrew Hussey

Posted on by

Paris the Secret History book cover

This title really intrigued me. Paris is a magnetic city just in its own right. To imagine there was a secret history was too tempting to pass up. In my ongoing effort to refresh my French history knowledge before my trip to France, I began reading.

Hussey mentions in the introduction his intention in writing this book is to emulate the work of Peter Ackroyd’s “London: A Biography”. Ackroyd’s book is splendid so this was a good sign. The first chapter covers Prehistory to the year 987 AD. I found this section most interesting. Paris was started basically on the small, swampy islands in the Seine. He talks about how the city, then known as Lutetia, was inhabited by the Franks and the Romans. The Romans built a wall around the city and it became a trading center. Next, in this chapter and in every one after, Hussey gives small tidbits of history that might not be as well known by the average reader, the so-called secrets of the city. One of the highlights in this first chapter is the death by beheading of St. Denis on Montmartre, making the name of the hill self-explanatory.

In the medieval section, Hussey give us a colorful array of characters, talking about the ordinary people. Sections include, lovers and scholars, students and streetfighters, poets, saints and thieves. In fact, the entire book is filled with details about average everyday people down to the present day. The history of Paris is filled with robbers, gypsies, drunkards, beggars as well as the nobility, merchants and the bourgeoisie. There’s a lot of information on artists, writers, poets and students and how they shaped the politics of the city over the millennia. If social history is your cup of tea, you will enjoy this aspect of the book.

Hussey obviously knows and loves the city well. He gives us details about many of the neighborhoods, even down to who and what kind of people lived on certain streets. The book has many drawings, maps and photos showing us the boundaries of the city over the years. One of the first things that struck me as I began reading this book is that it is really well written. Everything he writes is very clear with no grammatical or typographical errors. It was just a joy to read. If you are interested in French history and Paris in particular, I can heartily recommend this book.