Monthly Archives: April 2018

Do You Know More Than One City Served as the U. S. Capital?

I recently did one of those mind-dulling quizzes on Facebook. It’s the one where they say they can tell a person’s education based on questions on U. S. history. To demonstrate how reliable the quiz is, I missed one and … Continue reading

Posted in American History, Uncategorized, war | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

UK “Real” Estate: Coggeshall Abbey in Essex

In 1140, Coggeshall Abbey was founded by King Stephen and his wife Matilda as a Sauvignac Abbey.. It was designed to house the monks of the Savigniac order. The earliest English use of bricks as building materials can be found … Continue reading

Posted in Age of Chaucer, Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons, British history, buildings and structures, history | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Cambridge Five: “We need people who could penetrate into the bourgeois institutions. Penetrate them for us!”

 If you are a great lover of all things British, as am I, you are likely familiar with the BBC2 mini-series, Cambridge Spies. It starred four of my personal favorites: Toby Stephens, Rupert Penry Jones, Tom Hollander, and Samuel West. … Continue reading

Posted in American History, British history, film, history, military, political stance, real life tales, war, world history | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on The Cambridge Five: “We need people who could penetrate into the bourgeois institutions. Penetrate them for us!”

Scandal Abounds in Brocket Hall’s History

The official Brocket Hall website tells us, “Brocket Hall has one of the most intriguing of any of the great houses of Britain. Indeed the scent of scandal can be found in the fabric of the building back to its … Continue reading

Posted in British history, buildings and structures, George IV, Georgian England, Georgian Era, peerage, real life tales, Victorian era, William IV | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Walk in Jane Austen’s Shoes, a Guest Post from Sophie Turner

This post originally appeared on Austen Authors on February 16, 2018. I thought you might enjoy the lovely images Ms. Turner shares.  My series on resort towns and my travels has thus far only tangentially touched on Jane Austen, but … Continue reading

Posted in British history, Georgian England, Guest Post, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, real life tales, Regency era, Regency personalities | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on A Walk in Jane Austen’s Shoes, a Guest Post from Sophie Turner

“Very Real” Estate ~ Whitehaven, A Port City on England’s Western Coastline

Whitehaven is a Georgian town situated on the west coast of Cumbria. It was one of the first post-Renaissance planned towns in England. At the end of the 16th Century, Whitehaven consisted of less than a dozen thatched cottages. By … Continue reading

Posted in American History, British history, buildings and structures, Living in the UK, real life tales | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Is What We Do JAFF or Something Else? a Guest Post from Don Jacobson

This post originally appeared on Austen Authors on 17 February 2018. Here I am in the first week of a blog tour for the FIFTH book in a series, and I am now questioning where it can be placed upon the Jane … Continue reading

Posted in book excerpts, book release, British history, George Wickham, Guest Post, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, Pride and Prejudice, Vagary | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Why Are Americans So Unhappy?

At a Christmas outing to the Biltmore estate near Asheville, North Carolina, I struck up a conversation with a man from the Middle East, likely Pakistan, but I cannot be certain, as I was not bold enough to ask. As … Continue reading

Posted in American History, political stance, real life tales, research, writing | Tagged , , , | 15 Comments