Category Archives: customs and tradiitons

‘Kinder- un Hausmärchen’ + the Release of “Amending the Shades of Pemberley” + a Giveaway

Posted on April 30, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published the first volume of their collected fairy tales in 1812 under the title Kinder- und Hausmärchen. By 1822, the brothers had published three volumes containing 170 tales total with subsequent editions bringing that number to over 200. Continue reading →

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Cecil Sharp’s Influence on “Amending the Shades of Pemberley” + a Giveaway

Posted on April 28, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

As with many folk songs, the author and date of origin of “Hush, Little Baby” remain an unknown. The English folklorist Cecil Sharp collected and notated a version of this song found in Endicott, Franklin County, Virginia in 1918, but such simply means the song had been around much longer, passed down from generation to generation, with little changes in it depending on whether one’s ancestors were from Scotland, Ireland, England, Wales, or Northwest Europe. Sharp, himself, found a different version with complete lyrics in Micaville, North Carolina. A version recorded by James Madison Carpenter on a wax cylinder in the early 1930s in Durham, North Carolina, can be heard online at the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library website. Naturally, that date is well past the time of my story, but Cecil Sharp discovered such songs over and over again. If you have never heard of Sharp, you will be surprised by all he accomplished. Continue reading →

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The Origin of “Humpty Dumpty” + the Release of “Amending the Shades of Pemberley” + a Giveaway

Posted on April 21, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

The most common version is Humpty Dumpty is a representation of King Richard III of England, who was defeated at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. The “egg” shape refers to King Richard supposedly being a “humpback,” as is portrayed in Shakespeare’s play. “Shakespeare called Richard III a ‘hunchback’, which means that he was hunching forward while walking. Richard III’s skeleton actually shows a sideways displacement of the spine, a heavy scoliosis, which made the king walk obliquely. So there is a certain match between the two: something unusual about the body.” (British Council) The “wall” falling is the loss of his reign as king. The king’s horses and men are the army who failed to defeat their enemy Continue reading →

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Playing Cards in Jane Austen’s England, Pleasant Pastime, as Well as Gambling + an Excerpt from “The Jewel Thief and the Earl”

Posted on April 10, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

A recent question from a reader asked of card playing at balls and gaming hells: I know many books mention card playing going on in designated rooms at balls, but I haven’t heard what they were playing? Would they be … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, customs and tradiitons, Georgian England, Georgian Era, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, Mansfield Park, Northanger Abbey, Pride and Prejudice, quotes, Regency era, Regency romance, research, Sense & Sensibility, Whigs | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Playing Cards in Jane Austen’s England, Pleasant Pastime, as Well as Gambling + an Excerpt from “The Jewel Thief and the Earl”

When Might the Heir Style Himself With His New Title in Regency Romances?

Posted on April 7, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

First, for legal purposes, the man must present himself to the House of Lords to claim the title officially. After the will has been read and its stipulations executed, the new peer must petition the Lord Chancellor for a writ … Continue reading →

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Regency Etiquette for Men and Women

Posted on March 20, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

I have never found an etiquette book publish during the Regency. The book named Regency Etiquette is not an etiquette book as we might think of it. The closest I once came was an etiquette book published in 1827. The … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, customs and tradiitons, dancing, Georgian England, Georgian Era, historical fiction, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, Living in the UK, marriage customs, peerage, Pride and Prejudice, real life tales, Regency romance, research, romance, tradtions, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Honorific Titles and Honourables

Posted on March 13, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

Ornament from the Bookman Ornaments collection from American Type Founders – Public Domain After last week’s post on a “gentleman’s honor” and my brief mention of honorific titles, I had a reader ask exactly what such titles entailed and how … Continue reading →

Posted in American History, British history, customs and tradiitons, peerage, titles of aristocracy, tradtions | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Greatest Way to Live with Honor . . .

Posted on March 8, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

Upon occasion, it is difficult for those who read Regency romances to understand all the nuances of the word “honor” or “honour”. Obviously, the idea of “honor” is quite different in nonfiction books. One rarely finds information in a nonfiction … Continue reading →

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A Debt-Ridden Inheritance During the Regency Era

Posted on February 22, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

Those of us who write JAFF are very familiar with Mrs. Bennet’s fears of being driven into the hedgerows after Mr. Collins takes over Longbourn in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Though Mr. Bennet had not left behind a debt-ridden … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, customs and tradiitons, family, Georgian England, Georgian Era, Inheritance, Living in the Regency, Living in the UK, primogenture, real life tales, Regency era, Regency romance, titles of aristocracy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Cavalry Trumpet/Bugle Calls in the 18th and 19th Centuries

Posted on February 8, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

Recently, I had an author friend seeking information on cavalry trumpets calls, for she was writing a battle scene. The hero of her tale is in the mounted infantry, and he is on the American front during the War of … Continue reading →

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