Category Archives: poetry

Circulating Libraries in the Regency Era

Another author friend sent me these questions regarding the circulating libraries. I will provide the short answers to the questions first and then provide a longer explanations. Was there always a fee to check out a book? Was that paid … Continue reading

Posted in books, British history, fashion, Georgian England, Georgian Era, Jane Austen, literature, Living in the Regency, Living in the UK, poetry, reading habits, Regency era | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

A Closer Look at “Mr. Darcy’s Present: A Pride and Prejudice Holiday Vagary”

Mr. Darcy’s Present: A Pride and Prejudice Holiday Vagary from Regina Jeffers  is currently on sale until January 5, 2020. Enjoy the excerpt below.  Genre: Classics; Regency Romance; Austenesque; Christmas Romance Book Blurb: When we care more for another than … Continue reading

Posted in book excerpts, British history, George Wickham, Georgian England, Georgian Era, historical fiction, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, marriage, poetry, Pride and Prejudice, Regency era, Regency romance, Vagary, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on A Closer Look at “Mr. Darcy’s Present: A Pride and Prejudice Holiday Vagary”

January 25, Burns Suppers Celebrated Worldwide: A Salute to the Scottish Poet, Robert Burns

  A Burns supper is a celebration of the life and poetry of the poet Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), the author of many Scots poems. The suppers are normally held on or near the poet’s birthday, 25 January, occasionally known … Continue reading

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Princess Louise, the Marchioness of Lorne, Travels to Canada

In 1878, prime minister Benjamin Disraeli tagged the John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne, to become the governor general of the Dominion of Canada. This would take Queen Victoria’s daughter Louise away from England, for Princess Louise was married to the … Continue reading

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John Heywood, England’s First Great Dramatist

We know little of John Heywood’s life, other than the year of his birth, which was 1497. Likely, he was once served as a choir boy in the Chapel Royale and then studied at Oxford as a King’s Scholar. He … Continue reading

Posted in Age of Chaucer, British history, drama, kings and queens, playwrights, poetry, political stance, theatre | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Why Do We Call a Toilet a “John”?

 Sir John Harington was a courtier, translator, a not so successful poet of the Elizabethan era. Harington’s father married an illegitimate daughter of Henry VIII. His second wife was attendant to Princess Elizabeth, and Queen Elizabeth I stood as godmother … Continue reading

Posted in British history, Elizabethan drama, poetry, real life tales, Tudors | Tagged , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Colorful (But Lesser Known) Contemporaries of William Shakespeare, Part II

Previously, in our survey of the History of English Literature, we looked at Barnaby Barnes, John Fletcher, and Nicholas Breton. You may find that post HERE. Today we will explore the accomplishments of Sir Henry Wotton, Anthony Munday, and Raphael … Continue reading

Posted in British history, Great Britain, historical fiction, literature, Living in the UK, playwrights, poetry, reading, religion, romantic verse, Tudors | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Robert Southwell, Jesuit Priest and Literary Contemporary of William Shakespeare

“Robert Southwell was born around 1561 at Horsham St. Faith, Norfolk, the youngest son and fifth child in a family of eight. The Southwells, a county family that had prospered from the dissolution of the monasteries, formed part of a … Continue reading

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Sir Thomas Wyatt (c. 1503 – 1542), 16th C English Ambassador and Lyrical Poet

Born to Henry and Anne Wyatt at Allington Castle, near Maidstone, Kent, in 1503, Thomas Wyatt made his first appearance at the royal court in 1516 as Sewer Extraordinary to Henry VIII.  In 1516 he also entered St. John’s College, … Continue reading

Posted in Great Britain, history, marriage, poetry, real life tales, romantic verse, Tudor | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

John Skelton (1460 – 1529), Tudor Poet

The Poetry Foundation tells us something of John Skelton. “No one can deny the power, endurance, and memorable lines of the work of John Skelton; he is indisputably the first major Tudor poet, writing during the reigns of Edward IV, … Continue reading

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