A Brief History of The Reformation 1485 – 1580

Posted on May 5, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

When Henry VII came to the throne, the York-Lancaster conflict knew an end. Henry earned a monopoly over all gun-powder, which had become the new weapon of warfare. As a result, the power of the monarchy was immeasurably solidified. With the aid of the Court of Star Chamber, Henry held that power. 

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Henry VIII (1509) 18 years of age ~ https://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/Henry_VIII_of_ England

In 1509, Henry VIII became King, and shortly afterward Thomas Wolsey became his minister. Wolsey carried out the principles of absolutism, and established a peace with France, But Henry was not as eager for an amicable French relationship as was Wolsey, and sent a fleet to ravage the French coast. Wolsey attempted to redirect Henry’s animosity toward Spain, but with little success. 

At length, when Wolsey opposed the monarch’s marriage to Anne Boleyn, Wolsey was banished. Thomas Cranmer and Thomas Cromwell now became Henry’s chief advisers. Cromwell endeavored to establish the king’s complete supremacy. Anne Boleyn was crowned queen, and Cranmer was made Archbishop of Canterbury. 

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Anne Boleyn (1534) https://en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Henry_VIII_of_England

Needless to say, Henry required a divorce from his first wife before he married Anne Boleyn; yet, the Church of Rome held other thoughts. Henry then had himself made head of the Church through an Act of Supremacy. A doctrinal revolution followed. Various injunctions discouraged the practices of masses, pardons, pilgrimages, and the worship of relics. The number of sacraments were reduced, and the ideas of justification by faith and of purgatory were frowned on. The Bible was revised by Miles Coverdale and was made the cornerstone of the faith. The monasteries were pillaged, and high church officials were executed. Among these were More and Fisher. The reign of Cromwell, in short, was a reign of terror. 

Bur even Cromwell was not able to check the growing power of Parliament. The King had been forced to retract some of his former anti-Catholic policies, but Cromwell persisted in persecuting the monasteries. He eventually met his end when he opposed Henry’s latest marital project. In 1543, Cromwell was executed and replaced by Norfolk, who favored a union between Henry and the Holy Roman Emperor. Henry found it politic to fling his new minister into the Tower and to replace Norfolk with Hertford, a Protestant. He was Protector when Edward VI succeeded Henry to the throne. 

The new government began its reign with the appropriation of religious holdings. The country was wholly without religious uniformity. Agents were sent over the country to stamp out old religious practises, and to imprison those leaders who opposed the new measures. Finally, in 1549 an Act of Uniformity was passed and the Book of Common Prayer made the service for all churches. But peace did not follow. Agrarian distress combined with religious intolerance to inspire Kett’s rebellion, and a second Act of uniformity was required in 1552. A year later, Edward died and was succeeded by Mary. 

At first Mary was tolerant in her policies, but when an attempt was made to dethrone her in what is known as Wyatt’s Rebellion (1554), Mary became vengeful. A law of heresy was enacted, and those who refused to return to the Catholic faith were executed. Among those who died at her inquisition were Bishop Latimer and Cranmer. Meanwhile the war with France took a disastrous turn: Revolution would surely have followed, had not Mary died in 1558. 

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Elizabeth I ~ https://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/ Elizabeth_I_of_England

Next, Queen Elizabeth came to the throne. She practised tolerance to gain the favor of all parties. Mary Stuart had a claim to the throne, but Elizabeth disposed of her very easily. With little loss of time, the new queen had the Test Act passed and the thirty-nine articles adopted as the standard of faith. Strife gradually vanished, and the country turned to its other affairs. Commerce and manufacturing flourished, and the nation became more prosperous. In her reign, a new nationalism and literature was born. 

Resources:

Guy, John (1988). “The Tudor Age (1485–1603)”. The Oxford History of Britain: 272–273.

Lehmberg, Stanford E. (1970). The Reformation Parliament, 1529–1536. Cambridge University Press.

Posted in British history, Church of England, Great Britain, history, kings and queens, legacy | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Medical Advancements Leading to Real Progress in the 18th Century

Posted on May 4, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

Early on, the civilize world saw the study of nature as essential to the welfare of all mankind. The 16th Century saw great strides. Nicolaus Copernicus was a Renaissance mathematician and astronomer who formulated a model of the universe that placed the Sun rather than the Earth at its center. The publication of this model in his book De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres) just before his death in 1543 is considered a major event in the history of science, triggering the Copernican Revolution and making an important contribution to the Scientific Revolution.

Galileo Galilei was an Italian physicist, mathematician, engineer, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the scientific revolution during the Renaissance. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and consequent astronomical observations and support for Copernicanism. His contributions to observational astronomy include the telescopic confirmation of the phases of Venus, the discovery of the four largest satellites of Jupiter (named the Galilean moons in his honour), and the observation and analysis of sunspots. Galileo also worked in applied science and technology, inventing an improved military compass and other instruments.

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1543 Source/Photographer Page xii of De humani corporis fabrica (1534 edition), showing portrait of Andreas Vesalius. wikipedia

Meanwhile, Andreas Vesalius was an anatomist, physician, and author of one of the most influential books on human anatomy, De humani corporis fabrica (On the Fabric of the Human Body). Vesalius is often referred to as the founder of modern human anatomy. He was born in Brussels, which though now part of Belgium, was then part of the Habsburg Netherlands. He was professor at the University of Padua and later became Imperial physician at the court of Emperor Charles V. One must keep in mind that Vesalius faced much prejudice from the ecclesiastical enthusiasts for his work.

In the middle of the 16th Century (1532), an Act of Parliament in England provided for the “institution of Commissions of Sewers in all parts of the Kingdom.” (Fitzgerald, John Gerald, et. al., An Introduction to the Practice of Preventive Medicine, page 653.)

The 17th Century saw the publication of “Novum Organum.” The Novum Organum, full original title Novum Organum Scientiarum (‘new instrument of science’), is a philosophical work by Francis Bacon, written in Latin and published in 1620. The title is a reference to Aristotle’s work Organon, which was his treatise on logic and syllogism. InNovum Organum, Bacon details a new system of logic he believes to be superior to the old ways of syllogism. This is now known as the Baconian method.

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The title page illustration of Instauratio magna Francis Bacon (author) – *EC.B1328.620ib, Houghton Library, Harvard University Houghton Library at Harvard University Location Cambridge, MA Public Domain

Also, in the 17th Century we find the accomplishments of William Harvey. Harvey (1 April 1578 – 3 June 1657) was an English physician. He was the first known to describe completely and in detail the systemic circulation and properties of blood being pumped to the brain and body by the heart, though earlier writers, such as Jacques Dubois, had provided precursors of the theory.

Even so, it was the 18th Century’s domain to develop modern preventive medicine. Richard Mead’s advice, for example, during the plague of 1663-1665 became crystalized in the legal decrees of George I, especially in the practice of quarantines.

Sir John Pringle, 1st Baronet, PRS (10 April 1707 – 18 January 1782) was a Scottish physician who has been called the “father of military medicine.” In 1742 he became physician to the Earl of Stair, then commanding the British army in Flanders. About the time of the battle of Dettingen in Bavaria in June 1743, when the British army was encamped at Aschaffenburg, Pringle, through the Earl of Stair, brought about an agreement with the Duc de Noailles, the French commander, that military hospitals on both sides be considered as neutral, immune sanctuaries for the sick and wounded, and should be mutually protected. His first book, Observations on the Nature and Cure of Hospital and Jayl Fevers, was published in 1750, and in the same year he contributed to the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society three papers on Experiments on Septic and Antiseptic Substances, which gained him the Copley Medal. Two years later he published his important work, Observations on the Diseases of the Army in Camp and Garrison, which entitles him to be regarded as the founder of modern military medicine. Pringle’s work “resulted in a diminution in the incidence of typhus fever and enterie disease.” (Fitzgerald, pg. 653)

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James Lind via Wikipedia

James Lind introduced the idea of “dietetic measures” with his Treatise on Scurvy in 1753. James Lind (4 October 1716 – 13 July 1794) was a Scottish physician. He was a pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy. By conducting the first ever clinical trial,he developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy. He argued for the health benefits of better ventilation aboard naval ships, the improved cleanliness of sailors’ bodies, clothing and bedding, and below-deck fumigation with sulphur and arsenic. He also proposed that fresh water could be obtained by distilling sea water. His work advanced the practice of preventive medicine and improved nutrition.

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Richard Mead via Wikipedia

Richard Mead (11 August 1673 – 16 February 1754) was an English physician. His work, A Short Discourse concerning Pestilential Contagion, and the Method to be used to prevent it (1720), was of historic importance in the understanding of transmissible diseases. Mead considered quarantine  a preventive medicine – separating the healthy from the sick – essential to suppressing the contagions of the time. 

Captain James Cook gave a notation in his many journals to the teachings of Pringle, Mead, and others during Cook’s great voyage of discovery. He received the gold medal from the Royal Society of London for his paper on the preservation of his sailors from scurvy. (Sala, G. A., and E. H. Yates, editors, Temple Bar, Volume 94, page 373.) Cook’s voyage lasted for a little over 3 years, but during that time, despite being beset with numerous difficulties, only one man out of his 118 man crew died. This was unprecedented at the time, and Cook gave credit to the application of hygienic rules and dietetic measures advocated by James Lind to his crew’s success.

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Edward Jenner (1749- 1823), Discoverer of vaccination. James Northcote – National Portrait Gallery – Public Domain

Next we find the work of Edward Jenner, who was an English physician and scientist who was the pioneer of smallpox vaccine, the world’s first vaccine. He is often called “the father of immunology,” and his work is said to have “saved more lives than the work of any other human.”

Posted in British history, Georgian England, Great Britain, history, Living in the UK, medicine, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Birth of Victoria, Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal

Posted on May 3, 2016 by Regina Jeffers
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Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa von Sachsen-Coburg and Gotha (1840-1901), Princess of Prussia and German Empress.

Only ten months after pronouncing her vows to her beloved Albert, Queen Victoria delivered forth the first of their children. The birth of Princess Victoria on 20 November 1840 was the first direct heir born to a reigning monarch in nearly 80 years. Needless to say, there were many disappointed by the birth of a princess rather than a male heir to the throne, Princess Victoria’s birth pleased the young queen and her husband. Reportedly, Queen Victoria claimed to “bear pain as well as other people” in her refusal of a sedative during the child’s birth. After learning the child was a female she is credited with saying, “Never mind, the next will be a prince.” The birth of the new princess placed more space between Queen Victoria’s and the Duke of Cumberland’s (who was the king of Hanover at the time) claims to the throne.

Dr. Charles Locock, who was later referred to as “The Great Deliverer of His Country,” served as the queen’s physician through not only this birth, but several afterward. He was paid £1000 for the successful delivery. At her christening, the new princess was given the name Victoria. She was known as “Vicky” within the family. Two months after her birth, Princess Victoria was titled as “Princess Royal.”

Albert recognized that his daughter would spend a great deal of her life in foreign courts, he set about instilling his liberal politics in the child. Even so, there was doubt that Albert truly adored his first child. Although Queen Victoria acted as women of her class did with their children, Albert’s enchantment with his first born (and the 8 children who followed her) took root early on. Victoria saw her child twice per day (at bath time and later in her dressing room when the queen dressed for dinner). Yet, queenly duties did not provide much time for “mothering” the child.

Victoria and Albert were conscious of the necessity of instilling good breeding in all their children, but also taught them something of responsibilities to those less fortunate than they. They spoke to their children of the “order” in society which placed them in the position in which they lived. Even so, they isolated their children from others for fear their positions would place them as pawns for those with untrue motives. So although the pair spoke of themselves as being “above” matters of rank, they isolated their family from many of the queen’s subjects.

While Victoria took pride in her growing brood of children, the Queen saw them as potential “agents” in doing the queen’s work. This is not to say that the Queen’s distance was returned by her children. More so, their mother’s much maligned lack of affections were displayed in her children’s adult life.

In the early days of their marriage, Albert was still trying to find his footing in his role as the Queen’s husband. He had more time for his children than did Victoria, who still did not accept his assistance with her work. He earned a reputation for interfering with the “nursery routine.” He butted heads with his wife’s former governess, Baroness Louise Lehzen, who was “head of the royal home.” Queen Victoria held an allegiance to the baroness for the woman had stood between the young Victoria and her mother’s (along with Conroy) political manipulations. The closeness between Victoria and Lehzen continued after Victoria’s rise to the throne, a situation which left Albert on the outside.

Victoria,_Princess_RoyalEven so, Albert implemented his control over the nursery. Victoria had placed him in a position to supervise their domestic arrangements at both Bukingham Palace and Windsor Castle. “But the prince’s authority was often thwarted by resentful functionaries, the palace and castle having for centuries represented the uncontested fiefdoms of a vast panoply of chamberlains, officials, stewards, high servants, and free-floating hangers-on. With Albert’s ascendancy over the monarchy’s domestic affairs, which would shortly spell the end of Lehzen’s regime, the nursery and its precious cargo was elevated into what became virtually a department of state. To oversee all those responsible for the care of his babies, Albert wrote detailed job descriptions for each staff position, including the various nurses, nursery maids, assistant nursery maids, and wet nurses [Queen Victoria most emphatically did not breast-fee her babies]. The extraordinarily stringent security arrangements that the prince devised would soon mean the introduction of convoluted hallways, secret passages, manned guardrooms blocking access to the nursery, and elaborate locks – the master keys kept, with delicious exclusivity, by Albert himself. The most fundamental rule governing this new, military structure was that the infant princess royal and her future siblings must never under any circumstances, be left alone – an irony in that the queen herself had so resented that status as a child. And as reminder that court etiquette held sway here as much as it did in the palace’s public rooms, the rules specified that the wet nurse must remain standing while feeding any royal child, obviously in recognition of the infant’s exalted station.” [Jerrold M. Packard, Victoria’s Daughters, St. Martin’s, 1998, page 20]

 

 

Posted in British history, Church of England, customs and tradiitons, family, Great Britain, history, Living in the UK, marriage, marriage customs, real life tales, Victorian era | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on The Birth of Victoria, Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal

Happy “May” Birthdays to Some of Our Favorite “Austen” Actors

Posted on May 2, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

party-clip-art-balloons-different-coloursWe have a great mix of old and new in this month’s salute to those actors and actresses who have performed in Austen-inspired films. 

 

urlMay 4 – Anthony Calf, who portrayed Colonel Fitzwilliam in 1995’s Pride and Prejudice

 

Tidus for dream-celebs.comMay 8 – Christina Cole, who portrayed Miss Caroline Bingley in Lost in Austen

 

images-5May 8 – Janet McTeer, who portrayed Mrs. Dashwood in 2008’s Sense and Sensibility 

 

images-4May 8 – Kam Heskin, who portrayed Elizabeth in 2003’s Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy 

 

'NANNY MCPHEE' FILM PREMIERE, LONDON, BRITAIN - 09 OCT 2005May 8 – Phyllida Law, who portrayed Mrs. Bates in 1996’s Emma, as well as Mrs. Austen in Miss Austen Regrets

 

Anna+Maxwell+Martin+Philips+British+Academy+F51wgqhiruulMay 10 – Anna Maxwell Martin, who portrayed Cassandra Austen in Becoming Jane, as well as Elizabeth Bennet in Death Comes to Pemberley 

 

images-3May 10 – Sally Phillips, who portrayed Mrs. Bennet in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies 

 

MV5BMTUwNjc2MTg3N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTQzODI3MQ@@._V1_UY317_CR9,0,214,317_AL_May 13 – Samantha Morton, who portrayed Harriet Smith in 1996’s Emma (TV version)

 

MV5BMTc0MzU1Mzc0Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzk3MDAxMw@@._V1_UX214_CR0,0,214,317_AL_May 15 – Greg Wise, who portrayed Mr. Willoughby in 1995’s Sense and Sensibility

 

MV5BNzAyODA0NjQ3N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwOTA2MTU2NTE@._V1_UY317_CR20,0,214,317_AL_May 16 – Rebecca Front, who portrayed Mrs. Bennet in Death Comes to Pemberley

 

220px-MaureenMay 17 – Maureen O’Sullivan, who portrayed Jane Bennet in 1940’s Pride and Prejudice (17 May 1911 to 23 June 1998)

 

tve11166-19690303-26May 19 – Bryan Marshall, who portrayed Captain Frederick Wentworth in 1971’s Persuasion 

 

MV5BMjQ1NzI4MTM2MF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwODk2MzY3OA@@._V1_UX214_CR0,0,214,317_AL_May 19 – Eleanor Tomlinson, who portrayed Georgiana Darcy in Death Comes to Pemberley

 

Laurence_Olivier_-_1961_-_BostonMay 22 – Laurence Olivier, who portrayed Fitzwilliam Darcy in 1940’s Pride and Prejudice (22 May 1907 to 11 July 1989)

 

MV5BMTMxOTc2MDQ2Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNTE4NDAz._V1_UY317_CR0,0,214,317_AL_May 26 – Ben Gourley, who portrayed Charles in 2003’s Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy 

 

images-1May 26 – Laurence Fox, who played Mr. Wisley in Becoming Jane 

 

imgres-1May 26 – Peter Cushing, who portrayed Fitzwilliam Darcy in 1952’s Pride and Prejudice (26 May 1913 to 11 August 1994)

 

imgresMay 27 – Bella Heathcote, who portrayed Jane Bennet in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

 

imagesMay 28 – Carey Mulligan, who portrayed Kitty Bennet in 2005’s Pride and Prejudice, as well as Isabella Thorpe in 2007’s Northanger Abbey

 

3a50bd63d957cd90ef4ee39eb8cbdd4fMay 30 – Tracey Childs, who portrayed Marianne Dashwood in 1981’s Sense and Sensibility 

Posted in Austen actors, film adaptations, Jane Austen, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Mother’s Day Sale!!! 21 eBook Novels from Regina Jeffers, each $2.50 or Less

Posted on May 1, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

SaleSignFor Mother’s Day, surprise your that special woman in your life with the gift of reading. Fill up her Kindle, Nook, or Kobo with these delightful stories from award-winning author, Regina Jeffers. Hurry! The sale ends Tuesday, May 10, 2016. 

Jane Austen-inspired Titles: 

51wgW1LN-UL._AA160_Darcy’s Passions: Pride and Prejudice Retold Through His Eyes

CFWPThumbnailCaptain Frederick Wentworth’s Persuasion: Austen’s Class Retold Through His Eyes 

EBEAThumbnailElizabeth Bennet’s Excellent Adventure: A Pride and Prejudice Vagary

EBDThumbnailElizabeth Bennet’s Deception: A Pride and Prejudice Vagary

MDFThumbnailMr. Darcy’s Fault: A Pride and Prejudice Vagary

TPBThumbnailThe Pemberley Ball: A Pride and Prejudice Vagary

H&HThumbnailHonor and Hope: A Contemporary Pride and Prejudice 

TRTUThumbnailThe Road to Understanding: A Pride and Prejudice Vagary 

Regency and Contemporary Titles: 

ATOSThumbnailA Touch of Scandal: Book 1 of the Realm

ATOVThumbnailA Touch of Velvet: Book 2 of the Realm

ATOCThumbnailA Touch of Cashémere: Book 3 of the Realm

ATOGThumbnailA Touch of Grace: Book 4 of the Realm

ATOMThumbnailA Touch of Mercy: Book 5 of the Realm 

ATOLThumbnailA Touch of Love: Book 6 of the Realm 

ATOHThumbnailA Touch of Honor: Book 7 of the Realm 

ATOEThumbnailA Touch of Emerald: The Conclusion of the Realm 

HAHSThumbnailHis American Heartsong: A Companion to the Realm 

HIEThumbnailHis Irish Eve

FWCThumbnailThe First Wives’ Club 

SCThumbnailSecond Chances: The Courtship Wars

OMPCThumbnail“One Minute Past Christmas” 

Although Pegasus Books controls the price of this title, please know that the eBook version of … 

TPOMDCThumbnailThe Prosecution of Mr. Darcy’s Cousin: A Pride and Prejudice Mystery is now only $4.99. It is a 2016 Frank Yerby Award for Fiction finalist. 

These titles are available from Ulysses Press…

DTThumbnailDarcy’s Temptation: A Sequel to Pride and Prejudice

PhantomThumbnailThe Phantom of Pemberley: A Pride and Prejudice Mystery

CaPThumbnailChristmas at Pemberley: A Pride and Prejudice Holiday Sequel 

DoGDThumbnailThe Disappearance of Georgiana Darcy: A Pride and Prejudice Mystery

TMDOMDThumbnailThe Mysterious Death of Mr. Darcy: A Pride and Prejudice Mystery

VDDThumbnailVampire Darcy’s Desire: A Pride and Prejudice Paranormal 

 

Posted in book release, books, Christmas, contemporary romance, eBooks, Georgian Era, Great Britain, historical fiction, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, marriage customs, Persuasion, Pride and Prejudice, Realm series, Regency era, Regency romance, vampires | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Release of “The Road to Understanding” with an Excerpt and a Giveaway

Posted on April 29, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

Back in 1984, I went into labor 5 weeks early in the middle of my Theatre/Acting class. That early delivery was the joy of my life, especially as I had lost two previous children.

TPB Cover (2) copy 2Over the April 16-17 weekend, I had another early delivery. This one was two weeks early in the form of a new release, an event often repeated in the publishing business. As we authors think of our books as our “babies,” I will admit I am delighted with the successful delivery of this latest one, but, like my son’s early appearance some 31 years prior, I was not ready (I was leaving instructions for my sub as they rolled me out the door on a stretcher.) Most authors try to space out their releases, and so I re-released The Pemberley Ball in early April, for The Road to Understanding was to be a Mother’s Day release. However, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.

So, permit me to introduce you to my latest “baby.” What is the premise of The Road to Understanding, you may ask? First, it is a Pride and Prejudice vagary set on the American front in the late 1780s. The characters are NOT Darcy and Elizabeth, but you will recognize them, nonetheless. They are traveling from the Roanoke, Virginia, to Jonesborough, Tennessee, on The Great Valley Road (i.e., the use of “Road” in the title).

I am not of the persuasion that Austen writes character-driven stories. Do not get me wrong: Austen’s characters are some of the most memorable ever written. However, in my opinion, Austen writes plot-driven stories. Take Pride and Prejudice, for example. Austen’s most popular story has been rewritten in the form of Bridget Jones’s Diary, You’ve Got Mail, Unleashing Mr. Darcy, etc. That is what I have done in The Road to Understanding.

We have the customary characters in this new tale: Charlie Bradford is best friend to Darius Fitzwilliam. They served in the Revolutionary War together. We have the Harris family with three daughters, Jonquil, Eliza, and Margaret. Mr. Norville is the new minister. One of Eliza’s friends is Charlotte MacCaffey. Geoffrey Shannon is the son of the man who betrayed the Fitzwilliam family. Darius has a younger sister named Grace, while Charlie’s sister is Caroline. I have combined the character of Miss King and Lydia into Miss Kimble.

________________________________

This is the “Meryton Assembly” scene from Chapter 2 of The Road to Understanding.

And so on Saturday evening, Darius stood along the wall of the main building in Wythe Court House and watched the Harris ladies and many of the locals he’d encountered on previous journeys to “civilization.” In addition to the farm with its new barn laid out some three miles from the newly minted county seat, the men had constructed a makeshift dance floor from the left over lumber. A wooden floor graced the lawn.

When he and Charlie had arrived, his friend made the proper introductions for the other Harrises. Charlie’s estimation of Miss Jonquil was accurate: The woman held the face of an angel, but Darius preferred the imperfection found in Miss Eliza’s countenance. As to many others enjoying the celebration, he viewed them as too young, mayhap not in years, but certainly in temperament.

“Come, Fitz,” Charlie declared as he saddled up beside Darius, ”you must dance. I dislike seeing you standin’ about in absolute righteousness. You’d be better off claimin’ the attentions of one of the ladies. My sister’s hold on you no longer exists.”

“I am well situated, Charlie. Enjoy the music and the activity. You know I’m not much of a dancer. Even if Miss Bradford were in attendance, I’d be happy to claim my place along the wall. Moreover, I prefer to hold a longer acquaintance with a woman before I pay court.”

Charlie’s frown lines deepened. “Opportunities to take the acquaintance of eligible young women be few, Fitz. We’ll not encounter so many fine lookin’ women in one place any time soon.”

“You’ve danced with the fairest of the brood,” Darius teased.

“Oh, she’s the most beautiful creature I ever beheld,” Charlie pronounced with enthusiasm.

It stung Darius’s pride to view Charlie staring in the direction of where Miss Eliza spoke to her sisters.

“She made no notice of my missin’ hand when I partnered her, simply placed her hand on my stump. No repulsion whatsoever,” Charlie revealed. “As if it didn’t matter.”

“I told you so for the past decade,” Darius reminded his friend.

Charlie grinned widely. “It’s not as if your opinion doesn’t make a squat, but it’s different when a fine lady treats a man with respect.”

At least Miss Eliza had treated Charlie as Darius hoped. “Then you best be at it. The music will start again soon; you don’t want another to claim your prize.”

“Are you certain you’ll not join the set?” Charlie implored. “I mean again to claim Miss Jonni as partner, but there are several other very pleasant girls among the Harrises’ acquaintances.”

“You’ll claim the prettiest girl at the party,” Darius added his encouragement. “How might I compete with your engaging conversation?”

“Miss Eliza has yet to claim a partner for the next tune?” Charlie suggested. “You could do worse.”

Darius’s heart stuttered with the possibility. What would it be to hold the woman’s hand? To claim refreshments with Miss Eliza upon his arm? To escort her into the dark and to steal a kiss?

Without considering the ramifications, he turned to look upon Miss Eliza, until, catching her eye, Darius withdrew his own. Before responding to Charlie, he paused to will the desire from his blood.

“The girl’s tolerable, but not to my nature. I’m in no humor to pay attendance upon any woman this evening, especially one that thinks herself some sort of female equal to the men she meets. Less than a week prior, I considered myself engaged to your sister. Enjoy your many partners and their smiles. You waste your time with me.”

Charlie followed Darius’s advice. Unfortunately, when Darius turned toward the refreshment table, he didn’t notice that Miss Eliza and Miss MacCaffey had moved to within hearing distance of his conversation with Charlie. Darius didn’t witness the flush of color, which claimed the lady’s cheeks, nor did he note how her shoulders stiffened with his remark.

“I’m sorry for Mr. Fitzwilliam’s unthinking remark,” Charlotte MacCaffey said in regret.

Eliza swallowed the hurt: She’d never realized how much harm words could cause. “Think nothin’ of it,” she told her newest friend.

Eliza had liked Miss MacCaffey from the moment of their first meeting. The girl was a bit older than Jonni and not of the most handsome features, but Eliza found much to admire. Miss MacCaffey was well read and held astute opinions. Eliza felt as if they’d known each other forever.

“It’s not as if I wish Mr. Fitzwilliam’s approval.”

“I suppose men of his ilk only look to a woman’s station. My father says Mr. Fitzwilliam’s father is quite wealthy–the man owns more land than fifty others combined.”

Eliza’s eyebrow rose in curiosity. “I didn’t realize.” The concept perplexed her. She’d known other wealthy farmers and tradesmen, but none who’d chosen to ignore her as if she were an indentured servant. “And what of Miss Bradford? Wasn’t Mr. Fitzwilliam to marry Mr. Bradford’s sister?”

“Oh, yes, but the lady married another. Rumors say Miss Bradford didn’t wish to live in the wilderness. As to the woman’s brother, Papa says Mr. Bradford be quite wealthy also. Not as much as the younger Mr. Fitzwilliam, but near half. The elder Bradford owned a large mercantile. Supplied much of what the troops required in the war. One of the fortunate ones. Got paid regular for his efforts.”

“A person would never know the man wealthy,” Eliza remarked as she studied her sister Jonni in close conversation with Bradford. For a moment, she wondered if Jonquil held any knowledge of Mr. Bradford’s being more than another frontiersman, but Eliza quickly rejected the idea. Jonni wasn’t the type to practice feminine deceptions. “Mr. Fitzwilliam may hold double the income of his friend, but the man isn’t so well worth listening to as be Mr. Bradford. Fortune isn’t a man’s only redeeming quality.”

ATOV CoverBack Cover:

DARIUS FITZWILLIAM’s life is planned down to who he will marry and where he will live, but life has a way of saying, “You don’t get to choose.” When his marriage to his long-time betrothed Caroline Brad

ford falls through, Darius is forced to take a step back and to look upon a woman who enflames his blood with desire, but also engenders disbelief. Eliza Harris is everything that Darius never realized he wanted.

ELIZA HARRIS is accustomed to doing as she pleases. Yet, despite being infuriated by his authoritative manner, when she meets the staunchly disciplined Captain Fitzwilliam, she wishes for more. She instinctively knows he is “home,” but Eliza possesses no skills in achieving her aspirations.

Plagued with misunderstandings, manipulations, and peril upon the Great Valley Road between eastern Virginia and western Tennessee in the years following the Revolutionary War, Darius and Eliza claim a strong allegiance before love finds its way into their hearts.

This is a faith-based tale based on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.

Purchase Links:

Kindle        Kobo         Nook      Amazon      CreateSpace   

NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY!!! I HAVE TWO eBOOK COPIES OF “THE ROAD TO UNDERSTANDING” AVAILABLE FOR THOSE WHO COMMENT BELOW. RANDOM.ORG WILL PICK THE WINNERS.

Posted in American History, Appalachia, book excerpts, book release, historical fiction, Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, Vagary | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Do You Know These Words and Phrases?

Posted on April 26, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

These are some of the words and phrases I have encountered of late while reading. Some I knew the meaning and some I did not. Even when I knew the meaning, I was interested in the word’s origin or how it came into the language. 

From the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, we find the following for Trumpery Ring: 1. Deceit; fraud. [Obs.]; 2. Grenewey Something serving to deceive by false show or pretense; falsehood; deceit; worthless but showy matter; hence,things worn out and of no value; rubbish. Example: The trumpery in my house, go bring it hither, for state to catch these thieves. -Shakespeare (or) Example: Upon the coming of Christ, very much, though not all, of this idolatrous trumpery and superstition was driven out of the world.-from a Robert South sermon. 3. Worthless or deceptive in character. “A trumpery little ring.” -Thackeray.

Escaramuza is the Spanish word for skirmish. I was fascinated to how it has come to mean: Girl in escaramuza dress, the female counterpart to a charro. Wordnik gives us this example: As early enthusiasts became more proficient at riding, they began beefing up the speed and intricacy of their drill routines, giving rise to a new and more descriptive label for the art — escaramuza — the Spanish word for skirmish.

Abrigado also comes to us from Spanish. The Oxford Dictionary provides us with these meanings:  sheltered, as a bay sheltered or protected from the wind (un rincón abrigado del frío/de la lluvia); a sheltered spot out of the cold/the rain.

The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue tells us that Corkbrained means lightheaded or foolish, the Merriman Webster Dictionary says Saphead means a weak-minded or stupid person and Madcap mean marked by capriciousness, recklessness, or foolishness. 

I discovered lots of examples of the phrase Cross-and-Jostle Work, but no actual definition. Mayhap someone reading this post, might help. There is a very sexual reference on Urban Dictionary, but I refuse to believe those who wrote the following examples had vibrating buttocks in mind.

From Kasey Michaels and Alphabet Regency Romance Complete Box Set in The Somerville Farce, we find “Andy nodded vigorously. ‘Cross-and-jostle work, the fella we met called it, isn’t that right, Willie, my good friend? Yes, that was it, prime cross-and-jostle work.” 

From Exercises, Political and Others, Volume 6 by Thomas Perronet Thompson, we find a different example: “Two men will not starve when one will suffice, a highly laudable species of economy. The landlords limit the food that shall be there to eat; and because there would be no use in two thousand men agreeing to die upon half the food that can keep soul and body together, they either toss up for it or play a cross-and-jostle match and one thousand lives while the other dies.” 

Meanwhile, The English Spy: An Original Work, Characteristic, Satirical, and Humorous, Volume 2 by Charles Molloy Westmacott provides us with this example: “Optimus: What, cross-and-jostle work again? A second edition of Virginia Water? But I thought you felt assured that Cannon would not do wrong for the wealth of Windsor Castle.”

Merriman-Webster Dictionary provides these two meanings for Nabob:  a provincial governor of the Mogul empire in India; 2:  a person of great wealth or prominence. Meanwhile, The Free Dictionary gives us these three meanings for Flummery: 1. Meaningless or deceptive language; humbug. 2. a. Any of several soft, sweet, bland foods, such as custard. b. A sweet gelatinous pudding made by straining boiled oatmeal or flour. c. A soft dessert of stewed, thickened fruit, often mixed with a grain such as rice. I recognized the first definition, but the second. Needless to say, Dandified means greatly concerned with smartness of dress.

neckclothitania-1818.gifDid you know that Trone d’ amour is a style of cravat. The Trone d’Amour – The The trone d’Amour is the most austere after the Oriental Tie – It must be extremely well stiffened with starch. It is formed by one single horizontal dent in the middle. Colour, Yeux de fille en extase.

There are rumors that A Whole Ball of Wax is derived from workers at Madame Tussauds, but this seems a bit contrived. I have also heard that it is derived from the term the whole bailiwick. 

World Wide Words tells us, “What we do know is that the whole ball of wax is everything and so essentially means the same as other American expressions such as the whole nine yards, the whole shooting match, the whole megillah, the whole shebang and the whole enchilada. Until recently, its first appearance was in the ninth edition of Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary of 1953 and was assumed to be of that period. It turns out to be much older.

“We can dismiss the Madame Tussaud’s connection out of hand. It’s the product of an unoriginal mind which has linked wax with waxworks and done the equivalent of making two and two equal five.

“Another story appeared in William and Mary Morris’s book The Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins. They quote an English legal text from 1620 which describes the allocation of land among the heirs to an estate by a process very much like a lottery. Each parcel of land was listed on its own piece of paper, sealed inside a small ball of wax, and placed in a hat. Each heir then pulled out one of the balls to discover which part was his. The Morrises were strangely credulous about a link between this process and the expression in view of the nearly 400-year and more than 3,000-mile gap between that description and the then first known appearance of the phrase. Whatever the origin, this isn’t it.

“A graphic artist claims he heard the following during a seminar on typography: the phrase comes from typesetting. He was told that, in the days when type was made of metal, small pieces of gold would flake off the typesetting equipment. The typesetter would collect the gold flakes in a ball of wax to later melt down and reclaim the gold. Very often, someone would make off with the whole ball of wax. However, I can’t find a reference anywhere to that method having been used to gather up flakes of waste gold.

51XPGxNbneL._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_“I did find what seemed to be a clue to its origins, in a disintegrating paperback in my library — a science-fiction novel of 1954 by Shepherd Mead, who two years before had written How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Called The Big Ball of Wax, it’s a futuristic satire on business and advertising in America and contains this line from the narrator, a market research man, about the story to come: ‘Well, why don’t we go back to the beginning and roll it all up, as the fellows say, into one big ball of wax?’, that is, put everything together to make a coherent and complete whole. This sounds too much like a fuller and less elliptical early version of the saying to be a coincidence.

“However, many old newspapers have now been digitised, so that they can he readily searched electronically. This has thrown up a number of much older appearances of the phrase. The earliest found so far is from the Atlanta Constitution of 25 April 1882: ‘We notice that John Sherman & Co. have opened a real estate office in Washington. Believing in his heart of hearts that he owns this country, we will be greatly surprised if Mr. Sherman does not attempt to sell out the whole ball of wax under the hammer.’ Another a few months later was in the Indiana Democrat: ‘The Democrats can beat the ‘whole ball of wax’ this season.’ (Note the quotation marks enclosing the expression, a good sign that it was regarded as rather too recently coined or colloquial to be admitted to full membership of the language.)

“The origin has been taken back so far that it is beginning to look as though another often-told story might be the right one. It is said that whole ball of wax is a humorous modification of whole bailiwick, perhaps because of a mental association between bail and ball, and between wick and candle wax.”

Thrasonical (Pronounced /θrəˈsɒnɪkəl/) “should be put in the category of educated insults, since only those who have swallowed the dictionary or know Latin literature understand what it means. A thrasonical person is a braggart. The original was a former soldier named Thraso, a character in the play Eunuchus (The Eunuch), which was written in 161 B. C. and became the most popular of the six by the writer whom we know as Terence.

“Thrasonical started to appear in English in the sixteenth century, in time for Shakespeare to put it into the mouth of Rosalind in As you Like It. She describes Julius Caesar’s famous assertion veni, vidi, vici (“I came, I saw, I conquered”) as a thrasonical brag.

“These days, its most frequent appearances are in a widely-reproduced bit of advice to aspiring authors or public speakers: ‘Let your conversation possess a clarified conciseness, compacted comprehensibleness, coalescent consistency, and a concatenated cogency. Eschew all conglomerations of flatulent garrulity, jejune babblement, and asinine affectations. Let your extemporaneous descantings and unpremeditated expatiations have intelligibility, without rhodomontade or thrasonical bombast. Sedulously avoid all polysyllabical profundity, pompous prolixity, and ventriloquial vapidity. Shun double-entendre and prurient jocosity, whether obscure or apparent. In other words, speak truthfully, naturally, clearly, purely, but do not use large words.’ – Notes and Queries, 11 Feb. 1893.

“In an idle moment, I set out to trace this to its origin. It turns out to be a hardy perennial, which became popular on both sides of the Atlantic from the 1880s on, appearing regularly in magazines and newspapers. The earliest unearthed so far is in the Pennsylvania School Journal of 1874. It is surely older still. You may feel that both thrasonical brag and thrasonical bombast are tautological. I couldn’t possibly disagree.” (World Wide Words)

The last one for today is Shemozzle (Pronounced /ʃɪˈmɒz(ə)l) “is a state of confusion and chaos. It might simply be a muddle, or it could be a ruckus, row, quarrel or loud commotion.” Agatha Christie used it in The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side (1962): “No end of a shemozzle there’s been there lately,” he said. “Marina Gregg’s been having hysterics most days. Said some coffee she was given was poisoned.”

World Wide Words says the word appears to be of Yiddish origin, “fitting the pattern of a group of terms that that are best known in American English through the influence of Yiddish-speaking immigrants: schlock, schlemiel, schmaltz, schlepper, schmuck, schlimazel. (Much variation exists in the way they are spelled.) However, many of these are known earlier in the speech of German immigrants to Britain.

“Shemozzle grew up as part of the slang of London’s East End more than a century ago, a creation of bookmakers and racecourse touts. Jonathon Green has found early examples of shemozzle in articles by the racing journalist Arthur Binstead, who penned ‘gloriously non-PC’ columns in the Sporting Times at the end of the nineteenth century under the pseudonym “Morris the Mohel.” (A mohel is a person who is qualified to perform the Jewish rite of circumcision.)

Shemozzle has since spread around the world: “‘The money is starting to dry up. … I’m now fighting to get anything. They are not responding to my emails. It’s been a shemozzle, a complete and utter waste of time and money.’ – Sydney Morning Herald, 15 Feb. 2010.

“Leo Rosten denied in The Joys of Yiddish that it [shemozzle] had any connection with that language, and others argue similarly that it was invented in imitation of other Yiddish words, but isn’t one.

“Some references cautiously suggest that it was loosely based on the Yiddish slim mazel, which became schlimazel in the U. S. Yiddish was originally a German dialect whose vocabulary includes lots of Hebrew words. Slim mazel is a good example: slim is old German, meaning “crooked”, while mazel is from Hebrew mazzal, a star or planet, though its main meaning is “luck”. So slim mazel may be translated as “crooked luck”, roughly the opposite of the Yiddish mazel tov, good luck. But how that changed to mean a rumpus is far from obvious.

Picture-1-300x289“Schlemiel! Schlimazel! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!” What does this strange sentence mean? At the start of each episode, Laverne and Shirley are seen skipping down the street, arm in arm, reciting a Yiddish-American hopscotch chant: “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Schlemiel! Schlimazel! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!” This then leads into the series’ theme song which is entitled “Making Our Dreams Come True” and is performed by Cyndi Grecco.

schlemiel : an inept clumsy person; a bungler; a dolt (Yiddish shlemil)

schlimazel : a chronically unlucky person (שלימזל shlimazl, from Middle High German slim ‘crooked’ and Hebrew מזל mazzāl ‘luck’) (OED)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_English_words_of_Yiddish_origin

Hasenpfeffer (also spelled hasenfeffer) is a traditional German stew made from marinated rabbit or hare. Pfeffer is not only the name of a spice, but also of a dish where the animal’s blood is used as a gelling agent for the sauce.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasenpfeffer

Posted in language choices, vocabulary, word choices, word origins, word play | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Coburg’s Influence on Queen Victoria

Posted on April 15, 2016 by Regina Jeffers
220px-Leopold_I_of_Belgium_(2)

https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Leopold_I_of_Belgium

Leopold I of Belgium exercised great influence over Queen Victoria. He replaced Victoire, the Queen’s mother, as the young queen’s confidant. “Born into the ruling family of the small German duchy of  Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Leopold took a commission in the Imperial Russian Army and fought against Napoleon after French troops overran Saxe-Coburg during the Napoleonic Wars. After Napoleon’s defeat, Leopold moved to the United Kingdom where he married Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of the Prince Regent (the future King George IV), thus situating himself as a possible future prince consort of Great Britain. Charlotte died in 1817, although Leopold continued to enjoy considerable status in England.” (Leopold I of Belgium) Ironically, Leopold chose to remain in England after Charlotte’s death to forestall any attempts of Parliament to rescind the allowance awarded him with his marriage to Princess Charlotte. 

Initially, as the uncle to Princess Victoria, Leopold supported his sister Victoire. He served as loving uncle, and Victoria spent many happy days at his home, Claremont House, in Surrey. Yet, in 1831, Prince Leopold became Leopold I of Belgium. His exit left Princess Victoria totally under the control of Victorie, the Duchess of Kent, and the duchess’s widely-detested adviser, Sir John Conroy. 

“Her mother the Duchess of Kent,  was the sister of both Albert’s father—the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha—and King Leopold. Leopold arranged for his sister, Victoria’s mother, to invite the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his two sons to visit Victorie in May 1836, with the purpose of meeting Victoria. William IV, however, disapproved of any match with the Coburgs, and instead favoured the suit of Prince Alexander, second son of the Prince of Orange. Victoria was well aware of the various matrimonial plans and critically appraised a parade of eligible princes. She wrote, ‘[Albert] is extremely handsome; his hair is about the same colour as mine; his eyes are large and blue, and he has a beautiful nose and a very sweet mouth with fine teeth; but the charm of his countenance is his expression, which is most delightful.’ Alexander, on the other hand, she described as ‘very plain.’

Six years later when Victoria assumed the throne of Great Britain, she was “hell-bent” on making her own decisions. Victoria went so far as to warn Leopold that his political advice would find an empty vessel. Leopold took a different route: He became matchmaker. His nephew, Prince Albert of Coburg, was the younger son of his brother, the reigning sovereign of Coburg. At Leopold’s suggestion Albert was sent to England to woo Victoria and, more importantly, to bring Coburg’s influence to the most powerful nation in the world. 

“Victoria wrote to her uncle Leopold to thank him ‘for the prospect of great happiness you have contributed to give me, in the person of dear Albert … He possesses every quality that could be desired to render me perfectly happy.’ Although the parties did not undertake a formal engagement, both the family and their retainers widely assumed that the match would take place.” (Albert, Prince Consort)

Albert’s first journey to England came when he was still in his teens, but Victoria was too enthralled with the independence her new position provided than to think much of becoming a wife. There was a time that Victoria thought never to marry for she held no desire to subjugate herself in any manner to another. Rumors also exist that Victoria’s was not too keen on sexual intimacies, but that soon changed. 

Albert’s second journey to England came some two years later. Victoria now looked upon her cousin with a more favorable eye. They were soon “in love.” Victoria proposed to Albert on 30 October 1839 for she outranked him. The announcement of Victoria’s intention to marry was made 23 November of the same year. Albert was naturalised by an Act of Parliament, and granted the style of Royal Highness by an  Order in Council. Victoria and Albert were married on 10 February 1840 at the Chapel Royal, St James’s Palace. They were both a few months short of 21 years at the time. 

220px-Prince_Albert_-_Partridge_1840

https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Albert,_Prince_Consort

Leopold insinuated that a peerage for Albert was expected, but reportedly, the House of Lords would not accept a foreigner serving among them. Anti-German sentiments and a desire to keep Albert an outsider in political matters prevailed. Lord “Melbourne led a minority government and the opposition took advantage of the marriage to weaken his position further. They opposed the ennoblement of Albert and granted him a smaller annuity than previous consorts, £30,000 instead of the usual £50,000. Albert claimed that he had no need of a British peerage; he wrote, ‘It would almost be a step downwards, for as a Duke of Saxony, I feel myself much higher than a Duke of York or Kent.'” (Albert, Prince Consort) Victoria suggested “King Consort,” but that, too, was denied Albert. For eighteen years, her husband was addressed only as “Prince Albert.” In 1858, Victoria honored him with the titular dignity of “Prince Consort.” 

“[They] would ultimately have nine children. Initially, Albert felt constrained by his position as consort, which did not confer any power or duties upon him. Over time he lent his support to many public causes, such as educational reform and the worldwide abolition of slavery, and took on the responsibilities of running the Queen’s household, estates and office. He was heavily involved with the organisation of the Great Exhibition of 1851, which was a resounding success.

“As the Queen depended more and more on his help and guidance, Albert aided in the development of Britain’s constitutional monarchy by persuading his wife to show less partisanship in her dealings with Parliament—although he actively disagreed with the interventionist foreign policy pursued during Lord Palmerston’s tenure as Foreign Secretary.” (Albert, Prince Consort)

Victoria and Albert were together for 20 years before his death at age 42. The Queen grieved for the loss of her husband for an additional 40 years until her death.

 

 

Posted in British history, customs and tradiitons, Georgian England, Georgian Era, marriage, marriage customs, Regency era, titles of aristocracy, Victorian era | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Celebrating the Release of “The Pemberley Ball: A Pride and Prejudice Vagary Novella” with an Excerpt + Giveaway

Posted on April 8, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

51sa67KvExL._SX327_BO1,204,203,200_ “The Pemberley Ball” originally appeared in The Road to Pemberley: An Anthology of New Pride and Prejudice Stories, published by Ulysses Press in 2011. Each author whose work was included in the anthology received a one time payment (in lieu of royalties). He/she maintained the rights to his/her story. I have chosen to rework my original story and re-release. It is now a 36,000+ word novella rather than a short story.

That being said, you should know that I wrote several versions of this story, and I have made many changes from the one printed in the anthology. For one thing, I am so much wiser about the Regency period than I was in 2011. In other words, the historical elements are more accurate. Secondly, I have added passages and description that I could not include in the original because of the limited word count permitted for each story in the anthology. Finally, I have decided to include three versions of the story’s climax in this new release. Therefore, when the reader reaches Part 5 of the story, he/she will find three passages; the first shows the constantly in command Mr. Darcy. This is the one we all know and love. He anticipates every possible obstacle in his way and perseveres. The second proves Mr. Darcy the consummate Alpha Male. Personally, I liked this Darcy. He goes after what he wants and permits the chips to fall where they may. However, one of my Beta readers was not so enthralled with this characterization. Let me know what you think when you read the story. The third gives our hero the opportunity to proclaim his frustrations with Elizabeth, as well as with Mr. Wickham. This one will likely be the most popular of the offerings for Wickham receives his comeuppance. The reader may choose to read alternate passage #1, #2 or #3 or all of them.

TPB eBook Cover (1) copyBack Cover:

Elizabeth Bennet’s acceptance of his hand in marriage presents FITZWILLIAM DARCY a hope of the world being different. Elizabeth offers warmth and naturalness and a bit of defiance; but there is vulnerability also. With characteristic daring, she boldly withstood Caroline Bingley’s barbs, while displaying undying devotion to her sister Jane. More unpredictably, she verbally fenced with the paragon of crudeness, his aunt, Lady Catherine, and walked away relatively unscathed. One often finds his betrothed self-mockingly entertaining her sisters and friends, and despite Darcy’s best efforts, the woman makes him laugh. She brings lightness to his spirit after so many years of grief.

Unfortunately for ELIZABETH BENNET, what begins gloriously turns to concern for their future. She recognizes her burgeoning fears as unreasonable; yet, she cannot displace them. She refuses to speculate on what Mr. Darcy will say when he learns she is not the brilliant choice he proclaims her to be. Moreover, she does not think she can submit to the gentleman’s staid lifestyle. Not even for love can Elizabeth accept capitulation.

Will Elizabeth set her qualms aside to claim ‘home’ in the form of the man she truly affects or will her courage fail her? Enjoy a bit of mayhem that we commonly call “Happily Ever After,” along with three alternate turning points to this tale of love and loss and love again from Austen-inspired author, Regina Jeffers.

EXCERPT:

(You may read the beginning of Part 1 on Austen Authors HERE.) The excerpt below is a continuation of the scene.)

“I suppose my mother forgets that I, too, have a wedding to plan,” Elizabeth said softly beside him. They sat together in a small Longbourn drawing room.

As was typical, after the evening meal, Mr. Bennet retreated to his study to read. Miss Kitty examined the latest fashion plates, and Miss Mary practiced her music. Mrs. Bennet demanded that Miss Bennet and Bingley join her in her sitting room to finalize plans for their wedding breakfast. So, although others remained in the room, he and Elizabeth were essentially alone.

With a deep sigh, Elizabeth turned to him. “It is abhorrent of me to complain after all your ministrations on my sister’s behalf. Forgive me, Mr. Darcy.”

Darcy watched her features carefully, expecting Elizabeth to turn her moment of envy into another disparagement on her own failings, but she did not perform to expectations. Evidently, this was one of those private moments. Elizabeth would show him a face, which spoke the truth: Her mother’s preference bruised his future wife’s ego.

“I would forgive you anything, Elizabeth, if you could see your way clear to call me something less formal than Mr. Darcy. In private, could you not consider my given name?”

Elizabeth’s smile broke her mouth’s line. “You wish for me to call you Fitzwilliam?”

“If Fitzwilliam does not suit you, the family often calls me ‘William.’ With Fitzwilliam being the family name for my mother’s brother and my cousins, ‘William’ causes less confusion.”

“I would be honored,” she said softly.

“Then say it, Elizabeth,” he whispered hoarsely.

An inexplicable emotion spread through his veins, and Darcy’s breathing suddenly constricted. His gaze slid over her. Elizabeth’s eyes mesmerized him. She looked upon him, her head angled to bare the length of her throat. Darcy noted the pulse point at the base of her neck throbbed as prominently as did his. He wished to touch her, to caress her cheeks, to bury his hand in the thickness of her hair. The effect Elizabeth had on him always took Darcy by surprise. A pleasant surprise! But a surprise nonetheless. Elizabeth leaned in, unaware of what her nearness did to his composure.

“William, did I tell you how pleased I am to become your wife?” she murmured.

Darcy swallowed a shot of desire shooting through him. He planned to kiss Elizabeth this evening–actually dreamed how it would be. His finger now traced a line from her temple to her chin.

“You, my dearest, loveliest Elizabeth, do not know how often I prayed to hear my name upon your lips, and the fact that you express a pleasure in our future joining raises my hopes of our marital felicity.”

Realizing the impropriety they practiced, with a slight blush, Elizabeth leaned back, placing distance between them.

“May we speak of the wedding, Sir?”

Darcy frowned with the return of formality, but he said evenly, “Most assuredly, Miss Elizabeth. What do you wish to settle?”

Elizabeth turned to sit more squarely on.

“It would…it would seem, Sir, that we must agree on the ceremony’s date. Do you favor a long engagement?”

Darcy straightened his shoulders, a posture he instinctively adopted when completing business transactions; after all, among his society, marriage was a business.

“I waited to claim you for a year. I must admit that I am of the persuasion to finalize that claim as quickly as possible, but I am not insensitive to the fact that this is a greater change for you. You must leave your home and family behind to start a new life with me. And although I want none but you on Pemberley’s staircase waiting for my anticipated return from a business journey or from a day in the fields with my tenants, I will understand if you insist on a longer waiting period.”

Elizabeth blushed again. “You thought of me with you at Pemberley, William?” she asked sweetly.

Darcy smiled at her return to flirting with him. “You would be quite shocked, Elizabeth, at how often each day that you enter my mind.”

“How often?” she prompted innocently.

“Too often,” he growled in hushed tones. “And in too many ways,” he purposely said to shock her.

If this conversation continued, he would embarrass himself with an increase in his manhood.

“Oh!” she gasped. An elongated pause followed. Elizabeth glanced toward where her sister sketched changes in a dress pattern.

“Other than my father, I do not believe anyone at Longbourn will realize I am absent,” she mumbled. Elizabeth swallowed her obvious moment of regret and then presented Darcy a fresh smile. “A shorter engagement appears advisable,” she said with more confidence. “Mr. Bingley tells me that the roads to the north can become more hazardous as winter approaches. If we are to Derbyshire, it would be judicious to do so sooner rather than later.”

“Mr. Bingley is correct: Derbyshire winters can be quite cruel. Moreover, I would wish to celebrate the festive days at Pemberley. Georgiana and I spent the last few Christmases in London. It is my dream to bring you to my home and for you to share it with my sister. With your acceptance, I instructed Mrs. Reynolds to set plans for a winter ball. We have not held one at Pemberley for more than a decade. I will introduce my new wife to my close family and the neighborhood. It will make your transition as the estate’s mistress easier.”

Elizabeth attempted to hide her apprehension, but Darcy took due note of it.

“Then after the calling of the banns…how much longer after the vicar makes the third call?” she thought aloud.

Darcy smiled at her. It amazed him how nervous Elizabeth was about the reality of their joining. He held the advantage in that manner, for Darcy long ago began imagining their life together.

“Although I do not know why you insist upon a calling of the banns, when I could easily purchase a standard license, if the choice of dates is to be mine, the day following the third calling.”

“Despite Mr. Bennet being a gentleman who recognizes a calling of banns is, generally, not done among our social class, my father believes the neighborhood that  depends upon his charity deserve to know of Longbourn’s happiness. But more importantly to the issue at hand, my sister and Mr. Bingley chose the Monday after our third Sunday calling for their date. Had you thought of a double wedding? Is that your wish, Mr. Darcy?”

Darcy’s frown lines met. “I never considered a double wedding as a possibility, nor did I foresee our final banns being called so close to Miss Bennet’s chosen day.” In spite of a bit of apprehension, Darcy infused his voice with an encouraging tone. “Notwithstanding my close association with Bingley, I would not be pleased to share the day of your and my joining with him and Miss Bennet. I would have you gloried in your own right as my wife.”

Elizabeth expelled a sigh of relief.

“Thank you for understanding, William,” she whispered. “I love Jane, but the day I am named Mrs. Darcy is not a day I would want to half with another.”

“Then a week after the final calling,” he declared. “That is a month from this Sunday. Is that sufficient time, Elizabeth?”

“It is perfect, William. The first week of November,” she said wistfully.

* * *

“Your hat, Mr. Darcy.” Elizabeth teased him by clinging to Darcy’s arm, and he knew a sense of satisfaction.

“Walk me out,” he said softly as he caught her hand and tugged Elizabeth along behind him. As quickly as they were away from the lights streaming from Longbourn’s windows, Darcy pulled her into his embrace.

“William,” she giggled, but Elizabeth came willingly against him, resting her head on Darcy’s chest. He wrapped his great coat about her to keep her both warm and in his embrace.

He bent his head to speak to her ear. “Elizabeth,” he rasped, “it is my intention to kiss you.” He felt her stiffen with uncertainty. “If you do not wish me to do so at this time, then you should return to the house immediately.”

Darcy waited for her decision. When she remained in his arms, he felt the exhilaration: Elizabeth would accept his kiss. He lifted her chin and lowered his mouth to hers.

He kept one arm about her to steady her. With his other hand, Darcy cupped her chin, tilting her head gently upward. Elizabeth was an innocent, and he moved slowly, permitting her to withdraw if she became frightened.

At length, he brushed his lips across hers before adding a bit of pressure. A slow caress of mouth against mouth. A gentle nip. He skimmed his tongue along the seam of Elizabeth’s lips, and she opened for him. Even then, Darcy did not deepen the kiss–just enjoyed the possibility. After a few moments, he reluctantly ended the pleasure of knowing her intimately.

“You are delicious,” he whispered seductively.

Elizabeth clung to his coat’s lapels, but she breathed the words, “So are you.”

Darcy recognized her blush’s heat when she realized what she had said. He bent to kiss the tip of Elizabeth’s nose.

“We will take my curricle and see some of the countryside tomorrow,” he declared.

“Orders, Mr. Darcy?” Elizabeth taunted as she released her hold on his lapels.

He slid his hands down Elizabeth’s arms, capturing her hands in his. Darcy chuckled. “As you, my dear, are new to courtship, needless to say, you will not object if I issue orders. It is only after we marry that you will voice your opposition.”

Elizabeth stepped back to release his hold on her, her hands fisting at her waist. “Have you learned nothing of my nature, Mr. Darcy? There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises with every attempt to intimidate me.”

Darcy laughed warmly. “Now there is the Elizabeth Bennet who plagued my every waking moment for a year.”

He caught her hand again and led Elizabeth to where his horse stood waiting. “I will call for you at eleven.”

“Yes, William,” she said in a coy taunt. “I shall be anticipating it.” Elizabeth emphasized her tone’s sweetness.

With fondness in his gesture, Darcy kissed her forehead.

“Good evening, Elizabeth. I, too, will anticipate the day.”

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Jane Austen’s Love of the British Navy

Posted on April 6, 2016 by Regina Jeffers
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Battle of Trafalgar – British Royal Navy: Nelson: Napoleonic Wars http://www.napolun.com

In referring to the cult-like following of those who extolled all things involving Admiral Horatio Nelson, Jane Austen once wrote, “I am sick of Nelson.” Yet, the author always appreciated the lives of men in the Royal Navy. Two of her brothers served thusly. The British Navy at the time of the Napoleonic War was divided into “ships of the line,” those carrying between 60 and 100 guns, and “cruisers,” which were frigates, sloops, and brigs with fewer guns. In 1810, British naval strength was estimated to be 150+ ships of the line and near 400 cruisers. Documents on the naval history sites say that the Navy employed 800+captains, 600+ commanders, and nearly 3300 lieutenants.

During the Napoleonic Wars, the size of the British fleet was greater than all the other sea-faring nations put together.

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THE REMAINS OF AN 18TH CENTURY SHIP HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED THROUGH DETECTIVE WORK ON HER TIMBERS AS THE NAMUR, WHOSE CREWS INCLUDED JANE AUSTEN’S SEAFARING BROTHER CHARLES, AND OLAUDAH EQUIANO, THE MOST FAMOUS BLACK WRITER AND ANTI-SLAVERY ACTIVIST OF GEORGIAN ENGLAND. http://www.allempires.com /forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=32226

The British Isles remained safe behind the “Wooden Walls” of the Royal Navy, and Britain was able to continue its world trade and empire building. They controlled English Channel and trading routes with size of their fleet, but Britain also actively sent its vessels out to attack enemy warships. With its strength in numbers and its developing naval industry, Britain could risk losing a ship or two to protect the British people.

In 1797, 1801, and 1807, the British navy sailed to destroy the neutral or French-allied vessels of Holland and Denmark. At Camperdown in 1797, Admiral Duncan pitted his 16 ships against 16 Dutch warships under Admiral de Winter and destroyed the enemy fleet – capturing seven Dutchmen and allowing the rest to flee.

In April 1801, the Admirality sent an expedition against Denmark to break up a northern European agreement, the Armed Neutrality of the North, that threatened British trade and shipbuilding materiel – wood, rope, grain and tar – in the Baltic Sea.

The naval Battle of Copenhagen was a British victory that saw 12 of 18 Danish vessels captured and ended the threat to its trade. In 1807, Britain again moved against Denmark when it became known there was a French move to grab the Danish fleet. Admiral Gambier took 20 ships of the line and an infantry force of some 20,000 men – including Arthur Wellesley (yes, that is the Duke of Wellington) – to prevent the vessels falling into French hands. A two-week siege began and a Danish military move to break the blockade was ended by Wellesley’s infantry. The bombardment of the capital by the Royal Navy forced neutral Denmark to hand over its 18 ships to London.

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Rear Admiral Charles Austen, youngest of the Austen brothers

Jane Austen’s brothers entered the navy at the age of 12 and first went to sea at age 15. Naval life was a hard one, and many believed it necessary “to toughen up the boys.” Unlike in the army, naval commissions could not be bought. It was necessary to succeed in a naval career to have the patronage of an influential personage. If one knows of Admiral Crawford in Mansfield Park, this makes more sense. A man earned his future in prize money. Do we not recall Captains Wentworth, Benwick, and Harville in Persuasion? The captain would receive one-fourth of the value of the captured ship. His officers would receive graduated proportions, and ordinary seamen divided the final quarter among themselves. InPersuasion, Wentworth has earned 20,000 pounds in his eight years of service. Men learned to look forward to another war so they might continue their winning ways.”

Excerpt from Jane Austen’s Persuasion:

Upon letting Sir Walter’s estate, Mr. Shepherd, who is Sir Walter Elliot’s man of business, ventures a suggestion:

“If a rich Admiral were to come in our way. . . “

“He would be a very lucky man, Shepherd,” replied Sir Walter. “That’s all I have to remark.”

“I presume to observe, Sir Walter, that, in the way of business, gentlemen of the navy are very well to deal with. . .I am free to confess that they have very liberal notions and are as likely to make desirable tenants as any set of people one should meet with.”

Sir Walter only nodded. But soon afterwards, rising and pacing the room, he observed sarcastically, “There are few among the gentlemen of the navy, I imagine, who would not be surprised to find themselves in a house of this description.”

Here Sir Walter’s daughter Anne spoke, “The navy, I think, who have done so much for us, have at least an equal claim with any other set of men, for all the comforts and all the privileges which any home can give. Sailors work hard enough for their comforts, we must all allow.”

“Very true, very true. What Miss Anne says, is very true,’ was Mr. Shepherd’s rejoinder, and “Oh! certainly,” was his daughter’s; but Sir Walter’s remark was, soon afterwards. “The profession has its utility, but I should be sorry to see any friend of mine belonging to it.”

“Indeed!” was the reply, and with a look of surprise.

“Yes; it is in two points offensive to me; I have two strong grounds of objection to it. First, as being the means of bringing persons of obscure birth into undue distinction, and raising men to honours which their fathers and grandfathers never dreamt of; and secondly, as it cuts up a man’s youth and vigour most horribly; a sailor grows old sooner than any other man; I have observed it all my life. A man is in greater danger in the navy of being insulted by the rise of one whose father, his father might have distained to speak to, and of becoming prematurely an object of disgust himself, than in any other line. One day last spring, in town, I was in company with two men, striking instances of what I am talking of, Lord St. Ives, whose father we all know to have been a country curate, without bread to eat; I was to give place to Lord St. Ives, and a certain Admiral Baldwin, the most deplorable looking personage you can imagine, his face the colour of mahogany, rough and rugged to the last degree, all lines and wrinkles, nine grey hairs of a side, and nothing but a dab of powder at top.– ‘Inthe name of heaven, who is that old fellow?’ said I, to a friend of mine who was standing near (Sir Basil Morley). ‘Old fellow!’ cried Sir Basil, ‘it is Admiral Baldwin. What do you take his age to be?’ ‘Sixty,’ said I, ‘or perhaps sixty-two.’ ‘Forty,’ replied Sir Basil, ‘forty, and no more.’ Picture to yourselves my amazement; I shall not easily forget Admiral Baldwin. I never saw quite so wretched an example of what a sea-faring life can do; but to a degree, I know it is the same with them all: they are all knocked about, and exposed to every climate, and every weather, till they are not fit to be seen. It is a pity they are not knocked on the head at once, before they reach Admiral Baldwin’s age.”

It seemed as if Mr. Shepherd, in this anxiety to bespeak Sir Walter’s goodwill towards a naval officer as tenant had been gifted with foresight; for the very first application was from an Admiral Croft. . .

“And who is Admiral Croft?” was Sir Walter’s cold suspicious enquiry.

Mr. Shepherd answered for his being of a gentleman’s family, and mentioned a place; and Anne, after the little pause that followed, added, “He is rear admiral of the white. He was in the Trafalgar action, and has been in the East Indies since; he has been stationed there, I believe, several years.”

“Then I take it for granted,” observed Sir Walter, “that his face is about as orange as the cuffs and capes of my livery.”

Posted in British history, British Navy, Georgian England, Georgian Era, Great Britain, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, real life tales, Regency era, Regency personalities | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments