Queen Elizabeth I and Halitosis

The Past was a very smelly place. I’m quite sure that we would all just about fall over should we have to return to a time of tanneries along rivers, open sewers, horse-powered transport, rushes as carpet into which you would throw your leftovers, and people not overly fond of taking a bath. Having said this, … Continue reading →

1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue: A Dictionary of Buckish Slang, University Wit and Pickpocket Eloquence

Oh, I just love everything about this book! I’m going to re-write the title here because it makes me smile to read it. Smiles are obligatory on Friday. 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue A Dictionary of Buckish Slang, University Wit and Pickpocket Eloquence The dictionary was originally compiled by a Captain Grose (surely they were … Continue reading →

The Shipwreck of The Grosvenor 4 August 1782

The East India Company’s Grosvenor was a three-masted, square-rigged, frigate-built vessel. She was built by Wells of Deptford and set off on her maiden voyage to India in 1770. Twelve years later, on her fourth and last voyage from Madras to England, she plowed straight into the African continent in the early hours of a stormy, misty morning. She … Continue reading →