History

Seizing the Moment

/ RGilbert

If the news articles about Rishi Sunak becoming the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom would only add a simple graphic, we would not need to read the entire story.  At a glance, we would see which boxes are checked.  Among other bits of trivia, most of the reports point out that he is the youngest person to hold this office in 200 years.  At 42-years-old, Mr.  Sunak is eighteen years older than William Pitt the Younger was, when he became Prime Minister of Great Britain in 1783.  Like Rishi Sunak, Mr.  Pitt had been Chancellor of the Exchequer prior to his rise to the Tory leadership position.

Palace of Westminster from Victoria Tower Gardens

William Pitt was 21-years old in 1780, when he was elected to the House of Commons with the help of his friend Charles Manners, Duke of Rutland.  The Duke had connected Mr.  Pitt with a wealthy landowner, who sponsored the young man’s candidacy for a rotten borough under his control.  A rotten borough was a district that should not have been entitled to any representation in Parliament, because it had become depopulated.  These boroughs were often corrupt, because their MPs were usually beholden to powerful, self-interested patrons.

Just 20-years-old when he was elected to Parliament in 1774, Charles Manners was even younger than Mr. Pitt had been.   Representing the constituency of Cambridge University, he was known at the time as the Marquess of Granby.  He served for five years, until he became Duke of Rutland upon the death of his grandfather.  Not long after becoming Duke of Rutland, Charles Manners raised the 86th Regiment of Foot for service in the American Revolutionary War.  He asked his friend Anthony St. Leger to come out of his retirement from the military and lead it.  Colonel St. Leger, the founder of the horse racing world’s classic St. Leger Stakes, readily agreed.  He shipped out to St. Lucia with his troops, to defend an important British port against the French fleet, and returned to England in 1781, in time for the September running of the St. Leger Stakes at Doncaster.  In recognition of St. Leger’s inspiring leadership in the West Indies, King George III promoted him to Major General.

St. James’s Palace

In February 1783, Charles Manners became Lord Steward of the Household of King George and a member of the Privy Council.  The following February, Prime Minister Pitt appointed Charles to be Lord Deputy of Ireland.  Anthony St. Leger accompanied the Duke of Rutland to Dublin Castle as Major General on his staff.  

Charles was a lively, popular man.  Despite his marriage to Mary Isabella Somerset, who was considered to be the most elegant and beautiful woman of her time, Charles had a reputation for licentiousness.  He also had a love for rich food and red wine and would often forego sleep.  His fast-paced living took its toll.  At the time of his tragic death from liver disease in 1787, Charles was 33-years old, nine years younger than the age of United Kingdom’s youngest prime minister in 200 years.

An odd old book

/ RGilbert

Buying books is one of the pleasures of doing research.  Of course I use digital resources, and visit libraries and archives, but sometimes there is a book that I want to hold in my hands and refer to over and over again.  As I delved into the history of colonial America and Georgian England for background to my novel A Moon Garden, my personal library expanded a bit.  The social, industrial, and geo-political transformations of the late 18th century intrigue me, and I am currently writing the biography of a British general who lived and died during this time. My quest for books about this period continues.

Recently I acquired The Story of the London Parks by Jacob Larwood.  It was published in London and has no copyright date.  There is, however, a hand-written inscription inside the front endpaper, indicating it was a New Year’s gift to Mrs. Goodings in 1888.

It’s a beautiful book, which includes several illustrations, including some in color.  It is in remarkably good shape, thanks to the fact that it has never been read.  This is apparent, because the pages must have been printed two-up or four-up, and they were not trimmed. Many of the pages would have to be cut apart in order flip through them.  I prefer to leave the book the way it has been for over 130 years. 

My knowledge of book printing and binding techniques of the 19th century is very limited.  If anyone reading this can provide an explanation, please feel free to leave your comments.

I wonder if Mrs. Goodings’ admirer ever asked her opinion of the book.  What would she have said?

A Moon Garden – Amazon UK

Hulks in Charlestown Harbor

/ RGilbert
Des Barres, Joseph F. W. (Joseph Frederick Wallet), 1722-1824; Published 1780 (London); LOC# gm71000644

After abandoning Philadelphia to the Americans in 1778, the British shifted their focus to the South. By the middle of May 1780, they had secured a decisive victory in Charlestown, South Carolina, with the surrender of the Continental Army and Patriot militias under the command of Major General Benjamin Lincoln. Hundreds of captured colonial soldiers were held in prison hulks in the harbor.

In my debut historical novel, A Moon Garden, Joseph Buckleigh is an officer with the 33rd Regiment of Foot. At the Royal Army field headquarters just north of Charlestown, he is unexpectedly reunited with his friend, Aaron Mendes, a colonial doctor who has recently arrived to treat the sick and wounded prisoners.

Aaron’s face lit up when he saw Joseph, and he suspected his expression mirrored his friend’s. The two men embraced.

“This is unexpected, Aaron,” said Joseph. “Colonel Eades only told me a few moments ago that you are working at Greenwood. When did you arrive?”

“Just over one week ago.”

“It is commendable of you to serve the Patriots at a British facility. We have too few doctors even to attend our own soldiers, so I am certain the care given to the captured wounded is far from adequate.”

“I will refrain from commenting, Joseph. Suffice it to say that I am kept busy.”

The men went outside. Colonel Eades had already requested Joseph’s horse be made ready, and it was tied to a post next to Aaron’s bay mare. It was a cool morning on a clear day, perfect for riding.

“Charlestown Harbor is not far,” said Joseph. “When we get to the ship, you cannot board without someone to provide protection. Perhaps we may prevail upon a prison guard to accompany you, for you must realize I cannot. If there were a way to persuade you to abandon this undertaking, I would try.”

“It is not for myself that I must do this.”

Joseph felt the wind go out of himself, as though he had taken a blow to the solar plexus. Grace was the unspoken, unseen presence. It was for Grace that Aaron would visit hell to look in on the man who had seduced his sister and then bound her to himself with an eternal vow. It was for Grace that Aaron and Joseph had to assess a value to the life of a man who had abused and encumbered a woman that they each loved in their own way. Joseph untangled the reins of the chestnut Marsh Tacky stallion, put his boot in the stirrup, and mounted. “Then ride,” he said, as he took off at a gallop, not glancing back to see if Aaron had followed.

From A Moon Garden ©2020 Roxane Gilbert

#AMoonGarden https://amzn.to/33P5m7Z

St Patrick’s Day musings on the Tower of London

/ RGilbert
Church of St Peter ad Vincula at the Tower of London
©Roxane Gilbert

Gerald Fitzgerald, 9th Earl of Kildare (1487-1534) has the dubious distinction of being the first prisoner to be buried in the Chapel Royal of St Peter ad Vincula after being incarcerated and dying in the Tower of London.

Upon his father’s death in 1513, Kildare succeeded him as Lord Deputy of Ireland. A fierce warrior, he is said to have “reduced Ireland to a quiet condition” in 1517 after storming Ulster and taking the Castle of Dungannon.

In response to accusations of mismanagement, Kildare was removed from office in 1518. He was replaced by Thomas Howard, the Earl of Surrey, followed by his brother-in-law, Piers Butler, the 8th Earl of Ormond. He was eventually reappointed Lord Deputy, but turmoil prevailed as a blood feud raged between him and Ormond.

In 1534 he travelled to London, where he was arrested, arraigned, and imprisoned at the Tower of London. Later that year he died of his grief, and was buried in the church at the Tower.

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