It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a woman in possession of a love of history, must be in want of a blog.
Prostitution was endemic in Georgian London, with thousands of prostitutes plying their trade from private lodgings, brothels, theatres, taverns and street corners. As such, there was a wide choice for Londoners who went in search of the pleasures of the flesh. However, with so many ladies of the night, how was the discerning man supposed to know …
Continue reading Harris’s List, or, a catalogue of London prostitutes from 1789
The Bethlem Hospital, or Bedlam as it is more commonly known, is Europe's oldest extant psychiatric hospital and has operated continuously for over 600 years. It was founded in London in 1247 during the reign of Henry III, as the priory of the New Order of St Mary of Bethlehem. Bethlem was not actually intended as …
Continue reading A history of Bedlam, the world’s most notorious asylum
Stretching from the West End to the City, the coffee-houses of 17th and 18th century London formed the capital's intellectual and social heartbeat. Coffee, a relatively new and exotic import, was only half the attraction: coffee-houses were forums for intellectual discussion, havens for dirty business deals and places where lords and sharpers won and lost …