The long reign of Victoria encompassed so many fashions, wars, and changes of other countries' governments that it could easily be subdivided. Yet, travel was becoming so open, it becomes difficult to extricate one country from another. Be sure and catch the Atlas of Civilisation series, in this case the WWI and before chapters of The Cultural Atlas of France, The Cultural Atlas of Russia, etc.
Arnold, James
All Drawn By Horses *****! Newton Abbott, Long & NY; David & Charles, 1979 Good text with line drawings by the author, and an invaluable 2-page glossary of coach terms. Freight wagons as well as phaetons; in fact, heavier on the wagons, which do all the duty of trucks, while on the streets of old only the richest had the carriages equivalent to cars. T2
Baynton-Williams, A.
Town & City maps of the British Isles: 1800-1855 **** Studio Press Beautiful engraved maps for your major centers as they were then. T2
Bierman, John
Napoleon III and His Carnival Empire *** John Murray Ltd., London, 1989; bibliography, index This very detailed bibliography is fun reading, but we ran into one massive, gratuitous tabloid story that makes us suspicious of the other side stories in the book. In Chapter 3, Bierman describes Count d'Orsay as the bisexual lover of both Lord and Lady Blessington, as if this were established fact. Moers, while covering this, presents the far more likely interpretation that d'Orsay was, like many great dandies, narcissistic neuter, and Lady Blessington frigid, preferring a platonic companion. Bierman also states, "Lord Blessington ... forced his innocent daughter into marriage with d'Orsay to provide a cover for his own relationship with the Frenchman." In fact, the Blessingtons had added d'Orsay to their menage years before as a son with his parents' blessing and permission; it was only as a provision of Lord Blessington's will that d'Orsay married one of his daughters. Very clever of Lord Blessington to arrange a cover for his post-mortem sex life. Both daughters were in their early teens, and in the habit of the day, it was to remain a "marriage blanc" until she were 18. She ran away at 17 to relatives, and her stories are highly suspect. T2
Bloch, Ivan
Sexual Life in England, Past & Present *****! 1938; now from Oracle; 664 pgs !! What had to be privately printed in 1938 can be of general interest now. Despite the title, only covers from the Anglo-Saxon period through the late 1800's, but in a full range, from streetwalkers to the escapades of royalty, from staid marriage arrangements to kinky erotica. T2
Blum, Stella, editor
Paris Fashions of the 1890's: A Picture Sourcebook with 350 Designs, including 24 in Full Color *****! Dover, NY; 88 pg Young women's and children's fashions in England, with a French bent, from The Young Ladies' Journal. Victorian Fashions and Costumes from Harper's Bazar, 1867-1898 *****! Dover Publications, Inc., NY; 320 pg, 1000+ illos Stellar costume book, detailing materials and colours as well as styles, but most valuable for its illustrations of how women did their hair in the period. T1
Paris Fashions of the 1890's: A Picture Sourcebook with 350 Designs, including 24 in Full Color *****! Dover, NY; 88 pg Young women's and children's fashions in England, with a French bent, from The Young Ladies' Journal.
Victorian Fashions and Costumes from Harper's Bazar, 1867-1898 *****! Dover Publications, Inc., NY; 320 pg, 1000+ illos Stellar costume book, detailing materials and colours as well as styles, but most valuable for its illustrations of how women did their hair in the period. T1
Boucher, Francois
Twenty Thousand Years of Fashion; the History of Costume and Personal Adornment *** Harry N. Abrams, 1966; 440 pg, index, glossary Strong in this period, well illustrated, with photos of surviving garments when possible. T1
Bray, Peter, editor
Transport Through the Ages ** Taplinger Publishing Co., Inc., NY, 1971; illos by Barbara Brown Covers a bit of everything, from dugout canoes on. Emphasis on later periods. T1
Brett, Gerard
Dinner is Served *** Archon Books, Hamden, CN, 1968 British meals of the day and their conduct; Part Two covers 1660 to 1900. T2
Brockett, Oscar G.
History of the Theatre *** Allyn and Bacon, Inc., 1977 Good university-level text on staging conventions, acting forms, audience behavior, etc. T3
Duffy, Christopher
Fire and Stone: The Science of Fortress Warfare, 1660-1860 **** Hippocrene Books, NY, 1975; now from Greenhill Well-written, well-illustrated and well-designed. The Fortess Wargame for Miniatures is tactical fun while teaching you how things can work or go wrong. The other appendix, on how to tour old fortifications, is good if you get to make the research trip. T3
Ehrlich, Blake
London on the Thames *** Little, Brown & Co., NY, 1966 Each chapter tours London at a different period, often in the newest neighborhood of the expanding metropolis. T2
Fay, Charles Edey
The Story of the "Mary Celeste" **** Peabody Museum, Salem, Mass., 1942; now Dover Publications, Inc.; 261 pg, index, Bibliographical Notes Almost more detail than you can stand on the "mystery ship" found floating, abandoned, in 1872. T3
Gernsheim, Alison
Victorian and Edwardian Fashion: A Photographic Survey, 1840-1914 *****! Dover Publications; 240 pg, 235 photos (most two to the page, sideways) The text is wonderfully researched, with period comments on fashion, cosmetics, emigrant kits, dyes and colour combinations -- priceless! Must read. T2
Hale, William Harlan, and the editors of Horizon Magazine
The Horizon Cookbook and Illustrated History of Eating and Drinking Through the Ages **** American Heritage Publishing, Inc., 1968 Part One has the description of customs and habits, foods available, and some interesting art. Part Two has the tastiest recipes, done for the modern kitchen. Especially hits this period in Part One. T1
Harfield, Alan
The Indian Army of the Empress, 1861-1903 *** Spellmount Details the forces and actions of the British Raj in far greater breadth than an Osprey book. T2
Hibbert, Christopher
London, the Biography of a City *** William Morrow & Co., Inc., NY, 1969 Runs it all down through time, with good coverage of this period. T2
Hogg, Ian V.
The History of Fortification *** St. Martin's Press, NY, 1981 Clear, interesting and accurate overview from 7000 BC through the 1970's, well illustrated with photos and diagrams; bibliography and glossary. T3
Inglis, Brian
Trance: A Natural History of Altered States of Mind **** Paladin/Grafton Books, London, 1990 A history of animal magnetism, mesmerism, hypnotism, and related phenomena, especially the parts that do not fit materialist scientism. Details the researchers and their studies through this century. T3
Ingraham, Holly
People's Names: A Cross-cultural Reference Guide to the Proper Use of Over 40,000 Personal and Familial Names in Over 100 Cultures *****! McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, Jefferson, NC; 1997; 613 pgs, index, select annotated bibliography The Contemporary half will provide your world-wide naming needs, both individual and family names, but there is a special chapter on Victorian American naming fashions. T1.
Kohler, Carl
A History of Costume **** Dover Publications, Inc., NY Hand-sized, info-packed, based on surviving clothes first and artwork secondarily. Author's line drawings of construction and detail. Neophytes should use with a picture book, which it will greatly clarify. T1
Laver, James
The Age of Illusion: Manners and Morals 1750 to 1848 *** D. McKay Company, NY, 1972 How people think and act, as well as how they thought they ought to think and act. T2
MacColl, Gail, and Carol McD. Wallace
To Marry an English Lord **** Sidgewick and Jackson, Ltd., London, 1989 Whether the hunting of titles by rich young Yankee women (and some Western heiresses), or the hunting of heiresses by bankrupt (largely British) noblemen, the cross-Atlantic traffic forever changed both Society and possibly world affairs. These are the details from Mrs. Astor's Four Hundred to the weddings, the parties, life in England, and how to remarry or at least play around. Covers 1860 to about 1910. T3
Machray, Robert
The Night Side of London *****! 1902; now from Paul Harris Publishing, Edinburgh; 300 pg, no index; illustrated by Tome Browne Author and artist went out on the pavements, to the stations, to the grand balls and the Shilling Hops, and report back to you. Not scientific, written to be amusing with too many now incomprehensible catch-phrases and then well-known tags. Fascinating for the internalized class-status. Just on the border, but refers back to older institutions. T3
Mitchell, R. J., and M.D.R. Leys
A History of London Life *** Penguin Books, Inc., NY, 1958 Different areas of the town at different periods. T2
Moers, Ellen
The Dandy: Brummell to Beerhohm *****! The Viking Press, Inc., NY, 1960 An absolute must-read for high society! Will give you a fine feeling for exclusivity and ton. T2
Nock, O .S., editor
Encyclopedia of Railroads **** Galahad Books, NY, 1977; 480 pg, index History of railroads and equipment over the entire world, including Africa, Asia, and south America. Sections on equipment and operation, also the great luxury trains, past and present. Gorgeous colour layout, oversize. One lap-breaker worth the effort of lifting. T1
Oppenheim, Janet
"Shattered Nerves": Doctors, Patients, and Depression in Victorian England *** Oxford University Press, 1991; 389 pg, index, bibliography hidden in the Notes Interesting history of the development of psychiatry in England, with occasional flashes of influential development in France and America. Some case histories, more histories of the doctors, good definitions in text, but retains that dry, scholarly air even at its best. Vital if you are going to have anyone go off their head or consult a mad-doctor. T3
Payne, Robert
The Gold of Troy: The Story of Heinrich Schliemann and the Buried Cities of Ancient Greece *** Funk & Wagnalls, NY, 1959; 273 pg, no index, bibliography A bit dated now, especially in his lack of knowledge of the real perfidy of Schliemann in falsifying his data, but still a good look at how archeology operated in its infancy. Payne does not in the least glorify Schliemann, but paints him as the determined egotist he was. T3
Piper, Leonard
Murder by Gaslight **** Michael O'Mara Books, London; Gallery Books, W.H. Smith Publishers, Inc., NY, 1991; 219 pg, no index, no bibliography True crime. Ten English murder cases, often multiple murder, from the 1890's through 1910 or so. These may be in the news, then again, they may just give you an insight into the mind of period criminals, who did not have to worry about fingerprints, blood-typing, and the rest, and period detectives, who had to find other ways to nail murderers. T2
Reader's Digest Books, the editors
Reader's Digest Book of the Road **** Reader's Digest Association, Ltd., London Identifies the wildflowers, trees, shrubs, birds, wild mammals, butterflies, sea shells, reptiles, fish, and farm animals of the British Isles. Lets you know what blooms in which month, especially useful if you are writing in Taos. T3
Salmonson, Jessica Amanda
The Encyclopedia of Amazons: Women Warriors from Antiquity to the Modern Era *****! Paragon House, NY, 1991; 290 pg, no index, bibliography Until the institution of the real physical exam for the military, women still manage to serve on many fronts, but mostly when battlefields sweep over their own country. T2
Sedgwick, Michael
Antique Cars *****! Exeter Books, NY, 1981; illus. by Mike Atkinson; 93 pg, index, technical information table. Shows the 81 early autos -- 1860 to 1918, gas or steam, all sorts of configurations and drives -- in the usual photos, but also in colour paintings that remind you how cheerfully bright, like coaches, these cars often were. Even an otherwise all black one will have red spokes on the wheels, or brightly coloured leather seats. T2
Somerset, Anne
Ladies-in-Waiting, from the Tudors to the Present Day **** Knopf, dist. by Random House, NY; 1984; 341 pg, index, bibliography Discusses the duties and personalities, how appointments were made, kept, and lost in the English court down the centuries T3
Stephens, Autumn
Wild Women: Crusaders, Curmudgeons and Completely Corsetless Ladies in the Otherwise Virtuous Victorian Era **** Conari Press, Berkley, CA, 1992; 249 pg, no index, bibliography 150 mini-biographies (none over two pages) of unconventional women. Good to whet the appetite for further research in the bibliography. Note the social hell these women caught, too, for their actions. T2
Waugh, Norah
Corsets and Crinolines *****! Theatre Arts Books, 1954 Underpinnings, 1600's to 1925, in period art. T3 The Cut of Men's Clothes 1600-1900 *****! Theatre Arts Books, 1964 The most fashionable men's dress, in period illustrations, with tailor's patterns, period comments on colours and fabrics, etc. Superb. T3 The Cut of Women's Clothes, 1600 to 1930 *****! Theatre Arts Books, 1968 The same for women. Both books show fastenings! T3
Corsets and Crinolines *****! Theatre Arts Books, 1954 Underpinnings, 1600's to 1925, in period art. T3
The Cut of Men's Clothes 1600-1900 *****! Theatre Arts Books, 1964 The most fashionable men's dress, in period illustrations, with tailor's patterns, period comments on colours and fabrics, etc. Superb. T3
The Cut of Women's Clothes, 1600 to 1930 *****! Theatre Arts Books, 1968 The same for women. Both books show fastenings! T3
Wilkes, John
The London Police in the Nineteenth Century **** Cambridge University Press, 1977; 52 pg, index A slim volume with many pictures, which is not always a fault. Life as a Peeler, as well as the big names. Whole chapter on events leading up to the Battle of Sydney Street. The fear of anarchists connected with this is also covered in one story in Piper, above, "The Warsaw Restaurant" with which it makes a nice partner. T2
Wise, Arthur
The Art and History of Personal Combat *****! Arma Press, New York Graphic Society Ltd., Greenwich, CN, 1971 Necessary for proper duelling techniques and behaviors, also good on the fencing instructors and salons. T3
http://www.ucr.edu/h-gig/topperindex.html A thorough-going linksite maintained by the University of California at Riverside, H-GIG sorts by area, by era (ancient, Medieval, early Modern, Modern<yours>, and 20th C), or by topic (military, women, etc.). It's a good place to start a hunt for books and essays online.
http://history1800s.miningco.com/ The specific focus of this site is Canadian history and life, but let's face it, a lot applies elsewhere. This is also where you'll find some things unique to Canada!
http://www.LHOON.com/phreno/index.html
"Phrenology is the science which studies the relationships between a person's character and the morphology of the skull." Includes a historical overview, definitions of words and concepts, and images with meanings of various characteristics.
http://www.indiana.edu/victoria/archive.html A central link site for Victoriana on the Web.