Synopsis

This book is a lively commentary on the early eighteenth century largely based on contemporary material. Sources include contemporary writings, paintings, engravings and drawings. Each section deals with different aspects of the daily life of both ordinary and extraordinary men and women and is arranged chronologically to show the changes taking place over the years. This vivid and fascinating presentation of the period covers topics from cock-fighting, coffee-houses and highwaymen to the South Sea Bubble and the Black Hole of Calcutta. Against this background appear many significant literary figures such as Richardson and Pope.

The early Hanoverian age was a time when Englishmen were travelling abroad and trading with great success in North America, India, Africa and the East. England was fast becoming the workshop of the world and during this splendid and exuberant period, so amply illustrated by this book, she rose to the leading position among nations.
 

ISBN 0-7099-0145-3