Vanessa here,

To celebrate the release of Madeline’s Protector, we’re running a special contest. Starting today through next Friday, May 3, we’ll feature thought-provoking questions at the end of each post. To enter the contest, you’ll need to supply a thoughtful answer to the question. The grand prize winner at the end of the week will receive a brand new Nook.

But the contest doesn’t stop there. Each day a new post goes up (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday) we’ll be giving away mini-prizes for that day only. Here’s a list of the prizes:

Fri, April 26—$10 starbuck’s gift card  – Nancy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mon, April 29–$itune card

Wed, May 1–$10 Amazon Gift certificate

Fri, May 3—A paperback of Madeline’s Protector.

And that’s not all. If you want to be eligible for a second chance to win the Nook tablet, you need to refer someone else to Regency Reflections. (Note: if you bring someone on over, make sure the other person’s comment mentions that you referred them).

If you don’t feel comfortable leaving a comment to enter the giveaway, or if you want yet a third chance to enter, you can follow this link and enter the contest once on this site: https://contest.io/c/8jhitnpz

Now, on with this post.

In my debut novel, Madeline’s Protector, my heroine, Madeline St. James, has been shot. She’s drenched to the bone, and the hero, Justain Delveaux, Lord Devonshire, has to stop the bleeding, remove the bullet, and keep her from going into shock.

Devonshire is a complex Regency gentleman. He’s a veteran of the Peninsula War and is familiar with patching men up, but a woman?

Luckily, Lord Devonshire is also a reforming rake. His acute knowledge of unmentionables helps him save Miss St. James ‘s life without indecent action. (This is a Christian Regency. 🙂 )

Thus, I researched stays. Stays is the English term for the corset during the Regency. Prior to the 18^th century, corsets were stiff devices made to support and shape a woman’s body. They were made of silk, silk brocade, linen, or even leather. They were boned throughout with whalebones, making the unmentionables stiff and restricting.

Here are some pictures of corsets from the 1760 and early 18^th century.

One of the things that struck me about these corsets were the bright colors of these Pre-Regency pieces. Also, it was not uncommon to find over 150 wale bones inside the corset to sculpt the female shape. Ouch.

These units laced in multiple directions. Picture A laces in the front and the back.  Picture B laces on both sides under the arms. So trying to unhook these models varied from corset to corset. Thus attempting to loosen one of these to aid a stricken woman’s breathing could be useless or fraught with disaster. We’d hope a gentleman wouldn’t need to grope a woman trying to determine where the laces of the corset were positioned.

Typically, the corset did not sit against the skin. A chemise of cotton chintz or muslin covered the body sitting underneath the corset. This continued to be the norm during the Regency.

Between 1785-1800’s, corsets were typically light in color. Boning is used to stiffen, but metal springs are also used to help shape.  Fabric choices are quilted silk taffeta,

linen, and chintz. Hand darned eyelets routed the laces to keep on the corset. These corsets laced in the front and/or back. (Picture C)

By 1804, a new type of corset was created. These were soft without the all over use of whalebone.  These corsets were constructed from cotton, cotton sateen, cord quilting, and/ or cotton satin. The bust could have a drawstring to help provide shaping. It might also use a busk, a long strip of metal or flat bone to stiffen the corset. The following picture show a long rectangular section between the breasts (Picture D). That is the busk.

These corsets used laces in the back (Picture E) to close the garment. Sometimes these corsets are called Long Corsets.

Therefore, the hero during the Regency more often than naught guessed correctly, if he attempted to loosen the corset by finding laces along the heroine’s back.

A man during the Regency did not have to be a rake or a womanizer to have knowledge of a woman’s undergarments. Having a sister, mother, or a dandy as a brother could provide the needed information. Some dandies wore Apollo or Cumberland Corsets. The male corsets bound the stomach and were constructed with whalebone to stiffen.

One of the more interesting things, I found during my research is that girls also started

in corsets (Picture F) at a young age.  I suppose if you become accustomed to something early in life, it is easier to bear.

Today’s question: If you lived during the Regency and found yourself in a dire circumstance would you:

A. Do everything possible to save yourself, not caring of any possible ramifications.

B. Do everything possible, but you would worry about potential scandals or compromise.

C. Risk everything to a point. Your family name and position could not be threatened.

Please add your comment below. You could be today’s daily post winner. All comments will be entered into our grand prize drawing.  For an extra chance to win click here: https://contest.io/c/8jhitnpz

Originally posted 2013-04-29 10:00:00.

I’m excited to introduce a new Regency novel today. It’s entitled Madeline’s Protector, and it’s the debut novel by Regency Reflections own Vanessa Riley.

To celebrate the release of Madeline’s Protector, we’re running a special contest. Starting today through next Friday, May 3, we’ll feature thought-provoking questions at the end of each post. To enter the contest, you’ll need to supply a thoughtful answer to the question. The grand prize winner at the end of the week will receive a brand new Nook.

But the contest doesn’t stop there. Each day a new post goes up (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday) we’ll be giving away mini-prizes for that day only. Here’s a list of the prizes:

Fri, April 26—$10 starbuck’s gift card

Mon, April 29–$itune card

Wed, May 1–$10 Amazon Gift certificate

Fri, May 3—A paperback of Madeline’s Protector.

And that’s not all. If you want to be eligible for a second chance to win the Nook tablet, you need to refer someone else to Regency Reflections. (Note: if you bring someone on over, make sure the other person’s comment mentions that you referred them).

If you don’t feel comfortable leaving a comment to enter the giveaway, or if you want yet a third chance to enter, you can follow this link and enter the contest once on this site: https://contest.io/c/8jhitnpz

So without further ado, let me tell you a little more about Madeline’s Protector:

If all the young men of England leapt off a cliff, Madeline St. James wouldn’t care. Then she’d have peace. Her nightmares of courtship would end,and she’d cozy up with a Psalm in her aunt’s quiet sculpture garden. Yet, a chance meeting and a bullet wound change everything, and Madeline must trust the Good Shepherd has led her to the altar to marry a dashing stranger, Lord Devonshire. Death and pain are no strangers to Justain Delveaux, Lord Devonshire, and he vows his dutiful bride will be kept safe and in her place. Though this compromised marriage is in-name-only, his wife and her unwavering faith both intrigue and allure him. Perchance when he thwarts his brother’s killer, Justain will tempt the unpredictable Madeline with the comfort of his arms. But can Madeline and the stubborn earl forge a true bond before the next disaster strikes?

I’ve read this book, and it’s filled with witty barbs and intellectual insights between the hero and heroine, as well as a pinch of danger and an insatiable desire for revenge. And I’m not the only person who thinks so, either. Ms. Riley’s work has garnered praise from award winning authors such as Laurie Alice Eakes and Mildred Colvin and June Foster. And Blogcritics is calling Madeline’s Protector a “refreshing change from the norm of this genre.” So if you’re looking for a fast-paced Regency read, you’ll likely enjoy this debut novel.

Today’s giveaway: $10 Starbucks gift Card

Today’s Question: If you were a Regency Mama, which suitor would you pick for your marriageable daughter and why: The son of a family friend, a titled reformed rake, a wealthy gentleman looking for a 2nd wife?

Be sure to come back on Monday for a historical post by debut author Vanessa Riley and a chance to win an itunes gift card!

Originally posted 2013-04-26 10:00:00.

Mary here. When considering my post for April, I wanted to follow our theme of fashion. We ladies do like to buy a new frock, new shoes, and to those of the most brave among us, a hat, each Easter Season. My colleague, Susan Karsten, just did an excellent post on the use of shawls in Regency fashion, but when I tried to narrow down a single item of women’s fashion in the ton, it left my head spinning. But then a thought came to me; what of men’s fashion? It was no contest – it could be about none other than Beau Brummel!

I learned so much about Mr. Brummel in my search that I might have to make a Part II on my next blog to discuss much more on his life, but today, we will stick to his fashion sense.

George Bryan Brummel (1778-1840), though not related personally to the aristocracy, was the son of the private secretary to Lord North, the Prime Minister under King George III. His exposure to that part of Society may have allowed his rise to more elevated circles later in life.

He was fastidious even as a young boy at Eton, and he was nicknamed Buck Brummel, a similar title as prestigious as Beau.

At 16 years of age, he met, and impressed, the Prince Regent with his style and wit. Brummel left Oxford and the Regent gave him a commission into his own personal regiment. Four years later he inherited £30,000, resigned his commission and set himself up in a bachelor establishment in Mayfair. Now, a close friend of George IV, he christened him the arbiter elegante, his Prime Minister of Fashion!

Brummel sought to create a new definition for his understated, but elegant, mode of style. The fop wore bright colors, ill-fitting jackets, knee breeches and high heels. The Beau with his new distinction created the . . . dandy!

Watch the below excerpt from Beau Brummel – This Charming Man:

(If the video does not load for you, please click here to watch it on YouTube.)

Trousers, perfectly cut coats, made in black or dark blue against a white shirt and exquisitely tied cravat became the trademark of the beau and were quickly copied by men in the highest social circles of London, and men of superior rank sought his professional opinion on their dress. His fastidiousness in bathing, clean teeth and shaving every day was a pleasing addition adopted in the upper echelons of polite Society.

He is almost as famous today as he was in his own time and his name still represents the epitome of fashion. Should you look up dandy in the dictionary, Beau Brummel’s name is linked to the definition. There is a high-end European men’s store in Soho, NY that bears his name. And he has been immortalized by a LeCoultre watch designed with no numbers and a small modern face.

A dandy by any other name . . . Beau Brummel!

Originally posted 2013-04-19 10:00:00.

I can’t wait for spring!  It is still pretty chilly in the Midwest, but I know the sunny, warm days will be here very soon.

Can you imagine what it would be like if spring never came? That is what happened one year during the Regency period. In fact, 1816 is often referred to as the “Year Without a Summer,” and during this time extreme weather dramatically effected England’s cultural and economic landscape. Let’s take a quick look:

In April 1815, the volcano Mount Tambora erupted on the island of Sumbara in the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia).  The force of the blast launched ash, dust and debris into the atmosphere. The impact was so significant that temperatures lowered globally and the sun’s rays were blocked, making the days appear darker. The altered atmosphereic conditions affected weather and agriculture worldwide, especially in Canada, northeastern United States, and northern Europe.

As a result, 1816 ranks as one of England’s coldest winters on record.  The snow fell as late as May in London, and in the Lake District, snow was still on the highest peaks at the end of July. The excessive precipitation and unseasonably cold temperatures devastated crops. Consequently, food shortages were rampant. To make matters worse, farm laborers were not working, and with thousands of soldiers returning from foreign wars, unemployment was a major problem. Rioting looting broke out all over the country.   Malnutrition and cold, wet conditions led to a rise in disease.

But even during this time of darkness, the artists and poets of the day found beauty in the midst of the shadows. The gloomy, bitter weather inspired Byron’s haunting poem Darkness. Byron said he “wrote it… at Geneva, when there was a celebrated dark day, on which the fowls went to roost at noon, and the candles were lighted as at midnight.”  And in the world of art, J. M. W. Turner is said to have been inspired by the spectacular sunsets that resulted from the high levels of debris and ash in the atmosphere.

Curious about what else was going on in England at this time? To give you a frame of reference, here is a quick snapshot of England’s literary scene during the cold, raw months of 1816:

— Jane Austen’s Emma published. (actually published in December 1815, but the title page says 1816)
–Lord Byron’s poem Darkness, The Siege of Corinth, and Prometheyus are published.
–Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Kubla Kahn is published.
–Percy Bysshe Shelley’s Alastor: Or, The Spirit of Solitude is published.
–John Keat’s O Solitude and On First Looking into Chapman’s Homer are published .
—Charlotte Bronte is born on April 21^st.

Thanks for stopping by Regency Reflections.  Enjoy the spring and summer months ahead!

Originally posted 2013-03-29 10:00:00.

Today we welcome guest blogger Susanne Dietze. Learn more about Susanne at the end of the article. 

Perhaps the only way a Regency-era tourist might ever see an exotic animal—alive—was by visiting the Royal Menagerie at the Tower of London. A visit to the Royal Menagerie was a popular outing, and proved an entertaining day out.

By the Regency era, animals had been on display at the Tower for six hundred years, since the reign of King John. The first animals to arrive at the Tower were gifts from Europe and Africa: lions, an elephant, and a polar bear which was fortunate enough to experience “outings,” attached by a leash so he could fish in the Thames.

In the 18^th century, it cost three half-pence or the supply of a cat or dog to be fed to the lions to visit (according to author Wilfred Blunt). After paying the fee (or providing a small pet), the public was welcome to view animals such as baboons, macaws, mongoose, ocelot, and cheetahs.  After 1816, the Regency visitor would have no doubt wished to view Martin, a Grizzly bear given to George III by the Hudson Bay Company.

The conditions endured by the animals are cringe-worthy by today’s standards. If they survived the voyage to London—cramped in confinement over land and sea—the animals were doomed to an unnatural life. Locked in small cages, they received no exercise, nor did many have the pleasure of eating food that was part of their natural diet (the zebra grew quite fond of ale, ostriches were fed nails by visitors, and the elephant’s rations included a gallon of wine per day). James I and his court enjoyed watching the lions maul other animals in organized matches. Needless to say, many animals did not live long in the Royal Menagerie.

Interaction between the visitors and the animals would also astonish most of us, accustomed as we are to zoo exhibits designed to educate visitors while protecting both animal and human. At the Royal Menagerie, however, visitors could feed, touch, provoke, or abuse the animals—often to their own detriment.

In 1698, Mary Jenkinson stroked a lion’s paw, no doubt with good intent. Nevertheless, the lion caught her arm “with his Claws and mouth, and most miserably tore her Flesh from the Bone”. Her arm was amputated, but sadly, poor Mary passed away.

Likewise, the 1810 guidebook recounts that “formerly several monkies were kept, but one of them having torn a boy’s leg in a dangerous manner they were removed”—presumably from the furnished room where they had been living since the 1780’s, where visitors could engage the monkeys.

Remarkably, people still got too close to the animals. Many parasols and umbrellas were destroyed by a leopard. Then, too, animals escaped (such as the wolf who ate a keeper’s terrier), or were accidentally introduced to one another—the most famous perhaps being an 1830 incident when two tigresses were let into the lion’s cage by an under-keeper. After half an hour, the keepers were able to separate the fighting trio, but the lion succumbed to his wounds.

In 1831, many of the 280 animals housed at the Menagerie began to be transferred to the Zoological Society of London at Regent’s Park, and the Tower Menagerie was closed in 1835.

As for Martin the Grizzly Bear, such a popular attraction during the Regency? He died in 1838, although some say his ghost haunts the Tower.

Susanne Dietze began writing love stories in high school, casting her friends in the starring roles. Today, she writes in the hope that her historical romances will encourage and entertain others to the glory of God. Married to a pastor and the mom of two, Susanne loves fancy-schmancy tea parties, travel, and curling up on the couch with a costume drama and a plate of nachos. She won first place in the Historical category of the 2011-2012 Phoenix Rattler, and her work has finaled in the Genesis, Gotcha!, and Touched By Love Contests. Susanne is represented by Tamela Hancock Murray of The Steve Laube Agency. You can visit her on her website, www.susannedietze.com.

Originally posted 2013-03-27 10:00:00.

{To celebrate Moonlight Masquerade, we’re running a special week-long contest. Through Friday, March 22, we’ll feature Regency quiz questions at the end of each post. To enter the contest, you’ll need to correctly answer the questions in the comment section below. For every correct answer, your name will be added into the drawing for a $25 Amazon gift card . There will be five questions in all, which means your name can be entered up to five times (if you get all five questions right). The deadline to answer ALL CONTEST QUESTIONS will be Saturday, March 23 at midnight.}

 A Wealth of Biblical Themes

Moonlight Masquerade, a new release by Ruth Axtell, bursts with meaningful themes. The story is imbued with scriptural parallels there for the discerning reader’s delectation.

Hero Rees and heroine Celine are drawn to each other from the start of their acquaintance. The secrets each holds, and the role each plays bar the way to true intimacy, calling to mind the eternal verity held in 1 Corinthians 13:12 ~

For now we see in a mirror dimly,

but then face to face.

Now I know in part; then I shall know fully,

even as I have been fully known.

Desires must be banked and yearnings deferred. Their path to love’s fulfillment can’t be seen clearly due to earthly encumbrances.

Without giving a plot spoiler, I can say the dichotomy existing between the two lead characters, both spies with different loyalties and purposes, drives the plot along in compelling fashion. One spy, Rees, is subject to the governing authorities (Romans 13:1) and the biblical understanding is that our authority figures have been instituted by God. He is employed by the British government, and works for advancement, not for his own glory, but to support his family. A strong Christian, Rees still struggles with the deceitful nature of his espionage assignment.

Celine, on the other hand, is idealistic, works with an underground movement and believes only a democratic government in her homeland will bring peace to her beloved country and satisfaction to her soul. Throughout the course of the story, these two complex characters’ motives collide, with hero Rees emerging as a strong leader, a righteous man, and a man not afraid to pursue the woman he loves.

The simmering tensions, and the attractive characters, set in the turbulent latter days of Napoleon’s reign, all combine for a satisfying and thought-provoking Regency read.

Author Ruth Axtell and I (humble blogger Susan Karsten) have each selected our choices for the actors we would suggest to play these evocative lovers on the silver screen. Ruth chose Matt Bomer & Jennifer Garner, and Susan chose Russell Crowe & Emma Watson.

Just for fun, Please comment with your choices: Ruth’s actors, or mine. Thanks!

Quiz Question for prize: Who was made the leader of France after Napoleon abdicated?

a) Louis XVI

b) Louis XVII

c) Louis XVIII

d) Charles X

Originally posted 2013-03-22 10:00:00.