What's Inside
This collection catalogs the quirks of over eighty individuals who bypassed standard Victorian behavior. It examines the lifestyles of dandies like Beau Brummel and Sir Lumley Skeffington, the religious fervor of the Agapemone sect, and the ethereal visions of William Blake. The pieces are arranged into categories of wealth, delusion, and spectacle, documenting how one woman passed herself off as an Indian Ocean princess while others built hermits’ dens for garden ornaments. It serves as a record of personal extremity, from the jewelry found in Bell Street dust-heaps by sifters to the legal fallout surrounding religious abductions at Charlinch. The entries range from the misers of Pentonville to the gambling habits of Dick England.
Works & figures
- Beau Brummel
A leader of fashion pictured in retirement at Calais. (in “Sir Lumley Skeffington, Bart — Beau Brummel”)
- Princess Caraboo
An impostor who pretended to be a kidnapped native of Javasu. (in “"The Princess Caraboo"”)
- Edward Irving
A preacher and Millenarian who translated Spanish texts on the Messiah. (in “Irving a Millenarian”)
- William Blake
A poet and painter who claimed to see trees filled with angels. (in “William Blake, Painter and Poet”)
- Dick England
A gambler who targeted Irishmen and kept an elegant house. (in “Dick England, the Gambler”)
- William Dowton
A veteran actor who obsessed over arranging his stage wigs. (in “Oddities of Dowton”)
What it's really about
- Personal Austerity
- Misers and hermits seeking isolation or extreme financial preservation.
- Public Performance
- Individuals who dedicated their lives to fashion, theatre, or imposture.
Why it's memorable
- A young William Blake returning from Peckham Rye reporting a tree full of angels to his father.
- The Agapemone sect members living in perpetual praise without the use of traditional prayer.
Where to start
Start with The Princess Caraboo to see how easily a clever girl could fool the literary circles of Bath.
For your book club
- How do the definitions of sanity shift between the religious fanatic and the professional actor?
- Does the collection treat wealth as a fuel for eccentricity or a byproduct of it?