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Live and breathe the story of England at royal castles, historic gardens, forts & defences, world-famous prehistoric sites and many others.
Georgian England
The Georgian era spans the years from 1714 to 1837, covering the reigns of George I, II, III and IV, as well as that of William IV.
It was an era of great social, political and cultural changes. It includes the start of the Industrial Revolution, the emergence of Romanticism in art and literature, and the expansion and dominance of the British Empire through exploration and war.
Stories from Georgian England
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Prisoners of War at Portchester
During the wars with France between 1793 and 1814, thousands of prisoners of war were held at Portchester Castle. Learn more about where they came from and what their lives were like at the castle.
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The Somerset case
The Somerset v Stewart ruling in 1772 was a landmark in the progress towards the abolition of slavery in England, bringing the injustice of the slave trade to public attention.
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The Prisoners’ Theatre at Portchester Castle
Find out about the theatre set up and run by French prisoners of war at Portchester Castle between 1810 and 1814.
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An Emperor and an Aristocrat's Menagerie
How the 19th-century menagerie at Chiswick House in west London was part of a wider tradition of keeping exotic creatures on aristocratic estates.
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Dover Castle: The Georgian Fortress
Read about Dover Castle’s transformation into a permanent barracks and artillery fortress in the Georgian era, a role that continued into modern times.
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Capability Brown at Audley End
How a contract in 1763 between England’s foremost landscape gardener and a landowner with a military past deteriorated into a furious exchange of letters.
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The Invention of the Wellington Boot
How the Duke of Wellington, victor at the Battle of Waterloo and fashion icon, gave his name to the humble welly.
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The Only People Ever Killed at Tilbury Fort
The only fatalities ever reported at Tilbury Fort were thanks to a game of cricket in 1776. Or is this extraordinary story just a tall tale?
Georgian People
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The Duchess of Brunswick
Read about Augusta Dowager Duchess of Brunswick who moved to Ranger’s house in 1807 and her fascinating story of royals, scandal and lavish entertainments during the Regency era.
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Dido Belle
Dido Elizabeth Belle was raised as part of an aristocratic family in Georgian Britain. She was the daughter of a formerly enslaved woman named Maria Bell and a Royal Naval officer, Sir John Lindsay.
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Black people in late 18th-century Britain
We take a look at the lives of black people – including soldiers, servants and independent citizens – who lived under the shadow of slavery in 18th-century Britain.
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Ottobah Cugoano
Ottobah Cugoano was an anti-slavery campaigner and one of the first formerly enslaved people to write and publish a text in the English language.
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Lady Hester Stanhope
For a brief period the independent and charismatic Hester Stanhope was at the heart of British politics, living with her uncle, William Pitt the Younger, at Walmer Castle.
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Henrietta Howard
Read about Marble Hill’s Henrietta Howard, who overcame personal adversity to become an extraordinary figure in Georgian court society and a member of a dynamic circle of writers, poets and politicians.
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Emma Hamilton, Artist’s Muse
Discover how George Romney’s portraits of Emma Hamilton, including The Spinstress, propelled its subject to fame.
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Black Prisoners at Portchester Castle
The extraordinary story of a group of over 2,500 prisoners of war who were brought to Portchester Castle in 1796 from the island of St Lucia.
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Romantic Female Friendship
In the 18th century, among fashionable women, a cult of same-sex ‘romantic friendship’ was accepted, even if to some contemporary observers it appeared ‘queer’.
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Fanny Burney
Fanny Burney, later known as Madame D’Arblay, is famous for her novels and for her diaries, which record her life within fashionable literary circles and at the royal court.
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Admiral Hosier’s Ghost
How the death of Admiral Francis Hosier and the devastation of his fleet became the subject of a scathing musical attack on the government of the day.
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Beau Brummel
Beau Brummell set the standards for the Regency style known as dandyism, which relied on fine-quality cloth, precise cutting and understated elegance.
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John Nash
The architect John Nash designed a significant portion of Regency London. He is commemorated with a blue plaque at 66 Bloomsbury Square, the end unit of a six-house terrace which he designed himself.
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Robert Clive
Robert Clive, later Baron Clive of Plassey, played an early part in the establishment of British imperial control of India. Read about Clive and the London statue of him that was erected in 1912.
Collections
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MINIATURES, JEWELLERY AND SHOE BUCKLES AT KENWOOD
Kenwood is home to three distinct collections of small, portable Georgian treasures that reveal the skills of 18th-century artists and craftspeople.
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Pictures of Innocence
Discover how, from the mid 18th century, new ideas about innocence, morality and family were reflected in the art of the Georgian age.
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SPOTLIGHT ON REYNOLDS
We explore the life and work of the great 18th-century portrait painter, Joshua Reynolds through his 17 paintings in the collection at Kenwood.
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Chiswick House Collection Highlights
Explore a selection of Lord Burlington’s original collection as well as complementary paintings, family portraits and views of the house and garden.
Listen to a Podcast
Listen to these podcast episodes to learn more about some of our Georgian sites and the stories and people associated with them.
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THE CARIBBEAN PRISONERS OF PORTCHESTER CASTLE
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Ask The Experts: Everything You Want To Know About The Georgians
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Georgian garden tourists: a potted history of visiting gardens
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Making Marble Hill: the story of Henrietta Howard and her Georgian villa
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The Iron Bridge
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The Story of Dido Belle At Kenwood
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The Duke of Wellington and the Battle of Waterloo at Apsley House
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Burning ambitions: The story of Derwentcote Steel Furnace
Places to Visit
Explore some of our sites with Georgian history.
Search all our Georgian sites-
Kenwood
This outstanding house beside Hampstead Heath was remodelled by Robert Adam between 1764 and 1779. He transformed the original brick building into a majestic villa for the great judge, Lord Mansfield.
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Marble Hill
Marble Hill is the last complete survivor of the elegant villas and gardens which bordered the Thames between Richmond and Hampton Court in the 18th century.
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Apsley House
Apsley House, home of the first Duke of Wellington and his descendants, stands right in the heart of London at Hyde Park Corner.
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Ranger's House
Ranger's House is an elegant Georgian villa built in 1723, the official residence of the 'Ranger of Greenwich Park'. From 1815 this post was held by Princess Sophia Matilda, niece of George III.
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Chiswick House and Gardens
Chiswick House is a glorious example of 18th-century British architecture. The 3rd Earl of Burlington, who designed this elegant villa, drew inspiration from his Grand Tours of Italy.
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Belsay, Castle and Gardens
With so much to see and do, a trip to Belsay is one of the best value family days out in north-east England. Explore the medieval castle, the Grecian inspired Hall and acres of impressive gardens.
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Iron Bridge
The world’s first iron bridge was erected over the River Severn here in 1779 by Abraham Darby III. Costing over £6000, the bridge was cast in his Coalbrookdale foundry, using 378 tons of iron.
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Wellington Arch
Set in the heart of royal London, Wellington Arch was built as an original entrance to Buckingham Palace, later becoming a victory arch proclaiming Wellington's defeat of Napoleon.
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Derwentcote Steel Furnace
Built in the 1720s, Derwentcote is the earliest and most complete steel-making furnace in Britain. It produced high-grade steel for springs and cutting tools.
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Berwick Barracks and Main Guard
Berwick Barracks was built in the early 18th century to the design of the distinguished architect Nicholas Hawksmoor, the Barracks was among the first in England to be purpose built.
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Goodshaw Chapel
English Heritage's only Nonconformist place of worship, this atmospheric Baptist chapel displays a complete set of box-pews, galleries and pulpit dating from c. 1742 to 1809.
More about Georgian England
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Georgians: Parks and Gardens
The growing fashion for scenery in the Georgian period, accompanied by theories on nature, led to more naturalistic landscape designs that were an early expression of Romanticism.
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Georgians: Power and Politics
Until the very end of the Georgian period, power belonged almost exclusively to those who owned substantial land or wealth.
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Georgians: Architecture
The classic Georgian building is the Classical country house. But this is also the period that saw the first steps towards a coherent approach to town planning.
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Georgians: War
For much of the Georgian period Britain was at war – usually with France. Many of these conflicts were played out on a world stage, to defend or expand the burgeoning British Empire.