They "functioned symbolically as a 'spiritual buckler'." [10] Commanders still would occasionally wear body armour during the early decades of the 18th century. Hungarian general János Bottyán, for ...

For example, the import duty on tea raised its price by around 70 per cent by the middle of the 18th century. Smuggling was usually organised by gangs, who were funded by investors or venturers.

During the 17th century, Harlequin and his companions, including Scaramouche, Pantaloon, Pierrot, Punch and love-interest Columbine were improvising comic stories, singing, dancing and cavorting their ...

From a luxury product for the very rich, glass gradually became more widely produced and affordable. It is for this reason that a volume of 18th century material has survived. For today’s collector, ...

The 18th century saw the gradual weakening of the absolute monarchy constructed by Louis XIV. Its power slipped away during the Regency of Philippe d'Orléans, (1715–1723) and the long regime of King ...

Castle Fraser, a historic gem set in Aberdeenshire's rich farmland, is surrounded by fields of oats and barley, showcasing Scotland's ...

No longer a world power, the Netherlands now invested its profits in possessions such as beautiful houses. In the eighteenth century, the interior became a focus of keen interest. The period was ...

English naturalist Joseph Banks was the longest-serving president of the Royal Society, the oldest continuously existing scientific academy in the world. But before he served in that celebrated ...

Experience the atmosphere of a great 18th-century royal or aristocratic residence in Paris or the provinces! Most of the period rooms display furniture and decorative objects gleaned from various ...

Oat (Avena sativa) is a type of cereal grain. People often eat the plant's whole seeds (oats), outer seed layers (oat bran), and leaves and stems (oat straw). Oats might reduce cholesterol and ...

Imagine the terror of awakening in a confined, pitch-black underground space slowly suffocating to death 6ft under while trapped in your own coffin. You can't see ...

New research has revealed the fascinating life story of a once anonymous Black boy in a grand 18th-century English portrait by French painter Jean-Baptiste van Loo. Recently uncovered documents ...