The Time Traveller's Guide to Elizabethan England by Ian Mortimer

My greatest interest in the period had been language: there are so many words no longer in use which seem to capture something unique in the lives of people: Mortimer spends some time explaining words, even words we use now for their meanings might well have changed since the sixteenth century. Mortimer gives us statistics on how many books were being published and the results are startling. People were reading-even women-and while much of what was available to them were religious tracts, there began to be something more as the period (1550-1600) wore on. On the pro side, world-wide exploration was in its infancy, and it must have been thrilling to discover new products coming in from overseas, changing the way people thought about their own culture. Cleanliness and sanitation were two of the most off-putting descriptions Mortimer shares, but we also shrink at “medical care” and the somewhat arbitrary nature of punishment and death. By carefully going through all the contingencies of leadership, life, and labor, he shows us that life was difficult at best-the early, and not quite thought-out beginning of city living. We may, for instance, subscribe to the notion that Elizabethan England was a period of the flowering of art and language, and it was…to a point. Mortimer expects us to have pre-conceived notions and to develop questions as we read. His sense of humor and level of detail bridges any gaps in understanding why Elizabethan England may not be a place we would want to live. It is both an education and a delight.We all know why Elizabethan England fascinates us and Ian Mortimer is a wonderful guide. This book left me with a sense of both the richness and the terrifying uncertainty of an era in which individuals could, and did, change the course of society.

On a more practical note, the widely-held belief that our ancestors were immune to the bad smells around them turns out to be just plain wrong. We also see the boldness that sends men to circumnavigate the globe, and a wondrous explosion of creativity that produces Shakespeare, Thomas Tallis and William Byrd. We see injustice, suffering, religious bigotry and racism. Ian Mortimer’s approach is at once informed and informal as he steers the reader through Landscape, People, Religion, Character, Basic Essentials, What to Wear, Travelling, Where to Stay, What to Eat and Drink, Hygiene, Illness and Medicine, Law and Disorder and Entertainment. ‘Sometimes the past will inspire you and sometimes it will leave you weeping.’ This is history for everyone: the political and religious upheavals of Elizabethan England embedded in a wealth of information about the way its people thought, worked and lived.

The Time Traveller’s Guide to Elizabethan England

The Time Traveller's Guide to Elizabethan England by Ian Mortimer