Tea at Trianon: Wise in Culinary Ways

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Monday, August 2, 2021

Wise in Culinary Ways

From LitHub:

Martha Lloyd’s Household Book is one of the few items we have from Jane Austen’s closest friend. As Martha was an integral part of Jane’s life, her recipe book is a highlight of the collection at Jane Austen’s House in Hampshire. It is fitting that the book resides at Chawton Cottage, a place both women called home. Much of what we know about Martha is through Jane’s letters and a few family reminiscences. But if we reread what has been written about Jane Austen we can catch glimpses of Martha Lloyd, who was often a figure in the background or just nearby. Included as a natural preface to Martha’s household book is an extensive biography of Martha Lloyd. Knowing more of Martha’s life leads us to a greater understanding of the deep friendship between Martha and Jane, a friendship that also included Jane’s sister Cassandra.

My first visit to Chawton Cottage in 1996 piqued my curiosity about the woman behind the manuscript cookbook. In more recent years I began connecting Martha’s recipes with the food references in Jane’s letters. With entries for toasted cheese, orange wine, pickled cucumbers, mead and many others, Martha captured much of what Jane enjoyed at the dinner table. Recipe contributions from Mrs. Austen, Captain Austen and Mrs. Lefroy affirmed Martha’s place within Jane’s inner circle. In fact, Martha lived over half her adult life within the closely knit Austen family. Many of the names in Martha’s book also appear in Jane’s letters. Some families—Fowle, Craven and Dundas—are actually more closely linked to Martha than to Jane.
A full appreciation of Martha Lloyd’s Household Book begins with an introduction to its creator—the woman who befriended a young Jane Austen, shared a home with the famous author and later married into the Austen family. Like so much under the umbrella of Jane Austen studies, Martha’s existence has been defined by her proximity to the great novelist. But the life of Martha Lloyd can be better examined when pulled out from Jane Austen’s shadow and viewed in its own modest light. If Jane were writing Martha’s biography, she might begin with “Which of all her important nothings shall I tell you first?” Jane’s references to Martha involve the usual female topics of household details, apparel, balls, shopping and dining companions. There are no great headlines in Martha’s life story other than that she was Jane Austen’s closest friend. But Martha was also a loving daughter, sister, aunt—and eventually a wife and stepmother. As such, she had many claims on the affections of those around her. (Read more.)