Blog

31 May Josephine, the Mistress who Became Empress

Posted at 10:20h in art history, French women by jenni

Josephine de Beauharnais (Marie Josèphe Rose Tascher de La Pagerie) 1763-1814 was born to a wealthy family growing sugarcane on the island of Martinique. At 15, a fortune teller predicted she would “become more than a queen.” When hurricanes destroyed the family plantation, it was arranged...

06 Mar Frédéric Chopin and George Sand

Posted at 10:58h in art history, Paris, Shady Ladies by jenni

Based in part on a Shady Ladies lecture by Edith de Beauville and historian Professor Andrew Lear George Sand (born Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin-1804-1876), was one of the most popular writers of her era, respected and befriended by peers Honoré de Balzac, Victor Hugo, Gustave Flaubert, Ivan...

04 Nov Love in the Louvre Zoom Tour of the Metropolitan

Posted at 03:29h in French women, Louvre Museum, Paris, Paris tour, Women's History by jenni

Paris is the city of love, and the Louvre is its centerpiece. Learn about the theme of love in this palace full of masterpieces! The Louvre is full of love stories, because all through the centuries, love has inspired French artists. Discover the love secrets...

07 Jun Bridgerton’s England

Posted at 14:26h in British history, fashion, scandals and secrets by Professor Andrew Lear

Gossip, scandal, wit and lots of bosom-heaving sex! Bridgerton has caused millions to flutter their lashes and swoon as it quickly soared its way into petticoats and hearts. Within the first 28 days of its release more than 82 million households had taken in the gloriously British romp, becoming Netflix’s most-watched show of time. Creator Shonda Rhimes (Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Scandal) cleverly matched colour-blind casting with sumptuously colourful costumes to explore the saucy lives of a Regency era aristocratic cast of characters that defied the traditional period drama model. Oscar Wilde tour guide Dan Vo watched the series with his history house expert spectacles on and spotted some of his favourite historical places and breathtaking country homes serving as the backdrop of this vivacious reimaged England. For example In London, there’s Ranger's House in Greenwich, serving as the home of Lady Bridgerton, her four sons (Anthony, Benedict, Colin, and Gregory), and her four daughters (Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, and Hyacinth) as well as the extravagant Syon House standing in for The Duke of Hastings' home. Read on to discover the rich history each of these places has and their real-life significance in Regency times.

16 May The scandalous story of Harriett Wilson

Posted at 03:16h in courtesans, royal mistresses, Shady Ladies by jenni

An infamous courtesan who took London by storm with her sisters Amy and Sophia, Harriet was the daughter of a humble Swiss clock maker. By the age of 15, she had already elevated herself as the mistress of the Earl of Craven. When that liaison...

21 Dec Zoom Tours in 2020 and 2021

Posted at 00:02h in courtesans, fashion, fashion history, French women, Louvre Museum, nasty women, Paris, Paris tour, royal mistresses, scandals and secrets, Shady Ladies, Women's History by Professor Andrew Lear

At the end of this very real annus terribilis, I want to say a few words to you, our loyal readers and attendees. Above all, thanks! Thanks for keeping Shady Ladies Tours alive by reading our blog, attending our Zoom tours, watching our YouTube videos, contributing to our fundraisers—in short, for being a fabulously loyal community. When the pandemic hit the US, in March, it seemed likely to kill the company completely. Who would have thought that 9 months later, as the pandemic continued to rage, we would be putting on our 18th Zoom tour, with audiences regularly over 100, and have gathered over 28,000 views for our videos? It's been a hard year, but ours is a tiny, flourishing corner. And we have a lot more coming after the holidays! Want to find out more?

10 Dec Women of the National Portrait Gallery

Posted at 09:55h in British history, courtesans, royal mistresses, scandals and secrets, Shady Ladies, Women's History by Professor Andrew Lear

London's National Portrait Gallery has a great collection of portraits of famous and important people from British history. If you ask the general public what that means, they would tell you it's a great place to see images of kings, queens, prime ministers, and other great people (mostly men). But actually, the National Portrait Gallery’s collection is much more fun than people realize. It contains a lot of portraits of people with really entertaining stories, and these stories often revolve around the one thing that can make historical people seem really relatable: love and sex. And many of the most interesting stories are about *women*.

[* Purchase Tickets To the Scandals & Secrets Tours of the National Portrait Gallery of London *]

19 Aug LGBTQ England and its Queerest Stately Homes

Posted at 01:18h in LGBTQ England by Professor Andrew Lear

One of the great things about England is its grand, historic houses, what the British call “stately homes.” Today’s post is about two castles with an LGBTQ past. And who better to write about LGBTQ England and its Queerest Stately Homes than Nick Collinson and...

14 Aug Paris Women’s History in Père Lachaise

Posted at 00:18h in courtesans, French women, Louvre Museum, Metropolitan Museum, nasty women, Paris, Paris tour, Shady Ladies, Women's History by Professor Andrew Lear

Bold and sexy women must always have existed everywhere, but in history they seem to be a French specialty. There are a number of places where you can learn about them in Paris. The Louvre and Orsay museums are great, for instance, or the royal...

Gigi, on of the great scandalous French women

19 Feb Scandalous French Women of History

Posted at 22:45h in art history, courtesans, fashion, fashion history, French women, Paris, Paris tour, Shady Ladies, Women's History by Professor Andrew Lear

Paris is the great city for the history of racy women. Certainly, other places have contributed—particularly Italy during the Renaissance. But from the time the Renaissance took off in France, scandalous French women have taken most of the world prizes for raciness.