Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland

Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland, Countess of Castlemaine, was an English royal mistress of the Villiers family and perhaps the most notorious of the many mistresses of King Charles II of England, by whom she had five children, all of them acknowledged and subsequently ennobled. Barbara was the subject of many portraits, in particular by court painter Sir Peter Lely.

Identical left and right shoes

Women's shoes had no distinction between left and right feet at this time. Both were identical.

Ordinary women's linen smocks

Ordinary women wore smocks as an undergarment, which were loose, all-enveloping linen dresses. These could be made of holland linen for best or coarser fabrics for daily work.

Psalm Books as Treasured Possessions

Commoners and nobility alike cherished psalm books, which were sometimes bound with bibles and could be easily carried in a purse due to their small size.

The Popularity of the Viol

The viola da gamba, a fretted instrument with six strings played with a bow, became very popular for domestic music-making because of its shimmering sound and relative ease of learning.

Travel from London to Dover by wagon

In 1640, the journey from London to Dover by long wagon often took three or four days due to the slow pace of the vehicle.

Carriages stuck in the mud

Carriages sometimes required a team of sturdy laborers on both sides to prop them up so they would not overturn in deep mud.

Candles and open fires lit homes

Lighting and cooking relied heavily on fire: people used candles for light and open fires for cooking. Many houses were built close together and often of wood, increasing the risk of fire.

Few children could afford school

Many children in the 1640s did not go to school, and families often could not afford it; many adults also could not read or write. Where schooling happened, girls often attended only until about age 10, while boys might continue to grammar school if their parents could pay.

Beer and ale safer than water

Most people avoided water because it was rarely clean and could spread disease, so they drank beer or ale made from malted barley and water. Beer was the cheapest drink because its higher alcohol helped it last; some beers were aged for up to two years.

Ordinary diets centered on pottage

For poorer people, pottage (a thick vegetable stew) was a main food, alongside bread and vegetables. This diet left many lacking vitamins and iron, and hard times meant hunger when prices rose.

Equal Pay for Identical Tasks

While men typically earned more, women and men could sometimes receive the same daily wage for performing identical agricultural tasks.

Highly Seasonal Female Agricultural Work

Women's agricultural work was highly seasonal, with 72.7 per cent of their recorded workdays occurring between July and September.

Letters traveled round-trip in six days

After the 1635 royal proclamation, letters could be sent between London and major cities like Edinburgh or Plymouth with a guaranteed round trip, including an answer, in six days. Before this service, many people relied on carriers, foot-posts, or private servants to deliver mail in an informal and often slower manner.

Postage costs based on distance traveled

Postage rates for a single letter in 1635 were set based on distance: 2d for under 80 miles, 4d for 80 to 140 miles, and 6d for distances over 140 miles. Additional fees applied for packets containing more than one letter, with the total cost payable upon receipt or delivery.