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Princess Isabel of York

1676–1681

Born
18 Aug 1676, St James's Palace
Country of birth
United Kingdom
Died
2 Mar 1681, London
facts
8
sources
1
images and files
0

Facts and their sources

Tap a fact to see where it comes from.

  • Birth18 Aug 1676, St James's PalaceProbableDisputed1 competing claim1 source
  • Death2 Mar 1681, LondonProbable1 source
  • ParentJames II of EnglandConfirmed1 source
  • ParentMary of ModenaConfirmed1 source

A life in time

  1. Born · St James's Palace

    Birth, St James's Palace

  2. Died · London

    Death, London

What was it like?

The world around St James's Palace, 1676: who ruled, who else was alive, how people lived. This is general history, not a record about the family, and every item shows where it comes from.

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

Fashion
Around 1625–1649

Identical left and right shoes

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

Around 1625–1649

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.

Music
Around 1640–1649

Music and Dance at Festivals

Festivals and local celebrations frequently featured dancing and singing accompanied by instruments like pipes and fiddles.

Around 1625–1649

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.

Getting around
Around 1640–1640

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.

Around 1625–1649

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.

Daily life
Around 1640–1649

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.

Around 1625–1649

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.

Food
Around 1625–1649

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.

Around 1625–1649

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.

Prices and wages
Around 1729–1729

Daily wages for skilled building trades

In 1729, a carpenter earned 2s. 6d. per day, while a mason also received 2s. 6d. per day.

Around 1729–1745

Costs of meat and bread provisions

Butcher's meat cost 1s. 10d. per stone in 1729. Bread prices fluctuated, but in 1745, one penny could purchase 15 ounces and 9/16 of bread.

Work
Around 1625–1649

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.

Around 1625–1649

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.

News and letters
Around 1635–1649

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.

Around 1635–1649

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.

Family

Parents

Ancestors and children

Open the full tree

Four generations back to the right, the children to the left. The number beside a child counts the generations of descendants known after them.