Walking from Pangbourne to Reading took us through a lot of classic English countryside – starting with a ramble through the Hardwick Estate. No, this is not the same as Hardwick Hall of Bess of Hardwick fame, that lies in Derbyshire, far, far from the Thames. For those of you who’ve never heard of Elizabeth […]
Some time ago, I published a post about that rather impressive lady Matilda of Flanders who married William the Conqueror and thereby became the matriarch of the Norman kings. Today, I thought we’d spend some time with her namesake, the equally impressive Matilda of Boulogne. This Matilda was born in 1105 or thereabouts. Her father,
Back in the good old times, the possibility of eating so much you would actually die was restricted to the upper classes. The common folk never got the chance of overindulging in anything much, and as a consequence obesity was often a sign of wealth. In some cultures, to this day obesity is used as