Robert Halsband

Women and Literature in Eighteenth Century England

During the eighteenth century female authors became increasingly numerous and industrious; while as readers, writes Robert Halsband, thanks to the spread of the new circulating libraries, women began to form ‘a significant sector’ of the literary public.

The Duel

Robert Halsband describes how, in 1731, the Leader of the Opposition and a supporter of Sir Robert Walpole fought a celebrated duel in Green Park, London.

The Noble Lady and the Player

In the early eighteenth century, writes Robert Halsband, the marriage of an aristocratic young widow and a Drury Lane singer caused violent surprise among her friends.