A large black cast iron range glowing hot, the kettle steaming on top, provider of everything from bathwater and clean socks to morning tea: it’s a nostalgic icon of a Victorian way of life. But it is far more than that. In this book, social historian and TV presenter Ruth Goodman tells the story of how the development of the coal-fired domestic range fundamentally changed not just our domestic comforts, but our world.
The revolution began as far back as the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, when London began the switch from wood to coal as its domestic fuel – a full 200 years before any other city. It would be this domestic demand for more coal that would lead to the expansion of mining, engineering, construction and industry: the Domestic Revolution kick-started, pushed and fuelled the Industrial Revolution.
There were other radical shifts. Coal cooking was to change not just how we cooked but what we cooked (causing major swings in diet), how we washed (first our laundry and then our bodies) and how we decorated (spurring the wallpaper industry). It also defined the nature of women’s and men’s working lives, pushing women more firmly into the domestic sphere.
It transformed our landscape and environment (by the time of Elizabeth’s death in 1603, London’s air was as polluted as that of modern Beijing). Even tea drinking can be brought back to coal in the home, with all its ramifications for the shape of the empire and modern world economics.
Taken together, these shifts in our day-to-day practices started something big, something unprecedented, something that was exported across the globe and helped create the world we live in today.
Amazon UK Hardback
I received a copy of this book from Omara Books in return for an honest review.
My Thoughts…
If you have an interest in social history, this book explores an important aspect. The Domestic Revolution began in the late sixteenth century. London’s population started to move towards coal rather than wood as the fuel of choice. Well-researched, this book illustrates how the domestic use of coal changed the fabric of the landscape and society.
The book layout has easy to read chapters with pertinent illustrations. It follows the domestic move towards coal as household fuel and its effects. The engaging writing style brings history to life and shows its importance to environmental issues faced today.
A thought-provoking book that shows that history is important to our lives today.
For the first time, shows how the Industrial Revolution truly began in the kitchen – a revolution run by women
Told with Ruth’s inimitable wit, passion and commitment to revealing the nitty-gritty of life across three centuries of extraordinary change, from the Elizabethan to the Victorian age
A TV regular, Ruth has appeared on some of BBC 2’s most successful shows, including, Victorian Farm, Edwardian Farm, Wartime Farm, Tudor Monastery Farm, Inside the Food Factory and most recently Full Steam Ahead, as well as being a regular expert presenter on The One Show
The critically acclaimed author of How to Be a Victorian, How to be a Tudor and How to Behave Badly in Renaissance Britain
Jane Hunt Writer 