lady fanshawe’s Receipt book: the life and times of a civil war heroine

An ordinary woman in extraordinary time

“Marriage was a seventeenth century woman’s career” writes Lucy Moore, with respectable females anticipating unions with well-connected, prosperous men, lived out in elegant surroundings fit to fulfil their wifely and motherly duties. But in the chasm of the Civil War, England’s rocky foundations crumbled and all had to adapt to a world with no clear future in sight.

As a daughter and wife to servants of the crown, Ann Fanshawe was a true Royalist and, as one might expect, her family endured years of peril trying to keep their cause’s flame alive.

To piece together Ann’s dramatic life, author

Lucy Moore consults not only her memoirs, but her receipt book — a carefully cultivated collection of medicinal recipes shared by family and friends. It was an essential handbook pointing to the wife’s role as head of her household and, beyond that, a benefactor to the community.

The result is a thrilling leap into one of England’s most tumultuous eras, which convincingly asserts that the women of the time were not the passive players that we assume, but actually active participants in a feminine sphere that fostered and nurtured relationships between families. This was something that was particularly essential for the Cavaliers, who would face years of hardship before Charles II’S supporters finally managed to bring an end to the Commonwealth and allow the king-inwaiting to claim his throne in 1660.

Ann hardly left her beloved diplomat husband Richard’s side during the wars and the Protectorate, moving with him from place to place, each slightly worse than the place before it. They embarked on dangerous yet invigorating adventures and left their imprint.

Through this book, we gain valuable insight into the wider Royalist circle with a dizzying array of figures weaved into the narrative, rooted in a depth of research dotted with exciting detail. The result is an original work demonstrating the skills that women of the time possessed and how they utilised them to full effect to preserve their families. What is clear is that wives had more weight than might be believed.

Author Lucy Moore Publisher Atlantic Books Price £20 Released Out now