Catherine Sheffield, Duchess of Buckingham and Normanby

What people wore

Identical left and right shoes

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

Daily life

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.

Work

Routine Workday Peak Hours

The working day typically followed a routine with peak hours between 8am and 11am, followed by a break for dinner, and an afternoon peak between 2pm and 5pm.

Music

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.

At the table

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.

Getting around

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.

What it cost

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.