Well-known for his eccentric behaviour, John Bickerton was born into relative affluence in Shropshire in 1755, educated at Oxford and the Inns of Court, and came to the attention of two prime ministers, but was imprisoned twice and died in squalor in London aged 78. By piecing together his life, Stephen Haddelsey presents a ‘riches-to-rags tale’ that reflects Georgian attitudes to madness and poverty.
'An adroit, intelligent and painstaking social history ... Poor Bickerton offers us a luxurious tapestry from which everyone interested in English social history in the late-Georgian period can learn something new and surprising.' - Professor Jerry White, author of London in the Eighteenth Century: A Great and Monstrous Thing
On 8 October 1833, Coroner Thomas Higgs opened an inquest into the death of John Bickerton, an elderly eccentric who, despite rumours of his wealth and high connections, had died in abject squalor, 'from the want of the common necessaries of life'.
Over the coming hours, Higgs and his jury would unpick the details of Bickerton's strange, sad story: a story that began with comparative wealth, included education at Oxford and the Inns of Court, and brought him to the attention of two sitting prime ministers, but which descended into madness, imprisonment, mockery and starvation.
Using Bickerton's life as a thread around which to weave his narrative, historian Stephen Haddelsey explores the lives of the down-and-outs and rejects of Georgian and Regency England, including debtors, criminals and the insane. For anyone fascinated by this era of balls and intrigue, of Lord Byron and mad King George, here a world altogether grittier than that to be found in the novels of Jane Austen is revealed in all its lurid detail.
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https://www.psbooks.co.uk/poor-bickerton546167Poor Bickertonhttps://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/546167_media-0.jpg3.999.99GBPInStock/History/History/Categories/Social History/History/Categories/Modern History/Non-Fiction/Categories/Biography & Memoirs/Non-Fiction/Categories/Biography & Memoirs/Biographies/Non-Fiction/Categories/Biography & Memoirs/Biographies/Historical Biographies/Sale/Sale/History Sale/Sale/Non-Fiction Sale<p>Well-known for his eccentric behaviour, John Bickerton was born into relative affluence in Shropshire in 1755, educated at Oxford and the Inns of Court, and came to the attention of two prime ministers, but was imprisoned twice and died in squalor in London aged 78. By piecing together his life, Stephen Haddelsey presents a ‘riches-to-rags tale’ that reflects Georgian attitudes to madness and poverty.</p>Hardback00https://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/546167_media-1.jpghttps://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/546167_media-2.jpgadd-to-cartrrp_info:£20.00productId:183644bic_code:BGH, HBJD1, HBTB, JFSCBGH, HBJD1, HBTB, JFSC£20.00Stephen HaddelseyGeneral240x163mmHistory PressYesHardbackBritish & Irish
