The Bath of Vices and Virtues
One of the newest novels at PanHistoria has chosen the city of Bath as its
initial location. The novel set 1811, the beginning of the Regency Period during
the Napoleonic Wars, has definitely been influenced by a renewed interest in the
works of Jane Austen.
Austen lived in Bath in the early 1800’s and according to some people disliked
it intensely. In Northanger Abbey, Austen writes “For six weeks, I allow, Bath
is pleasant enough; but beyond that it is the most tiresome place in the
world.” (Chapter 10). Yet, through novels such as Austen’s and the other
hundreds of regency romance novels, the world of Bath intrigues and interests us
today.
The city of Bath has a longer and richer history than just the Regency period. A
hot spring known to the local Celtic people was transformed into the spa and
religious center by the Romans who called it Aqua Sulis. For the Romans, baths
were a necessity of life, a sign of civilization and a social center. The hot
spring they developed into a spa produced gallons of water a day at a
temperature of about 47 degrees Celsius. They dedicated the baths to Minerva
Sulis, who became a goddess to whom people took their troubles. Local residents
and visitors in Roman times inscribed prayers on sheets of lead and tossed them
into the spring. One of the least blood-thirsty reads, "Docimedis has lost
two gloves. He asks that the person who has stolen them should lose his mind and
his eyes.” Around the spa and temple a vibrant Roman town developed.
Beginning in the fifth century, Bath became an outpost preserving Roman customs
and lifestyles as the Saxon’s invaded. It was a market place in quiet times
and a refuge when fighting swirled through the area. After the Norman Conquest,
Bath became a cathedral city and began to grow. The hot baths were rebuilt and
attracted visitors; King John and Henry III frequently stayed in the city and
used the hot springs to bathe.
The baths that people visited were nothing more than pools of hot water with
benches in niches. There was no way to clean the pools, nor were there places
for people to change. It was during Tudor times that the citizens of Bath, who
had lost their cathedral status, decided that developing the hot springs was a
means of bringing money to their city. The King’s Bath was rebuilt and a
special bath just for women called the Queen’s Bath was constructed. Both
baths could be cleaned, had changing rooms and decorations. Queen Elizabeth made
several visits to the spa, and there was an interest in the healing aspects of
the hot springs.
It was during the eighteenth century, however, that Bath reached the height of
its popularity and expanded as a city and as a social center in English society.
In fact at one point in the eighteenth century, only London was more important
than Bath. The residents of Bath touted the healing qualities of the water, but
people came for more than just reasons of health. John Wood, famed Palladian
style architect, began the building boom when he designed Queen’s Square.
Other housing developments followed which enticed upper class English to visit
and stay as homes sprawled outside what had been a medieval city. The Baths were
refurbished. Shopping areas were created—the baths alone would not be enough
to keep people busy during their visits. Daytime diversions could be found in
the shops, but also in the Pump Room where a visitor could been seen and drink
the hot spring water to improve their health. Reputedly, the taste leaves
something to be desired. Men might have escaped to local coffee houses which
served not only as a place to get coffee, but where men could read the paper and
discuss the news could be found all over the city. Bath also had the distinction
of having a coffee house for just for women—something that apparently did not
exist elsewhere in England.
Evening entertainment in Bath could very well mean a visit to the theatre where
famous actors and actresses performed, but it would also mean visits to the
Assembly Rooms.
Two sets of Assembly Rooms existed in Georgian Bath. The older or Lower Assembly
rooms were located by the river near Bath Abbey. A Master of Ceremonies had the
job of introducing visitors to each other. In those days without an introduction
people could not and would not start a conversation. As the city expanded with
the new development the Upper or new Assembly Room was built. Here, during the
evenings, music recitals and card games would be held. The main ballroom could
hold about 1000 guests and did so about twice a week.
These balls followed a strict schedule. They began at 6 pm with a minuet. By 8
pm there were country dances. At 9 pm refreshments were served, and the evening
ended at the stroke of 11 pm. The romance of the written word or of the movie
set blinds us to the fact that this scene was lit by five chandeliers filled
with hundreds of candles that would and could drop wax on the dancers below.
Even though we think of Bath in terms of Jane Austen, by the early 1800’s when
she lived there, Bath had reached and was passing its peak of popularity.
Seaside resorts were attracting more and more visitors and with the advent of
the Prince Regent to the throne and his love for Brighton Bath is no longer a
social center.
Today Bath is a fascinating city to visit when in the United Kingdom. Great
shops can be found where you can spend your money. The museums of Bath will
appeal to your love of history and culture. The architecture still can remind
you of a bygone world, a world where men and women followed strict rules of
behavior, and a world that the writers of Vices and Virtues are eager to
explore and recreate.