Eat, drink and be merry: The history of dining

Great banquets and feasting played a major role in the lives of the great and wealthy throughout the ages. Often highlighting an occasion of dynastic or political significance, such feasts were realizations of aesthetic and social ideals.                                   
This course will trace the history of dining from the Renaissance to the Victorian period, the development of fine cookery and the changing etiquette of the table. It will consider the importance of spectacle and display, the technology of the kitchen, fashions in table arrangements, the evolution of cutlery and the delights of the dessert.

Reconstructing the Kitchens of Henry VIII: Experimental Archaeology at Historic Royal Trusts
Marc Meltonville, Project Co-Ordinator, Historic Royal Kitchens, Hampton Court Palace

Curious Delights: Banquets and Banqueting Houses in Tudor England
Dr Paula Henderson, FSA

The Edible Edifice: Dining in the Baroque Age
Ivan Day, Food Historian

The Renaissance Banquet: A Feast for all the Senses
Gillian Riley

“Most curiously wrought”: Displaying Plate on the Buffet and Cupboard
Philippa Glanville, Independent Scholar and Social Historian

The Kitchen and its Offices
Peter Brears           

The Victorian Kitchen Garden: Supplying the Household
Richard Wheeler, Garden Curator for the National Trust

Dining by Design 1680 – 1850
Peter Brown, Director, Fairfax House

Eating Tools: The Evolution of English Cutlery
Bill Brown

Furnishing the Eating Room
Sarah Bowles           

From Banquet to Dessert
Peter Brown, Director, Fairfax House

Bottoms Up! The Drinking Glass and Wine
Andy McConnell, Antiques Road Show and Glass Historian

The cost of the full course is £244. The cost of the morning lectures only (lunch not included) is £140. The lectures will take place at The Medical Society of London,
Lettsom House, 11 Chandos Street, Cavendish Square, London W1. Each day will begin at 10.30am and finish at about 3.30pm.

To apply, please contact us.