DOMESTIC REVOLUTION

The abundance of coal seams below the surface of Britain's countryside powered the industrial revolution and radically changed the country's landscape with its proliferation of satanic mills. It also brought about a complete change in people's domestic lives, particularly women's. The big switch from wood-fired kitchens to coal-burners started in the mid-16th century, affecting England and Wales more than Scotland because of the prevalence of peat for burning north of the border. By the time of the death of Queen Elizabeth in 1603, London was the first city to be fired almost exclusively by coal, in fact the first in the western world. A steady supply of coal for London came from shipping the product from Newcastle. In the kitchen coal would be used for cooking using a firebox and adjacent shelves, and in the early days grains would be the staple diet, with Frumenty being a popular gruel dish. Bread and roasting were successful operations, with a more French cuisine developing with the increasing versatility of the coal-fired range. Mrs Beeton's 1860 bestseller on household management mentioned the availability of "an unlimited supply of toast". Starting as a domestic revolution, in the 17th and 18th centuries coal was established on as the fuel of manufacturing, and the result was coal-generated dirt and dust on an unprecedented scale, blackening not only buildings but the housewife's washing on the line. The coal-fired range brought about not only a change in diet, but also in cleaning. The dirt generated by coal created a demand for soap and a general focus on effective cleaning and laundering. As luck would have it, a by-product of coal manufacture was soap, created by mixing charcoal with grease in a fascinating symbiotic relationship. An outstanding social history. 330pp, illustrations.