Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society8 Sep 2023

Cleopatra to Jane Austen: Perfumes of Powerful Women

Why did Cleopatra soak the sails of her ship in jasmine? How did Queen Elizabeth smell? And why was perfume an essential tool of power for women across history?

Whilst it’s hard to research the history of something that leaves no physical trace, we actually know a great deal about how some of the most iconic women in history would have smelt.

Joining Kate to evoke these scents and what they stood for is award-winning fragrance journalist Suzy Nightingale.

Here are the perfumes listed in the episode:

Cleopatra: The Merchant of Venice Queen of the Night

Joan of Arc: Histoire de Parfums Encens Roi

Elizabeth I: Frederic Malle Portrait of a Lady

Jane Austen: Commodity Book (Personal strength)

Cora Pearl: Robert Piguet Fracas

This episode is edited by Tom Delargy and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.

Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Kate Lister, Dan Snow, Suzannah Lipscomb, Lucy Worsley, Mary Beard and more.

Get 50% off your first 3 months with code BETWIXT. Download the app on your smart TV or in the app store or sign up at historyhit.com/subscribe.

You can take part in our listener survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/6FFT7MK

Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(453)

Slavery in the Roman Empire

Behind the impressive relics the Romans left behind lurks a much darker story: that most of Rome was built on the back of enslaved people.It's shocking to know that up to 30% of Roman society was made...

1 Sep 48min

History's Deadliest Women: The Blood Countess

Elizabeth Bathory was a fabulously wealthy Noblewoman accused of torturing and killing some 600 women in the 16th century.Her story is popularly spoken about as one of history's deadliest women... but...

28 Aug 53min

Sex and Scandal on the Titanic

It's the most famous sunken ship in history, but its story is surrounded by a lot of myth.Were the working classes locked below deck and doomed to drown? Could the Titanic have avoided the iceberg? An...

25 Aug 1h

History's Deadliest Women: The Evil Stepmother

In 1909, the third and final woman hanged in Western Australia was executed. She had murdered three of her step children.What drove Martha Rendall to kill these children? Why did others in their neigh...

21 Aug 42min

The Mad Monk & The Witch Hunts

Malleus Maleficarum may sound like a spell but it is actually almost the opposite. This book was nicknamed the Hammer of Witches, and today we're finding out if it really started the European witch hu...

18 Aug 46min

History's Deadliest Women: The Husband Killer

Until the 19th century in Britain, a woman killing her husband was guilty of worse than murder, she was guilty of petty treason.So what is petty treason? What is its very harsh punishment? And why was...

14 Aug 52min

The Scandalous Affair of Lord Nelson & Emma Hamilton

Lord Nelson is remembered as one of history's greatest military commanders. His victories at the Battle of the Nile, the Battle of Copenhagen and the Battle of Trafalgar cemented his legendary status,...

11 Aug 48min

The Mystic Nun Killed By Henry VIII

As if the Tudor world wasn't mad enough, in 1528 a mystic nun showed up demanding an audience with Henry VIII.Elizabeth Barton stood in front of him and told him that his controversial marriage to Ann...

7 Aug 46min