Wealhtheow’s Reviews > Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune: How Younger Sons Made Their Way in Jane Austen's England > Status Update
Wealhtheow
is on page 316 of 384
"It is rather surprising that a large number of well-educated young men, brought up in comfort if not affluence, only to be faced with such limited and bleak prospects, did not develop a greater sense of collective identity and grievance, and turn to radical politics to remedy the flagrant injustices of a society that could treat them in this manner. Presumably they retained a sufficiently strong sense of belonging..
— Mar 29, 2023 02:23PM
Like flag
Wealhtheow’s Previous Updates
Wealhtheow
is on page 317 of 384
Most of the gentlemanly professions reacted to the reduction of opportunities after the war by closing ranks&becoming more exclusive. With the army and navy stagnating, purchase in the former&patronage in the latter became much more important in securing promotion&employment. Public opinion turns against clergy holding multiple livings, more men turn to commerce, clerking or colonies.
— Mar 29, 2023 02:28PM
Wealhtheow
is on page 276 of 384
"The army generally had far fewer opportunities of securing prize money than the navy, and when it did the fruits almost invariably went to a very senior officer: there was no equivalent position to the fortunate or favored frigate captain becoming a rich man as the result of a single cruise."
— Mar 29, 2023 01:53PM
Wealhtheow
is on page 247 of 384
4% of new officers had attended the Royal Military College, which had room for only 100 cadets, of whom 20 were nominated by the East India Company and destined to serve in its army. 30 of the remaining places were reserved for the sons of officers who had died or been maimed on service. Most cadets were aged 13-15 and had to pass a test intended to show that they had a grounding in grammar & arithmetic.
— Mar 29, 2023 01:43PM
Wealhtheow
is on page 226 of 384
"In 1810 just 60% of the lieutenants in the navy were employed on active service, but that compared favorably to 44% of commanders and only 41% of captains. Even allowing for some who were too old or ill to serve, that left a great many more captains than commands open to them."
— Mar 29, 2023 01:29PM
Wealhtheow
is on page 223 of 384
After Francis Austen was given his own ship, a 24 gun sloop, his sister Jane reacted to the news by writing Cassandra, "There! -- I may now finish my letter, & go hang myself, for I am sure I can neither write nor do anything which will not appear insipid to you after this."
— Mar 29, 2023 01:26PM
Wealhtheow
is on page 193 of 384
Procuring an office was not easy & almost invariably depended on a close connection to someone who was either the dominant local magnate or influential on the national stage. Most gentlemen had some connection--either by family or friendship--with a Member of Parliament or peer, but this was not enough to give them a realistic chance of securing anything more than a clerk's position in a gmnt office
— Mar 29, 2023 12:11PM
Wealhtheow
is on page 186 of 384
The appeal of the diplomatic service rose in the years after Waterloo and its ranks became even more aristocratic, with more than 1/2 of the 391 British diplomats between 1815-60 being grandsons of peers or baronets, while most of the remainder came from well established gentry. 20 of 23 ambassadors came from aristocratic families. The # of young men who found a career in the diplomatic service was not large.
— Mar 29, 2023 12:06PM
Wealhtheow
is on page 182 of 384
Many sinecures were granted in advance, or "in reversion," when an incumbent was still in place. Duke of Portland's grandson Greville given the reversion of the Secretaryship of Jamaica and appointed Clerk Extraordinary to the Privy Council at age 7. When his predecessor in Jamaica finally died, Greville wrote stating that his Privy duties would prevent his visiting them, & they gave him a permanent leave of absence.
— Mar 29, 2023 12:02PM
Wealhtheow
is on page 174 of 384
Smith outraged when his son offered a low position: "As to the Lord Waiter's place I have too much real confidence in the proper feeling of Lord Melbourne & yourself to suppose for a moment that you are treating me with derision, & have therefore only to say plainly, that my situation in Life places me above the necessity of accepting such an offer,& ought perhaps to have guaranteed me from the pain of receiving it."
— Mar 29, 2023 11:58AM
Wealhtheow
is on page 170 of 384
"There was no civil service in England in the early 19th century in the sense that later became commonly accepted: a large body of permanent, professional administrators, with standardized conditions of employment and promotion independent of their political masters. Even the term 'civil service' had yet to become current."
— Mar 29, 2023 11:56AM
Comments Showing 1-1 of 1 (1 new)
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Wealhtheow
(new)
-
rated it 3 stars
Mar 29, 2023 02:25PM
..to the privileged classes and were not sufficiently alienated to want to upend the applecart, but revolutions have been fueled by less reasonable complaints, and Britain in the years immediately after Waterloo was seething with discontent. At the time, however, most half-pay officers and other young gentlemen in a similar position probably imagined that some fresh war would soon break out, or some other opportunity would arise, that would rescue them from the doldrums and carry them forward in their career. Like the proverbial frog boiling in water, their disillusionment was gradual and they slowly adjusted to their altered circumstances and diminished prospects."
reply
|
flag
