18th Centuryists

Proud Priests and Bishops we’ll translate And canonize as Martyrs; The guillotine on Peers shall wait; And Knights shall hang in garters… —another pro-Revolutionary #poem attributed to Robert Burns, although without any link to him pre-1830s & no extant manuscript in Burns’s hand #C18 #BastilleDay

Why Should We Idly Waste Our Prime
attributed to Robert Burns
Text taken from THE POETRY OF ROBERT BURNS, edited by W.E. Henley and T.F. Henderson (T.C. & E.C. Jack, Edinburgh, 1897)

I

Why should we idly waste our prime
Repeating our oppressions?
Come rouse to arms! ’Tis now the time
To punish past transgressions.
’Tis said that Kings can do no wrong—
Their murderous deeds deny it,
And, since from us their power is sprung,
We have a right to try it.
Now each true patriot’s song shall be:—
“Welcome Death or Libertie!”

II

Proud Priests and Bishops we’ll translate
And canonize as Martyrs;
The guillotine on Peers shall wait;
And Knights shall hang in garters.
Those Despots long have trode us down,
And Judges are their engines:
Such wretched minions of a Crown
Demand the people’s vengeance!
To-day ’tis theirs. To-morrow we
Shall don the Cap of Libertie!

III

The Golden Age we’ll then revive:
Each man will be a brother;
In harmony we all shall live,
And share the earth together;
In Virtue train’d, enlighten’d
Youth Will love each fellow-creature;
And future years shall prove the truth
That Man is good by nature:
Then let us toast with three times three
The reign of Peace and Libertie!

Association for Scottish Literature@asls.org.uk

Heard ye o’ the tree o’ France, I watna what’s the name o’t; Around it a’ the patriots dance, Weel Europe kens the fame o’t… —“The Tree of Liberty”, attributed to Robert Burns (disputed). First printed in Chambers’ THE POETICAL WORKS OF ROBERT BURNS (1838) 🇫🇷 #BastilleDay #C18 #C19 #poem #poetry 1/3

The Tree of Liberty
attributed to Robert Burns

Heard ye o’ the tree o’ France,
I watna what’s the name o’t;
Around it a’ the patriots dance,
Weel Europe kens the fame o’t.
It stands where ance the Bastile stood,
A prison built by kings, man,
When Superstition’s hellish brood
Kept France in leading-strings, man.

Upo’ this tree there grows sic fruit,
Its virtues a’ can tell, man;
It raises man aboon the brute,
It mak’s him ken himsel, man.
Gif ance the peasant taste a bit,
He ’s greater than a lord, man,
An’ wi’ the beggar shares a mite
O’ a’ he can afford, man.

This fruit is worth a’ Afric’s wealth:
To comfort us ’twas sent, man:
To gie the sweetest blush o’ health,
An’ mak us a’ content, man.
It clears the een, it cheers the heart,
Maks high and low gude friends, man;
And he wha acts the traitor’s part,
It to perdition sends, man.

My blessings aye attend the chiel
Wha pitied Gallia’s slaves, man,
And staw a branch, spite o’ the deil,
Frae yont the western waves, man.
Fair Virtue water’d it wi’ care,
And now she sees wi’ pride, man,
How weel it buds and blossoms there,
Its branches spreading wide, man.

But vicious folk aye hate to see
The works o’ Virtue thrive, man;
The courtly vermin’s bann’d the tree,
And grat to see it thrive, man;
King Loui’ thought to cut it down,
When it was unco sma’, man;
For this the watchman crack’d his crown,
Cut aff his head and a’, man.

A wicked crew syne, on a time,
Did tak a solemn aith, man,
It ne’er should flourish to its prime,
I wat they pledged their faith, man.
Awa’ they gaed wi’ mock parade,
Like beagles hunting game, man,
But soon grew weary o’ the trade
And wished they’d been at hame, man.

For Freedom, standing by the tree,
Her sons did loudly ca’, man.
She sang a sang o’ liberty,
Which pleased them ane and a’, man.

By her inspired, the new-born race
Soon drew the avenging steel, man;
The hirelings ran—her foes gied chase,
And banged the despot weel, man.

Let Britain boast her hardy oak,
Her poplar and her pine, man,
Auld Britain ance could crack her joke,
And o’er her neighbours shine, man.
But seek the forest round and round,
And soon ’twill be agreed, man,
That sic a tree can not be found,
’Twixt London and the Tweed, man.

Without this tree, alake this life
Is but a vale o’ woe, man;
A scene o’ sorrow mixed wi’ strife,
Nae real joys we know, man.
We labour soon, we labour late,
To feed the titled knave, man;
And a’ the comfort we ’re to get,
Is that ayont the grave, man.

Wi’ plenty o’ sic trees, I trow,
The warld would live in peace, man;
The sword would help to mak a plough,
The din o’ war wad cease, man.
Like brethren in a common cause,
We’d on each other smile, man;
And equal rights and equal laws
Wad gladden every isle, man.

Wae worth the loon wha wadna eat
Sic halesome dainty cheer, man;
I’d gie the shoon frae aff my feet,
To taste sic fruit, I swear, man.
Syne let us pray, auld England may
Sure plant this far-famed tree, man;
And blythe we’ll sing, and hail the day
That gives us liberty, man.

Dave Mazella

@davemazella.bsky.social

#18c

Megan L. Cook@meganlcook.bsky.social

Descriptive bibliography question for those who know more about the 18th century than I do: the book below is large and has a lot of plates, and seems based on signatures to be a folio in 2s. Is this a thing? I am used to seeing them in 6s. The binding is such that I can't ascertain directly.

Association for Scottish Literature

@asls.org.uk

Association for Scottish Literature

@asls.org.uk

Robbie Coltrane reads “The Tree of Liberty” on BBC Sounds 🇫🇷 #BastilleDay #C18 #C19 #poem #poetry 2/3 www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p...

www.bbc.co.uk

BBC Radio Scotland - The works of Robert Burns, The Tree of Liberty

A poem by Robert Burns.

neil guthrie

@nguthrie.bsky.social

Mustard pot and stand (Vincennes, 1754), George R Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto #c18 #c18th #18thc

Mustard pot with handle (no lid; would it have had one?) and oval lobed stand (tray) in soft-paste porcelain, overglaze enamels and gilding. Pale blue ground with white panels containign sprays of flowers and a butterfly in the central panel. Marked with interlaced Ls and date mark A for 1754)

Readex

@readex.com

Despite the Declaration of Independence only bearing the signatures of men, #America250 is only possible with the wives, daughters, and female family members of these men and the women across the 13 colonies. #WomensHistory #18thCentury #Revolution250

ow.ly

"Such women should read, should think, and should act": Women's Special Roles in the American Revolution | Readex

In 1780, the newly formed Culper Spy Ring successfully exposed British plans to ambush the French army in Rhode Island. By quickly alerting George Washington to the enemy's plans, the group safeguarded the Franco-American alliance and thwarted a potentially devastating surprise attack. In doing so,…

Cronologia

@cronologia.bsky.social

Working with publisher Samuel Fores, his prints hung in shop windows, drawing crowds. He dissected power: 'State Butchers' turned politicians into literal butchers hacking at the nation. In a time of press censorship, his visual dissent was a radical act. #18thCentury #PoliticalSatire #HistoryOfArt

Dr Rachel Bynoth

@rachelbynoth.bsky.social

Is anyone organising anything for George Canning‘s death anniversary for 2027? Seems like a ripe time to revisit him as a historical community! Particularly interested in online events as I‘ll be on/coming back from maternity leave #18thc #19thc @long18thsem.bsky.social @georgianlords.bsky.social

neil guthrie

@nguthrie.bsky.social

A moment in Jane Austen's Sanditon that could have come straight out of Sterne. Diana Parker recommends ‘friction' as a remedy for sprains, which she employed to good effect on an injured coachman: 'I rubbed his ankle with my own hand for six hours without intermission' 😳 (Long) #c18 #c18th #18thc

The Wisdom Pedlars, Antiquarian Book Auctions

@wisdompedlars.bsky.social

3 days ago

Some of the antiquarian books we have for auction this week. Auctions end Sunday, from 8pm (UK time) #antiquarian #bibliophile #history #BookTwitter #rarebooks #bookhistory #earlymodern #18thcentury #rarebooks #bookcollecting #bookauctions ebay.co.uk/str/wisdompe...

neil guthrie

@nguthrie.bsky.social

3 days ago

Cat and lunch (Saint-Cloud, c1745), George R Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto #c18 #c18th #18thc

Figure of a recumbent cat with a very satisfied expression, incised fur and manganese markings, its front paw resting upon a mouse, the rockwork base splashed in brown, yellow, red and manganese.

Susan Klaiber

@susanklaiber.bsky.social

Here it is, thanks to @willjennings.bsky.social #18thc collections.vam.ac.uk/ite….

collections.vam.ac.uk

Fan | Unknown | V&A Explore The Collections

Fan of gouache painted on vellum, with carved and pierced ivory sticks, Rome, 1770-1780

Patrick Kapty

@patrickkapty.bsky.social

Rabbit & Mortar netsuke carved ivory Edo period 18th century CE Japan Tokyo National Museum #handmade #rabbit #mortarandpestle #carved #ivory #netsuke #edoperiod #18thcentury #Japan #tokyonationalmuseum #antique #japanesecraft #japaneseantiques #figural #animal #carving #ivorynetsuke #antiqueivory

Rabbit on Mortar & Pestle netsuke
carved ivory
Edo period, 18th century CE
Japan
Tokyo National Museum

#handmade #rabbit #mortarandpestle #carved #ivory #netsuke #edoperiod #18thcentury #Japan #tokyonationalmuseum #antique #japanesecraft #japaneseantiques

A netsuke (pronounced "nets-keh") is a miniature Japanese sculpture. Because traditional Japanese kimonos had no pockets, men suspended personal items (like tobacco pouches or medicine cases) from their sashes (obi) using silk cords. A netsuke served as the functional toggle or counterweight at the top of the cord to keep it from slipping.

neil guthrie

@nguthrie.bsky.social

The Jane Austen reread concludes with Sanditon! I do have Chapman's edition of the letters, though … (Long) #c18 #c18th #18thc

Penguin edition (1983) with an aquatint of a lady in a pale blue riding habit, sidesaddle on a capering chestnut mare. From Heideloff’s Gallery of Fashion (1797-98)

Puck 🏳️‍⚧️ 🛼

@puckboum.bsky.social

🌜Lovers in the moonlight🌟🏳️‍🌈 An illustration idea I've had for a while and adapted for the clip studio contest. I might make a watercolor version of this later! ☺️ #18thcentury #queerart

The Wisdom Pedlars, Antiquarian Book Auctions

@wisdompedlars.bsky.social

THEOLOGIA HISTORICO-POLEMICA 1751 CHRISTOPHORO Latin COUNTER REFORMATION #books #antiquarian #theology #history #Latin #CounterReformation #18thcentury #bookauction ohixkp.s.gy/DTBt40

The Wisdom Pedlars, Antiquarian Book Auctions

@wisdompedlars.bsky.social

MOLIÈRE Le MISANTHROPE 1817, Bound with LE MARIAGE DE FIGARO 1785 BEAUMARCHAIS #books #antiquarian #Moliere #misanthrope #Beaumarchais #theatre #plays #stage #18thcentury #19thcentury #French #engravings #bookauction ohixkp.s.gy/JDmRyy

The Wisdom Pedlars, Antiquarian Book Auctions

@wisdompedlars.bsky.social