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Draft:Other Times

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Other Times; or, The Monks of Leadenhall
Title page of original edition
AuthorThomas Gaspey
LanguageEnglish
Genrenovel
Publication date
April 1823; 202 years ago (1823-04)
Publication placeLondon, England

Other Times, alternatively titled The Monks of Leadenhall, is a 1823 novel in three volumes by English writer Thomas Gaspey. A work of historical fiction, the book intertwines fictional characters with historical events late in the reign of King Henry VIII of England, most notably the 1536 Pilgrimage of Grace. It is variously described as an allegory and a early Newgate novel, although its status as a member of the latter category is often disputed.

Gaspey covers topics which would prove to be defining issues in the 19th century, such as racial discrimination, colonialism, and religious freedom.

Plot

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After a preface on the difficulties of historical accuracy, Gaspey opens with three travelers trying to enter Canterbury Cathedral, having come from Continental Europe via Dover. The travelers are soon revealed to be the "Spanish" Ferdinand, his sister Mariana, and their English guide Edmund. It is revealed that the crowds of people assembled at Canterbury are present for the 'translation day' of Saint Thomas Becket, a historical figure martyred in Canterbury Cathedrtal in the 12th century. The holiday involves raising the remains of Becket annually for veneration. While this holiday does exist, it does not involve the annual exhumation of Becket. It seems likely that Gaspey believed in this version of the defunct holiday due to the philosopher David Hume, a poem of whose is quoted at the exposition of the first chapter.

The three encounter a drunken festival of people led by Nicholas Bray, former jester of the former royal almoner Cardinal Thomas Wolsey. Lord Erpingham, Edmund's employer, arranges for him to marry the nobal lady Elinor, but he falls in love with Mariana. Mariana is variously described as being "Spanish" and "South American", which in 1823 would have meant she was probably of Mexican origin. Edmund is soon relieved when his fiancée elopes.

Nonetheless, Ferdinand decides to enter Mariana into a convent. Desperate to be near to her, Edmund enters the monestary of Leadenhall. Edmund thrives in the monastery, but nonetheless decides to escape.



References

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