Unusual Births and Disability in 17th Century England

<p><strong>**WARNING: This episode contains themes that some listeners might find distressing and commonly-used historic terminology that does not reflect our own thoughts</strong>**</p><br><p>In May 1680, England become obsessed with a pair of conjoined twins. At just two weeks old, Priscilla and Aquila Herring were kidnapped from their home in Somerset to be put on show for money. A fortnight later they were dead, and a legal battle ensued over ownership and income.&nbsp;It is one of the earliest examples of exploitation and the exhibition of physical difference in England, a story of public display without consent, both before and after.</p><br><p>In this episode of <em>Not Just the Tudors</em>, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb talks to Dr. Whitney Dirks, whose new book <em>Monstrosity, Bodies, and Knowledge in Early Modern England</em> weaves the case of the Herring sisters through an examination of how physically unusual humans and animals were understood and talked about in early modern England.</p><br><p>This episode was produced by Rob Weinberg.</p><br><p>Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Get a subscription for £1 per month for 3 months with code TUDORS - sign up&nbsp;here: <a href="https://www.historyhit.com/subscription/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.historyhit.com/subscription/</a></p><br><p>You can take part in our listener survey&nbsp;<a href="https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/6FFT7MK" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>