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In spite of an enormous body of literature on the Victorian countryside, surprisingly little has been written on the lives of the farmers.  Attention has focused on the great landowners or on the agricultural labourer, but between them, and occupying a pivotal role in rural society, was the farmer, paying rents to the landowner and providing employment for the labourer.  This book explores the world of the farmer during Queen Victoria’s reign (1837 to 1901).  This was a period of considerable change on the farm as the forces of industrialisation made themselves felt.  Drawing on contemporary observations, illustrations and museum collections, this book looks at the working farmer and everyday life in the farmhouse – the furnishings and household tasks.  The picture which emerges is more complex and more fascinating than the romantic images which so often shape our views of farming life.   

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