Celia Fiennes, Through England on a Side Saddle in the Time of William and Mary
Celia Fiennes lived at roughly the same time as Daniel Defoe. She was born in 1662 at Newton Toney, Salisbury, the daughter of a colonel in Cromwell's army. She is remarkable for the journeys she made, and the account she wrote of them: she rode side-saddle through every county in England, accompanied only by two servants. Although she always lived in the south, in 1697 and 1698 she made two long journeys through northern England and Scotland. She travelled to improve her health, visiting many spa towns, but also for personal adventure. Her account of her travels seems to have been written after her travels had largely ended, in 1702. She described both the great houses she visited and the developing new industries. She died in 1741. The original text of Fiennes is not divided into chapters but we have tried to separate out her different 'journeys'.