What I Remember, Volume 1

He speaks not as a biographer but as a seasoned observer, a man whose life has stretched across most of the nineteenth century. His recollections drift like bits of drift‑weed, offering listeners a vivid sense of how everyday customs, speech, and manners shifted as the world around him modernized. The voice is modest, preferring the small, personal details that illuminate the broader sweep of history.

Born in 1810 on Keppel Street in the heart of London’s professional quarter, he grew up under the watchful eye of a barrister father who hoped his son would follow a legal path. Early memories include wandering the squares of Bloomsbury with his father, noting the migration of judges and scholars, and the simple pleasure of buying a familiar pastry from a shop that has survived decades. His first encounter with the Eton Latin Grammar at age six marks the start of an education steeped in tradition, setting the stage for a life that intertwines personal ambition with the rapid changes of Victorian society.