Sir Francis Dashwood & the Truth About His Hell-Fire Club
A playful video that tackles the very serious subject of dealing with slander in history.
If you enjoy reading articles or watching videos about the popularization of history, you may already have heard of sir Francis Dashwood. He has... how to put it? A certain reputation. Some media even talk about a satanic cult involving Benjamin Franklin. Phew! Ever wonder where all those sensational stories about historical figures come from? I studied Dashwood for my dissertation, “Esto praeclara, esto perpetua: the mausoleum of Sir Francis Dashwood as a social ritual to preserve a virtuous legacy”. While in this one I focused more on its neo-classical architectural patronage, I was challenged by the damage that fiction can do when it slips into historical profiles. A little philosophical biography of Mr. Dashwood therefore seemed necessary.
'Seria Ludo’ was one of the mottos coined by Dashwood for the Society of Dilettanti, a club of British gentlemen who loved the art of antiquity. It means “serious matters treated in a playful spirit”. In that same spirit, here's a playful video that tackles the very serious subject of dealing with slander in history.