Will Clement

@historywill

Historian of Modern Europe poverty & inequality, centre & periphery, health & housing in c19 France🏠🏚️🇫🇷 | Tired dad | posts represent my views | He/him

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Will Clement@historywill· 8h

Whenever I see AI boosterism on here I just feel like Sir Ian McKellen when he had his green screen breakdown filming The Hobbit. This is not what we do. This is not what history is.

Actors filming The Hobbit including Sir Ian McKellen

Sir Ian McKellen dressed as Gandalf surrounded by green screens

Sir Ian McKellen dressed as Gandalf surrounded by green screens. He looks frustrated and has splayed hands

Sir Ian McKellen dressed as Gandalf surrounded by green screens. He has his head in in hands in frustration

Will Clement@historywill· 7d

Trying to AI-proof my source assessment for a first-year course on C19 Paris, so seeking out odd and understudied sources to set. This is from 'The Middle and Lower Class of Paris of Life in Paris in 1862', The Saturday Review, 1 Nov 1862

Let us, in the first place, express our conviction that what thus meets the eye at every turn in Paris goes far to rebut the inference that is generally and naturally deduced from contemporary French literature, especially their novels and their plays. When we see an entire family, including father, mother, and children, spending the evening together at a place of public entertainment, we find it difficult to believe that Monsieur keeps a mistress, or that Madame has a guilty connexion with his friend : -

Will Clement@historywill· 7d

Just found this transcript from a Good Morning America segment: "GOTCHA! ON TAPE: INSPECTING THE HOME INSPECTORS" I wonder if it's too late to change the tone of my book: I want to rewrite some of my tenant complaints about 1850s housing inspectors with GOTCHA! ON TAPE graphics

GOTCHA! ON TAPEINSPECTING THE HOME INSPECTORS
ABC News: Good Morning America, 1 May 2007, 1033 words, , (English)

GRAPHICS: GOTCHA! ON TAPE

ROBIN ROBERTS (ABC NEWS)

(OC) Yes, now to 'GMA's" 'Gotcha on Tape." This morning, home inspectors. They're paid good money, as we've told you, to inspect your home, entrusted to make certain the building is up to safety code. But what do they really do when you're not around? Are they inspecting your dream home with care? Well, we asked consumer correspondent Elisabeth Leamy to take out the stopwatch and find out for us. She's in Potomac, Maryland with more. What did you find out, Elisabeth?

ELISABETH LEAMY (ABC NEWS)

(OC) Robin, we found cases of corrupt code inspectors taking bribes to look the other way and lazy ones spending less than a minute doing inspections, but most of all, we found – investigators who have no time to do the job right.

GRAPHICS: GMA GOTCHA ON TAPE!

GRAPHICS: INSPECTING THE HOME INSPECTORS

ELISABETH LEAMY (ABC NEWS)

(VO) Blink and you'll miss this North Carolina insulation inspection. The inspector enters the house, and according to the clock, spends just 24 seconds inside. Then, he walks out and moments later, signs the inspection sheet. Another day, another house, and this time, he is supposed to inspect framing, electrical and plumbing, serious safety issues. One minute and 28 seconds later, he exits and there he is signing off.

LISA DANIEL (HOMEOWNER)

I couldn't believe that he's been getting away with this.

Will Clement@historywill· 17d

This week's task: working through the meticulous copy-editor comments on my book MS Alongside the thoughtful copy-editor comments, the integrated MS Copilot keeps stumbling arrogantly in and thinks it can offer these edits to this thing I have spent c. 14 years on Auto. Rewrite. Could you imagine?

Make shorter
Structure and refine
Auto rewrite

Will Clement@historywill· 21d

Horrible Histories/Ghosts’ star Jim Howick to play Second Republic Lille radical Alphonse Bianchi? Guaranteed hit

A caricature of a man in a suit with a moustache and glasses. He holds a giant quill in his right hand. The words “Pantheon Lillois” are above his head

A promotional photo for the tv show Ghosts showing actor Jim Howick. He looks similar to the previous image

Will Clement@historywill· 21d

I got this the other day. Sounds like my kind of extremely niche book club, sign me up!

Inspecting the Home stood out as a title that could resonate strongly with our community, particularly among readers interested in French history, urban history, public health history, medical history, social history, housing studies, poverty studies, historical sociology, public policy, and the history of everyday life. Many of our readers are especially drawn to works that illuminate how social and political institutions shaped ordinary experiences while addressing questions that remain relevant in contemporary society.

Will Clement@historywill· 24d

Just stumbled across this Gustave Doré print of a dentist waiting room, 1862. Not much has changed, though there is a notable absence of a TV blaring Homes Under the Hammer in the corner of the room source: selene.bordeaux.fr/ark:/27705/3...

An engraving of a group of people in a room. Some are reading, some are just looking miserable. Several have slings on their jaws. Others are showing their teeth to others.

A close-up image from the previous picture. In the foreground, three people sit at a table and look miserable. In the background, one person leans on her hand, another man shows his friend his tooth

Will Clement@historywill· Jul 13

Had to double check something in one of my articles, so searched 'clement blasphemous bar crawl' and got this. Fact check: 1. Lol student party 2. It has invented the entry into Jerusalem (it touches on other aspects of the Passion) 3. The article is about Roubaix, with no mention of Auxerre

AI Overview
It looks like you are referencing an academic paper rather than a student party. "The Christ in the Cabaret: Putting a Blasphemous Bar Crawl on Trial in Third Republic France" is a historical research article written by Will Clement.

Research Explorer The University of Manchester
The article explores a court case from 1874 involving working-class men in France who were tried for blasphemy after staging a mocking parade of Christ’s entry into Jerusalem across several cabarets.
Here are a few quick facts about the paper:
The Core Event: Four workers in the French city of Auxerre were arrested for sacrilege after going on a pub crawl while engaging in a satirical religious performance.

Will Clement@historywill· Jul 10

Looking forward to "AI-assisted" essays next year on 'The Bitter Cry of Outcast London' that confidently claim that Andrew Mearns was a Luxury car dealer convicted for fraud

A google search result. text reads
Luxury car dealer admits to 16 counts of fraud in five-year ...

Car Dealer Magazine
https://cardealermagazine.co.uk › News
3 Nov 2025 — Car dealer admits fraud campaign at classic Porsche specialist · Andrew Mearns conned 16 customers out of more than £1m between 2015 and 2020 · He ...Read more
Andrew Mearns

Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Andrew_Mearns
Andrew Mearns (1837–1905) was a Scottish Congregational minister, now best known as the prime mover behind the sensational anonymous 1883 pamphlet The ...Read more

Will Clement@historywill· Jul 7

How your email finds me

a line drawing of a balding man in a suit playing a small woodwind instrument to entice fish out of a barrel and dance around him, holding fins. The caption reads 'Perfectionnement de l'éducation des poisons savant du collège de France'

Will Clement@historywill· Jun 29

Call for chapters: "The Aesthetics of Modern Monarchies: c. 1842-1952" @livsmitch.bsky.social and I are inviting chapter proposals for a volume on the ways that global 'modern monarchies' (defined broadly) self-presented and were presented through visual culture. Full details below - please share!

Call for Chapters: The Aesthetics of Modern Monarchies: c. 1842-1952 (This volume is being
proposed as a submission to the Palgrave Studies in Modern Monarchy series at Palgrave
MacMillan)
This is an invitation for proposals for chapters for an innovative, forthcoming collection on the
connected aesthetic histories of rulers, royalty, monarchs and consorts. In 1842, the French king
Louis-Philippe I was the first reigning monarch to be photographed, with the British Prince Albert
photographed in the same year. Over a century after these first royal photographs, the aesthetics of
modern monarchies now had to contend with the advent of televisual media, which covered
moments of triumph as much as of weakness. The referendum on Belgian king Leopold III’s rule in
1950 and his abdication the following year was widely covered by the international media; just a year
later, Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth Realms was the first monarch
to have their coronation ceremony fully broadcast on television.
Between these two moments of mediatised royal presentation, this was a period of seismic change
for royalty and rulers across the world who were subject to expanding and diminishing empires, the
threat of revolutions and nationalism, the fall of dynasties as well as the ongoing impact of wars,
trade and politics. Visual culture, including but certainly not limited to photography and televisual
media, became increasingly integral to the image of monarchy as the rise of new technologies and
communications shaped the way rulers were presented and could present themselves to broad
audiences, domestically and globally. This collection will assess varied forms of visual culture
during this transitional period, exploring the ways that royalty could be defined and redefined as well
as connected on a global scale.

The editors define ‘modern monarchies’ for this collection as including absolute or constitutional
monarchs, members of royal families, emperors/empresses, deposed monarchs,
ceremonial/puppet monarchs and consorts. Studies of non-European royals are particularly
welcomed. This excludes histories of recent remembrance of these royals. Chapter proposals must
contain a visual component to this study inclusive of but not limited to:
• Photographs
• Paintings/drawings/illustrations
• Prints (including newspaper print)
• Caricatures
• Clothing
• Loot
• Architecture
• Coinage
• Cinema/television
• Theatre/pantomime
• Posters
• Medals/jewels
Studies on royals are inclusive but not limited to:
• Displays of gender
• Politics and authority
• Resistance and revolution
• Charity and humanitarianism
• Nationalism
• Colonialism and empire
• Religion
• Race and racism
• Succession, coronation, and
abdication
• Scandal and public image
• Domesticity
• Modernity
• Class/poverty
Please send detailed chapter proposals of 350 words and a 100-word biography to Dr Olivia Mitchell
and Dr Will Clement at aestheticsmonarchy@gmail.com with the header ‘Aesthetics of Modern
Monarchies’ by 1 October 2026. Informal enquiries may also be sent to the editors at this address.
Contributors will be notified of the outcome by 1 December 2026 with full chapters of 8,000-10,000
words due from accepted proposals by summer 2027.

Will Clement@historywill· Jun 15

I'd like to this that the editor of this 1857 issue of the Morning Post knew what they were doing by putting these two adverts next to one another

LADIES. — DELCROIX and SON'S celebrated POUDRE SUBTILE, for removing superfluous hair in less than 10 minutes, without pain or injury to the skin. I Sold in boxes, with directions for use, at ss. 6d. each. Forwarded by post on receipt of 72 stamps. — DELCROIX, Perfumer to the ' Queen, has REMOVED from 158, New Bond-street, and 66, Conduit-street, to 39, GREAT CASTLE-STREET, Regent-street.

LOSS of HAIR RESTORED . Patronised by the Royal Family, Nobility, and Faculty. Mrs. TERRY' is now giving professional attendance, from 10 till 5, to parties suffering from the loss of hair, at 301, Regent-street, opposite the Polytechnic, W. I The loss of hair from illness or residence in warm climates, casual baldness, or grey hairs resulting from solitude or morbid i affections, hair that is inclined to weakness, or falling off from the head by continual pariing, or any ether cause, can all be happily i remedied by Mrs. Terry's treatment. I Consultation and every information free of charge. Mrs. Terry has also an infallible preparation for the removal of 1 superfluous hair, price 3s. 6d. per bottle, by post, 6d. extra

Will Clement@historywill· Jun 4

My first book, "Inspecting the home: Urban poverty and public health in nineteenth-century France", will be published by @manchesterup.bsky.social in February 2027 To find out more (or to add it to your wish lists...) see the link below: manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526183149/

A book cover showing a shaded pencil illustration of a well-dressed man with a cane who has stopped in the street, bent down and raised his hat to another man, whose head is visible at street-level in the window to a cellar of the nearby building.

Text on the cover reads 'Inspecting the home. Urban poverty and public health in nineteenth-century France' Will Clement

Will Clement@historywill· May 22

This sent me on a very happy rabbit hole to find a north-east band that played Durham when I was an undergrad, sampling this bit at the start of their EP

An album cover with cartoon Conan the barbarian. The text reads What is Best in Life? O’Messy Life. O’Messy Life & The Quarter Life Crisis of Conan

Will Clement@historywill· May 17

A book cover with the title “The Cheese and the Worms and Grogu”

Will Clement@historywill· Apr 7

Trying to finish the last forms for full manuscript submission today and my laptop keeps pestering me with SOFTWARE UPDATE NOW pop-ups. I wouldn't mind if these seemed security-critical, but when the description of the update leads with "8 new emoji" I'm struggling to place it at high priority

macOS Tahoe 26.4
26.4 - 9.96 GB
This update introduces 8 new emoji,

Will Clement@historywill· Apr 1

My favourite archives ( @archivesnattravail.bsky.social ) posted my favourite April Fools today

[Avril...]🐟

Un trésor aux ANMT ! 👀

Le mois d'avril commence bien aux ANMT. 🍀
Un lecteur très chanceux présent en salle de lecture vient de découvrir un trésor dans une boîte d'archives : des lingots d'or... 💰

Une découverte qui peut surprendre, mais moins lorsqu'on se penche sur le fonds d'archives concerné : le fonds Dugard, négociants-armateurs de Rouen qui s'adonnaient au commerce avec leurs navires dès le début du XVIIe siècle. Durant leurs nombreux voyages, les marins ont amassé une fortune qui semblait avoir été perdue jusqu'ici. ⚓

Qui sait quels autres trésors se cachent dans nos archives ? Pour le découvrir, une seule solution : venir consulter en salle de lecture des ANMT. 👀

Pour une plongée dans le fonds Dugard, c'est par ici 👉urlr.me/2YtFNE
Pour organiser votre venue en salle de lecture, c'est par là 👉 https://urls.fr/4k6jep

A man looking delightfully shocked at finding gold ingots in an archive file

Will Clement@historywill· Mar 13

The person in my seminar room before me is either teaching theology OR simplifying fractions. If the latter, what does 1/ryowoman mean?

A whiteboard with the following written in green:
Eve
——
Everyowoman

The second “Eve” is circled

Will Clement@historywill· Mar 10

Glad to see this accurately show Mulhouse: independent city republic in the middle of French Alsace until its governing elite voted to “reunite” with France in 1798

Part of a map with different shades of purple

Will Clement@historywill· Mar 5

Lectures 9 & 10 of the semester today and tomorrow, but at least I'm on home turf research-wise as they're on Poverty and Welfare c. 1800-1913. It also means that I get to roll out this fun role-play exercise on social surveys in the seminars which worked really well last year

Stacks of paper handouts on a big, black book titled 'Charles Booth's London Poverty Maps'. The handouts focus on designing a social survey. There are smaller pieces of paper with Statistician, religious volunteer, police officer, doctor, journalist, philanthropist, teacher written on them

Design a social survey

You and your group have been tasked with undertaking a social survey of a neighbourhood to ascertain the level of poverty

1. What year is it? Pick from: 1830; 1860; 1890; 1910

2. Where are you undertaking this survey and how will that influence you?

3. Who are you? What are your backgrounds? What do you bring to the team of surveyors? What is your team missing?

4. What are five areas for investigation that you will focus on? How are you going to collect this data? Draw up any questions you may need to ask.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

5. What conclusions do you imagine you and your team will draw? How do they relate to other surveys in your period?

Will Clement@historywill· Feb 27

So happy to wake up and see the news. Hope that Labour’s loss means a radical shift in leafleting policy, because this was gross to see on the doormat yesterday

A flyer with a vomit-inducing image of Nigel farage on a bed staring at the viewer and the text “Dont wake up to a reform MP. A vote for the greens let’s Reform in — just like it did in Runcorn

Will Clement@historywill· Feb 24

Beyond my chronological focus, but no book of history had me feeling as energised and *changed* through reading it than NZD Fiction in the Archives.

Book cover 'Natalie Zemon Davis. Fiction in the Archives. Pardon tales and their tellers in sixteenth-century France'

Will Clement@historywill· Feb 19

Meanwhile, in another lecture I'm giving today (it's a busy one) I'm discussing France 1789-92. I wonder if I might challenge the idea that it is hard to find precedent of royals being arrested during this period...

10:20
Analysis
Hard to think of any precedent for this arrest
Sean Coughlan
Royal correspondent
This is another extraordinary development in what has been an extraordinary story.
It's hard to think of any precedent for the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the King's brother.
Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing, but this still has the capacity to shock and surprise as breaking news.

Will Clement@historywill· Feb 11

Oh god, the 6-7 kids have come for the French Revolution haven’t they (there are, in fact, only five referenced included)

Summary of edits to a Wikipedia page. The highlighted text reads “(67 included)” meaning this was the recent addition to the page

Will Clement@historywill· Feb 11

Umm... does someone want to check on the wikipedia article for the French Abolition of Feudalism...

Background that is super real
The fall of the Bastille on 14 July 1767 was followed by a mass uproar spreading from Paris to the countryside. Noble families were attacked, and many aristocratic manors were burned. Abbeys and castles were also attacked and destroyed.

Will Clement@historywill· Feb 9

Gosh, if only books had clearly divided sections or subsections of some description which eBook providers could use instead of dividing the text into sets of unnamed, twenty-five page chunks.

Table of contents, then page numbers listed as 'Pages:1 to 25', 'Pages:26 to 50' etc down to 'Pages:326 to 250'

Will Clement@historywill· Feb 5

I enjoyed reading this letter written by the six-year-old this morning before school. Debats as a solution to all problems, any day

A child’s letter on a table. The letter reads
Dear Empress Matilda,
My dad is a teacher my mum is a person to help children safty and my brouther and I are at nursery and school. Just asking, but why did Stephen get to be king? Because I want you to be Queen.
Love from

P.S A Debat is a good way to fight

Will Clement@historywill· Jan 27

“Cancelled”, “delayed”, “on time” is the new FMK

A train timetable showing some stops as delayed and some as cancelled

A train timetable showing a train from Oxford to Manchester as delayed

A train timetable showing the train is on time

Will Clement@historywill· Jan 16

Oo what's it on? Excited to read it You've made it into my introduction's footnotes, by the way, re: the 1916 Lille archives fire...

This is a frustration which many historians of Lille have had to work around. James Connolly, The Experience of Occupation in the Nord, 1914-18: Living With The Enemy in First World War France (Manchester, 2018), p. 150.

Will Clement@historywill· Jan 16

literally realising that this book has too many references to urine