Wellington
Posted by Laura W on November 27, 1997 at 11:04:39:
In response to Wellington over six feet? , written by Caroline on November 26, 1997 at 14:27:30
] Do you have a reference for his height, Laura?
Okay, I've gone through a few sources. The most definitive is Patrick Delaforce, who, in Wellington the Beau, says he is 5'10". E.A. Smith, in Wellington and the Arbuthnots, says he was "moderately tall." Georgette Heyer, in An Infamous Army, says "his height was no more than average."
I could not find the reference in the Longford bio. There's no index! How did you find it?
None of my other Wellington sources mention his height, and perhaps I should mention that Delaforce is sometimes erroneous. But I would suggest that if a man who is 5'10" is considered "average" or "moderately tall," then [well-fed] people in general were not shorter than they are today.
(BTW I myself am 5'0" and I am acquainted with several men who are almost as short as I am-- in fact, the new Archbishop of Chicago, George, is also 5' even. It is so strange to me when I encounter someone whom I can look directly in the eye!)
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