(They made the point that the aristocracy in the 15/16th century had a meat-rich diet, rather like the North American diet of today which accounted for such 'gigantism.' ... Now, it struck me at the time, that the diet of Jane Austen's family was meat-rich, too.)

Actually, the 17th, 18th and 19th (early anyway) enjoyed a meat-rich diet too, the nobility and other upper crust, that is. Which in turn gave rise to all that gout! Alcohol helping a little too. Remember the Beef-eaters club!?

(There's a conversation about the Duke of Wellington's height in the old archives. I think we established that he was 'of medium height' and was about 5'9" )

Oh!? Then who was the tall one? I thought Wellington was tall but that must have been someone else. Who was especially tall?

Patricia