Breeze Barrington is a cultural historian specialising in the artistic cultures of the 17th century, with particular focus on women’s history and female artists. Her PhD, on the artistic cultures of the early Stuart court, was awarded in 2021, from Queen Mary, University of London.
As an arts writer and critic, she has written for Apollo Magazine, The Art Newspaper, CNN Style, The Conversation, the Financial Times, Art UK, and the TL, and has appeared on podcasts including History Hack, Talking Tudors, the Colnaghi Foundation, and the TLS Podcast. She has also worked as a consultant for Working Title and Monumental Pictures.
She teaches literature at the University of Cambridge and has previously taught courses in seventeenth century literature and culture at Queen Mary, University of London as well as Biography/Non-Fiction on the presitigious Creative Writing degree at the University of East Anglia.
Breeze is an Associate Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. Her first book, The Graces, about Maria of Modena and the community of female learning she cultivated within the Jacobite court, will be published by Bloomsbury in July 2025.
Photographer: Kateryna Myrhorod
Praise for The Graces
“‘The Graces’ is impressively original and ingenious, not just in Barrington’s use of overlooked Continental sources and her fresh readings of better-known British ones, but also in the whole form of the book: an inventive blend of biography (Mary of Modena’s) with group biography, which brings the talented women of the Restoration Court gracefully to life.”
“In this sparkling study of Mary of Modena and her circle, Britain’s only Italian queen is brought vividly to life. Breeze Barrington has rescued her from centuries of condescension and shown us a brave, intelligent and cultured woman who forged her own identity amid the capricious and vulgar world of the Restoration Court.”
“At last, some of the most fascinating, important, yet overlooked characters from the later Stuart court have found their champion in Breeze Barrington. This superb book weaves history, politics, literature and art together with real originality. ”
“Vivid and moving, ‘The Graces’ puts women at the centre. Resurrecting the brave yet forgotten queen, Maria of Modena, Breeze Barrington also brings to life the women around her – women who, in surprisingly creative ways, navigated their dangerous political times with intelligence, artistic flair and, above all, with grace. Elegant and eye-opening.”