2. Spanking and Flogging Were Considered a Uniquely British Vice
The slightly wild Treatise on using flogging was published, in English, in 1718. The revolutionarily saucy manuscript quickly led to flogging and spanking being dubbed a uniquely English vice. This reputation was fanned into a flame throughout the rest of the century as brothels, a trendy place to visit in 18th century England, began to implement flogging services into their offerings.
One brothel proprietor, a Mrs. Berkley, invented the Berkley Horse – a chair designed explicitly for recipients of floggings. Her brothel catered exclusively to upper crust wealthy patrons. Given King George VI’s propensity for visiting brothels, perhaps he even received a whipping a time or two at her luxurious Charlotte Street location. In addition to her patented chair, she also kept many whipping devices including soaked birch rods, nettles, leather straps, and holly brushes.
The idea that spanking and flogging are uniquely British continues to a lesser extent today, with the prevalence of the spanking schoolmarm stereotype in pornography. Despite the stereotype, there are 18th-century Germanic writings depicting floggings and Arabic doctors of the same century wrote of flagellation being used for arousal. While the British may have most profusely sung its praises, it’s clearly other cultures also enjoyed a good spank.
