Jan 72 min read

A Lifeguard in Georgian England

Updated: Jan 10

It's summer here in Australia, and one of the things an Aussie summer is famous for is lifeguards. Spurred on no doubt by TV shows like Bondi Rescue.

In my book Hearts Unknown, I mention that George Bell, who infamously declared the world would end on February 28th, 1763, was a lifeguard. This came from the letter John Wesley wrote to the editor of a newsletter in order to renounce Mr. Bell's prediction.

When Wesley said Mr. Bell was a "life-guard man", did you imagine the lifeguards we have today? The ones patrolling beaches and saving lives?

I figured Bell probably wasn't quite like that since we're talking about history here, but I still thought he must have been in the Navy or something to do with water. Did he throw a buoy to people?

Hang on, when did they invent the buoy anyway?

Huh, the word goes way back to the 13th century, but the 1650s for the basic principle of the buoy as we might know it today.^ But let's get back to lifeguards. Did George Bell throw out the buoy?

Nope and nope again.

Until 1891 (according to etymology online), the word lifeguard meant a group of soldiers who acted as a bodyguard for the monarch of England. So quite literally a "life" guard.*

Merriam-Webster says that a member of the unit is called a life guardsman which protected the monarchs of England.

Wikipedia has life guards as a unit of soldiers which protect high ranking individuals not just the monarchs of England. On that note, Laura Frantz recently told me that George Washington had his own life guards. Just FYI. :)

But as for the "life-guard man" in our research today, Mr. Bell protected the King of England. He had retired his post by 1763 when my book Hearts Unknown is set, but one would suspect he still had some powerful connections. No, wonder Wesley was worried about the Methodist reputation from this man's end of the world prediction!