Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution Benjamin Franklin: his family & friends in London

This talk explores the friendship between Benjamin Franklin and William Strahan, one of the most significant relationships of the Enlightenment. Beginning as a business connection between two aspiring printers on opposite sides of the Atlantic, it developed into a close family bond that also involved Franklin’s son, William, when the Franklins arrived in London in 1757.

The lecture also looks at William Franklin’s illegitimate son, Temple, who was placed in Strahan’s care and educated by Strahan’s brother-in-law, James Elphinston. These close ties were later strained by the American Revolution, which threatened family loyalties as well as political and social connections.

The talk is given by historian and writer Marie-Louise Luxemburg, who has often spoken on literary and historical subjects.