Johanna St John

[citation needed] Lydiard Park is a 260-acre country park at Lydiard Tregoze, nearly four miles west of central Swindon, Wiltshire, England, later owned by the Viscount of Bolingbroke, Johanna St John's grandson.

A set of letters between Johanna St John and her steward, Thomas Hardyman, give insight into how she learned to construct her recipe books.

[2] From the letters, there is an understanding that Johanna herself did not concoct the recipes at Lydiard House, but gave "exact details to a team of distillers and herbgatherers", often collaborating with other recipe-makers in London.

However, the first three ingredients – unicorn horn, bezoar stone, and bones of stag heart – indicate that the intended use was to treat poison.

[6] This was important to a woman of status who hosted parties, as pallor was associated with wealth and the privilege of remaining idle.