Although the Netflix series Bridgerton is set in the early 19th century, the noble aristocracy also has its moments. Many of the sex scenes become major talking points, but they are not always realistic. As a historian explains, they could sometimes even lead to death.
What kind of series is Bridgerton? Bridgerton is the name of a fictional aristocratic family from early 19th century England. The Netflix series is based on several books. In each season, one of Violet Bridgerton’s children is always in focus and their journey to love and marriage.
There are not only conversations, but also sex scenes that represent the development of the characters.
Many of them are passionately discussed by fans, including the carriage scene from the 3rd season, which has generated 3.2 million views on YouTube. However, it is not as realistic as a historian explains in a video, as they would actually have to die.
Elegant, but not robust
What does the historian say about the scene? Dr. Esmé Louise James is an Australian historian who deals extensively with the history of sex in relation to literature. She also creates content and has gathered about 2.4 million followers on TikTok. She created the format Kinky History
, which even became a live show and a book.
In a recent TikTok video, she looked at the carriage scene from the 4th episode of the 3rd season of Bridgerton. At the end of the episode, Colin Bridgerton confesses his love to Penelope Featherington in a moving carriage. After that, there is tenderness between the two and ultimately a sex scene, which according to Dr. Esmé Louise James should have ended differently.
First, the historian discusses the clothing. In the Regency era of England, there were indeed typically lavish dresses, but the women did not wear underwear underneath. The historian visualizes this with caricatures from the time that made fun of it.
Practically speaking, it is possible that Colin was able to slide his hand under Penelope’s dress to exchange intimacies. This was not unknown at the time. Dr. James exemplifies this with the novel The Confession of Beatrice
, which shows that it was also written about.
In principle, such a scene could have taken place at that time, but the location undermines the realism. According to the historian, carriages at that time were elegant, but not robust
. Due to the uneven roads of the time, the center of gravity of these vehicles was quite high, which posed a tipping risk.
The smallest movements in the carriage would have led to tipping. According to the video, this happened regularly at that time. Given the movements in the scene, the carriage would likely have had to tip over, which would have meant death for both.
At that moment, romance is literally dead […] The carriage would likely have tipped over, and they would have certainly fallen to their deaths.
How historically accurate is Bridgerton besides that? On February 24, 2026, Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine published an article on the subject, in which Nicole Mansfield Wright, a professor of English at the University of Colorado, talks about the real Regency era compared to Bridgerton.
- She calls Bridgerton a
Disney-fied version of history.
- The dark realism of the time is not shown by Bridgerton, but the series occasionally captures the
emotional core
of that time. - As for clothing, there seems to be a mix. According to Wright, some elements of the costumes come from other eras, while others are indeed from the Regency era.
- Other points of the era are also addressed, such as a scene where a young woman is told to stop reading, which confuses her thoughts. This reflects the hostility of the time towards fictional entertainment literature.
- At the same time, the series alienates themes like gender and racism. It represents a
fully integrated world
, even though it looked very different in reality in the U.S. and was also different back then.
Overall, she views Bridgerton positively because Bridgerton can be an entry point for students to develop more interest in history.
In 2026, Netflix released the 4th season of Bridgerton, and this is not the end for the popular series. Shortly after the release, the next season was confirmed. All information that is known so far can be found here in our overview: Bridgerton Season 5: All info on the trailer, release, cast
