What Was Really In George Washington's Mouth

Every American schoolchild knows that George Washington, first President of the USA (1732–1799), wore false teeth made from human teeth, cow teeth, hippopotamus ivory and even a tooth from a horse.

Fewer know that in 1781, enemy forces captured a letter in which he requested cleaning tools for his dentures. It gave away his whereabouts to British.

The smallest details of daily life, it turns out, might sometimes have the power to determine the fate of empires.

I once spent a week without using my bath, shower or washbasin, to see what I could learn about Tudor personal hygiene. What pleasantly surprised me about the experience was cleaning my teeth.

I discovered that Tudor methods were remarkably effective. Health manuals and conduct books of the period describe teeth being cleaned with water, salt, rosemary, even cuttlefish, rubbed on with cloths, twigs or sponges. I tried them all.

Powdered cuttlefish worked best, applied with a cloth rather than the splayed-out e…