Style and Society: Dressing the Georgians

It is not every day that one gets to meet royalty, but at the Style and Society: Dressing the Georgians exhibition at Buckingham Palace, it was possible to do just that. The exhibition, curated by Anna Reynolds, Deputy Surveyor of the King’s Pictures at the Royal Collection Trust, used a combination of portraiture and costume to tell the story of fashionable dress in Britain spanning the period between 1714 and 1830, from the accession of George I to the death of George IV. An introductory panel explained the layout of the exhibition, dividing it into roughly two parts. The first part, which included the first room, took a chronological approach, introducing visitors to the types of textiles and dress that were popular in the Georgian period and showcasing how they developed and changed; or in the exhibition’s own words, this part was “building up a layer-by-layer picture of what the Georgians wore.”¹ The second part of the exhibition, which included the other rooms, was more thematic and looked at specific elements of dress and style such as children’s dress in the Georgian period, changing hairstyles of the period, sporting dress worn by women and men, military and naval costume, and foreign influences on British fashion.

It was clear from the portraits displayed at the exhibition that a great variety of textiles and styles was available to those who could afford them. For visitors who wished to delve deeper into the terminology of Georgian fashion, the exhibition provided helpful diagrams which explained the names and types of textiles and dress worn during the 1740s, 1760s, and 1810s by both women and men.

The Georgian court was not renowned for its trendsetting; it was associated more with continuity and tradition than cutting-edge fashion. The Hanoverians were an eclectic family when it came to sartorial choices. While George I and George III were decidedly uninterested in following fashion, George II seemingly lost his interest in current trends only as he grew older, preferring in old age to dress in the fashions of his youth. George IV, however, was keenly aware of the importance of a fashionable appearance. There were examples of his dedication to the contemporary trends in portraits such as Robert Dighton’s 1804 watercolor of George IV as The Prince of Wales on Horseback, sporting a fashionable new style of coat known as “Jean de Bry,” and John Russell’s 1791 portrait of him for the Royal Society of Kentish Bowmen, depicting the prince in a green coat, buff waistcoat, and breeches.

The balance between extant textiles and portraits leaned substantially towards the latter, yet the costume items on display were exquisite and added a real piquancy to the exhibition experience. The juxtaposition of key pieces of dress and portraits allowed for valuable comparisons between the two media. For example, paintings such as those of Marie Leczinska (ca. 1748, after Jean-Marc Nattier) and Eva-Maria Veigel (ca. 1757–64, by William Hogarth) showed how artists translated the fine, three-dimensional details of a delicate needle-lace sleeve ruffle on display to the two-dimensional medium of an oil painting (Figure 1). The portraits of these women hanging nearby demonstrated the great skill involved in reproducing textiles in paint.

Figure 1 William Hogarth, David Garrick with his wife Eva-Maria Veigel, ca.1757–64. Oil on canvas. Royal Collection Trust/© His Majesty King Charles III 2023.

Through the portraits visitors could also learn about the qualities and feel of the textiles, as well as the techniques employed by artists to represent them on the canvas. William Denune’s 1742 Portrait of a Woman, for example, revealed how representing women in plain silks allowed artists to depict the way light played across the textile’s surface. This was evident elsewhere in the gallery, including in Johan Joseph Zoffany’s 1764 depiction of Queen Charlotte with her two eldest sons (Figure 2). The Georgian period was also when cotton textiles became more widespread in Britain. Sir William Beechey’s portrait of Princess Sophia (1796–97) exemplified the popularity of this fabric. It depicted the princess in a neo-classical dress which showed off the incredible, gossamer-fine quality of muslin, described as “woven air” by the ancient Romans.²

Figure 2 Johan Joseph Zoffany, Queen Charlotte with her Two Eldest Sons, 1764. Oil on canvas. Royal Collection Trust/© His Majesty King Charles III 2023.

The inclusion of costume in the exhibit allowed visitors to marvel at the incredible art of making dress and fashionable accessories. The structure and the neat, tiny stitches of the stays displayed in the exhibition were a fine example that demonstrated the skill required to produce such quality undergarments. Particularly interesting was the length of time taken to produce lace for lappets and sleeve ruffles. As the text for the bobbin lace lappets explained, a lacemaker working full time, from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m., could produce around half a meter of lace per year. This really put into perspective the labor, time, and energy expenditure that was necessary to feed the luxury garment trade. It was impossible not to marvel at the expertise and focus of these makers.

In the second room, the exhibition did well to not confine its scope to the wealthy elite, such as in Hieronymus van der Mij’s A Family Group (1728) and Jean-Baptiste Greuze’s Silence! (1759), where the less well-off were represented. While similar in style to the clothing worn by their wealthier counterparts, the main difference between the upper and lower classes as depicted in these examples was the quality and type of fabrics used. For the poorer in society, textiles tended to be left in their natural, unbleached state or dyed with cheaper dyes including woad and madder, giving clothing a more muted color scheme than that of the wealthy. Many clothes worn by the poor would have been second-hand items, not replaced until they were worn out.

The exhibit’s texts and interpretation were very informative and well presented. They provided a good balance between costume details, the individuals depicted, and the wider social context. Visitors were also treated to little anecdotes and additional contextualizing snippets that helped to build a picture of the sartorial preferences and lives of the sitters. Queen Charlotte with Her Two Eldest Sons by Johan Joseph Zoffany (1764) depicted the young princes in fancy dress: Prince Frederick was portrayed clinging to his mother’s dress in his Turkish-style kaftan, delightfully complete with leading strings, while Prince George stood proudly at her other side dressed as Telemachus from Homer’s Odyssey (Figure 2). Meanwhile, two illustrations by Thomas Rowlandson of the latest fashions for men—New Invented Elastic Breeches (1784) and Three Principal Requisites to Form a Modern Man of Fashion (1814)—contributed humorously to the concept of the upper classes mimicking the dress of the lower classes. This latter point was a complete reversal of previous trends, where those in the lower class sought to emulate the dress of the wealthy.

The slight downside to this richly layered interpretative approach was that inevitably the texts were quite lengthy. Though the portraits and idiosyncrasies of dress provided some familiarity with these historic individuals, it felt as though one had read a book by the end of the exhibition.

The central gallery included some spectacular examples of Georgian court dress, including a splendid man’s red and gold velvet three-piece suit (Figure 3a). Displayed nearby was a large portrait of Johann Christian Fischer by Thomas Gainsborough (1774–80) (Figure 3b). The juxtaposition of the two highlighted the artist’s attention to detail of precise elements of dress, including the buttons covered with the same fabric as the coat, a fashion that was prevalent in the 1760s.

Figure 3A Court suit (coat, waistcoat, and breeches), ca.1760s. Red and gold cut silk velvet. © Fashion Museum Bath. B Thomas Gainsborough, Johann Christian Fischer, 1774–80. Oil on canvas. Royal Collection Trust/© His Majesty King Charles III 2023.

Gorgeous portraits abounded in this central gallery, and the details of the costumes were quite simply breathtaking. Queen Charlotte with Charlotte, Princess Royal (1767) by Francis Cotes emphasized the exquisite and elaborate gold lace, gold stripes, and triple-flounced lace sleeve ruffles of the queen against the stark simplicity of her baby daughter’s gown. The lace and gold here were so incredibly reproduced in paint that the effect was almost three-dimensional. The same could be said for Princess Louisa and Princess Caroline (1767), again by Francis Cotes (Figure 4). The sheen on the young women’s dresses was superbly wrought by the artist, while the lace was nothing short of lifelike. Meanwhile, the representation of the gown and petticoat of silk gauze with gold spangles in a full-length Thomas Gainsborough’s portrait of Queen Charlotte (ca. 1781) was beyond superlatives for the way it expertly captured the translucence of the fabric and the gold catching the light.

Figure 4 Francis Cotes, Princess Louisa and Princess Caroline, 1767. Oil on canvas. Royal Collection Trust/© His Majesty King Charles III 2023.

In a central location in the gallery was a stunning court mantua (Figure 5) made of cream silk with the highest quality silk and metal thread embroidery. The dress incorporated hundreds of hand-sewn spangles, all of which were combined to create a rich, opulent, yet extremely naturalistic representation of flower and leaf patterns across the surface of the entire garment. The wearer of this monumental dress was anonymous, though records confirm it was worn at the court some time in the 1760s. As if the width and extravagance of the dress alone was not enough for such a grand occasion, a magnificent train cascaded from the back waist. The pattern was perfectly aligned and well balanced, incorporating a central motif of interlinking leaves. As no court outfit would be complete without matching footwear, accompanying the mantua was a pair of latchet-strap shoes covered in matching fabric. Whoever covered the shoes clearly took great care to ensure that the pattern was centralized and identical for each foot.

Figure 5 Court dress (gown, petticoat, stomacher, and shoes), ca.1740–60. Silk with metal thread. © Fashion Museum Bath.

The third and final room of the exhibition started with an exploration of army and navy uniforms, demonstrating the increasing standardization of such costume in the latter Georgian period. Particularly interesting and somewhat amusing was the large portrait of George IV as Prince of Wales by Mather Byles Brown (1789). The prince was depicted in what appeared to be full army regalia. However, at this date he did not have his own regiment. The uniform he wore in the portrait—the accompanying text revealed—was made up by the prince himself, a composite costume of several borrowed elements. Four years after this portrait, the prince was appointed Colonel of the Tenth Light Dragoons, and the next portrait, George IV When Prince of Wales (1803) by Sir William Beechey, depicted him proudly posing in his real army attire. The uniform itself was displayed alongside the painting.

This room also contained one of the gems of the exhibition: Princess Charlotte’s silver wedding dress from 1816 (Figure 6). Also on display were examples of imported textile treasures, including a rich red embroidered Kashmir shawl alongside a portrait of Augusta, Duchess of Cambridge with Prince George and Princess Augusta of Cambridge (1823) by Melchior Gommar Tieleman, in which the duchess’s skirt was constructed from a similar shawl. Nearby, a portrait attributed to the studio of François-Hubert Drouais of Madame de Pompadour seated at her tambour frame (ca. 1764), was accompanied by a roll of hand-painted Chinese silk bearing remarkable similarity to the fabric of de Pompadour’s dress.

Figure 6 Mrs. Triaud, wedding dress worn by Princess Charlotte, 1816. Silk satin, silk net, and metal thread. Royal Collection Trust/© His Majesty King Charles III 2023.

The exhibition was accompanied by a substantial and beautifully produced catalogue by the curator Anna Reynolds. Ticket prices included the use of an audio guide, which was a valuable addition to the experience and provided extra context and information. The guide included expert insights from Reynolds and costume design expert, Jenny Tiramani. The additional content averaged roughly two minutes per object. While this was in no way excessive, it did add extra time to the visit.

Overall, the exhibition was an absolute visual delight, spectacularly curated and presented. Coinciding with the year of the coronation of King Charles III, it was especially timely as we transitioned into a new era of the British monarchy. Style and Society: Dressing the Georgians was a highly informative and enjoyable experience and one left feeling as though one really had walked through Georgian society, seen the fashions, and lived the lifestyle firsthand.

EMILY LEVICK
PhD Candidate, University of Leicester, UK

Notes

1 “Georgian Fashion,” in Style and Society: Dressing the Georgians (Royal Collection Trust, 2023).

2 “Princess Sophia, 1796–7, Sir William Beechey (1753–1839),” in Style and Society: Dressing the Georgians (Royal Collection Trust, 2023).