• Home
  • Audio/Podcasts
  • Austensites
  • AV/E-Texts
  • History
  • JA Novels & Bio
  • Links
  • Original Sources/19th C. Texts
  • Social Customs During the Regency
  • Teacher/Student
  • Writer/Literature Resources

Jane Austen's World

This Jane Austen blog brings Jane Austen, her novels, and the Regency Period alive through food, dress, social customs, and other 19th C. historical details related to this topic.

Feeds:
Posts
Comments
« 1819 Pelisse Coat: A Modern Reproduction
Seen Over the Ether: Mr. Bennet’s Library in Pride and Prejudice »

Princess Charlotte’s Bellflower Court Dress, 1814-1816

February 22, 2009 by Vic

Princess Charlotte's Court Dress, 1814-16, also known as the Bellflower Dress

Princess Charlotte's Court Dress, 1814-16, also known as the Bellflower Dress

embroidered-bellsWhen I saw Princess Charlotte’s bellflower court dress (1814-16) at the Museum of London I remember being transfixed and standing in front of the glass case for a half hour. I could not get over the exquisite details and embroidery of this gossamer thin gown, and wondered at the hours it took to create it, the number of seamstresses that must have toiled over it, and its cost. It was so beautiful that I mistook it for a wedding dress. The train, which showed slight damage where some of the embroidered bells were missing, is similar to the one on Princess Charlotte’s silver net wedding gown. Tradition has it that this court dress was made for Princess Charlotte on her engagement in 1814. The bellflowers were fashioned from silk covered wire and net decorated with silver thread darning and the tiny beads were made from blown glass. (The London Look, p 22)

The Museum of London website states that this sumptuous dress, which is “covered with hundreds of tiny three-dimensional bellflowers, exemplifies the technical excellence of London’s dress-makers in this period. The dress needed 600 hours of conservation work and is so fragile it may never be shown in public again.”

Detail of bells and net embroidery

Detail of bells and net embroidery

Short in stature and slightly dumpy, and not known for her fashion sense, Princess Charlotte could easily afford elaborate costumes. Her provisioners included the William King of Pall Mall, a silk mercer, and Mrs. Triaud and Mrs. Bean, London dressmakers who worked on her trousseau. (The London Look, p 22.)

According to a contemporary description, the Princess entered her mother’s drawing room in May 1815 in an exquisitely beautiful dress that (from the description) looked similar to the bellflower dress:

Gold lama and white draperies over a petticoat of rich white satin and gold twisted trimming; train of rich figured white satin, body elegantly trimmed with rich gold and blond lace; head-dress, plume of ostrich feathers, with a beautiful diadem of brilliants; necklace and ear-rings of diamonds. – The London Look, p 24

  • Dresses Worn By Princess Charlotte: Museum of London
  • Princess Charlotte’s Court Dress
  • Museum of  London
  • The London Look, Fashion from Street to Catwalk. By Christopher Breward, Edwina Ehrman, Caroline Evans, 2004

princess-charlotte-court-dress3Front of gown, Museum of London

Share with others:

  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Posted in Fashions, jane austen, Jane Austen's World, Regency style, Regency World | Tagged Bellflower dress 1814-16, Court dress, Museum of London Exhibit, Princess Charlotte, Regency Fashion | 10 Comments

10 Responses

  1. on February 22, 2009 at 01:34 Dana Huff

    Thank you for sharing that. It’s just beautiful. The detail is incredible.


  2. on February 22, 2009 at 16:03 Felicia

    What an absolutely beautiful dress!


  3. on February 22, 2009 at 20:11 Amy

    Great post! What a magnificent dress…I’m sure I would stood there that long with you just in awe of such decadence.


  4. on February 24, 2009 at 17:13 Paivi Eerola

    Thanks for sharing the dress. It’s amazing!


  5. on February 26, 2009 at 12:02 Jenny-Rose

    The dress is also featured in the book “In Royal Fashion: The Clothes of Princess Charlotte & Queen Victoria” by Kay Staniland. I don’t know if this book is still in print or not, I picked it up in the Museum of London bookstore a few years ago. It’s a great resource though if you can find it! :>


  6. on February 27, 2009 at 10:05 Elisa

    Thank you so much for this! What a magnificent dress!!


  7. on August 24, 2009 at 04:51 Althea Hayden

    Wow – how sumptuous and decadent! I am curious though: does the date given (1814-16) mean that she actually wore it more than once to court, or simply that they can’t precisely place when she did?


    • on August 25, 2009 at 08:20 Vic

      Thank you for your question, Althea. I am only guessing, but having seen this dress up close, I imagine it took untold man hours to fashion those bells and embroider that dress, even with a team of seamstresses, so perhaps the time span also includes when the dress was made. As for wearing the dress twice, I can’t imagine that someone of Princess Charlotte’s stature would have done so. Then again, the era was known for recycling dresses. This one was special enough to have been preserved for all these years. Lucky us.


  8. on March 3, 2011 at 02:25 The Bell Flowers on Princess Charlotte’s Court Dress « Jane Austen's World

    […] years ago I featured Princess Charlotte’s bellflower court dress, a sumptuous creation that must have taken a boatload of seamstresses untold hours of work to […]


  9. on April 25, 2011 at 11:04 In Honor of the Royal Wedding: Princess Charlotte’s Wedding Dress, 1816 « Jane Austen's World

    […] Princess Charlotte’s Bellflower Court Dress, 1814-1816 […]



Comments are closed.

  • Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

    Join 7,149 other subscribers
  • Items of Interest

  • Follow Jane Austen's World on WordPress.com
  • Blog Stats

    • 16,740,356 hits
  • RECOMMENDED BOOKS AND RESOURCES

  • Fashionable Goodness: Christianity in Jane Austen's England is now available! By JAW contributor Brenda S. Cox. See Review. Available from Amazon and Jane Austen Books.
  • Praying with Jane: 31 Days through the Prayers of Jane Austen, Rachel Dodge, and a bookmark with the quote "A whole family assembling regulary for the purpose of prayer is fine!" Jane Austen, Mansfield Park
    We also recommend JAW contributor Rachel Dodge's devotionals based on Jane Austen's prayers and classic literature. Reviews:
    Praying With Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen;
    The Secret Garden Devotional;
    The Anne of Green Gables Devotional;
    The Little Women Devotional.
  • Book cover of Bath: An Adumbration in Rhyme by John Matthews
    Bath -An Adumbration in Rhyme. Edited by Ben Wiebracht. Read the review of the book at this link. Click to order the book on Amazon US or Amazon UK
  • In Sri Lanka lies the grave of Rear Admiral Charles Austen CB, Jane Austen’s Brother

    The neglected tombstone found in an overgrown burial ground.

    Rear Admiral Charles Austen CB

    Died off Prome, the 7th October 1852, while in command of the Naval Expedition on the river Irrawady against the Burmese Forces, aged 73 years.”

    The grave after restoration

    Read the full article in The Sunday Times. June 27, 2021.

  • The Obituary of Charlotte Collins by Andrew Capes

    Click on image to read the story.

  • Comments

    “My idea of good company…is the company of clever, well-informed people, who have a great deal of conversation.” – Jane Austen, Persuasion

     

    Gentle readers: Please feel free to post your comments and continue the conversation! Due to SPAM, we will no longer accept comments on posts after 30 days of publication. In some instances, links will be removed from comments as well.

  • Administrators and Contributors

    Vic Sanborn, founder of this blog, is supported by a team of talented and knowledgeable writers about Jane Austen and the Regency era. They are:

    • Brenda Cox
    • Rachel Dodge and
    • Tony Grant, who now contributes his photos from London and England

    Click on their names to enter their own blogs.

    In addition, we thank the many experts and authors who frequently contribute their posts and opinions, and who continue to do so freely or at our request.

  • Pin It!

    Follow Me on Pinterest
  • Top Posts

    • Highclere Castle Floor Plan: The Real Downton Abbey
      Highclere Castle Floor Plan: The Real Downton Abbey
    • Jane Austen and Rom Coms: Enemies-to-Lovers in Pride and Prejudice
      Jane Austen and Rom Coms: Enemies-to-Lovers in Pride and Prejudice
    • Regency Fashion: Men's Breeches, Pantaloons, and Trousers
      Regency Fashion: Men's Breeches, Pantaloons, and Trousers
    • The Servant's Quarters in 19th Century Country Houses Like Downton Abbey
      The Servant's Quarters in 19th Century Country Houses Like Downton Abbey
    • Men's hair styles at the turn of the 19th century
      Men's hair styles at the turn of the 19th century
    • Regency Hygiene: The Bourdaloue
      Regency Hygiene: The Bourdaloue
    • Social Customs During the Regency
      Social Customs During the Regency
    • Pride and Prejudice Economics: Or Why a Single Man with a Fortune of £4,000 Per Year is a Desirable Husband
      Pride and Prejudice Economics: Or Why a Single Man with a Fortune of £4,000 Per Year is a Desirable Husband
    • Parisian Milliner's Advice in 1801 to a Visiting Lady: Regency Fashion
      Parisian Milliner's Advice in 1801 to a Visiting Lady: Regency Fashion
    • The Thorn, William Wordsworth
      The Thorn, William Wordsworth
  • Recent Posts

    • Jane Austen and Rom Coms: Enemies-to-Lovers in Pride and Prejudice
    • Lady Hester Stanhope: Traveler and Trailblazer
    • Jane Austen-Themed Valentines
    • Winter, Regency Style
    • Book Review: Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin
  • Links to Jane Austen Blogs

    Click here to enter the page. Topics include Regency fashion, historic foods, Jane Austen societies, British sites, related topics. Click on image.

  • May we suggest?

  • Hello, my name is Vic and I live in Maryland, USA. I have adored Jane Austen almost all of my life. I am a proud lifetime member of the Jane Austen Society of North America. This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me and my team. We do not accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions. However, we do accept and keep books and CDs to review.

    If you would like to share a new site, or point out an error, please email us. (Yes, we are fallible. We'll own up to our mistakes and will make the corrections with a polite smile on our faces.) Write us at

    gmailbw

    Thank you for visiting this blog. Your comments and suggestions are most welcome.

  • Project Gutenberg: eBook of Stage-coach and Mail in Days of Yore, Volume 2 (of 2), by Charles G. Harper

    STAGE-COACH AND MAIL IN DAYS OF YORE: A PICTURESQUE HISTORY
    OF THE COACHING AGE, VOL. II, By CHARLES G. HARPER. 1903. Click on this link.

     

  • Top Posts & Pages

    • Highclere Castle Floor Plan: The Real Downton Abbey
    • Jane Austen and Rom Coms: Enemies-to-Lovers in Pride and Prejudice
    • Regency Fashion: Men's Breeches, Pantaloons, and Trousers
    • The Servant's Quarters in 19th Century Country Houses Like Downton Abbey
    • Men's hair styles at the turn of the 19th century
    • Regency Hygiene: The Bourdaloue
    • Social Customs During the Regency
    • Pride and Prejudice Economics: Or Why a Single Man with a Fortune of £4,000 Per Year is a Desirable Husband
    • Parisian Milliner's Advice in 1801 to a Visiting Lady: Regency Fashion
    • The Thorn, William Wordsworth
  • Page copy protected against web site content infringement by Copyscape
  • Disclaimer: Our team makes no profit from this blog. We may receive books (physical or digitized) and DVDs for review purposes.

  • Copyright Statement: © Jane Austen's World blog, 2009-2022. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Jane Austen's World with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Blog at WordPress.com.

WPThemes.


  • Follow Following
    • Jane Austen's World
    • Join 7,149 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Jane Austen's World
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Copy shortlink
    • Report this content
    • View post in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: