Princess Charlotte's Court Dress, 1814-16, also known as the Bellflower Dress
When 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
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
- The London Look, Fashion from Street to Catwalk. By Christopher Breward, Edwina Ehrman, Caroline Evans, 2004
Front of gown, Museum of London
Thank you for sharing that. It’s just beautiful. The detail is incredible.
What an absolutely beautiful dress!
Great post! What a magnificent dress…I’m sure I would stood there that long with you just in awe of such decadence.
Thanks for sharing the dress. It’s amazing!
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! :>
Thank you so much for this! What a magnificent dress!!
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?
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.
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