When silver was gold

Or, why the Prince Regent was always broke

My Dear Reader,

One of the stops on my recent research trip was to Brighton, to see the Brighton Pavilion, rebuilt and refurbished by the Prince Regent from 1787 onwards, with a significant rebuild in 1815.

I’d heard about it, naturally, and read about it both in scholarly books and in Regency-set fiction.

Nothing prepared me for its opulence, its over-the-topness, and its sheer cost.

I look at what President Trump is doing to the White House and think: Amateur. The Pavilion is what happens when obsession meets unlimited funds.

Just look:

This sprawling palace was originally a fairly modest farmhouse, before Prinny (then merely Prince George) started to make Brighton fashionable. It was so small that when the queen visited, Prince George had to lodge nearby, so she could have the only good bedroom.

He soon changed that!

The complete obsession with Chinoiserie (aka fake Chinese-style) took over the Pavilion. This is my favourite room, a circular space used for soirées. (That’s my husband on the left!)

Only one part of the Pavilion entertaining area wasn’t given over to Chinoiserie: the plate.

Not the plates, as in crockery, but the silver-gilt plate. The extraordinary array of solid silver plated with gold. Most of it was created by Rundell & Bridges, the jewellers and silversmiths whom the Regent patronised throughout his life. The artisans there, notably Digby Scott and Benjamin Smith, produced the highest-quality silverware and silver-gilt ware of the period, and some of it is on display at the Pavilion.

I’ve written about Rundell & Bridges before , concentrating on the jewellery side of things, but plate was a huge part of their output, and one of the major reasons the Prince Regent was always in debt!

Prinny definitely had an eye for the finer things in life. I’ve never admired him much, but going through the Pavilion has changed my view somewhat. He was clearly driven. An aesthete with a very specific vision and (almost) the funds to bring that vision into reality. It’s not my taste…but by the end, I was not only gobsmacked by the sheer effusion of expensive stuff, I also rather admired the single-mindedness that created it.

Yes, there were architects and so on (notably Nash) but there’s no doubt that this building is the result of one man’s personal taste, and dogged persistence in making it happen.

I ended up loving it! And, in loving it, became slightly less judgemental about how much debt Prinny was in. At least he spent all that money on something we can now enjoy!

I remain, as always,

Your Obedient Servant

Elizabeth

ps I’m currently doing the copy edit of A Deadly Dowry! Cover reveal soon!