Category: Victoria Hinshaw

Paul and Thomas Sandby, Painters of Britain

Victoria here, sorting out bookshelves…yes, that’s sort of like cleaning, but not quite.  And I found a treasure.  Couldn’t remember when I bought it, but I found a copy of a wonderful book: Views of Windsor: Watercolours by Thomas and Paul Sandby.  Of course, I had to quit the sorting and sit down to enjoy it. 

The mystery was solved when I checked the publication page and saw that it is a catalogue which accompanied the exhibition of the same name from 1995-1997, which was shown in Amsterdam; Portland, Oregon; Memphis; Dallas; and Manchester, UK.  I must have seen it in Dallas.  The paintings are from the Royal Collection at Windsor Castle. To see more, click here.
Paul Sandby, The Castle from the Long Walk, ca. 1765
Watercolour with pen and ink over graphite within black line
Zoom on Image here.
This is the view of the castle before the Round Tower was “tarted up” as a Gothic Fantasy by George IV and his architect Jeffry Wyattville in the 1820’s. Below, the view since that time, a much taller and more elaborate building.
Windsor Castle, Round Tower, 2010
Thomas Sandby (1721-1798) was the elder of the two brothers, both born in Nottingham. Thomas was an architectural draughtsman, artist and teacher. He joined the staff  of William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, for his campaigns in Flanders and Scotland (1743–1748). Later, he became Deputy Ranger of Windsor Great Park, and also spent part of the year in London where he engaged in numerous architectural and artistic projects. He and his brother were among the 28 persons who were chosen as founding members of  the Royal Academy; Thomas was the RA’s first Professor of Architecture.
Thomas Sandby, RA, by Sir William Beechey, n.d., NPG, London

Paul Sandby, View through the Norman Gateway, looking west towards the Winchester Tower,
 ca. 1770; Watercolour with pen and ink over graphite

Paul Sandby (1731-1809) was chief draughtsman for the Board of Ordnance’s 1747 project of mapping the Scottish Highlands. In the 1750’s, Paul and Thomas Sandby created hundreds of views of Windsor, the castle, the royal grounds, the town and other scenes.  Their work was admired by artists such as Gainsborough, who appreciated the details they captured. More than 500 of their paintings and drawings are held in the Royal Collection.  Paul was chief drawing master to the Royal Military academy and published several volumes of his works over the years. At his death, he was called “the father of modern landscape painting.”

Paul Sandby sketching, by Francis Coates, 1791
Tate Britain
Paul Sandby, The Henry VIII Gateway and the Salisbury Tower from within the Lower Ward, ca. 1770
Watercolour with pen and ink over graphite within black ink line

Though it may be difficult to see without enlarging these views (which can easily be done with the zoom feature of the Royal Collection), one of the major interests of the Sandbys’ work goes beyond the exactitude of the buildings in time.  The figures in the foreground, pedestrians, workers, riders…all provide a perfect picture of what people wore, what they did, even what they ate at the time.  They provide a rich source for those of us who obsess over minute details of the period.

Paul Sandby, The north front of the Castle from Isherwood’s Brewery in Datchet Lane, c. 1765
Watercolour and body colour with pen and ink
Paul Sandby, The Norman Gateway from the gate to the North Terrace, ca. 1770
Watercolour and bodycolour with pen and ink over graphite

Paul Sandby, The Castle from Datchet Lane on a rejoicing night, 1768
Watercolour and bodycolour including gold paint, within black line
The subject matter of the rejoicing night is unknown; from the leaves on the trees, it cannot be Guy Fawkes Night (5 November), but the distant bonfire and/or fireworks suggests a celebration.
Thomas and Paul Sandby The Walk and terrace at Cranbourne Lodge 1752
Watercolour and bodycolour with Pen and ink over graphite
This volume of wonderful views of Windsor is now in a more prominent position in my bookcases — and I am willing to report that I plan to share any more treasures I uncover.  I’ve already got one in mind, Royal London.  Coming one of these days….

The Dowager Duchess of Devonshire

Victoria, here, lately reading several memoirs by Deborah Mitford Cavendish, Dowager Duchess of Devonshire.  I find them delightful. When I put the book down to attend to other matters, I feel like I’ve been chatting with a friend.

Now, most of my friends are not quite duchesses (more like countesses and baronesses, don’t cha know?), but Debo’s breezy style just feels like an old pal has been telling me about her very long and full life.  Don’t all of your friends cavort with Prince Charles, care for many of the Chatsworth Estate affairs, and feed their chickens?  Actually, I really do have a few friends who feed their chickens, come to think of it.  And Kristine waved at Prince Charles once as he passed her in his limo.

All in One Basket (immediately above) combines two of the Duchess’s previous memoirs into one volume.  They were entitled Counting My Chickens and Home to Roost, collections of stories and essays she wrote earlier.  Wait For Me (top picture) is a memoir of her childhood and marriage to nearly the present. 

The dowager Duchess speaking to Charlie Rose

At the age of 92, she is living near Chatsworth in a house she redecorated — with a few spare pieces from the Chatsworth attics — after the death of her husband, the 11th Duke of Devonshire, in 2004, Chatsworth became the home of her son Peregrine Cavendish, known as Stoker, 12th Duke of Devonshire. and his wife Amanda, the Duchess.

 

The excellent website for Chatsworth is here.  We’ve written about Chatsworth on this blog, as have many others.  It is a favorite target of tourists and residents of the British Isles as well.  The first time I visited Chatsworth, quite a few years ago, I was amazed to be greeted by flocks of chickens wandering the parking area.

These were not just ordinary chickens, but lovely exotic feathered works of art — which walked around and seemed hungry.  My suspicion is that the visitors frequently bring treats for the hens and roosters.  When we entered the main house, the doorkeeper cautioned us not to let the creatures inside. “The Duchess,” he said, “does not like her chickens in the house.”

I have visited Chatsworth several times and I would love to go again. And again.  It is the quintessential English Country House and has been in the forefront of developing the Stately Home Industry, if I dare to call it that.  Debo would not approve. However, she has been an inspiration and a guiding force for the movement.

Deborah and Andrew at their wedding in 1941

Deborah Vivien Freeman-Mitford was the youngest of the seven children of Lord Redesdale, thus one of the famous Mitford Sisters, of whom so much has been written.  Nancy, eldest of the seven, wrote several novels which are very popular and have been turned into films or tv series; some of these have autobiographical overtones of the sisters’ lives.

Jessica, is famous for her book The American Way of Death, criticising the funeral business. Two other sisters developed fascist sympathies, with Unity trying to shoot herself over the British declaration of war against Germany.  Diana married the head of the British fascist party, Sir Oswald Moseley.  Through it all, Debo ignored politics and remained devoted to each sister in her own way.

Marquess of Hartingdon and bride Kathleen Kennedy in 1944
Joe Kennedy jr. stands behind his sister

When Debo married Lord Andrew Cavendish in 1941, he was not expected to inherit the dukedom. But only four months after his elder brother William Cavendish, Marquess of Hartingdon married Kathleen Kennedy in May, 1944, the Marquess was killed in action  in WWII. Kathleen, sister of future U. S. President John F. Kennedy, died in 1948 in a plane crash.

Andrew Cavendish, 11th Duke of Devonshire 1920-2004
Picture: BBC
Thus Andrew and Debo had to prepare for their eventual roles as Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, along with all the responsibilities of many properties, tenants and enterprises. Andrew’s father, the 10th Duke died in 1950.  Though she writes with the advantage of hindsight, the reader of Debo’s accounts can easily see what difficulties the family had with death duties and the establishment of Chatsworth as a profitable business capable of sustaining the house, its contents and activities for the public. Though she pooh-poohs the idea, Debo is largely responsible for Chatsworth’s success.  Thanks, Debo!

For a review of Wait For Me from the Telegraph, click here.

Swimming in August

Summer is ending for another year and soon Victoria will lament the closing of the Regency House swimming pool until next May. Sigh. Of course, I will be in Florida by mid January, ready for another pool — and the lovely beaches too. 

Sea Bathing became increasingly fashionable in the 18th century as doctors praised the beneficial effects of drinking sea water and bathing in the cold salt-water of the Channel, or the North or Irish Sea.

The print above, by William Heath (1795-1840), ca. 1829, depicts the Mermaids of Brighton near their bathing machines.  On the left two sturdy dippers, as the women who assisted the bathers were called, help a girl in a sort of loose garment like a shift (or a shroud???). Inside the wooden structure, another young lady begins to disrobe, while others cavort in the water.  How very different than the look below, the Italian swimming star in the London Olympics, Federica Pellegrini.

But apparently, not all sea bathers were clothed at all!  The caricature below by Thomas Rowlandson (1776-1827) is entitled Summer Amusement at Margate, or a Peep at the Mermaids and clearly shows a group of men oogling the nude bathers.

Even more revealing is Rowlandson’s Venus Bathing (Margate): A Fashionable Dip. Margate is in Kent.

And its companion engraving by Rowlandson, Sideway or any way, in which a crowd seems to have gathered at the top of the cliff to observe:

Most fashion plates from the early 19th century show ladies dressed quite properly indeed.  Below, From Ackermann’s Repository, 1809:

La Belle Assemblee chose this costume for sea bathing in 1815. Note the bathing machines in the background, lower right:

The Bathing Machines were built to various designs, but most had an enclosed room on high wheels in which one could dress and undress.  The vehicles were pulled out into the water by horses, donkeys or even humans.  Many had large canvas awnings which could be lowered for privacy.  The bather enters the water via steps and may be assisted by a helper, the dipper, as seen in the first engraving above.

Another Version
One of the dippers, Martha Gunn, became famous in Brighton, a favorite of the Prince of Wales, and became an advertisement for the resort itself.  Her portrayal below shows her importance as she wears the Prince’s three feathers on her hat.
Toby jug, Mrs. Gunn

In 1773, author Frances (Fanny) Burney (1753-1840) recorded her experience while sea bathing.

Fanny Burney by Edward Francis Burney, c. 1784
National Portrait Gallery, London

August 1773

“Ever since I went to Torbay, I have been tormented with a dreadful cold and very much advised to sea bathing in order to harden me…. I was terribly frightened, and really thought I should never have recovered from the plunge. I had not breath enough to speak for a minute or two, the shock was beyond expression; but after I got back to the [bathing] machine, I presently felt myself in a glow that was delightful – it is the finest feeling in the world, and will induce me to bathe as often as will be safe. “

Jane Austen, watercolour by her sister Cassandra

Jane Austen too indulged in  sea bathing.  Her family often visited coastal resorts.  She wrote to Cassandra from Lyme:

Friday 14 September 1804
“…I continue quite well, in proof of which I have bathed again this morning.  It was absolutely necessary that I should have the little fever and indisposition, which I had;–it has been all the fashion this week in Lyme…”

That evening, she added, “…The Bathing was so delightful this morning and Molly so pressing with me to enjoy myself that I believe I staid in rather too long, as since the middle of the day I have felt unreasonably tired. I shall be more careful another time, and shall not bathe tomorrow, as I had before intended…

I think the former quote shows Jane Austen’s ironic wit, but her later remarks sound quite sincere!

I hope you have time, if you wish, for a few more dips in the sea or the pool this season.

The pool at Victoria’s Building

Dickens: Bicentenary of his birth

Charles Dickens (1812-1870), painted by Daniel Maclise (1806-1870)

Victoria here, reporting on my latest encounters with a favorite author of mine, Charles Dickens.  My local PBS station is rerunning the presentation of Oliver Twist and Great Expectations they first showed last winter.  I hope you have a chance to see them too.

Oliver Twist, played by William Miller

The PBS website, here, has lots of details about the BBC-Masterpiece production of Oliver Twist, including a synopsis, cast information and a Dickens timeline.

You can buy this DVD, as well as many other classics here.

I have to admit I remember the story from several of the dozens of films and television series rather than from the book, which I probably read in high school.  There have been many stage versions as well, including the very popular London production of Oliver, the Musical in 1960.

The musical also ran on Broadway for a long time, and has been successfully revived in Britain and the U.S. several times.  The film version won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1969.

I think the reason for the enduring popularity of the story is mainly attributable to the wonderful characters, the innocent young Oliver, the unforgettable Fagin, Artful Dodger, Nancy, and Bill Sikes — and the family that ultimately rescues Oliver and brings a happy ending.  As in all of Dickens, the details of the London scene are unmatched.

Personally, I prefer Oliver Twist to Great Expectations, probably because Miss Havisham meets such a tragic ending in the latter.  But nevertheless I will watch it. Again and again.  Like Oliver Twist’s, Pip’s story has been filmed many times, from silent movies to current miniseries, and has been adapted for stage as well.

One of the book groups I participate in is reading A Tale of Two Cities, another Dickens novel that has been often adapted. “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times” has to be one of the most famous opening lines in English literature. 

A Tale of Two Cities, published 1859
And to top off my Year of Dickens, I am reading Claire Tomalin’s biography Charles Dickens, published in 2011.  Like her previous biographies of Jane Austen, Samuel Pepys and others, this account is eminently readable.  She deals with complex personalities in a realistic and engaging way.

I hope you are having your own Dickens Year in 2012…if not, you still have time!

Jane Austen in London

Jane Austen arrived at her brother Henry’s new London residence in Hans Place on August 22, 1814.  Henry had moved from his previous house in Henrietta Street near Covent Garden to this recently developed area off Sloane Street.

The house now occupying the spot at #23 Hans Place is a Victorian reconstruction, very unlike the house in which Austen stayed.  Below, the blue plaque on the house, commemorating her stay on the premises.

Around the crescent from #23 Hans Place there is a Regency-era house which is probably what Henry’s house looked like in 1814.  Of course, any vehicle that might have been in the road in those days would not have resembled the one here.

The neighborhood around Hans Place was relatively new, developed just off Sloane Street as part of the Cadogan estate and opened out onto uninhabited fields to the west.  The Hans in the name honors to Sir Hans Sloane (1660-1753), president of the Royal Society and benefactor of the British Museum, for whom Sloane Square is named.

The general neighborhood has been much in the news lately because the Ecuadoran Embassy is located nearby, the place Julian Assange sought asylum.

A quick check of property values in the area shows that these tall Victorian houses, now mostly institutions or condominiums, are extremely pricey. 

Jane Austen described Henry’s house in a letter to Cassandra dated Tuesday 23-Wednesday 24 August, 1814. After sharing a few details of her journey to London, she wrote:  “It is a delightful place—more than answers my expectation. Having got rid of my unreasonable ideas, I find more space and comfort in the rooms than I had supposed and the Garden is quite a Love. I am in the front Attic, which is the Bedchamber to be preferred.  Henry wants you to see it all…”

From Ackermann’s Repository, April 1814

In early September, Jane Austen wrote from London to Martha Lloyd, who was staying in Pulteney Street, Bath.  She shares her impressions of London fashions: “I am amused by the present style of female dress; — the coloured petticoats with braces over the white Spencers and enormous Bonnets upon the full Stretch are quite entertaining…”

From Ackermann’s Repository, 1814

Miss Austen went on to make observations on a recent art exhibit:  “I have seen West’s famous painting and prefer it to anything of the kind I ever saw before. I do not know that it is reckoned superior to his Healing in the Temple, but it has gratified me much more and indeed is the first representation of our Saviour which ever at all contented me. ‘His Rejection by the Elders’, is the subject.–I want to have You and Cassandra see it.”

Benjamin West, Christ Rejected, 1814,
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia

Jane Austen wrote further of  her brother’s house (his wife, Eliza de Feuillide Austen had died in April 1813): “I am extremely pleased with this new House of Henry’s, it is everything that could be wished for him and I have only to hope he will continue to like it as well as he does now, and not be looking out for anything better.–He is in very comfortable health; — he has not been so well, he says for a twelvemonth.”

Henry Austen was his sister’s favorite brother, for his talents and charm.  He had several careers, first at Oxford, then in the military, and in various business ventures.  His bank failed in 1816 and he went into the church, as curate in the Chawton parish and later as rector in Steventon.  Henry assisted Jane in her publishing ventures, making deals for the sa
le and repurchase of her books.  He oversaw posthumous publication of   Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey and Persuasion.

Today: Garden in Hans Place, London