Monday 06 February 2012
Charlotte, the Forgotten Princess Comes Under The Spotlight In Brighton
A new exhibition opening next month at Brighton's historic Royal Pavilion will put the spotlight on the life of the nation's first people's princess.
Princess Charlotte of Wales captured the hearts of the country and when she died in childbirth in 1817, at the age of just 21, there was a national outpouring of grief.
Drapers' shops ran out of black fabric, commemorative souvenirs were produced, and the public mourning was exceeded only by that which followed the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.
“It really was as if every household throughout Great Britain had lost a favourite child”, said Henry Brougham, the radical lawyer and Whig MP.
The opulent palace was the seaside residence of her father George IV and she visited on several occasions.
Charlotte, the Forgotten Princess, which opens on March 10 2012 and runs until March 2013, will focus on the life and tragic death of the Princess through a range of exhibits including personal items such as two of her gowns, her handwritten music book, along with paintings, prints, ceramics, jewellery and glassware.
It also includes a vase commemorating Princess Charlotte which was discovered in a shop in Mexico by a collector and donated to the Royal Pavilion earlier this year.
David Beevers, Keeper of the Royal Pavilion, said:
“The exhibition is about a princess who has fallen off the radar. Most people now have no idea who Princess Charlotte is - and yet her death hit Britain like a thunderbolt, the effects were extraordinary, the country closed down for virtually a week and everything was swathed in black.
"The closest equivalent is the outpouring of public grief after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales."
Princess Charlotte was the only daughter of the Prince Regent (who later became George IV) and Princess Caroline of Brunswick.
A feisty, headstrong tomboy as a child, Charlotte became very popular with the public, unlike her father, and was referred to as the Daughter of England.
She married Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg Gotha and the couple were happily married for just a year and a half until tragedy struck.
She gave birth to a stillborn son in November 1817 and died shortly after the birth.
Charlotte’s death and the death of her son changed the course of royal history.
Charlotte would have become Queen had she outlived her father and grandfather and Queen Victoria is unlikely to have succeeded to the throne - there would have been a ‘Charlottian’ age rather than a Victorian one.
It also lead to Charlotte’s accoucheur (male-midwife), Sir Richard Croft, who was in attendance at the birth, shooting himself three months later.
There had been a media backlash after her death and Sir Richard, a nervous, sensitive man, was unable to cope with the torrent of criticism, even though the Prince Regent expressed entire confidence in Croft's ability.
A day after Charlotte's death he wrote:
"May God grant that you nor any connected with you may suffer what I do at the moment'. As a result Charlotte’s pregnancy became known in medical history as "the triple obstetrical tragedy."
The exhibition is being held in the Royal Pavilion’s Prince Regent gallery and will replace Dress for Excess, which told the story of George IV.
Exhibits will include a Russian-style dress which belonged to Princess Charlotte, on loan from the Royal Collection; her silver and a white evening gown, on loan from the Museum of London; a bust of Princess Charlotte, from Manchester Art Gallery; a baby's shift she wore as an infant, from the Pavilion and Museum's own collection, plus a gown made as part of a layette for the baby she was expecting.
There will also be a talk and gallery tours will be available to link in with the exhibition.
The two gowns on display for the first six months of the exhibition, will be replaced in mid September with Charlotte's wedding gown on loan from the Royal Collection.
by: Mike Cobley
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