Regency Furniture
A look at how homes were furnished in the years prior to the accession of Queen Victoria
The term “Regency”, when applied strictly, refers to the nine years between 1811 and 1820 when King George III’s eldest son ruled as the Prince Regent during his father’s mental incapacity. When the king died in 1820 the Prince Regent became king in his own right as George IV.
However, the Regency period is often taken to mean a wider span that includes the whole time during which Prince George was a major influence on taste and style, thus going back to at least 1800 and also including the years of George IV’s reign (1820–30). It should be remembered that the archetypal palace of the Regency, namely the Royal Pavilion at Brighton, was begun as far back as 1787 and not completed until 1823. Indeed, the period might even be considered as lasting until 1837 when the accession of Queen Victoria brought with it a very different era in British style and attitudes.
In terms of architecture and furniture design, the Regency period was one of considerable elegance and refinement, but with elements of the bizarre that could sometimes stretch good taste to the limit. Alongside the splendid terraces designed by John Nash one must set the Brighton Pavilion which brought India and China to the Sussex coast. Or, to quote Sydney…