Regency Era Fashions - Ackermann's Repository 1820

Regency fashions for 1820 began in the normal mode of what was new and some lovely color; however by late January the royal family saw two more deaths to continue the mourning period they had already been experiencing for the previous two years.  

On January 23, 1820 Prince Edward the Duke of Kent (the 4th son of King George III) and then a few days later on January 29, 1820 King George III also passed away.  These additional royal deaths once again impacted fashions as the Royal family was placed back into full-mourning, subsequently causing members of court and most of England to follow in one form or another out of respect.   

Having the nation follow a state of mourning again after spending  part of 1818 and 1819 in it, was having an adverse effect on the trade economy. The new king - King George IV (previously the Prince Regent) had decreed that a shortened period of mourning would be observed, putting and end to the nations state of mourning on April 30, 1820.  Even with this stipulation you will notice that many of the fashions for the first half of 1820 are mourning or half-mourning colors and then fashions seem to resume a more normal trend as the year progressed.  

(For those of you who love historical bits and pieces; I will post the Ackermann's death notices for both the Duke of Kent and King George III at the end of all the pretty fashions.)

One of my all time favorite Ackermann's Repository fashion plates

July 1820 is also the first time a Court Dress is shown as a fashion plate in Ackermann's Repository and I have to say this is one of my all time favorite Ackermann's plates.  Evening and Ball dresses of this time period are exquisite; but the court dresses were just amazingly over the top with plumes,trains and heavy trims. King George IV did not have his coronation till the following year in July of 1821; however I believe Ackermann's wanted to uplift the public a bit by showing such an elaborate and colorful costume.  There was also increased activity at court during this time and for those who had need to appear before his royal highness, the appropriate clothing was a necessity.

png version of the above 1820 Court Dress fashion plate

Being one of my top fashion plates by Ackermann's Repository; 

I removed the background and created this lovely lady to be a png image 

so I could use her when creating fun pieces of digital art.

One example were she was used can be seen HERE along with

several other Regency ladies. See if you can spot her. - giggles

Now on to the Lovely Ladies of Ackermann's 

Ackermann's Repository 1820 Fashion Plates

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - January Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository fashion description - January Issue

 In my previous post for 1819, I gave a few examples of fashion plate errors that can be found in Ackermann's Repository.  The January 1820 issue I had access to shows a colorization error in the first fashion plate for a Half Dress.  The color is to be an odd shade between dark fawn and sage green - leaning more to the sage green color.  The colorist who worked on this particular plate made the dress a fawn color leaning toward a peachy coral not the sage green as suggested in the description.

Just one of those fun quirks that makes the pages of Ackermann's even more interesting.

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - January Issue

The British nation was back in mourning due to the deaths of 

Prince Edward the Duke of Kent and King George III in January

and for the next few months this will be apparent in the fashions at large.

February 1820  - Ackermann's Mourning Fashions

 Ackermann's Repository placed a black band around death announcements.

This is the only time I saw where they also placed a black band around the fashion descriptions.

These descriptions are for the next two fashion plates and I found it interesting that prior to this point when a fashion plate depicted a mourning dress it was obvious on the plate itself - in that the dress title said Mourning Dress or Half-Mourning Dress as the case may be.  For the next few months the mourning costumes do not contain the word mourning on the fashion plates themselves but it is evident from the colors and descriptions of each that they are mourning dresses.

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - February Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - February Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - March Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - March Issue

Example of Fashion Descriptions and Fashion based articles from 

Ackermann's Repository April 1820 issue 

this particular issue is most informative since it states:

- how mourning fashions are adversely effecting the trade economy, 

- the monarchy reducing the mourning period

- the changes in mourning fashion for members of court vs

the general public

- how the death of a French royal duke is effecting french fashions 

there and the differences in French and English mourning fashions.

(even if this kind of historical information is not your cup of tea, it does 

cause the fashions seen here to take on a new dimension
and it really gives you a feel for the time period.)

 

 Half- Mourning fashions - April 1820

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - April Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - April Issue

This last month of mourning shows fashion of half-mourning with
the first of grey and the evening dress of white with black decorations.

As we continue into June of 1820

The British Public is no longer in a state of national mourning 

and colors have started to re-surface in the fashion plates.

This first plate for June is a "transitional" garment.

It is in a color Ackermann's describes as "a peculiar shade of lavender"; 

of a fabric Ackermann's has listed as "a new silk called zephyreene".

 

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - May Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - May Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - June Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 9 - June Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - July Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - July Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - August Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - August Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - September Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - September Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - October Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - October Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - November Issue

This garment is described as being of 

"a singular but beautiful colour between  lilac and purple."

(I love the way things were phrased in this time period)

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - November Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - December Issue

1820 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 10 - December Issue

It is so nice to see the Regency fashions back with pretty colors.

I know in our current culture we view black as an ordinary color to

wear and in evening wear an elegant color; but in Regency times when a woman 
wore black it was tied to sadness and loss, so even though it may appear attractive

it was not a color worn unless necessary. 

(Morning fashions and restrictions were not as harsh for the men of the time;
they were more loosely impacted where as the women carried the heavier burden socially.)

 

Mourning fashions will appear in Ackermann's over the next 10 years; 

however not with the intensity we have seen in the 1818 - 1820 issues.

*******************

Now for you history lovers (like me)

Here are the Death notices Ackermann's published for the 

Royal Duke of Kent and His Royal Majesty King George III

Prince Edward - The Duke of Kent

Nov 2 1767 - January 23, 1820

King George III

June 4, 1738 - January 29, 1820 

(nicknamed Mad King George)

King George III was no longer ruling the British empire as of 1811.

Due to the Regency Act of 1811 the Prince of Wales (later King George IV)

became regent and he started ruling in his fathers place with the title of Prince Regent

(giving this time period in British history the name "Regency")

King George the III was permanently insane by the end of 1811

and spent the remainder of his life in seclusion at Windsor castle 

till his death in 1820.

(It's quite interesting to see how politely his "infirmity" was referred to; 
when in today's terms we would just say he was plain "batty".)

 

 I hope you have enjoyed seeing the latest installment of 

Regency fashions for Ackermann's repository.

For those just finding my blog you can see the previous  

Regency fashion posts by clicking the links below. 

Ackermann's ran series 1 from 1809 - 1815

Series 1 -  Vol 1 & 2  - 1809
Series 1 -  Vol 3 & 4  - 1810
Series 1 -  Vol 5 & 6  - 1811
Series 1 -  Vol 7 & 8  - 1812 
Series 1 -  Vol 9 & 10 - 1813
Series 1 - Vol 11 & 12 - 1814
Series 1 - Vol 13 & 14  - 1815

Ackermann's ran series 2 from 1816 - 1822

Series 2 - Vol 1 & 2 - 1816

Series 2 - Vol 3 & 4 - 1817

Series 2 - Vol 5 & 6 - 1818

Series 2 - Vol 7 & 8 - 1819

Series 2 - Vol 9 & 10 - 1820

(1821 - 1822 - are yet to be posted) 

Series 2 - Vol 11 & 12 - 1821

Series 2 - Vol 13 & 14 - 1822

Ackermann's ran series 3 from 1823 - 1828

(series 3 coming soon)

I hope you join me again 

for more Regency fashions from Ackermann's Repository

Till next time...

Thanks for visiting me here at EKDuncan.blogspot.com

If you have enjoyed seeing these images from Ackermann's Repository 

and would like the opportunity to see and read an original for yourself 

they are are available on line at www.archive.org

Click HERE then choose the volume you are interested in.

You can then see and read them online or download 

them to your computer for future reference.

Enjoy!