Featuring over 300 items, many displayed in public for the first time, it conjures the world of both fashionable elegance and decadence lived in by the era’s leading royals and their aristocratic set.
A Fading Way of Life
The era’s eponymous Edward was King Edward VII, the eldest son and heir of Queen Victoria. Early exhibition pieces date from his marriage to the Danish princess Alexandra. Shortly before their union, Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, died; the queen spent the rest of her life in mourning. As a result, the young prince and princess of Wales became the stylish, trendsetting royal couple.
They collected contemporary art and jewelry and attended a glittering whirl of balls, concerts, garden parties, and sporting events. Their son George, later King George V, and his wife Mary continued these glamorous pursuits. Politically, both royal couples traveled further than their predecessors on state visits, spanning five continents. Mementos from these diplomatic sojourns are on view in the exhibition.
A youthful Edward, as prince of Wales, is captured in Franz Xaver Winterhalter’s 1864 portrait. It shows him dressed in the uniform of colonel of the 10th Hussars. He wears prestigious honors: the ribbon and star of the Garter, the badge of the Golden Fleece, and the Star of India.
Winterhalter, known as the “Painter of Princes,” was a German artist from the Black Forest region. He studied in Munich and made a name for himself in France as court painter to King Louis-Philippe. Plentiful commissions came subsequently from the Belgian and British royal families. Winterhalter was a favorite of these rulers because he excelled in tailoring his portraiture style to suit each sitter’s publicity needs.
A wedding gift that Alexandra received from Frederik VII of Denmark (her father was his heir) is presented in the exhibition. The impressive diamond, pearl, gold, and enamel necklace was made by a jeweler in Copenhagen. Its centerpiece is an enameled pendant, a replica of a 12th-century Byzantine cross that is legendary in Danish history. The original is believed to have belonged to the medieval Dagmar, Queen of Denmark. During the 17th century, it was discovered in a tomb and soon became part of the Danish Royal Treasury.
A lush watercolor attributed to the illustrator Godefroy Durand captures the revelry of the Wales’ social activities. In this 1874 artwork, Edward and Alexandra are depicted along with their social circle at a fancy costume ball held at their London residence, Marlborough House.
The acclaimed painter Frederic Leighton was part of the ball’s planning committee. The prince went as Charles I and the princess wore Venetian dress. Their two eldest sons, including a young George, wore outfits of pages of honor; their costume details were copied from a National Gallery painting. This watercolor was the preliminary work for a published newspaper engraving of the event.
A majestic portrait of Queen Alexandra by the French society painter François Flameng dates to the end of her husband’s reign. This 1908 oil on canvas proves Alexandra worthy of Vogue’s citation of her as “the legitimate head of fashion throughout the British dominions.”
It was the empress who introduced her sister and the British royal family to the great Russian firm Fabergé, famed for jewelry and objets d’art. In 1903, Fabergé opened a popular branch in London. Edward and Alexandra became devoted patrons and those with means and taste followed suit. The RCT exhibition features over 20 Fabergé pieces.
A New Generation of Collectors
One of the most charming artworks in the exhibition is Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema’s painting “God Speed,” an 1893 wedding present from the artist, a friend of King Edward, to the future George V and Queen Mary. It shows a young Roman woman leaning over a parapet as she strews rose blooms to celebrate newlyweds.
Alma-Tadema was a Dutch-born painter who settled in England. He became a prominent member of the country’s art establishment, and his trajectory culminated in a knighthood and the Order of Merit. Alma-Tadema’s paintings of classical subjects are notable for their frequent use of dramatic compositions, bright colors, and opulent settings.
The year that the “Love Trophy” collar was made was a momentous time. Queen Victoria died, Edward became king, and Mary and her husband embarked on what was then the longest royal tour in British history. They traveled throughout the British Empire, including to Australia.
A fine silk portière (usually a curtain placed across a door, but in this case backed onto silk for use as a bedspread) that Mary was gifted during the State visit to Southern Australia is presented in the show. It is embroidered with a eucalyptus tree that has six blooming, intertwined branches and Australian flowers at its base. The monogram “VM” at the heart of the windswept tree references Mary’s full name, Victoria Mary. At the time of its presentation, the Adelaide Register newspaper called it the finest example of needlework ever made in the region.
King Edward VII’s reign was short-lived, lasting less than 10 years as he died in May 1910. The coronation of King George V and Queen Mary was the following year. The landscapist and portraitist Sir William Samuel Henry Llewellyn painted the State Portrait of the new queen between 1911 and 1912.
The commanding full-length pose of the queen befits her Coronation Robes outfit. The white satin gown is embellished with gold floral representations of the British Isles: The rose for England, the Shamrock for Ireland, and the Thistle for Scotland. Mary’s jewelry is illustrative of royal history. She wears the George IV State Diadem; Queen Victoria’s diamond stud earrings, collet necklace, stomacher, and three bow brooches; and King William IV’s buckle bracelets.
Royal Family’s Wartime Service
The early years of the new king’s reign were shattered by the start of WWI, ending the glamorous Edwardian society. A poignant part of the exhibition examines the royal family’s wartime service and the devastating impact the violence had on the European landscape, soldiers, and the British people.
A portrait sketch of King George V by Herbert Arnould Olivier shows the monarch in military uniform with a Field Marshal’s cap. During WWI, Olivier painted a number of works that documented current events.
Another oil study in the exhibition is the post-war work “The Passing of the Unknown Warrior, King George V as Chief Mourner, Whitehall, 11 November 1920” by Frank O. Salisbury. It commemorates the processional part of the ceremony that honored those who died in the Great War.
“The Edwardians: Age of Elegance” captures vividly the period’s personal and political highs and lows with its selection of items and thoughtful curatorial displays. Viewing the atmosphere of excess is tempered by the knowledge that this way of life was dramatically altered by international conflict. Amidst the highbrow fine art, highly personal family objects and photographs provide insightful nuances that enrich the formal portraiture.
