I was at a convention in one of my Regency gowns, and someone asked, “What did black people wear?”
The answer is that the clothing expressed a wide range of styles depending on a person’s station and where they lived but— since I think that question came from a place of wanting to do historical cosplay as something other than a servant… Here are some Regency-ish* era free people of colour living in Europe, the West Indies, and the Americas.
*I’m cheating a little and going about ten years past the Regency in both directions.
Phillis Wheatley (May 8, 1753 – December 5, 1784) was both the second published African-American poet and first published African-American woman.
Portrait of a Young Woman by Jean-Etienne Liotard
The Barbadoes Mulatto Girl after Agostino Brunias
Portrait of a Gentleman by Joshua Johnston. Believed to be a portrait of the Revd Daniel Coker (1780 – 1846), one of the founders of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.
General Alexandre Davy de la Pailleterie, also known as Alexandre Dumas, (25 March 1762 – 26 February 1806) was the famous African European general in French history and remains the highest-ranking person of color of all time in a continental European army. Also the father of Alexandre Dumas.
A Mulatto Woman with Her White Daughter Visited by Negro Women in Their House in Martinique
Pierre Toussaint
Juliette Noel, Mrs. Pierre Toussaint
Euphemia Toussaint
1815, Portrait of Charles Lee Jones, son of Absalom Jones who established the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia.
Portrait of John Moore, Jr.
Portrait of Yarrow Mamout by Charles William Peale
Jean-Baptiste Belley was a native of Senegal and former slave from Saint-Domingue in the French West Indies who during the period of the French Revolution became a member of the National Convention and the Council of Five Hundred of France.
Portrait of a Black Woman, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, ca. 1822
Head and shoulders portrait of an Anglo-Indian girl
A Mulatto Gentleman by Fabre
I would just like to add that a well-tied cravat is a thing of wonder.
The structural integrity of the headdresses is darn impressive in addition to being beautiful.
Kier Salmon
I’d like to know who these people are and who the artist is. I’m happy to see the careful concentration of images; but I was just thinking about this in light of the movie “Belle” and my feeling that it is mis-representing the actual attitude towards dark skinned people in Regency England. “Belle” was a bastard and portionless. I don’t have enough knowledge to decide how much how she was treated had to do with those two factors and how much had to do with her dark skin. Thanks for tracking down the pictures.
Um, no. She was from Martinique, but her family was a wealthy white family that owned a sugar plantation.
The word “creole” to describe her family is probably what is throwing you. People often assume that means mixed race, but it usually means someone with foreign heritage born locally. That said, the meaning varies from place to place. In Josephine’s case, though, it means that they were a white family who lived in Martinique.
Julie
I’m curious about the gentleman on the right in the second row. That casual pose and the bust behind him suggest something about him, but I don’t know what…
These are fantastic! You’re missing two of my favorites though: Dido and the Chevalier St Georges (who I’m using as character inspiration for an upcoming book).
The only reason I didn’t include Chevalier St. George is because the portraits of him were way, way out of the Regency. But yes, he’s fabulous as is Dido. I cannot WAIT for the film about her to start playing in the US.
Pam Adams
My favorite is that very dignified young woman on the upper-right. She has an air of confidence.
These are wonderful. In Louisana, creoles who are of mixed blood especially with African blood thrown in the mix are known as Creoles of Color to distinguish them from the French or Spanish Creoles of the same area. With that said, in Santo Domingo – now Haiti –les gens de couleur libres were those people who were mixed or pure African that were born or bought their freedom. That being said, I do believe, and correct me if I am wrong, Jane Austen in one of her unfinished books had an octoroon as one of her characters. Also, in Vanity Fair, wasn’t one of the male character’s father trying to marry him to an heiress who was an octoroon or a creole of color? You left one other person off you may want to check out…George Augustus Polgreen Bridgetower (11 October 1778–29 February 1860
I believe Thomas-Alexandre Dumas (father of Alexandre Dumas) would also qualify? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Alexandre_Dumas_%281762-1806%29.JPG
Indeed he would. In fact, he’s the gentleman in the middle on the second row.
I did not recognize him without the hat. 😀
It is a very fine hat.
Cravats are all very well, but I’m in awe of the headdress sported by the lady at bottom left.
Seriously, thank you for this.
The structural integrity of the headdresses is darn impressive in addition to being beautiful.
I’d like to know who these people are and who the artist is. I’m happy to see the careful concentration of images; but I was just thinking about this in light of the movie “Belle” and my feeling that it is mis-representing the actual attitude towards dark skinned people in Regency England. “Belle” was a bastard and portionless. I don’t have enough knowledge to decide how much how she was treated had to do with those two factors and how much had to do with her dark skin. Thanks for tracking down the pictures.
I updated the pictures to add captions, so you should be able to mouse over them.
Dido was a bastard and portionless because her mother was a slave. You can’t separate that from her race.
Amazing images. Thanks for sharing them.
Josephine de Beauharnais was a person of colour from Martinique, I seem to remember..
Um, no. She was from Martinique, but her family was a wealthy white family that owned a sugar plantation.
The word “creole” to describe her family is probably what is throwing you. People often assume that means mixed race, but it usually means someone with foreign heritage born locally. That said, the meaning varies from place to place. In Josephine’s case, though, it means that they were a white family who lived in Martinique.
I’m curious about the gentleman on the right in the second row. That casual pose and the bust behind him suggest something about him, but I don’t know what…
I just accidentally moved all the pictures around trying to add captions, but I know which one you mean. That is Jean-Baptiste Belley.
These are fantastic! You’re missing two of my favorites though: Dido and the Chevalier St Georges (who I’m using as character inspiration for an upcoming book).
http://files.justmigrate.com/host-for-tumblr/simonsurtees/the-little-black-girl-who-helped-end-slavery-0.jpg
http://www.classical-composers.org/img/chevalier2.jpg
The only reason I didn’t include Chevalier St. George is because the portraits of him were way, way out of the Regency. But yes, he’s fabulous as is Dido. I cannot WAIT for the film about her to start playing in the US.
My favorite is that very dignified young woman on the upper-right. She has an air of confidence.
These are wonderful. In Louisana, creoles who are of mixed blood especially with African blood thrown in the mix are known as Creoles of Color to distinguish them from the French or Spanish Creoles of the same area. With that said, in Santo Domingo – now Haiti –les gens de couleur libres were those people who were mixed or pure African that were born or bought their freedom. That being said, I do believe, and correct me if I am wrong, Jane Austen in one of her unfinished books had an octoroon as one of her characters. Also, in Vanity Fair, wasn’t one of the male character’s father trying to marry him to an heiress who was an octoroon or a creole of color? You left one other person off you may want to check out…George Augustus Polgreen Bridgetower (11 October 1778–29 February 1860
Forgot this bit, that before the revolution in Santo Domingo, many of the gen de couleur libres were wealthy landowners, merchants and craftspersons.
Correct. In Sanditon, she had a Miss Lambe, who was a “half-mulatto” heiress from the West Indies.
Yessssss! Finally. This is something I have been thinking about, wondering about, wanting to see. Thank you for being a force on the WWW.
Cheers,
Lyric
A Black woman interested in Regency for day wear on the farm!
http://www.sewcroandquilt.wordpress.com