Paper 43

The Carlton House Balls, 1811-1816

Contributed by Paul Cooper, Research Editor

Carlton House in London was the home of the Prince of Wales throughout the period at which he was the Prince Regent. It hosted numerous Balls, Galas and Fetes during the Regency, events attended by the fashionable elite. This paper will consider the dancing across a number of those events, in so doing we will attempt to solve a little mystery that has puzzled me up until now, a mystery that involves the introduction of the Quadrille dance in London. The core of the mystery involves the 1816 publication of James Paine's First Set of Quadrilles; the cover of his publication indicated that they were danced at the Carlton House Fete (see Figure 1); the mystery involves identifying whether that was actually true and if so, at which date they were danced at Carlton House itself. This in turn will help to confirm the chronology of the rise of the Quadrille, so too the social changes in the nation's ballrooms that the Quadrille helped to introduce.

In addition to studying the various Carlton House Balls, we will also study the following tunes and dances in this paper:

• Earl of Dalhousies Reel
• General Kutusoff
• The Waterloo Dance
• Paine's First Set of Quadrilles

Figure 1. James Paine of Almacks's 1816 Quadrilles, as danced at the Carlton House Fete.

The Early Quadrille in London

We've written about the introduction of the Quadrille to London before, we will therefore only offer a brief summary here. It has often been suggested that the Quadrille was introduced to London by the military officers returning home from Waterloo who would have danced them in Brussels and Paris in 1815; there's certainly some truth to this theory but social history is rarely that linear. The term Quadrille was one that evolved in meaning over the decades. This complicates the chronology; writers separated by many years may have used the same word to mean different things, or have used different terms to mean effectively the same thing. For example, the word Quadrille was used to describe the dancing at the Argyll Rooms from as early as 1811 (Morning Post, 13th June 1811), and the firm of Clementi & Co. published cotillion dances that were Quadrilles in all but name that same year. Michael Kelly had published dances very similar to Quadrilles in London back in 1803 or 1804 (for example in his Eight French Country Dances collection, this work included two of the sets of Quadrille figures that would later make up the First Set). We've written elsewhere of Quadrille like dances (a nouvelle kind of cotillion, called a French Country Dance) that were being enjoyed by British society dancers in 1808. If the Quadrille proper was first launched in 1815 or 1816 then it wasn't upon an unsuspecting London public, many would have already been familiar with the dance form.

The Quadrille dance was of course of French origin, at least in style, but that doesn't mean that every individual choreography and tune was known in Paris before it reached London. For example, one of the early Quadrilles that became popular in London was named Les Graces, it probably had a complicated trans-national origin. It was published several times in London in both 1816 and 1817. It is thought to have been of French origin as the music was published in Paris by Edmé Collinet in his c.1816 Premiere Recueil de Nouvelles Contre-Danses Francaises, et Walses; Collinet gave composition credit for the tune to Monsieur Rubner, another Frenchman. Rubner however was a leader of the orchestra at London's Vauxhall Gardens from around 1814 (he described himself as such on the cover of some of his 1819 publications, he also published contredances from the repertoire du Wauxhall in 1814); it's entirely possible that he composed such music either in London or for Londoners, before going on to publish it in Paris. Regardless of where the tune was first published, it almost certainly owed its early success and enduring popularity to the dancers in London who enjoyed the tune. Applying a simple national label to the dance is therefore problematic; it was arguably of French origin, arguably of English origin, and the variant best known today derives from an Irish publication. The phrase Parisian Quadrille was often used in Britain to describe the quadrilles danced in London; this allowed some early teachers of the Quadrille to claim that they had personally learned the Quadrilles in Paris, it's likely that many of these (typically) provincial dancing masters had not in fact done so. The early quadrilles were Parisian in the same sense that English Country Dances were English or Reels and Strathspeys were Scottish - they were in the appropriate style, regardless of where they were created or published or danced.

The most important of the early Quadrille sets, at least in London, was named The First Set; the word first perhaps implied first to be danced in London (at least when initially used), it would go on to have other implications in the years to follow. At least two prominent quadrilleers published copies of the First Set c.1816: Edward Payne (1792-1819) and James Paine (1778-1855). We've argued elsewhere that Payne's First Set might have been issued in 1815 and that it certainly pre-dated the 1816 publication of Paine's First Set (the initial edition of which is shown in Figure 1). These two publications included different music for the Quadrilles but the dancing figures were essentially the same. It was James Paine's 1816 First Set that described the Quadrilles as having been danced at the Carlton House Fete (see Figure 1); if this assertion was true, and if we can establish the date of that event, it will offer a useful additional insight into the arrival of the entire dance form.

From a modern point of view identifying The Carlton House Fete might seem easy, it must have been a reference to the 1811 event at Carlton House that celebrated the start of the Regency, that's what most modern writers would mean by the phrase; but this might not have been so obvious back in 1816. For example, an 1818 publication named The Tablet of Memory; Showing Every Memorable Event in History from the Earliest Period to the Year 1817 offered brief descriptions of two historically significant events under the same name, one from 1811 and one from 1814: Carlton-house, fete given at, many persons were much hurt by the immense throng that attended, June 20, 1811. Fete given at, to the duke of Wellington, to which 2500 persons were invited, July 21, 1814. The music purchasing public of 1816 might have associated the term with either of these events. If the First Set of Quadrilles were danced at either the 1811 or the 1814 events then that would be of some significance to the chronology of the Quadrille.

Let's consider what can be known about the dancing at the various Carlton House Balls across the period in which we're interested.

The Carlton House Fete, Wednesday 19th June 1811

The Prince of Wales was appointed Prince Regent in February 1811 when his father (the King) was considered unfit to continue to rule. He held a grand ball in June 1811 in order to celebrate his ascension; officially the ball was held to celebrate his father's birthday but the guests were under no illusion, this ball marked the commencement of The Regency.

The ball was well attended; some reports reference 2000 guests, some say 3000 others suggest 5000. Carlton House was a grand palace but it struggled to cope with such numbers (see Figure 2), even with giant marquees erected in the gardens behind the house. As the 1818 Tablet of Memory explained above, the numbers were so significant that many were hurt in the crush. This in turn implied that there was very little space for dancing in.

Figure 2. Scene before Carlton House, or a last struggle to get in, 1811. Image courtesy of the British Museum.

There are several surviving descriptions of the Fete; for example, The Morning Post newspaper shared an extended editorial about the Fete over three consecutive issues, the other newspapers offered only slightly less complete descriptions. La Belle Assemblée magazine published a similar report of the Fete that's available to read, courtesy of Google Books, their text was derived from that printed in The Examiner and The Herald (and probably elsewhere). We'll not repeat these extensive descriptions here as they have little to say about the dancing; a particularly good description of the Ball is also available from the Regency Redingote website that you might like to read.

Two rooms had been set aside for dancing in; The Times newspaper for the 21st June 1811 recorded that:

The ball-room floors were chalked in beautiful arabesque devices. In the centre of the largest were the initials G.III.R. It was divided for two sets of dancers by a crimson silk cord. One of the windows being taken out, had in the recess an orchestra, which diffused its melodies throughout the apartments. The anti-room adjoining was also set apart for dancing, the doors of which being kept open, one band in the drawing-room was sufficient for both. The floor of this room was very neatly ornamented; in the centre was the Prince Regent's crest (the feathers) in various colours, surrounded by musical notes, musical instruments, particularly those used in dancing, and various other devices; but owing to the great number of persons, and the excessive heat of the weather, no dancing took place in this room, nor were the dancers numerous in the ball-room.

The Morning Post newspaper for the 22nd June 1811 explained further:

About ten o'clock, dancing commenced in the Council Chamber; Mr Gow's excellent Band attended for the purpose. From the crowded state of the room, however, dancing was shortly discontinued, contrary to the wishes of the Prince, who used every exertion to set it on foot again; there was only one dance more during the remainder of the evening; the company appearing to prefer the promenading from one room to another, and gazing on the dazzling brilliancy which shone throughout this superb palace.

A day earlier the Morning Post for the 21st June 1811 had listed the entire programme of dances, it also identified the dancers. The description below is from the Post, we've annotated additional details about the dancers in square brackets and identified the dance names in bold.

The first couple who tripped on the light fantastic toe were Earl Percy [1785-1847, 26, unmarried], and the accomplished, and deservedly celebrated beauty, Lady Jane Montague, the daughter of the Duchess of Manchester [1794-1815, 17, unmarried]; they led off with the dance called Miss Johnstone, next followed:-

Lord Maitland [1784-1860, 27, unmarried] and Duchess of Bedford [1781-1853, 29, married]
Earl of Tyrconnel [1788-1812, 23, unmarried] and Lady Catherine Herries
Earl of Digby [1773-1856, 38, unmarried] and Countess of Jersey [1785-1867, 26, married]
Marquis of Worcester [1792-1853, 19, unmarried] and Lady Charles Somerset [1766-1815, 44, married]
Lord Palmerston [1784-1865, 26, unmarried] and Lady Frances Pratt [1787-1822, 24, unmarried]
Lord Ed. Somerset [1776-1842, 35, married] and Lady Charles Fitzroy
Lord Ch. Somerset [1767-1831, 43, married] and Miss Metcalfe
Earl of Kinnoull [1785-1866, 26, unmarried] and Lady Mary Edgcumbe
Lord Lake [d.1836, unmarried] and Hon. Miss Onslow
Lord Mark Kerr [1776-1840, 34, married] and Lady Elizabeth Clive [b.1764, 46, unmarried]
Earl Gower [1786-1861, 25, unmarried] and Miss Glynne
Colonel Macmahon [c.1754-1817, 57, unmarried] and Miss Methuen
Lord Milsington [1772-1835, 39, widower] and Miss Fawkener
Earl of Rothes [1768-1817, 43, married] and Miss Thomson
Mr Lloyd and Lady C. Cholmondeley [d.1828, unmarried]

The Prince Regent, and the Royal Dukes of York, Clarence, Kent, Cumberland, Cambridge and Sussex, were present at this period (half past Eleven), and appeared highly gratified to see so enlivening a scene. Strike up Musicians my old and favourite Scottish tune, exclaimed the Prince. Mr Gow took the hint, and I'll gang nae mair to yon Town, was admirably played, and equally well danced by the above, who are decidedly among the best performers in the polished circles of high life.

The crowding and heat resulted in only two dances being performed all evening, contrary to the hopes of the Prince. We've studied these two dances in previous papers, you might like to follow the links to read more, they were Miss Johnstone and I'll gang nae mair to yon Town, both favourites of the Prince and well within the repertoire of the celebrated Gow band. There's no suggestion that Quadrilles were danced at this event and the over crowding ensured that they genuinely couldn't have been danced; several independent accounts of the ball combine to leave little doubt, it's highly unlikely that our Quadrilles were danced at the 1811 event, there simply wasn't the space to do so.

Grand Balls of 1813

There must have been many events held at Carlton House after the Fete of 1811, the press didn't comment upon such events in any detail however until the year 1813. There are references to the Regent holding court and levées at Carlton House in 1812 but no hints of a large society event. There were however several society Balls held in Carlton House in 1813, perhaps one of them featured our Quadrille. There's no obvious reason why a Quadrille publication of 1816 would refer to any of the 1813 events as The Carlton House Fete, these events seem insufficiently momentous to have qualified as The definitive event, but it's worth at least considering them.

Figure 3. Carlton House as seen from the garden, 1812. Image courtesy of the British Museum.

The first Grand Ball was held on Friday the 5th of February 1813, we've studied the dancing from that event in another paper. You might like to follow the link to read more. We're lucky to have a fairly complete list of the dances enjoyed, there's no hint of Quadrille dancing being involved. The Ball featured the same two Country Dances that we found being danced in 1811, together with a selection of similar country dancing tunes and a vague hint at a Polonaise March having being introduced. This ball, perhaps informally, introduced Princess Charlotte (1796-1817) into public life.

A second event was held on Wednesday 30th June 1813, we've also studied the dancing from this event in a previous paper. It featured the same two tunes from 1811 embellished with a variety of popular tunes from 1813, once again there was no hint at a Quadrille being danced.

July of 1813 saw a variety of entertainments thrown in London in celebration of victory at the Battle of Vitoria, the foremost of which was a Gala held by the Prince outside Carlton House on Tuesday 6th July. This event may have involved Waltz dancing, the Kentish Weekly Post (13th July 1813) commented that At the bottom of the lawn was a large tent, in which was Paine's Waltz band.. The Morning Chronicle for the 8th July 1813 offered a detailed account of the event as follows, dance references are in bold:

The Queen and Princesses entered the grounds at three o'clock, by the Garden gate from St. James's Park; they were received by the Prince; the bands of the First, Coldstream, and 15th. Mr Rivolta, who plays seven instruments at one time, and several Pandeans, struck up God Save the King. The Prince conducted the Queen to the lower part of the Lawn, attended by his officers of state. They were followed by the Princesses, the Princess Charlotte, the Duchess of York, Princess Sophia of Gloucester, the Dukes of York, Kent, and Cambridge, the Prince of Orange. They met the company who had arrived coming out of the back front of Carlton House into the grounds, who were received by the Prince, the Queen, and the whole of the Royal Family. They continued promenading for a considerable time, the different bands playing alternately, occasionally partaking of ices and other refreshments. The heat of the sun was so intense on the platform laid for dancing, that those who are fond of that fascinating exercise did not venture to commence till half past five o'clock, when a cooling breeze rendered it very refreshing, and between thirty and forty couple stood up. The first dance was led off by Princess Mary and Earl Percy, to the tune of Mrs McLeod of Eyre, which was played in a very superior style by an excellent band, stationed in the front of the Chinese Temple. Those who did not join in the merry dance, continued promenading through the groves, walks, and lawn. The Prince, and nearly the whole of the gentlemen in the full dress Windsor uniform, most of them walked without their hats. The ladies were very elegantly dressed for this princely entertainment. The bands, at distant parts from the dancing, continued playing alternately. The second dance was The Tank, led of by Princess Mary and Earl Percy. The third dance was led off by Princess Mary and the Duke of Devonshire, to the tune of Lord Dalhousie. Princess Charlotte danced with the Duke of Devonshire in the two first dances, and the last dance she led off with Lord Palmerston.

A little before eight o'clock the company retired from the rural scene to the splendid apartments in Carlton House, to partake of a sumptuous dinner. The Conservatory was set apart for the Royal Family, and a select party.
...
A little before 11 o'clock the Prince, the Queen and the rest of the Royal Family left Carlton House, and proceeded under the grand porch in the Court-yard, to view the fire-works. They were received by the guard of honour, with military honours, the band playing God save the King. A royal salute was fired from some brass cannon from the top of the court-yard wall, by a party of artillery. After the three barrels of ale were distributed from each of the gates, among the populace, to drink the Marquis of Wellington's health. The populace remained opposite to Carlton House in great crowds, till near four o'clock yesterday morning, huzzaing.

Dancing commenced in the ball-room soon after 11 o'clock, with the tune Voulez vous danser Mademoiselle? led off by the Princess Mary. Her Royal Highness also led the next to the tune of Sir David Hunter Blair. The last dance was Henrico which was led by the Princess Charlotte and the Duke of Devonshire. The entertainment closed about three o'clock.

No hint of Quadrille dancing can be found from this ball-like event either. We have studied most of the named dances elsewhere, you can follow the links to read more, they were: Mrs McLeod of Eyre, The Tank, Lord Dalhousie, Voulez vous danser Mademoiselle?, Sir David Hunter Blair and Henrico.

The Carlton House Fete, Thursday 21st July 1814

1814 was a year of celebration in Britain, it saw peace in Europe, the visit of the Allied Sovereigns and the centenary of the Hanoverian dynasty. A Royal Wedding was even under consideration as Princess Charlotte had been betrothed to the Hereditary Prince of Orange. The Prince Regent held a ball in July 1814, it was intended to celebrate Peace and the military triumphs of the Duke of Wellington (he had been made a Duke in May of 1814 in recognition of victory at the 1813 Battle of Vitoria). Once again the gardens of Carlton House were thrown open and a Ball was held in the evening; lavish Chinese pagodas were erected in the gardens in preparation. The Morning Post for the 23rd July 1814 recorded:

Figure 4. The interior of Carlton House, the Banqueting Hall (above) and the Circular Room (below), c.1819.

This was the only grand entertainment upon a large scale, that the Prince has given this season; ... The whole of the entertainment was given in a style of elegance, splendour, and princely magnificence, far exceeding any that has ever been given in Carlton House, or in this country, well worthy of the great and gallant warrior, on account of whose unprecedented deeds of arms, which have resounded throughout the world, this princely banquet was prepared by his Sovereign in the person of the Prince Regent. ...

The weather proving favourable, the Gardens at the back of the house were brilliantly illuminated with lamps, variegated lamps, &c. similar to Vauxhall Gardens; a small pyramid of variegated lamps was in constant motion; the Gardens were in consequence used by the elegants as a promenade; a small shower of rain fell about three o'clock, but not sufficient to prevent the Gardens being resorted to. A guard of honour was stationed in the Gardens. A guard of honour was also marched into the Court-yard about nine o'clock, with the band in their state dresses, to salute the Royal Family as they arrived, play martial pieces, &c. The front of the house and courtyard were illuminated with a number of additional lamps.

The company began to arrive about nine o'clock, and they had not all arrived till near one. They were received at the grand entrance by the Prince's Equerries and Aid-de-Camps in Waiting, who conducted them through the hall, down the great stair-case, through the room called the entree-room, being used as such by the Queen at parties, which led to the suite of temporary rooms, &c. in the gardens. ...

In about half an hour after, the Royal Party entered the Polygon Room, the Queen, leading on the Prince Regent's right hand. His Royal Highness was dressed in regimentals, wearing his English, Russian, Prussian and French Orders; he appeared in most excellent health. They promenaded round the room, receiving the compliments of the numerous and distinguished assembly. These were, in addition to the above described, the Foreign Ambassadors and Ministers, and a number of Foreigners of distinction. The Queen and Prince were followed by the Duke of Kent and Princess Augusta, the Duke of Cambridge, Princess Mary, Princess Sophia of Gloucester. The Duke and Duchess of York came afterwards. The Prince Regent's excellent band, in their full uniform, played in the Orchestra, as above described, during the Royal Promenade, God save the King, the Prince Regent's March, composed by Mr Collier, the Master of the Duke of Cumberland's Band, with the Quick Russian Step, arranged by Mr Cramer, and also another March, composed by Mr Losgier, in Ireland, with an Obligato Movement, for the trumpet, by Mr Schmidt. They then left the orchestra, and a very numerous and excellent Country Dance Band took their places, and dancing commenced soon after. The first dance was Miss Johnson, which was led off by the Princess Mary and the Prince of Sax Cobourg. The same parties led off the two following dances, to a Waltz Medley and General Kutusoff.

A little before 2 o'clock they retired to supper. The Royal Party supped in the new rooms, which were to receive the Emperor of Russia and King of Prussia, where the cloth was laid for 120. After supper dancing recommenced, and was led off by Princess Mary and the Duke of Devonshire, to the tune of Voulez vous danser, Mademoiselle?.

The Queen and Princess left about half past 4; the company had not all left till past six.

We don't have the complete list of dances for the event, several of the tunes what were named have been studied in our previous papers, they were: Miss Johnson, a Waltz Medley, General Kutusoff and Voulez vous danser, Mademoiselle?. There's no hint that Quadrilles were danced at the event, nor is there strong evidence that they weren't danced. We could at most conclude that it's possible our Quadrilles were danced at this Ball, though in all probability they weren't.

One curiosity involving this ball is that a semi-permanent dancing space was erected in the garden of Carlton House for the dancers to use. That structure is known today as The Rotunda and it still survives at its later home of Woolwich Common. A detailed report on the building is available here courtesy of Historic England. The celebrated floor chalker George Glover was hired to decorate the floor of this Rotunda, there were evidently spaces for twelve Country Dancing sets radiating outwards from the centre of the structure. I am indebted to dance historian Cor Vanistendael for bringing this structure to my attention.

Returning to the newspaper reports of the ball, they were not as fawning as might normally have been predicted. Many of the newspapers barely mention the ball at all; the entire event was upstaged by a much more interesting story... that of the flight of Princess Charlotte, the second in line to the throne. Charlotte had been reluctantly betrothed to the Hereditary Prince of Orange in June 1814, she subsequently changed her mind and called off the engagement. The Regent, foiled in his plans, determined to isolate Charlotte by moving her into the Queen (her Grandmother)'s apartments; she attempted to flee to her mother, the associated stories in the press described what happened as an elopement. The story was still evolving at the date of the Ball and it covered far more column inches than the Ball would receive. It's possible that the Ball was originally conceived, at least in part, to celebrate Charlotte's betrothal; if so, it was two years too early.

One of the principle guests led off several of the dances with Princess Mary, this was the Saxon Prince of Sax Cobourg... we'll hear more of him in a moment. First let's hear how society hostess Mrs Frances Calvert (1767-1859) described her experiences of the event in her diary: It was a most superb fete indeed! An immense temporary room (like Ranelagh) was built into the garden, which in every part was brilliantly illuminated. Since I was there last a new supper room has been built - magnificent beyond description. The Royal Family and Grandees supped there, and we went into it after they had done. The plate - all gold - is beautiful. Impossible is it to describe all the rooms and decorations, it was like fairyland. The members of the Royal Family present were the Queen, Princess Augusta and Mary, Dukes of York, Cambridge and Kent. The Princess Charlotte was out of town. The Regent looked ill and out of spirits - how could it be otherwise, tormented as he is? He shook me very kindly by the hand. The Duke of Wellington was there - just the same good-humoured, unaffected creature he ever was. He met me very kindly, enquiring after Felix..

The Regent's Fete, Friday 12th July 1816

The Regent seems not to have hosted a grand ball or fete in 1815 (at least not at Carlton House which was temporarily undergoing alterations) but he did once again in 1816. The celebrations of 1814 had proven to be premature: Napoleon not only returned from exile but warfare once again resumed culminating in the 1815 Battle of Waterloo. Princess Charlotte, by the date of the 1816 Ball, had been happily married to the Saxon Prince Leopold; this was the first grand ball hosted by the Regent since the wedding in early May 1816. Leopold was Charlotte's own choice of consort, they were understood to be very happy together. The Observer newspaper for the 14th July 1816 reported:

Figure 5. Two images from Tom Raw, the Griffin, 1828. Tom is seen preparing for a Quadrille (above) and causing a comotion in a ballroom (below).

On Friday night, the Prince Regent gave a grand Ball and Supper at Carlton House, to a numerous party, which we believe to be the first his Royal Highness has given for these two years; and for the purpose of giving a spur to our national manufactures, a special notice was issued to those invited, that the Prince particularly desired that all would come dressed in British manufactured articles only, which was a very laudable act, and no doubt its influence will spread.

The environs of Carlton House, Pall Mall, &c. exhibited a scene of much splendour. Both horse and foot soldiers attended, with three bands most splendidly dressed, who played alternately, and saluted the arrival of the different branches of the Royal Family with God save the King. The Prince Regent's band attended in a tent in the garden at the back of the house, and played in the new rotunda, on the entrance of the Royal Family, marches and other pieces. They also played to the Royal Family while they were at supper in the last new room recently erected, which was first opened for the Emperor of Russia to dine in. The busy scene of the exterior continued from half-past eight o'clock till three in the morning. The company on their entrance were shewn into the rotunda, where, after the Royal Family had received the respects of the numerous and splendid assemblage, dancing commenced, which continued till past one o'clock, when they retired to the lower range of rooms, which occupied the whole extent.

The Duke of York, who came in state with his Duchess, did not stop to supper; nor did Prince Leopold, in consequence of the continued indisposition of his Royal Consort, the Princess Charlotte.

The Princess Mary came from Windsor on Thursday evening, for the purpose of being present at the ball. It was understood at Windsor that her Royal Highness will not return again till after her wedding.

Princess Charlotte was not present on account of her indisposition, which was the cause of the absence of the Princess Sophia, who continues at Windsor.

The Duke and Duchess of Cumberland were not present, owing to the latter not having been presented at Court.

Princess Augusta, Elizabeth, and Mary, accompanied her Majesty in chairs from the Queen's Palace at ten o'clock to Carlton-House.

After supper dancing was resumed, which was kept up till a late hour on Saturday morning. The dancing consisted only of waltzing and cotillons, in which none of the Royal Family joined. The Queen sat in her state chair, accompanied by the Prince Regent, who was close in his attendance upon his Royal Mother all the night.

The Duke of Wellington left about one o'clock, in consequence, as it was understood, of an arrangement to leave London early in the morning.

Besides the distinguished guests before mentioned, there were also present the Prince Paul and Prince Nicholas Esterhazy, the Princess Esterhazy, Prince Castelcicala, the Lord Chancellor, and the Cabinet Ministers and their Ladies, the officers of the different royal households, the Foreign Amabssadors and Ministers with their Ladies.

The company sat about an hour at supper, when dancing was resumed in the Rotunda, when a new country dance called Waterloo was led off by the Duke of Devonshire and a Lady whose name we did not learn.

The continued motion of the Ladies who were dancing, as well as those not dancing, with large and elegant plumes of white feathers, which were universally worn, with the exception of about half a dozen, gave an additional degree of splendour and fascination to the scene, which is not to be beheld in one room upon any similar occasion. The ornaments of diamonds and other jewels on the head dresses were extremely numerous and brilliant. The clasps round the waists were very general, and richly ornamented with jewels. There was a numerous assemblage of youth and beauty.

Waltzing again was resumed after country dances, led off by the Duke of Devonshire. The dancing did not conclude till near five o'clock, which was with a French country dance, led off by the Marquiss and Marchioness of Worcester, who is a most elegant and graceful figure.

A final detail emerges from the Kentish Gazette newspaper for the 16th July 1816 which reported: Dancing was resumed about three, and concluded at five o'clock with a new French country dance, the figure of which is very graceful and the music charming..

We're informed that in 1816 the dancing consisted only of waltzing and cotillons (or mostly at least). The term Cotillon or Cotillion was largely interchangeable with Quadrille at this date, so too was the term French Country Dance, the subtle distinctions that later users of the terms might expect were yet to emerge; we can therefore conclude that this 1816 event almost certainly did feature our iconic Quadrille dances! Moreover, if the majority of the dances were waltzes and cotillions then the attendees may have danced several Quadrille sets over the course of the evening. The dancing at this event in 1816 was of a different nature to that of the previous Carlton House balls that we've studied, the old Country Dances had been largely displaced by newer dance styles. At the risk of over speculating, one might almost suggest that this was done specifically to please the intended guests of honour: the Regent's new son-in-law Prince Leopold and the fairy-tale bride Princess Charlotte. One of the tunes printed in Paine's First Set is named Le Cobourg, there can be little doubt that it was named in honour of His Royal Highness Prince Leopold of Saxe Cobourg, it would have been a fitting tribute. Unfortunately the happy pair could not attend due to the Princess's indisposition. The Kentish Gazette (16th July 1816) helpfully explained: It is now confidently reported that the Princess Charlotte's indisposition is one, upon which the nation and her Royal Highness may be congratulated. We have the happiness to state, that her Royal Highness is much better..

1816 was a year for new beginnings; Napoleon had been banished for good in the aftermath of the 1815 Battle of Waterloo, Europe was reinventing itself and the Regent had every expectation of becoming a grandfather. A new (one might almost say democratic, or at least less fussy) style of dancing would be eminently suitable under the circumstances, a new dance for a new generation. Or so it might have been thought...

The Prince was ever the leader of fashion. Once Quadrilles were danced at his fete they would increasingly be danced in ball-rooms around the country.

The Chronology of the First Set of Quadrilles

Figure 6. Paine's advert for his Quadrilles, Morning Post, 19th July 1816. Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Image reproduced with kind permission of The British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)

The evidence seems fairly compelling, James Paine's 1816 reference to Quadrilles having been danced at the Carlton House Fete was a reference to the event of 1816, not to the equivalent events of 1811 or 1814 (or indeed of any other year). This shouldn't really come as a surprise; a publication issued in 1816 wouldn't be named to impress an audience two hundred years in the future, it only aimed to impress potential customers in the weeks immediately following the Prince's Fete. The fact that the first set of Quadrilles went on to be of historical significance is something that nobody could have predicted at the time of publication.

If we accept this argument then that offers the satisfying result that the story of the Quadrille doesn't change, it simply gains a little nuance. It's reasonable to assume that James Paine must have published his Quadrilles at some point after the 12th July 1816 (the date of the Fete); the earliest references I have to Paine's First Set actually existing is from an advert printed in the Morning Post newspaper for the 19th July 1816 (see Figure 6). It would appear that Paine hurried into print in roughly a week in order to promote his Quadrilles as being as danced at Carlton House Fete. The dancing master Edward Payne had advertised his own tuition in Quadrille dancing in the Morning Chronicle for the 27th May 1816, a date some weeks in advance of the Prince's Fete. Payne advertised his first three sets of Quadrilles as being available in the Morning Post for the 14th August 1816; the latter two of those sets certainly date to 1816, his first set may have first been published as early as 1815 (I'm lucky enough to own a copy printed on paper that was watermarked for 1815).

As we mentioned at the start of this paper, the term Quadrille had already been used in London for some years prior to 1816. French Country Dances of various descriptions were being danced socially prior to the 1816 Fete; popular examples included La Batteuse, La Boulanger and perhaps even Les Graces. The concept of quadrilles weren't new in 1816, but they were growing in popularity; Edward Payne was the most prominent of the dancing masters to be promoting them prior to the Fete but he probably wasn't alone. James Paine was the leader of a prominent band, it's no great leap of imagination to suspect that he led the music at the 1816 Fete; he may have been perfectly positioned to sell the official music and figures for the royal dances to the wider public. Paine wasn't a dancing master however, the dancing figures he printed were a little muddled; this has caused some confusion over the years, the early quadrilles would have been easier for modern enthusiasts to understand if Paine had simply copied Payne's version of the figures! One inevitably assumes that a 200 year old document must offer a perfect record of how a 200 year old dance was performed... the idea that it was rushed to print in less than a week in order to exploit a new fad is not something one would normally consider! To be fair to Paine, he was probably already familiar with these Quadrilles as they were being danced socially prior to the Fete; it was the publication process that may have been rushed, not the arrangement of the content. There are for example several references to French Country Dances being danced at Almack's Assembly Rooms in 1815 (eg Morning Post, 6th May 1815), it's likely that these would have been Quadrilles and that Paine led the orchestra on such occasions - quite probably to Payne's arrangement of the dances.

Paine was evidently correct to rush into print, several rival publishers issued variant editions of the Quadrilles shortly after his own publication. For example, Skillern & Challoner advertised their version in the Morning Post newspaper just four days later on the 23rd July 1816, you can follow the link to read more. Editions by Mitchell, Shade and Chappell also circulated in the months following (see Figure 10); there was clearly a market for the Quadrilles, posterity would consider Paine's arrangement and publication to be the most reliable, though dancers at the Fete may only have known Payne's version. The inevitable confusion between the rival editions of Edward Payne and James Paine would persist into the modern era.

The First Set as published by Payne had existed before the date of the Regent's 1816 Fete. We can infer that it was this event that transformed the First Set from being an ordinary Quadrille set into becoming The First Set; that is, the set of quadrilles almost universally known in London; indeed they became known as the first set to have been danced in London. Both Payne and Paine claimed credit for them; Edward Payne would persist in describing himself as the author of the Quadrilles until his untimely death in 1819. The popularity in London of this specific set of Quadrilles may have triggered their rise to prominence in Paris too - I lack evidence to suggest that this arrangement was the primary arrangement anywhere else in the world prior to the date of the Regent's Fete (if you know otherwise, do Contact Us as we'd love to know more). The Regent's Fete of 1816 had a lasting legacy in the form of the First Set of Quadrilles that no-one at the time could possibly have envisaged.

Ordinarily we might end the paper here as the mystery has been solved and a natural conclusion has been reached, but observant readers may have noticed that some country dancing tunes have been named that we've yet to study elsewhere. Let's take a moment to consider those named tunes in more detail.

Figure 7. The Earl Dalhousies from Broderip & Wilkinson's c.1806 Selection of the most Admired Dances, Reels, Waltz's, Strathspeys & Cotillons

Earl of Dalhousies Reel

The third dance was led off by Princess Mary and the Duke of Devonshire, to the tune of Lord Dalhousie. (July 1813)

This tune was composed by Nathaniel Gow and was first published in Edinburgh c.1800 under the name Earl of Dalhousies Reel; it was the companion to another tune named Lady Mary Ramsay's Strathspey, the two tunes being arranged together as a Medley. Gow published them in combination in his 1800 Lady Mary Ramsay's Strathspey publication. The tune was then incorporated within Neil Gow's 1800 A Fourth Collection of Strathspey Reels and entered the regular repertoire of the Gow bands. It was reported of the Queen's Assembly in Edinburgh (Caledonian Mercury, 23rd January 1800) that The most favourite dances were Lady Mary Ramsay's Strathspey, Lord Dalhousies Reel, and two of Mr Gows last composed reels; it also transposed to the Gow band in London where the Duchess of Devonshire's Grand Public Breakfast at Chiswick House (Caledonian Mercury, 12th July 1800) saw the dancing commence with Lord Mary Ramsay and Lord Dalhousie, a medley. We have studied Lady Mary Ramsay's Strathspey in a previous paper.

The tune then appeared in a few London publications; it can be found within the Preston collection of 24 Country Dances for 1802 under the name Lady Dalhousies Reel and in Broderip & Wilkinson's c.1806 Selection of the most Admired Dances, Reels, Waltz's, Strathspeys & Cotillons (see Figure 7). References to the tune then seem to disappear only for it to re-emerge at our ball of 1813. Following the excitement of it once again being danced in Royal circles the tune was published in Cahusac's collection of 24 Country Dances for 1814, this time under the new name of Lord Dalhousie. Several other tunes appeared under similar titles in London at about the same 1814 date, there's unlikely to have been any confusion however, the Gow tune was almost certainly what was featured at our Ball. The similarly named tunes may only have been created in response to the success and relative obscurity of the first tune.

The Earl himself is easily identified, he was George Ramsay (1770-1838), the 9th Earl of Dalhousie; Lady Mary Ramsay was his younger sister (1780-1866). Dalhousie was a career soldier who had fought in many campaigns. The Gows dedicated many dozens of tunes to the various members of the Scottish peerage, including several to the Dalhousie family; in addition to the two tunes already mentioned a report from 1806 (Morning Post, 29th November 1806) mentioned a tune named Lord Ramsay that was composed by Mr Gow, in complement to the infant son of Lord Dalhousie. It may have only been luck that caused the tune dedicated to Lord Dalhousie to become popular, fortune may however have smiled upon the Earl and the association was to his benefit. Dalhousie was not a favourite of Lord Wellington, there are several anecdotes suggesting that Wellington considered him to be incompetent (which was not unusual, Wellington seems to have had a dim opinion of many of his senior officers); nonetheless, Dalhousie was celebrated and rewarded in London. It's possible that the Earl received support and favour from the Regent over little more than his name being attached to a favourite tune!

We've animated a suggested arrangement of the Broderip & Wilkinson c.1806 version.

For futher references to the tune, see also: Earl of Dalhousie's Reel (2) at The Traditional Tune Archive

Figure 8. General Kutusoff from James Platts's 1813 34th Number (top) and Prince Kutusoff from Skillern & Challoner's c.1813 19th Number (bottom). Top image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD, h.726.m.(10.) ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, bottom image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD, h.925.o ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

General Kutusoff

The same parties led off the two following dances, to a Waltz Medley and General Kutusoff. (July 1814)

Prince Mikhail Kutuzov (1745-1813) was the senior Russian General who oversaw the defence of Moscow in 1812, together with the subsequent expulsion of the Napoleonic armies thereafter. His name regularly appeared in the British newspapers in both 1812 and 1813, latterly alongside stories of catastrophic French defeats. He died in 1813 before the date of our Ball but his name retained significance in London; he was one of the allied generals who had helped to secure victory in Europe, paving the way for Tsar Alexander's capture of Paris in early 1814. The Tsar himself had visited London in June 1814 and the nation was still celebrating; positive sentiment towards all things Russian remained in the air.

At least four country dancing tunes were printed in London between about 1813 and 1816 named either General Kutusoff or Prince Kutusoff. Unfortunately there's insufficient commonality across the publishers to clearly infer which was the most popular tune (and therefore the most likely to have been played at our ball). The name Prince Kutusoff was more widely used, but as some of the tunes were published under both names so can't even rely on the title to help disambiguate them. We can nonetheless attempt to gauge the relative significance of the tunes.

Our candidate tunes are:

• Prince Kutusoff from the Fentum collection of 24 Country Dances for 1816. This tune is only know from a single collection and it was issued too late for use in our 1814 ball, so unless an earlier printing can be found then this one can be ruled out of further consideration. It's also the simplest of the four candidate tunes, it's not the type of arrangement one might expect to become popular.
  
  
• General Kutusoff from Walker's c.1813 33rd Number. This tune is only known from a single collection but it does have the expected title and is of a sufficiently early date to be plausible. The tune is in three parts and is reasonably complex, it is however in the less common 9/8 time signature. It's unlikely to be the tune danced in 1814; all other considerations aside, George Walker simply wasn't that prestigious a publisher, it's difficult to believe that he alone would have printed a tune that would be used at a Royal ball.
  
  
• Prince Kutusoff from Halliday's c.1813 11th Number, then under the name Prince Kutosoff in Goulding's c.1813 31st Number, Goulding's 24 Country Dances for 1814 and in Wheatstone & Voigt's c.1815 10th Number. This tune is in three parts in 2/4 time signature, Halliday identified the composer with the initials I.C., whoever that might be. It was published early enough to have been used at our ball, is known from the collections of three different music shops and is a reasonably interesting tune; it's certainly a viable candidate for our tune. It's not known under the name General Kutusoff however which does count a little against it.
  
  We've animated a suggested arrangement of Goulding's c.1814 version (to the c.1813 music).
  
  
• General Kutusoff from James Platts's 1813 34th Number (see Figure 8) and from Skillern & Challoner's c.1813 19th Number (issued under the name Prince Kutusoff, see Figure 8). Platts clearly identified himself as the composer of this tune, it's in 3 parts and 2/4 time signature. Platts made reference to this tune in two of his copyright disputes of 1815, initially in his complaint against Button & Whitaker and subsequently against Charles Wheatstone; it transpired that Button & Whitaker had not published this tune but another with the same name (confusion over similarly named tunes is not only a modern phenomenon), whereas Wheatstone had indeed published the Platts tune and claimed to have received his copy from a musician of Bath. I've yet to locate a copy of the Wheatstone publication, but a third publisher issuing this tune is of some significance; you can read more about these disputes in our paper on the subject. It's also of interest that Skillern & Challoner published the tune; their arrangement is quite different to that of Platts, sufficiently so that they're likely to have received a transcription of the tune rather than having deliberately duplicated a Platts manuscript; their use of a Platts tune is particularly curious as Platts himself had been a close copyist of their work a few years earlier (if Platts were to make the mistake of issuing a writ against them then they could have issued an overwhelming response in kind). My impression is that this tune was in general circulation, was reasonably well known within the trade and was considered valuable by the composer, it is therefore the single most likely variant to have been used at our ball.
  
  We've animated a suggested arrangement of both the 1813 Platts version (see Figure 8) and the c.1813 Skillern & Challoner version (see Figure 8) of this tune.

The Waterloo Dance

... a new country dance called Waterloo was led off by the Duke of Devonshire and a Lady whose name we did not learn. (July 1816)

The peace celebrations of 1814 proved to be premature, Napoleon returned from exile in March 1815 initiating the period known to history as the Hundred Days. Entire regiments flocked to Napoleon's banner and war began anew. The principle engagement of the period was the Battle of Waterloo, it would prove to be the final and decisive battle of the Napoleonic Wars; the victory was absolute and Napoleon was irrevocably defeated. It was perhaps inevitable that a multitude of tunes would be named in the aftermath, the diversity of possibilities means that we can't identify our 1816 tune with any degree of certainty. All that we do know is that the tune must have existed in 1816 (tunes that are only know from 1817 or later are unlikely to have been used), and that the dance was led off by William Cavendish (1790-1858) the 6th Duke of Devonshire.

Figure 9. Isle of France, or Waterloo from Button & Whitaker's c.1816 30th Number (top) and The New Waterloo Dance from Clementi's c.1817 26th Number (below). Upper image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD, g.230.aa ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

At least a dozen different tunes named for some variation of Waterloo, The Battle of Waterloo or similar were published in country dance collections between about 1815 and 1819. Edward Payne even published a Quadrille named La Waterloo in his 1816 4th Set. Some of the candidate tunes have little to recommend them, some of the more viable candidates that did exist from an early enough date include the following:

• The Waterloo Dance from Goulding's c.1815 36th Number. This was probably one of the earlier tunes to circulate, it was the first of three similarly named tunes to be published by Goulding alone. Goulding gave explicitly composition credit to H.R. Bishop and indicated that it was Published by permission of Mr Lavenu (another music publisher). This tune is in 32 bars and arranged in common time with no suggested dancing figures attached. It was evidently derived from the finale of Bishop's 1809 ballet Mora's Love, or The Enchanted Harp. The tune was already known, it was simply given a new name and lease of life in 1815. It could have been our tune, it's certainly plausible. A more sophisticated arrangement of the same tune, with variations by J. Von Durwolt can be found on the web courtesy of Google Books.
  
  
• Waterloo or La Belle Alliance from James Platts's c.1815 46th Number. This was a new tune composed by Platts in three parts and in 2/4 time signature. The subtitle of La Belle Alliance refers to an Inn near Brussels which formed part of the battlefield of Waterloo; it was suggested in the immediate aftermath of the fighting that the battle should be named the Victory of La Belle Alliance in recognition of the allied parties who worked together to achieve victory. This tune doesn't have any particular claim to popularity, it could have been danced at our ball but there's no particular reason to think that it might have been.
  
  We've animated a suggested arrangement of Platts's c.1815 version.
  
  
• Waterloo Dance from Clementi's c.1817 24th Number and, under the name Isle of France, or Waterloo, from Button & Whitaker's c.1816 30th Number (see Figure 9). This is a tune we've studied before in a previous paper, you might like to follow this link to read more. It's in three parts and in 2/4 time signature. It had circulated under the name Isle of France from at least as early as 1813, it then received a new name (and presumably an increase in popularity) c.1816. It could have been danced at our ball.
  
  We've animated suggested arrangements of Clementi's c.1817 version and of Button & Whitaker's 1816 version (see Figure 9).
  
  
• The Waterloo or National Waltz from Wheatstone & Voigt's c.1817 12th Book. This tune was better known as The National Waltz, it was part of a stage melodrama named The Broken Sword that played at Covent Garden in 1816. The tune was widely published, it was evidently one of the more popular Waltz tunes to be circulating in 1816 and 1817. Other publications of the tune within country dance collections include Goulding's c.1816 38th Number and Button & Whitaker's c.1816 31st Number. It's plausible that this waltz tune was used for country dancing at our ball.
  
  We've animated a suggested arrangement of Wheatstone & Voigt's c.1817 version.
  
  
• The Waterloo Dance from Wheatstone & Voigt's 1816 11th Book. This tune appears in several other collections of a slightly later date, perhaps it grew in popularity over time; it can be found in Clementi's c.1817 26th Number (under the name The New Waterloo Dance, see Figure 9), Goulding's collection of 24 Country Dances for 1818 and in Button & Whitaker's 1819 6th L'Assemblee collection. It can also be found in an unnumbered c.1817 collection issued by Martin Platts. The tune was also issued under the name Caractacus, it may have derived from an 1811 stage production of the same name. Of the dozen or more candidate tunes that exist this was the most widely published, it has one of the more credible claims to having been potentially danced at our ball.
  
  We've animated suggested arrangements of Wheatstone & Voigt's 1816 version and of Button & Whitaker's 1819 version.

For futher references to one of the tunes, see also: Waterloo Dance (1) at The Traditional Tune Archive

Paine's First Set of Quadrilles

The dancing consisted only of waltzing and cotillons, in which none of the Royal Family joined. (July 1816)

Dancing was resumed about three, and concluded at five o'clock with a new French country dance, the figure of which is very graceful and the music charming. (July 1816)

Figure 10. A medley of c.1816 First Set publications; Paine's publication (far left), Chappell's publication (middle left), Skillern & Challoner's publication (middle), Payne's perhaps 1815 publication (middle right) and Mitchell's publication (far right).

For the sake of completeness it seems appropriate to take a quick look at Paine's First Set of Quadrilles. The reports of the 1816 ball only referenced Cotillons or French Country Dances as having been danced, but this paper has demonstrated that in all probability the First Set of Quadrilles were indeed part of the repertoire for the Regent's Fete. They were probably danced to the music arranged and published by James Paine using the figures as taught and published by Edward Payne.

Each of the tunes in Paine's first set has a name, so too do the sequences of Dancing figures. The figures are known as La Pantalon, L'Ete, La Poule, La Trenise, La Pastorale and Promenade; these same named sequences also appeared in Edward Payne's first set of Quadrilles (with some minor variations), they have a rich provenance in their own right. Paine's tunes also have names, they are La Paysanne, La Flora, Le Cobourg, La Felesia, La Pastorale and La Nouvelle Chasse. If you'd like to know more about dancing the figures then you might like to review our separate paper on that subject. It's not clear whether Paine's music was arranged especially for the 1816 Ball or whether it was already established, it seems likely that Paine's band had been playing these arrangements at Almack's Assembly Rooms in the months prior to the Fete. The Quadrille figures would almost certainly have been known to the dancers already as it's difficult to believe that they would have been taught in-situ mid-ball; the figures may nonetheless have been announced by a director of dancing, it was reported (by G.M.S. Chivers in his 1824 Quadrille Preceptor) that the convention at Almacks Assembly Rooms involved calling (i.e. announcing) the figures in French.

We're informed that at least one French Country Dance was led off by the Marquiss and Marchioness of Worcester; the Marquiss was Henry Somerset (1792-1853), an aide-de-camp to Wellington between 1812 and 1814, the Marchioness was Wellington's niece Georgiana Fitzroy (1792-1821). It's unusual to find a married couple dancing together at a Ball; that they did may reflect the necessity to rehearse the Quadrille figures together, something that might be easier for a married couple to prepare for. Perhaps they hired a dancing master (potentially Edward Payne himself) to come to their home and to teach the figures to a select company. The identity of the other six dancers within their set remains a mystery, they might have been good friends of the leading couple such that the entire group could have prepared together over the preceding weeks. The dancers may even have been present at the 1815 balls held in Brussels and Paris that are thought to have helped promote the Quadrille dance amongst the officer corps of Wellington's army, the 1816 Fete may have recreated some of the post-Waterloo celebrations.

Figure 10 shows five First Set publications published in London c.1816, four of them specifically refer to the Quadrilles as being played by Paine's band and feature different arrangements of the same musical score. Edward Payne's publication pre-dates the others, it uses different music and could have been published as early as 1815; the James Paine and Skillern & Challoner publications were issued shortly after the Regent's 1816 Fete, the Chappell and Mitchell publications are a little later still, perhaps as late as 1817. Several other publishers issued similar copies of the First Set at around the same date, for example George Shade issued his Collection of Quadrilles no 1 c.1816, it was another variation on the same theme. It seems that Paine rushed to publish his version of the First Set in the immediate aftermath of the 1816 Fete; he advertised it as being ready for sale a mere week later; this urgency may have contributed to the imperfections of his text... the minutiae of his figures have generated confusion over the arrangement of the dances ever since! I find Edward Payne's slightly earlier descriptions of the figures to be rather easier to comprehend (though he did update and evolve his text over several editions of his publications), you might like to follow the link to read more.

Conclusion

We'll leave this investigation there; if you have further information to share do please Contact Us as we'd love to know more.