Being royal for a good cause - Fête Champêtre at Orléans House, 11 June 1864, photographs by Camille Silvy

 

The Duchess of St Albans' Stall. (Many of the figures in these images are impossible to identify, so I regret that I'm only able to name those of which I'm certain.)

Easily the most identifiable figure in these photographs is the host, the duc d'Aumale, standing at right.
I believe the two young men at left are his nephews the duc d'Alençon and the comte d'Eu, sons of the duc de Nemours.

At left is the Dowager Duchess of St Albans, née Elizabeth Catherine Gubbins, widowed in 1849 and remarried as Viscountess Falkland.

During the residency of the duc d'Aumale, beginning in 1852, a great many social events were held at Orléans House, including benefits for a range of causes. One such was a "grand fancy bazaar" in June of 1864, organized for the relief of French refugees. The "fête champêtre" was much featured in the Illustrated London News. And a portfolio of twelve photographs of the bazaar by French photographer Camille Silvy was published for the benefit of the Société Française de Bienfaisance.

The duc d'Aumale at right, with his sister, Princess Clémentine of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and her children Princess Amalie and princes Philipp and Ludwig
August. Also, standing at back are, again, the duc d'Alençon and the comte d'Eu, as well as the duc de Penthièvre, son of the Prince de Joinville.

Among those pictured in Silvy's photographs are members of the extended Orléans family: The duc d'Aumale's brother, the duc de Nemours and his children, princesses Marguerite and Blanche, the comte d'Eu, and the duc d'Alençon; his sister Princess Clémentine of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, her husband Prince August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and their children Princess Amalie and princes Philipp and Ludwig August; his youngest brother the duc de Montpensier, his wife, sister of the Queen of Spain, and their daughters Maria Amelia and Maria Christina, Infantas of Spain; and his nephew the duc de Chartres and his wife, who was also the daughter of the duc d'Aumale's brother, the prince de Joinville; the latter's son, the duc de Penthièvre was also present. D'Aumale's son, the duc de Guise, who would die at the age of eighteen eight years later, the last of his father's surviving children, is also pictured.

Various members - all mentioned above - of the extended Orléans family...

 ... Including the children of the ducs d'Orléans, de Nemours, d'Aumale, de Montpensier, the prince de Joinville, and Princess Clémentine.

The lady at front is the duchesse de Montpensier, née Infanta María Luisa Fernanda of Spain; her husband, the duc de Montpensier,
stands behind her with their daughter Maria Cristina. The small boy seated in front is the duc de Guise, son of the duc d'Aumale.

At left, looking down, is Princess Clémentine of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, beside her is the duc de Montpensier's daughter Maria Amelia, while
her own daughter Amalie is in the row behind. The duc de Nemours stands at right behind his two daughters, Marguerite and Blanche.
The duc de Chartres is at top left; his wife - and cousin - Françoise, daughter of the prince de Joinville, is seated in front.

 The St Albans stall, again, with Lady Diana de Vere Beauclerk (daughter of the 9th Duke of St Albans), Lady Dorothy Nevill, and the Honorable Miss White.

M. Jullien's orchestra.

The Marchioness of Ely's Stall.

Jane Loftus, Marchioness of Ely, née Hope-Vere, is possibly the figure standing at center right. Her daughter, Lady Marion Loftus, is seated in front.

The stalls.

Invitations to social events at Orléans House were extended to both English and French friends and members of society. And the gatherings were, of course, frequently attended by members of the duc’s extended family, several of whom lived close by. His mother, Queen Marie Amélie, lived at Claremont House near to her former home in Twickenham, until her death in 1866. His two surviving elder brothers, François, prince de Joinville, and Louis, duc de Nemours, and their families both settled in the area, living at Mount Lebanon and Bushey House respectively. In 1864, the duc d'Aumale’s nephew the comte de Paris moved into York House, Twickenham. And Henri’s nieces Blanche and Marguerite, daughters of the duc de Nemours, were frequent visitors to Orléans House, and can be seen in photographs of some of the many festivities which took place.

Lady Marion Loftus at front right, Miss Moncrieffe, and Miss Gorges.

Prince August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, standing.

Silvy's studio.

(The light colored toilettes of the two ladies at left have been noticeably retouched to add back detail - including stripes on the one in front!)

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"A grand Fancy Bazaar at Orleans House, Twickenham in aid of the French Société de Bienfaisance." From the Illustrated London News, 11th June 1864.

Orléans House was a Paladian villa built by the architect John James in 1710 near the Thames at Twickenham, England, for the politician and diplomat James Johnston. Louis-Philippe, duc d’Orléans, later the "citizen King" of the French, lived here in exile with his wife and young family, from 1815-1817. He enjoyed the tranquility of Twickenham, writing: “I bless heaven, morning, noon and night that I am in my peaceful house in old Twick.” From his residency, the property was thereafter called Orléans House.

Painting by Joseph Nickolls, circa 1750.

Louis-Philippe and the Orléans family were forced into exile again during the revolution of 1848, settling once more in England. And while the king had given his name to the house, it was his fifth son, Henri, duc d’Aumale, who truly made it his home. The estate was acquired from the Earl of Kilmorey in 1852. (As a foreigner, property law prevented Henri from purchasing Orléans House directly, so it was bought on his behalf by Coutts bank.) He lived here for nearly two decades, until his return to France in 1871. He built a library adjacent to the house, as well as a gallery to display his extensive and important art collection, which included two paintings by Raphael and works by the French and Italian Schools; these are now in the Musée Condé at the Château de Chantilly.

In October 1844, Louis-Philippe, while king of the French, made a visit to the house accompanied by Queen Victoria. Colored lithograph by Édouard Pingret. 

In 1877, John Dugdale Astley purchased the house and converted it into a luxurious sports and social club; it was not a success and soon closed. The last private owners were the Cunard family. The eighteenth century house had remained virtually unchanged, but in 1910 the property was broken up and sold. The house itself was demolished in 1926, but the Octagon Room and some domestic buildings were saved. The last owner left the remains of Orléans House and her collection of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century paintings to the borough, and the existing buildings were converted into an art gallery; the Orleans House Gallery opened in 1972.

Orléans House during the demolition, 1926.

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Camille-Léon-Louis Silvy (18 March 1834, Nogent-le-Rotrou -2 February 1910, Saint-Maurice), French photographer, primarily active in London. Instructed in the techniques of photography by his friend, comte Olympe Aguado, in 1857, he became a member of the Société française de photographie the following year. Soon after, he moved to London and opened a portrait studio at 38 Porchester Terrace, Bayswater, becoming a member of the Photographic Society in 1859. Silvy's sitters included many prominent artists, celebrities of the day, the aristocracy and royalty; he photographed many members of the British royal family. The National Portrait Gallery, London, holds his studio's daybooks, which include details of some 17,000 sittings, with about 12,000 of these showing a resulting image from the sitting. In 1868 he closed his studio and returned to France. He came to believe that his nervous system had been damaged by exposure to potassium cyanide in the darkroom, but it is more likely that he suffered from bipolar disorder. The last thirty years of his life were spent in a succession of hospitals, sanatoria and convalescent homes.