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May 8, 20234 min read

Bridgerton's Queen Charlotte: Fact or Fiction?

Beyond the bling, big hair and beautiful gowns, what does the new Bridgerton spin-off tell us about the real Queen Charlotte?



The new Bridgerton spin-off is here, and this time, instead of focusing on the fictional lives of the Bridgerton family, the show focuses on the historical figure of Queen Charlotte. But what parts of the show ring true?



Busting the Bridgerton Myths: Fact or Fiction?



1) What did Charlotte look like?

Was Charlotte the first black monarch?


Fiction!


Bridgerton is a wonderfully inclusive period drama, and has the brilliant Golda Rosheuve and India Ria Amarteifio depict the Queen. But even before Bridgerton, Charlotte's appearance has been a subject of debate. Many have claimed that Charlotte was black, and had African heritage. Charlotte may have had African ancestors, however if she did, they would have been very distant.


Most historians reject the theory that Charlotte was black, as we have many portraits of the Queen which show her to be very pale.




2) Charlotte's Fashion Sense

Did she really wear out-of-date dresses?


Fact!...sort of.


In Bridgerton, Charlotte is portrayed as wearing wide hooped skirts and 18th century mantua gowns in the early 19th century, which would have been considered as extremely out of date. The idea that Charlotte was old fashioned in her sense of style isn't entirely fiction.


Queen Charlotte was notorious for her insistence that court dress maintained its traditional fashions. The traditional court dress for women emulated fashions from the mid-18th century. It included structured stays, lined with a material such as whalebone, and huge paniers (hooped skirts).


However, Charlotte didn't always wear incredibly unfashionable clothes. In fact, when Charlotte first came to England, she was known for wearing clothes which were considered the height of fashion. Especially, when it came to her jewellery. Charlotte's large jewellery collection was infamous, especially her diamond stomacher which she wore on her wedding day and at the coronation. It was worth £60,000 which is equivalent to £10,000,000 today.




Even in her older age, Charlotte did wear clothes in keeping with the fashions of the day. The only surviving dress which belonged to Queen Charlotte is from 1805, which would have been considered an extremely fashionable dress for the early 1800s. It has an incredibly high waist, short sleeves, and was made of exquisite lace, all things which were fashionable at the time. White was also 'a la mode' for the early 19th century as neo-classical style was all the rage.


Image: The lace dress. Photograph: Peter Stone/Fashion Museum Bath (Accessed via The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jan/30/queen-charlottes-last-surviving-dress-goes-on-display-in-bath)



Charlotte can be seen wearing a similar style dress in this painting which was painted two years after the dress was made:




3) Kew Palace (& her famous little Cottage!)

Did Queen Charlotte and King George III really spend a lot of time at Kew Palace?


Fact!


King George and Queen Charlotte did visit Kew Palace as it was part of a set of houses which the royal family used as a country retreat away from their very public life in London.


Kew was indeed used as a refuge for the King during his first bout of illness in 1788.


In fact, Queen Charlotte sadly died at Kew Palace. On her way to witness the double wedding of her sons, Edward and William, she broke her journey at Kew Palace intending to stay only a few days. However the Queen was ill with dropsy at the time, and her condition worsened drastically when she arrived at Kew Palace.


The double wedding was held in the drawing room at Kew Palace so that the Queen could bear witness to her sons' marriages on the 11th of July 1818. After a long illness, the Queen died in November.


Something that 'Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story' didn't delve into was Queen Charlotte's cottage. Far from being solely a retreat for King George, Charlotte often visited Kew, so much so she made a retreat... from their country retreat.



The cottage was used as a place of rest and for taking tea during on walks. One of the most fascinating things about the cottage is that Princess Elizabeth, daughter of Queen Charlotte, hand-painted the walls of the Picnic Room with floral designs.


4) The Question of Heirs

Did Charlotte's daughters refuse to marry?


Fiction!


Contrary to what we see in 'Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story', Charlotte wasn't keen for her daughters to be married. Charlotte had six daughters: Charlotte, Princess Royal, Princess Augusta Sophia, Princess Elizabeth, Princess Mary, Princess Sophia, and Princess Amelia.


George and Charlotte were very protective over their daughters and kept them closeted from the world, in an environment they compared to a nunnery.


Charlotte, Princess Royal, Princess Mary and Princess Elizabeth were the only daughters allowed to marry, albeit much older than was normal at the time. Charlotte married King Frederick of Württemberg when she was 31, and Princess Mary married Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh when she was 40.


Princess Elizabeth married Frederick VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg when she was 48 years old.


None of these marriages produced any surviving children.


If you would like to walk in the footsteps of Queen Charlotte, to see the rooms where she spent her last months, and experience her favourite little gem in the country, visit Kew Palace and Queen Charlotte's Cottage.






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