Richard Boyle (1695-1753), 3rd Earl of Burlington
after Godfrey Kneller (1646-1723)
Image credit: York Art Gallery
Oliver Sheldon – the perfect Georgian
Katherine A. Webb marks the 130th birthday anniversary of our legendary first Chairman, Oliver Sheldon, in this evocative article touching on Georgian life and times.
Friday 15th June. The York Assembly Rooms, designed by Lord Burlington and built by public subscription in 1730-35, are in full, glorious use. A Grand Ball is being held, a magical event, attended by four hundred dancers all wearing beautiful Georgian dress. The scene is breathtakingly brilliant. Costumes are of silk, flowered brocade and other gorgeous materials; gentlemen are wearing beautifully embroidered waistcoats and coats, with lace cravats, silk stockings and splendid wigs; ladies are dressed in magnificently shimmering damask dresses. Lined with pillars, the Egyptian Hall has become a stunning ballroom, dazzling in its new paintwork. All is bedecked with flowers. Lights from the new Venetian crystal chandeliers cast a warm glow. A small group of special guests take the dance floor, accompanied by the sound of trumpets; they dance, for the assembled company, a stately minuet to the music of Mr. Handel. Duets are then sung from John Gay’s The Beggars Opera (1728). Later, an exquisite champagne supper is set out by Georgian serving maids in their grey frocks, muslin aprons and mob caps. At the stroke of midnight, a boar’s head is carried in, to a loud trumpet fanfare. And so, the evening climaxes.
The Georgian Ball is magnificent. It is an event the participants will never forget. But this is not 1751. It is 1951. This Ball is taking place in the newly restored Assembly Rooms, brought back to glory after a long period of neglect as a wartime food office. The occasion is one of the last events of the 1951 York Festival, and among the most brilliant and successful. Thousands of spectators line the streets to see the costumed guests arriving. Police link arms to push the swelling crowds back. Altogether the event is a marvellous spectacle in the city, amid post war austerity and gloom.
And the idea for the Ball? It was the brainchild of Oliver Sheldon, the brilliant first chairman of York Georgian Society.
Oliver Sheldon, portrait photograph, c.1940s
Image credit: York Civic Trust
Oliver Sheldon was an inspirational leader, a master of organisation and planning, who guided York Georgian Society from its foundation in 1939 up to his untimely and unexpected death in 1951. Under his direction and with his immense flair and vision, the society enjoyed phenomenal popularity and success. 2024 marks 130 years since his birth, and so it seems fitting to remember him.
Sheldon is a hero of mine. I first encountered him in 2003, while I was researching a lecture for the 50th anniversary of the Borthwick Institute for Archives. As I went through papers, correspondence and newspaper cuttings, I vividly remember being astonished by his vision, organisational ability, diplomacy, attention to detail, and an amazing capacity to make things happen. The founding of the Borthwick was complex, involving the coordination of various interested parties, and securing significant funding. Behind it was a very grand plan indeed: a future university for York. This didn’t come until 1963, but Sheldon laid the foundations.
He brought these same outstanding talents to every one of his many roles. Sheldon was extraordinarily busy. Despite his highly demanding career as a director of Rowntree’s, he was active in many projects concerned with York’s historic and artistic heritage. His deep interest in the Georgian period was well known, and when a Georgian Society for York was proposed (just after the foundation of the Georgian Group and the Georgian Society for East Yorkshire), Sheldon was recognised by his fellow enthusiasts as their natural leader.
Under Sheldon, the society took off: listing Georgian buildings (this was before statutory listing), acting when buildings were endangered, and vigorously promoting interest in the Georgian period. The great emphasis on social events made the York Georgians distinctive. There were talks, exhibitions, publications, entertainments, outings – even Christmas cards. All was done with a thorough but light touch, with much input from dedicated members. Being a Georgian was fun! Membership numbers soared to over 900 by 1951. Groups of 200 to 300 would go out on visits to Georgian country houses. Sheldon ensured extensive press coverage (he would have loved social media). The society also shaped the thinking of Sheldon and the other future co-founders of York Civic Trust. During committee discussions they began to work out their ideas about York past, present and future.
Sheldon was universally loved. He was kind, trusted and admired, unassuming, and generous to others. His elegant, cultured and urbane prose is a pleasure to read (there is a very recognisable Sheldon style). The attributes that he wanted for the Georgian Society – “dignity, good order and courtesy” – were those of Sheldon himself. He inhabited a succession of good Georgian houses, and he furnished them with outstanding Georgian furniture and antiques. In short, he was a perfect Georgian.
Sheldon at the Ball, in the foreground group, wearing white wig, black coat, white stockings and buckled shoes
Image credit: Explore York Libraries and Archives.
Sheldon conceived of a Georgian Ball in the restored Assembly Rooms as the Society’s special contribution to the Festival. He also appealed to members for funding for furnishings and for a portrait of Burlington for the Rooms. He was personally involved with the restoration, which had a tight timetable – the Venetian glass chandeliers were hung only days before opening.
Sheldon thought about his own costume for the Ball very carefully. His role was prominent, giving a speech before the minuet danced by descendants of the original subscribers. He would have remembered meeting the scholar Professor Rudolf Wittkower, who had exclaimed at his astonishing physical likeness to Lord Burlington. And so, for the Ball, Sheldon dressed up as Burlington himself – with black satin coat and breeches, white stockings, cravat and wig, with the star of the garter and blue-ribbon sash.
Poignantly, the copy of Sheldon’s speech survives in the archives; it has been folded to fit in his pocket. But the Georgian Ball was Sheldon’s final flourish. Exhausted by overwork, seven weeks later he was dead, much lauded, and much missed, this perfect Georgian, this perfect first chairman.
Note: It has not been possible to identify authors or copyright holders for the two photographs, but any information will be gratefully received.
Follow the link to read more about YGS beginnings:
Family Walking Tour: ‘A Day in the Life of Jane Ewbank’
Following the success of Rachel Feldberg’s Family Walking Tour last year, YGS is delighted to offer the event again as part of the York Georgian Festival in August 2024.
Elizabeth out shopping with her Aunt Jane
Detail from, 'A Day in the Life of Jane Ewbank' Family Map
Illustration: Savannah Storm
When & where:
Saturday 3 August 2024, 17:00 – 17:50
Circular from St Helen’s Square, York, YO1 9QL
Tickets: YGS Members £2; Non-Members £5
What:
Follow ten year old Elizabeth and her Aunt Jane Ewbank on their 1804 trip round York. There’s lots to see and do for children and their families, as we take you back in time to the city's Georgian days.
Discover where Jane and Elizabeth went shopping, visit the site of the all night ball, and learn to be a building detective!
For families and children 8-plus (who must be accompanied by an adult).
Lasts 50 minutes. Meet outside the Mansion House in St Helen's Square.
Places are limited so book early to avoid disappointment!
(Graphic design, Judi Clements; illustrations, Savannah Storm.)
Funded by the White Rose College of the Arts and Humanities
External Events
A View of Westminster Bridge, The Abbey &c From King’s Arms Stairs, Narrow Walk,
Lambeth Marsh, 1791
by John William Edy
Courtesy British Library, Maps K. Top. 22 37.1
Eleanor Coade’s Artificial Stone Manufactory is to the far left
The Georgian Group Online Lecture
Eleanor Coade’s London by Caroline Stanford
10 September 2024 at 6.30pm-7.30pm
Mrs Coade is best known for her fired artificial stone, supplied from her manufactory in Lambeth and ubiquitous in Georgian England and far beyond.
This talk will consider wider aspects of her life in London: the places she lived and also her activity in speculative development, both as financier and developer herself. Locating Coade in this wider context provides an interesting case study in the architectural activities of Georgian women, as well as in how a never-married woman like Coade successfully navigated the world of business, challenging our perceptions of female agency in the period.
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