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The Prince Of Pleasure And His Regency 1811--20
The Regency Period was one of the most romantic of British history ... an age that swung between extremes of elegance and refinement and the depths of sodden brutality.
The central figure is the Prince Regent, Prinny, and though he sometimes appears as a gigantic spoilt child, he was famously good company and a notable patron of the arts.
The author portrays the personalities of the giants of the romantic age - Byron, Shelley, Sheridan, Wordsworth, Jane Austen and Sir Walter Scott; Davy Faraday and Macadam; Turner, Constable and Cotman - to name a few.
It was an age of extravagance; an age marked by great eccentricities and prodigous jokes; the luddite riots; the Battles of Waterloo and Peterloo; the first waltzes and the first locomotives.
J. B. Priestley, in his usual highly professional style, captured the era splendidly.
The central figure is the Prince Regent, Prinny, and though he sometimes appears as a gigantic spoilt child, he was famously good company and a notable patron of the arts.
The author portrays the personalities of the giants of the romantic age - Byron, Shelley, Sheridan, Wordsworth, Jane Austen and Sir Walter Scott; Davy Faraday and Macadam; Turner, Constable and Cotman - to name a few.
It was an age of extravagance; an age marked by great eccentricities and prodigous jokes; the luddite riots; the Battles of Waterloo and Peterloo; the first waltzes and the first locomotives.
J. B. Priestley, in his usual highly professional style, captured the era splendidly.
304 pages, Unknown Binding
First published September 1, 1969
1 person is currently reading
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About the author
J.B. Priestley
470 books289 followersJohn Boynton Priestley was an English writer. He was the son of a schoolmaster, and after schooling he worked for a time in the local wool trade. Following the outbreak of the Great War in 1914, Priestley joined the British Army, and was sent to France - in 1915 taking part in the Battle of Loos. After being wounded in 1917 Priestley returned to England for six months; then, after going back to the Western Front he suffered the consequences of a German gas attack, and, treated at Rouen, he was declared unfit for active service and was transferred to the Entertainers Section of the British Army.
When Priestley left the army he studied at Cambridge University, where he completed a degree in Modern History and Political Science. Subsequently he found work as theatre reviewer with the Daily News, and also contributed to the Spectator, the Challenge and Nineteenth Century. His earliest books included The English Comic Characters (1925), The English Novel (1927), and English Humour (1928). His breakthrough came with the immensely popular novel The Good Companions, published in 1929, and Angel Pavement followed in 1930. He emerged, too, as a successful dramatist with such plays as Dangerous Corner (1932), Time and the Conways (1937), When We Are Married (1938) and An Inspector Calls (1947).
The publication of English Journey in 1934 emphasised Priestley's concern for social problems and the welfare of ordinary people.
During the Second World War Priestley became a popular and influential broadcaster with his famous Postscripts that followed the nine o'clock news BBC Radio on Sunday evenings. Starting on 5th June 1940, Priestley built up such a following that after a few months it was estimated that around 40 per cent of the adult population in Britain was listening to the programme.
Some members of the Conservative Party, including Winston Churchill, expressed concern that Priestley might be expressing left-wing views on the programme, and, to his dismay, Priestley was dropped after his talk on 20th October 1940.
After the war Priestley continued his writing, and his work invariably provoked thought, and his views were always expressed in his blunt Yorkshire style.
His prolific output continued right up to his final years, and to the end he remained the great literary all-rounder. His favourite among his books was for many years the novel Bright Day, though he later said he had come to prefer The Image Men.
It should not be overlooked that Priestley was an outstanding essayist, and many of his short pieces best capture his passions and his great talent and his mastery of the English language. He set a fine example for any would-be author.
When Priestley left the army he studied at Cambridge University, where he completed a degree in Modern History and Political Science. Subsequently he found work as theatre reviewer with the Daily News, and also contributed to the Spectator, the Challenge and Nineteenth Century. His earliest books included The English Comic Characters (1925), The English Novel (1927), and English Humour (1928). His breakthrough came with the immensely popular novel The Good Companions, published in 1929, and Angel Pavement followed in 1930. He emerged, too, as a successful dramatist with such plays as Dangerous Corner (1932), Time and the Conways (1937), When We Are Married (1938) and An Inspector Calls (1947).
The publication of English Journey in 1934 emphasised Priestley's concern for social problems and the welfare of ordinary people.
During the Second World War Priestley became a popular and influential broadcaster with his famous Postscripts that followed the nine o'clock news BBC Radio on Sunday evenings. Starting on 5th June 1940, Priestley built up such a following that after a few months it was estimated that around 40 per cent of the adult population in Britain was listening to the programme.
Some members of the Conservative Party, including Winston Churchill, expressed concern that Priestley might be expressing left-wing views on the programme, and, to his dismay, Priestley was dropped after his talk on 20th October 1940.
After the war Priestley continued his writing, and his work invariably provoked thought, and his views were always expressed in his blunt Yorkshire style.
His prolific output continued right up to his final years, and to the end he remained the great literary all-rounder. His favourite among his books was for many years the novel Bright Day, though he later said he had come to prefer The Image Men.
It should not be overlooked that Priestley was an outstanding essayist, and many of his short pieces best capture his passions and his great talent and his mastery of the English language. He set a fine example for any would-be author.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
August 9, 2021
"The Prince of Pleasure and His Regency 1811-1820"is in the words of its author 'the personal impression of an age' rather than a "history" to which I am reluctantly giving 4 stars because I disapprove of the approach. It reads very much like a book derived from a BBC documentary series in that its chief merit lies in the choice of illustrations and the manner in which they are juxtaposed with the text. The publisher must have spared no expense as the fifty-year old copy that I read was still a visual delight.
Priestly rigorously restricts the scope of his work to the nine years in which Prince George acted as a regent for his father King George III interned as a lunatic. The book is divided into nine chapters (one for each year of the regency, plus a brief tenth chapter devoted to his coronation as George IV plus a description his unsuccessful legal fight to prevent his wife from being named Queen.0
Prince George was a wonderful constitutional monarch who provided no leadership of any sort in the political area. However, he was the ideal spiritual leader for the remarkable cultural ferment of the era. He was great collector of paintings, sculpture, ceramics and furniture. He was a lover of architecture and through his resolute support of John Nash shares credit with him for the final form of the quirky, yet brilliant Brighton Pavilion. He launched the career of the great portrait painter Thomas Lawrence and was at least familiar with the works of Turner and Constable. He also was aware of the works of such prominent writers as Walter Scott, William Blake, Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Keats, William Wordsworth and Lord Byron with Jane Austen being his personal favorite among the literary stars of the era.
While the Prince Regent was the leading light of a great cultural era, he made absolutely no effort to resist the profoundly reactionary nature of his government which repressed unions, supported the Atlantic slave trade, refused to legislate on child labour, and opposed Catholic emancipation. Priestly particularly deplored the Prince Regent's silence on the horrific Peterloo massacre.
While Priestly is very clear on where stands in relation to the politics of the era, he is also very brief. Most of his text is devoted to comments on art and salacious details of the sex lives of his players.
Priestly rigorously restricts the scope of his work to the nine years in which Prince George acted as a regent for his father King George III interned as a lunatic. The book is divided into nine chapters (one for each year of the regency, plus a brief tenth chapter devoted to his coronation as George IV plus a description his unsuccessful legal fight to prevent his wife from being named Queen.0
Prince George was a wonderful constitutional monarch who provided no leadership of any sort in the political area. However, he was the ideal spiritual leader for the remarkable cultural ferment of the era. He was great collector of paintings, sculpture, ceramics and furniture. He was a lover of architecture and through his resolute support of John Nash shares credit with him for the final form of the quirky, yet brilliant Brighton Pavilion. He launched the career of the great portrait painter Thomas Lawrence and was at least familiar with the works of Turner and Constable. He also was aware of the works of such prominent writers as Walter Scott, William Blake, Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Keats, William Wordsworth and Lord Byron with Jane Austen being his personal favorite among the literary stars of the era.
While the Prince Regent was the leading light of a great cultural era, he made absolutely no effort to resist the profoundly reactionary nature of his government which repressed unions, supported the Atlantic slave trade, refused to legislate on child labour, and opposed Catholic emancipation. Priestly particularly deplored the Prince Regent's silence on the horrific Peterloo massacre.
While Priestly is very clear on where stands in relation to the politics of the era, he is also very brief. Most of his text is devoted to comments on art and salacious details of the sex lives of his players.
March 17, 2012
If you're seeking a once-over-lightly narrative of the Regency era you can't do better than this. Priestly's chatty, polished style remains ingratiating from beginning to end and his impeccable selection of period portraits and illustrations adds much visual appeal. He seems inclined to go easy on the personal failings of the Romantics (it's not Byron's fault all those nagging viragos pursued him)and even much extenuates his central figure, the piggish George, Prince of Wales himself. As he is scathing on the heartlessness of the ruling Tory regime (Peterloo and All That), I'd put down his inconsistent judgementalism to mere anti-bourgeois sentiment, no doubt a a relic of his Edwardian youth. Still, its a great read and he doesn't seem to have omitted any of the definitive anecdotes or quotes from that vivid epoch.
April 28, 2013
One of the most informative and attractively written books on the Regency Period. The author's style is warm and pleasant, and he introduces notable personalities of the era with the ease and friendliness of a personal acquaintance. Added to that, the illustrations are superb! A highly recommended read.
November 16, 2023
Once you get used to the slightly old-fashioned style, this is a well-written and highly interesting account of the life and person of the Prince Regent - a much-maligned man who was maybe not all bad - set within a richly detailed description of all aspects of Regency life and culture. I learned a lot from it.
December 15, 2018
The Prince of Pleasure was a real pleasure to read. I especially enjoyed all the drawings, portraits and photographs. It really brought the Regency period to life. Lots of facts about George IV and lots of gossip.
April 22, 2021
Priestley is insightful, succinct and entertaining. Good selection of plates and period prints to evoke the era.
May 1, 2021
This was a highly enjoyable, informative read about the Regency Era.
February 12, 2023
This goes far too easy on the Prince himself, but I loved the mildly sarcastic writing.
August 24, 2011
This book about George, Prince of Wales and regent for George III, and the Regency era was most enjoyable. Mr. Priestly gives lots of information about the royal family, the Prince himself, and many of the personages and events of the time. Mr. Priestly's writing style is more personal, warm and almost chatty, than is shown in non-fiction, which somehow fits well with the material he presented. It is an older book, published in 1969, but is well worth reading, if only for the bibliography and the illustrations, which are wonderful.
February 8, 2012
Great reference book on the Regency period. Writing style made it very easy to read.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews