On May 8 1813, the Prince Regent is the guest of honour at a grand commemoration dinner that precedes a massive retrospective of the work of Sir Joshua Reynolds. The exhibition is at the British Institution. Lord Byron, the literary star of the moment, and Sarah Siddons, the great but aging actress, are present. A lavish diner is given at Willis’. There are many toasts that night to the ‘the memory of Sir Joshua Reynolds.’ About half-past nine, the Prince Regent leaves the dining-room, and is taken back to the Gallery, which is lit for the occasion, so that the guests can view the paintings by candlelight.
A biographer of Reynolds writes about that night:
A few years after the establishment of the British Institution, an establishment as honourable to its original projectors as it has been advantageous to the arts of the country, it occurred to the directors, that if an exhibition could be formed, which should consist entirely of the works of Sir Joshua Reynolds, the accomplishment of such a measure would be, in every way, desirable. “A display of this nature, they conceived, would be a high gratification to the public, and equally delightful and advantageous to artists.
Great exertions were accordingly made to procure the finest examples of his productions that could be obtained, and the several proprietors of Sir Joshua’s pictures complied most liberally with the wishes of the directors.
“The number of pictures exhibited amounted to 142, and when the arrangement was completed, the exhibition was preceded by a grand commemoration dinner, which took place on Saturday, May 8 1813. The Prince Regent (who was then President of the Institution) had announced his intention of honouring the dinner with his presence. His Royal Highness arrived at the British Gallery at five o’clock to view the exhibition, and he was graciously pleased to express the highest admiration, both of the pictures and their arrangement. A short time before seven, the Regent was conducted from the Gallery by the Marquis of Stafford, through a temporary covered way, to Willis’s Rooms. The Prince Regent sat as president of the British Institution, having a bust of Sir Joshua Reynolds placed behind him. The Marquis of Stafford sat on the left hand of the Prince Regent, and, as Deputy President, he officiated, giving the toasts, &c.
“His Royal Highness the Duke of Cumberland’s band was stationed in an adjoining room, and performed several select and appropriate pieces during and after dinner. To ‘the memory of Sir Joshua Reynolds,’ was a toast drank with enthusiasm and feeling.
“About half-past nine the Prince Regent left the dining-room, and was reconducted by the Marquis of Stafford to the Gallery, which was lighted up on the occasion. The brilliancy and rich harmonious colouring of Sir Joshua’s pictures, which sparkled on the walls; the elegant assemblage of animated beauty who graced the evening show; the great number of the nobility, statesmen, and other distinguished persons of rank, consequence, and intellectual attainments, that were assembled with their Prince, to be delighted, and to honour the memory of the illustrious dead, gave the whole a most fascinating and grand effect. It was, indeed, ‘the feast of reason, and the flow of soul.’
“Sir Joshua Reynolds had been dead more than twenty years, and almost a new generation had risen up, whose taste had been formed upon works that had been exhibited to the public since his time. The majority of spectators were but imperfectly acquainted with his works, and such an accumulation of splendid art had been seen by non e; it is now wonderful, therefore, that this magnificent display should have operated so powerfully.
pastnow 