Harriet Smith Went Where with Robert Martin?

For those of you who are fans of Emma, you might remember Mr. Knightly’s mention of Astley’s where Harriet Smith finally thrown back into the company of Robert Martin, which leads to his proposal and of course, her acceptance, however, Mr. Knightley never mentions what on earth Astley’s is!

“It is a very simple story. He went to town on business three days ago, and I got him to take charge of some papers which I was wanting to send to John.–He delivered these papers to John, at his chambers, and was asked by him to join their party the same evening to Astley’s. They were going to take the two eldest boys to Astley’s. The party was to be our brother and sister, Henry, John–and Miss Smith. My friend Robert could not resist.” – Emma (Chapter 54)

 

“However, I must say, that Robert Martin’s heart seemed for him, and to me, very overflowing; and that he did mention, without its being much to the purpose, that on quitting their box at Astley’s, my brother took charge of Mrs. John Knightley and little John, and he followed with Miss Smith and Henry; and that at one time they were in such a crowd, as to make Miss Smith rather uneasy.” – Emma (Chapter 54)

 

Harriet Smith even tells Emma all about her evening at the mysterious Astley’s, but we still never learn what it is!

Harriet was most happy to give every particular of the evening at Astley’s, and the dinner the next day; she could dwell on it all with the utmost delight. –Emma (Chapter 55)

 

 

Public Domain Image courtesy of the British Library

So what exactly was Astley’s?

Astley’s Amphitheatre first opened in 1773 in Westminster Bridge Road in Lambeth. Philip Astley, who is now known as the “father of the modern circus,” previously owned a riding school where he taught in the morning and performed equestrian tricks in the afternoon. Over time, he incorporated acrobats, jugglers, strong men, rope dancers and clowns, which comprised the show when the amphitheatre opened.

In 1794, Astley’s burned and reopened a year later as Philip Astley’s Royal amphitheatre, which contained not only the circus ring, but also a ramp, allowing the horses to run from a stage to the circus ring during the performances while the audience sat within inches of the horses as they ascended to the stage.

The shows, called hippodromes (plays consisting of horses), contained drama and song as one would expect in a more traditional theatre setting. Re-enactments of famous battles could also be seen at Astley’s complete with explosions and sound effects that remained in popular demand into the Victorian period.

The building, like all theatres of the age, used candles for light–causing Astley’s to burn again in 1803. Astley, however, never rebuilt exactly what he had prior. With each fire and successive rebuild, he made the structure grander or more ornate than it was before. The illustration to the right is of Astley’s when it reopened in 1804.

The doors opened to the 1804 season and “the handsomest pleasure haunt in London” (the new theatre) on Easter Monday. One might not notice the opulence of the new structure when they approached from the outside, but a chandelier consisting of fifty patent lamps hung over a sawdust circus ring. Audiences of close to two thousand (mostly middle class) were entertained with Astley’s ‘hippodramas’ which included dramas such as The Black Red Knight (1811) and sometimes even a pantomime or harlequinade.

Audiences had several options for seating just as those who frequented the Theatre Royal. One could have a box on one of the two tiers of boxes for four shillings, sit in the pit for two shillings, or the sit in the gallery for one shilling. Doors opened at half past five and the performances began at half past six until the season ended in October or November.

To this day, Astley is still credited with discovering and first using the optimum size circus ring of forty-two feet because it allowed the horses to run continuously in a circle without stopping and also allowed him to use centrifugal force to balance on the horse’s back.

 

 

Sources:
British Library: http://www.bl.uk/collection-items/illustration-of-astleys-amphitheatre
Cronin, Richard & McMillan, Dorothy (editors). The Cambridge Edition of Emma. Cambridge University Press (2005).

Feltham, John. The Picture of London for 1803. R.Phillips (1803).
Laudermilk, Sharon & Hamlin, Teresa L. The Regency Companion. Garland Publishing (1999).

 

 

14 comments

Skip to comment form

    • EvelynTost on November 4, 2015 at 12:46 am
    • Reply

    That was fascinating! I had never heard of any of it before, or some but just in very general terms. Thank you so much for sharing this with us and including those pictures.

    1. I mentioned Astley’s in An Unwavering Trust, but I think that scene was cut out before the final edits. When I had the idea of highlighting a theatre for this post, that one immediately came to mind. The fact that it was mentioned in Emma was icing on the cake! I’m glad you found it interesting. Thanks, Evelyn!

    • Deborah on November 4, 2015 at 6:01 am
    • Reply

    Love the history and the pictures. Quite fascinating that the 42 foot ring made the centrifugal force optimum to help the trick rider balance on the horse’s back. Thank you for sharing.

    1. I would never have thought that the ring size had an impact! It does make sense since the horse would have to lean a bit further in to make a tighter turn. I used to pull stunts on my horse when I was young, but I never thought of standing. Not that riding backwards in the saddle at a full gallop was any better. 🙂 Thanks, Deborah!

    • Glynis on November 4, 2015 at 6:58 am
    • Reply

    Great post Leslie. I have read of Astleys in Georgette Heyer books but love all the details you have given. I think I would have preferred the plays and pantomimes as I am not too fond of circuses but it must have been a marvellous spectacle at the time. Thanks again 😊

    1. I read a bit about Astley’s when I wrote An Unwavering Trust since I had a scene where it was mentioned (I think it ended up edited out.). It always is nice to research these topics though. Makes it easier the next time I want to mention it! I’m just glad you enjoyed learning the same thing I did! Thanks, Glynis!

    • Karenlee on November 4, 2015 at 10:08 am
    • Reply

    Actually, Robert Martin did not propose again at Astley’s (such a noisy, crowded spot would hardly have been the right place to do so), but the next evening when he was invited by John and Isabella to join them for dinner.

    “They were going to take the two eldest boys to Astley’s. The party was to be our brother and sister, Henry, John — and Miss Smith. My friend Robert could not resist. They called for him in their way; were all extremely amused; and my brother asked him to dine with them the next day, which he did, and in the course of that visit (as I understand) he found an opportunity of speaking to Harriet; and certainly did not speak in vain.”

    1. I completely missed the dinner when I read back over it to write this! Oops! I’ll make the changes to correct the post. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. 🙂

  1. Wonderful! I knew that Astley’s had horse shows from reading Regency romances in my teens, but I didn’t know this much about it. Thank you for filling in the blanks and providing the images; I especially love old advertising posters! 🙂

    Warmly,
    Susanne 🙂

    1. I’m so glad I was able to fill in those blanks! I love old advertising posters as well. The only true textbook I kept from my art degree was one on the history of graphic design. It had plates with some of the best old posters. I especially like the French posters for Absinthe. Some of the Art Nouveau ones are really beautiful. Thanks, Susanne!

    • Dr. Roberta Shechter on November 4, 2015 at 2:25 pm
    • Reply

    Going through my pile up of email, I found and much enjoyed reading about Astley’s. I’ve filed away the information for my next reading of “Emma”. Happy Autumn to all, Roberta

    1. I haven’t read Emma in so long. I agree that it will be fun to remember this the next time I pick it up. I hope it adds to the enjoyment the next time you give Emma a look! Happy Autumn to you too! Thanks, Roberta!

    • Mary Simonsen on November 5, 2015 at 12:13 am
    • Reply

    This is new to me. Thanks for sharing.

    1. I’m glad you liked it, Mary! Thanks!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.