Details
AN IMPORTANT PAIR OF REGENCY SILVER SAUCE TUREENS, LINERS, AND COVERS FROM THE DUCHESS OF ST. ALBANS SERVICE
Maker's mark of Paul Storr, London, 1817
Each of fluted oval bombé form, on shell scroll feet with oak-leaf and acorn joins, with leaf-clad reeded handles, the foliate rim with shells at intervals, the domed fluted cover with a cast acanthus-clad reeded handle with rocaille, with removable liner, the side, cover, and liner engraved with monogram H St A beneath a duke's coronet, marked on bases, covers, liners and finials
9½in. (24.2cm.) long over handles; 135oz. (4210gr.) (2)
Provenance
The Coutts Heirlooms, Christie's, London, May 14, 1914, lot 70
The monogram and coronet are those of Harriet, Duchess of St. Albans (1777-1837). Harriet Mellon was the daughter of Sarah Mellon, an Irish strolling player, and an impecunious lieutenant in the Madras Cavalry. Harriet made her first appearance on the stage at the age of eleven in a farce called The Spoiled Child at Ulverstone in 1788. Her career as an actress came to an abrupt end, however, on her marriage in 1815 to her long-time admirer, the 83 year-old banker Thomas Coutts. On his death shortly thereafter he left her his sole legatee. The Morning Post recorded that "some time previous to his death he settled upon Mrs. C. the sum of £600,000 with the house in Stratton-street, all the plate, linen, &c. - the service of plate is said to be the most valuable of any of the country - together with the house in Highgate and all its appurtances...the whole makes her the richest widow in the United Kingdom."
Within three years of Coutts's death, reports of an impending marriage between his widow and the 21 year-old heir to the Dukedom of St. Albans were rife. William Beauclerk succeeded to the Dukedom in 1825 and almost immediately proposed marriage to Mrs. Coutts. It was said that she refused him, telling him to ask her again in a year's time. Sir Walter Scott wrote in his journal "If the Duke marries her, he ensures an immense fortune; if she marries him she has the first rank. If he marries a woman older than himself by twenty years, she marries a man younger in wit by twenty degrees. I do not think he will dilapidate her fortune; he seems good and gentle. I do not think she will abuse his softness of disposition - shall I say or of - head (Lockart, Life of Sir Walter Scott, vol. VIII, pp. 116-7). The Duke's second proposal was accepted by Mrs. Coutts and they were married June 16, 1827. "Before the ceremony, Harriet's servants wore the Coutts livery. Immediately afterwards they appeared in the St. Albans yellow and black stockings" (Brian Masters, The Dukes, 1975, p. 119). It appears to have been a happy marriage, despite the fact that the Duchess kept the pillow upon which Mr. Coutts had expired with her at all times, encased in a wooden box.
The Duchess was renowned both for the extravagance of her hospitality and her generosity to those in need. She was vilified by the popular press, who lost no opportunity in attacking her, and she appears to have been either wildly hated or greatly loved by all in society. The Royal Dukes, with the exception of the Duke of Clarence (later William IV) were all regular visitors. Prince Pückler-Muskau, a German visitor to London and indefatigable snob, records in his journal a visit to the Duchess: "yesterday, the wedding day of the Duchess of St. A[lbans], was celebrated by a very pleasant rural fête at her villa...perhaps there never was a woman who had the art of appearing more innocent and child-like; certainly this captivating type of coquetry is the greatest charm, though not perhaps the greatest merit, of women" (Austin, trans. A Regency Visitor, 1958, p. 306).
The Duchess died in 1837, leaving the bulk of her estate to Angela Burdett-Coutts, her step-daughter. Contemporary newspaper accounts gleefully pointed out that her fortune was equivalent to thirteen tons of gold, or if not in sovereigns it would strech over twenty-four miles and take ten weeks to count. Angela Burdett-Coutts used her wealth to amass a large art collection and to fund numerous philanthropic schemes for which she was created a Baroness by Queen Victoria in 1871. She resisted numerous suitors until her marriage in 1881 to an American, William Bartlett of Plymouth, Massachusetts. Bartlett took the name of Burdett-Coutts in lieu of his own and sat as M.P for Westminster from 1885 on and gave his wife considerable assistance in her charitable activities.
Baroness Burdett-Coutts died on December 30, 1906, and her body lay in state for two days, during which time 30,000 people, both rich and poor, paid their last respects. She was buried in Westminster Abbey on January 5, 1906. After her death, the bulk of the Duchess's silver remained in storage until 1914 when it was sold by Christie's.
Pieces from the same service which have appeared recently include another set of four entrée dishes, but without their stands, sold in these Rooms, April 17, 1996, lot 112; a tea tray sold October 25, 1988, lot 412; a pair of soup tureens, covers and stands, sold March 23, 1983, lot 213; and a set of wine coasters, sold April 15, 1997, lot 281.
