Conservation work on royal and aristocratic funeral effigies at Westminster Abbey has given costume historians a rare opportunity to examine an extraordinary collection of historic clothing. The figures, including King Charles II, are being undressed and taken apart before being moved to a new museum in the abbey's triforium, which will be accessible to visitors for the first time via a new lift.
Textile conservator Zenzie Tinker described discovering Charles II's blue silk stockings and cream silk underpants, tied with a bow at the back. 'I've never seen anything quite like them,' she said, noting that while there is no proof they belonged to Charles himself, it is possible. The effigies date back to the 14th century and were made for display at funerals when the real body could not be used due to delays between death and ceremony.
Among the most notable figures is Frances, Duchess of Richmond, known as 'la Belle Stuart'. She rejected King Charles II's advances and chose to be displayed in velvet and ermine coronation robes, accompanied by her African Grey parrot. X-ray analysis confirmed the parrot is real and one of the oldest stuffed animals in the world. Her slender ankles and calves were modelled in wax, unlike most effigies which have crude wooden or straw legs hidden under clothing.
The collection includes exceptionally rare surviving underwear, such as Elizabeth I's chamois leather trimmed corset, a tiny corset for a four-year-old boy, and Frances's five layers of petticoats and sky blue gold embroidered corset. Charles II's suit, hidden under garter robes, proved to be a blue silk doublet and breeches interwoven with real gold thread, heavily embroidered in silver and trimmed with silver lace. Only one other comparable suit is known, in Scotland.
The most poignant effigy is that of the little Marquess of Normanby, who died aged three in 1715. His sumptuous clothes, including a Spitalfields silk gown and peach velvet coat, were tailored with slits for leading reins. Tinker noted that his older brother's effigy wore a waistcoat embroidered in a style that only came into fashion in the year of his death. 'They are so small and so beautifully made there is something heart-breaking about them,' she said.
The effigies, once a major tourist attraction known as 'the Ragged Regiment' by the 19th century, are now being carefully conserved for display in the new museum. The last effigy installed was Admiral Lord Nelson, an attempt by the abbey to attract visitors away from St Paul's Cathedral, where he was buried.
