Stepping Back: Colours Used in the Georgian Period and Regency

Contributed by Sarah Waldock

Colours Used in the Georgian Period and Regency. Also, when known, date of introduction or when particularly fashionable. Otherwise I have noted when it was definitely in use. ‘The Ladies’ Monthly Museum’ and ‘Ackermann’s Repository’ are to be referenced in this. Also ‘The Creation of Colour in the 18^th century’ by Sarah Lowengard. Some colours mentioned in Old Bailey online.

Thanks to Charles Bazalgette for making available his notes to extend this list.

The colours are broken up into the following sections; Reds/Pinks; Oranges/Yellows; Greens; Blues/Indigos; Violets; Browns; Neutrals

REDS/PINKS

	Aurora	described as chilli coloured elsewhere; so a brownish orange-red from 1809
	Blossom	blossom coloured is a pale pink certainly in use in 1813
	Carmine	Dark pinkish red. First recorded as a colour 1523 popular in 18^th century.
	Claret	Very dark, purplish red.
	Coquelicot	Poppy red, being the French name for the field poppy. A bold colour and only to be used as trimming by young ladies. Height of fashion 1794-9 but used through the period; according to Austen in high fashion winter 1798-9
	Morone	Peony red 1811
	Pale Pink	One of the season’s colours of 1802
	Peach	what it says on the label.
	Pompadour aka Rose Pompadour	May have been named for the S. American bird the pompadore for its red-purple plumage rather than after La Pompadour. The colour name appears to have been used for a range of shades
	Rose	A rather dark reddish pink; between red and magenta, the colour of Rosa rugosa. Used from 1382.
	Rose Pink	A pinker colour than rose, used from 1761.
	Turkey Red	Named for the place not the fowl. Derived from Madder and is a cool bluish red. The name refers to a particular process of preparing the madder that took 3 weeks or more. Colourfast and will not fade. First practically produced in Europe [in Scotland] 1780’s. Became particularly popular in the 1820’s

ORANGES & YELLOWS

	Apollo	Bright gold, 1823 onward
	Canary	A bright intense yellow [close to acid yellow]
	Evening Primrose	named for the flower, an American species, darker and richer than primrose. Height of fashion 1807-17 and just to be confusing usually referred to just as primrose.
	Jonquil	named for the wild daffodil; a very pure yellow. The must have colour of 1801
	Nankeen	A colour imitating the natural yellowish brown of the raw cotton woven into the cloth from Nanking also called nankeen. The name was used for a range of shades
	Orange	Certainly a colour mentioned for cloth
	Primrose	Named for the flower, a pale and delicate yellow. Height of fashion 1807-17
	Saffron	Between yellow and orange, the product of the saffron crocus
	Straw	golden beige, the colour of ripening corn, which is to say corn to make bread not sweetcorn. A popular colour in 1802.

GREENS

	Bottle Green	probably what was later known as Rifle green; used in 1790’s
	Bronze Green	A very dark green with a blue tint.
	Corbeau coloured	A greenish black like a crow’s wing. In use in 1790’s. Nearer black than green.
	Emerald Green	Also known as Scheele’s Green and unfortunately very poisonous because of being made with arsenic! This was popular because it did not fade. AKA Paris green, Schweinfurth green, Imperial green, Vienna green. Having been already very popular in wallpaper this became fashionable in fabric 1817
	Olive	dull olive coloured green
	Parrot Green	Dark yellow green 18^th century
	Pomona Green	THE green of the Regency; A THE green of the Regency era. Apple green by the name, but dark and rich. The rich bright green made by overdying yellow with blue [I hypothesise that this is what was in the Medieval era was known as Lincoln Green made by overdying weld or saffron with woad]. Name used from 1811/12 when it became fashionable
	Rifle Green	The very dark colour green worn by the rifle brigades. Not used until after 1800 when the Rifle Brigade was first formed.
	Saxon Green	Sage green. Made similarly to Saxon Blue with the introduction of dyeing by fustic [a yellow dye].
	Spring [green]	A brighter more yellow shade of Pomona green. Name coined 1766

BLUES/INDIGOES

	Aetherial	Sky blue; name from 1820
	Azure	Bright blue, a blue-cyan, the colour of bright blue skies 1820
	Barbel	Sky blue 1820
	Celestial Blue	Name first used 1535; a light sky blue popular in early 1810’s
	Clarence	Another one described as sky blue, 1820
	Indigo	Dyed using the Indigo plant. Dark blue, hint of purple
	Marie Louise	1812, Calamine blue, which is to say a slightly more turquoise colour than Robin’s egg blue. Bluer and lighter than turquoise, bluer and deeper than aqua
	Mazarine blue	A very deep colour, named for Cardinal Mazarin
	Mexican	Steel blue 1817
	Prussian Blue	A dark blue with a touch of green to it
	Saxon Blue	A soft greyish-lavender tinged blue. Made by dissolving indigo in oil of vitriol [sulphuric acid] now mostly called smalt blue

VIOLETS

	Damascen	Damson coloured, very dark purple
	Lavender	A pale greyish purple
	Lilac	Pale tone of violet; first used to describe colour 1775. Popular 1802
	Mulberry	A reddish purple, very very dark
	Princess Elizabeth	Soft pale blue with hint of lilac
	Puce	brownish reddish purple, the name is from the French for ‘flea’ and refers to the colour of coagulated blood inside that parasite. In 1805 it was THE colour. Initially popularised by Marie Antoinette. Also popular in 1802
	Purple	probably a dullish purple rather than the bright colour we think of today
	Violet	Blueish purple; used as colour name from 1370. So synonymous with purple that Isaac Newton used it in describing the colours in the spectrum. Early use of the name seems to imply that it was a blue colour.
	Stifled Sigh	Aka soupir étouffe which according to Dr Johnson is the palest of lilacs 18^th century

BROWNS

	Cameleopard	French beige; more a light brown than a beige per se. 1825
	Carmelite	Dark brown, the colour of a Carmelite monk’s robe.
	Cinammon coloured	What it says on the label
	Devonshire Brown	Named for the notorious Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire. Regained popularity 1812. ? light tan brown
	Drab	Name dates from 1686. a yellowish brown on the browner side of nankeen; patterns in drab were often made by patterning the fabric with different mordants and overdying in one colour, whereat the different mordants produced different colour responses from the dye, but all toning. Nowadays called mode beige, a very dark beige.
	Dust of Ruins	Described as squirrel. A drab tan then? 1822. Possibly a colour akin to the reddish dust of the ruins at Karnak following on from all things Egyptian
	Egyptian Brown	Described as mace, the rich reddish brown used in Egyptian tomb paintings to depict male skin colour, all things Egyptian becoming fashionable with the French ‘archaeology’ there. 1809
	Noiset[te]	Hazelnut coloured
	Paris mud	Colour designed by Marie Antoinette’s designer based on the colour of Parisian mud.
	Snuff coloured	What it says on the label
	Terre d’Egypte	Brick Red; 1823, possible a deeper shade of dust of ruins?

NEUTRALS

	Esterhazy	Silver grey
	Fawn	One of the season’s colours of 1802
	Iron grey	What it says on the label
	Isabella	Cream, first recorded use 1601 when referring to the colour of an animal’s coat as very pale cream; a pale palomino colour. Used for fabric in Queen Elizabeth I’s wardrobe. AKA Isabelline
	Ivory	Off white with cream tint
	Russian Flame	Pale beige 1811
	Slate	Dark blueish grey; Pale slate is mentioned in describing a fashion plate 1811

Sarah Waldock can be found at http://sarahs-history-place.blogspot.com, She is the author of Renaissance murder mysteries and Regency murder mysteries, and can also to be found at http://sarahs-cat-spot.blogspot.co.uk/ for tales of cats.