Jilly Fry

Author

Umbrellas represent protection, prosperity, shelter and prestige. Although the history of umbrellas can be traced back to Roman times, I am going to mainly concentrate on the late 1700s and 1800s.

Jonas Hanway was the first London gentleman to publicly use an umbrella, as until the 1750s it was classed as a feminine accessory. A gentleman using an umbrella would be classed as effeminate and open to ridicule, however, Jonas Hanway eventually changed that perception. English gentlemen began using umbrellas but referred to them as Hanways rather than umbrellas.

Although the Duke of Wellington owned a waxed canvas umbrella which contained a rapier in the handle, he forbade his officers to use them in battle. In 1814 at the Battle of Bayonne he rebuked one senior officer who allowed his officers to carry them on the field of Battle – he issued a standing order “umbrellas will not be opened in the presence of the enemy”. However, it would be acceptable for Guards in uniform to carry them on duty in London.

Early umbrellas were extremely cumbersome, the oiled silk had a heavy wooden frame, extremely difficult to open and close when wet. Some used whalebone but this had no effect on the heaviness. Around 1800 the umbrella weighed approximately 10lbs. In 1852 Samuel Fox invented the steel ribbed umbrella – claiming that he had used up stock bought for making corsets – which made umbrellas much more portable. They were regarded as a luxury accessory until the design changed to split cane instead of whalebone, making the umbrellas low quality and affordable. In 1830 the first dedicated shop to sell umbrellas was James Smith & Sons in New Oxford Street, London and is still trading today.

In literature, the humble Victorian umbrella is mentioned quite a lot - in my first book it's used as a plot device; Jane Austen’s novel in 1814 Mansfield Park mentions Dr Grant using an umbrella; Charles Dickens’ Martin Chuzzlewit’s character, Mrs Gamp, always carried an umbrella with “particular ostentation”. Indeed, after the book was published umbrellas were often referred to as Gamps. Of course I couldn’t finish without mentioning Mary Poppins umbrella with the parrot handle, a clever plot device to transport her to the family.

Here is a print of a french invention of an umbrella with a lightning conductor. I’m not sure it caught on!

(This is an out of copyright image and taken from janeaustenslondon.com)

Jilly