The Sun.
London, England, 1864-10-18 00:00:00

Renovation of the Brighton Pavilion,

The origin of the building designated as the Pa•
vilion, at Brighton, is well enough known, while
posterity and the present age have passed judgment
on the result of a whim of the ruler of this country
who built it ; but since the period when, inhabited
by that Monarch and-his Court, it shone in all its
gorgeous, if barbaric, magnificence it has passed
through many phases, and now, after having been
reduced to the condition of a mere wreck, it once
more, thanks to the generosity of her Majesty, the
liberality of the Brighton town council, and the
skill of a conscientious and painstaking artist, is
restored to all its former glory of gilding and ela-
borate decoration, and will long be an attraction to
the town in which it is situate.

In tracing the history of the Pavilion to the
present time it is necessary to state that George
IV., when Prince of Wales, first visited Brighton
in 1782, and that in the succeeding.year he again
visited the small but agreeably situated place. At
this time he purchased the villa in which he re-
sided, and which was the origin of the present
structure, which was commenced by Mr. Holland,
the architect, in 1784, and was enlarged three
years afterwards. Two wings arose in the early
part of the present century, and the marine palace
was finally completed in 1817 by John N.ish,
though there is no doubt that designs and sugges-
tions of the King were plentifully adopted. It
subsequently became the favour ite residence of King
William IV., to whom the Pavilion owes the erec-
tion of the hanesome northern gateway. Her
Majesty Queen Victoria, following the example of
her predecessors on the throne, visited Brighton in
1837, and occupied the Pavilion, repeating the visit
in 1838, 1842, and 1843. On the 12th of September,
in the latter year, her Majesty embarked at the
chain pier for Ostend, but since that period Bright.
ton has known the sovereign no longer, and it was
determined by the Commissioners of Woods and
Forests, to whom it was handed over, that it should
be dismantled and raised to the ground. The inhabi-
tants naturally manifested great opposition to this
decree, and the commissioners having offered to
sell the building to the town, the inhabi-
tants purchased it for £53,000. Thus, in June, 1850,
the palace, stables, and ground surrounding came
into thepossession of the town at the comparatively
small amount mentioned, the structure having cost
in its erection and embellishment between
£1,100,000 and £1,200,000. It must not be sup-
posed that the building came into the hands of the
town in anything like the condition it presented
when it was a royal residence. The work of dis-
mantling had been too scrupulously carried out for
that, and all the elaborate adornments, the beauti•
ful chandeliers, and even the paintings on the walls
and the marble chimney-pieces, had been carried off
to London and Windsor, where they remained in
the royal store-houses, apparently without hope
that they would ever be restored. Soon after the
town commissioners entered on possession of their
unpromising property, the grand suite of rooms was
decorated afresh, and in Jan., 1851, a grand ball
was given to celebrate the inauguration of the
building to the use of the inhabitants. Since then
the rooms have been used for holding fetes, bazaars,
and exhibitions of various kinds. The constant use
of the rooms for these purposes had rendered it im-
peratively necessary that the aid of the decorator
should be again called in, and the Queen, on applie
cation being made, most graciously gave orders
that the gorgeous decorations, carvings, and chande-
liers should be restored. This result is in a great
measure owing to the adoption of the suggestions
repeatedly pressed upon the Pavilion committee by
Mr Duval, the custodian, who, having been emp
ployed in the building when it was used as a royal
residence, was well acquainted with its former con-
dition, and naturally sighed to see it once more re-
stored to the condition in which he formerly knew
it. The value of the royal gift is very great. The
inhabitants, as may be supposed, are very grateful
to her Majesty for having restored to them that
which will long render Brighton famous, as possess-
ing a building which will prove a source of immense
attraction and delight to the visitors. In carrying
out the project of a perfect re-adornment of the
Pavilion, the town council have acted most
energetically and liberally. Mr Pantaenius, of
London, was engaged to supply designs, which
have been executed in a most admirable manner by
Mr Tony Dury, of Warwick, painter to the late
Louis Philippe, whose tender for, as it would seem,
an exceedingly low sum, was accepted. He has
had to paint side by side with the work of Jones
and Lambalet, and the result shows that he is by no
means inferior to those celebrated artists. The town
council have repeatedly expressed their satisfaction
at the progress of the work, and especially on a
recent occasion, when Mr Alderman Burrows
passed a high eulogium on the skill displayed by
the artist, the alderman's opinion was endorsed by
the opinion of the entire court then assembled. A
private view of the building yesterday, previous to
its being handed over to the corporation, gave the
opportunity to judge of the extent of the work
executed, and to convince even the most scrupulous
that the praise bestowed on the artist is welldeserved.
The principal apartments are the banqueting room, the
green drawing room, the saloon, the yellow drawing room,
Ta nhae the t musicroom room,namedalils otfh whichwahrei
chea theth eargtrisotuhndas floor.
been
principally engaged, as, notwithstanding the most earnest
desire that all the paintings should be restored, the greater
portion of them could not be found, and Mr Dury has had
to supply 10 new ones in keeping with those recovered, The