The Constables of Brighton and Reigate by Claire Constable

The Constables of Brighton and Reigate by Claire Constable

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Summary

Presenting a detailed picture of middle-class family life in mid-Victorian England, this is the story of one of photography's pioneers, William Constable. It also details his nephew Clair James Grece who was also a pioneer, but in the field of local democracy.

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The Constables of Brighton and Reigate by Claire Constable

This work presents a detailed picture of middle-class family life in mid-Victorian England, which is full of charm and wit and is almost without parallel. Claire Constable's happy discovery of the vast Constable family archive of letters and personal journals has allowed her to share this remarkable story of one of photography's pioneers. In the current digital age, when pictures are instant and disposable, it is hard to imagine the excitement that greeted the opening of William Constable's Photographic Institution in Brighton in 1841. However, the excitement was such that even Prince Albert and his brothers came to have their portraits made. Before taking up photography, William Constable's life had been far from dull. In 1806, William, his brother Daniel and their dog Frank went to America and travelled for two years. They covered thousands of miles, largely on foot, while writing letters home that vividly described the new world. "The Constables of Brighton and Reigate" also details William's nephew Clair James Grece who was also a pioneer, but in the field of local democracy. Clair became the first Town Clerk of Reigate in Surrey in 1841, a post he was to hold for more than forty years.
Claire Constable was born in Redhill, Surrey and educated in Kingsley School. After leaving school she spent six years working her way around the world, living in Paris, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Cape Town, Sydney and London. When her travels were over, Claire became a travel writer. Her interest in the history of her family, the Constables of Surrey, was fuelled when she acquired the extensive family letters and journals that form the basis of this book and her previous one, The Constables of Horley Hill, published in 2001.
SKU Unavailable
ISBN 13 9781846240058
ISBN 10 1846240050
Title The Constables of Brighton and Reigate
Author Claire Constable
Condition Unavailable
Binding Type Hardback
Publisher Book Guild Publishing Ltd
Year published 2005-05-26
Number of pages 376
Cover note Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note Unavailable