Visitors to Lancaster’s Judges’ Lodgings Museum can now step back into the world of Bridgerton and Jane Austen to enjoy a Regency fashion exhibition.

Style & Sensibility promises to immerse visitors in the regal elegance of the early Nineteenth Century.

The exhibition offers a rare glimpse into fashions from 1800 to the 1830s and features dresses, fans, shoes, bags, and waistcoats.

Drawing inspiration from timeless classics such as Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility, the displays show quintessential fashions that defined the era when the Judges’

One of the fashion plates showing a Regency walking dress from 1819 which is on display at the Judges' Lodgings Museum courtesy of The Harris Museum.

placeholder image — One of the fashion plates showing a Regency walking dress from 1819 which is on display at the Judges' Lodgings Museum courtesy of The Harris Museum.

Lodgings transitioned from a private home to assize judges accommodation.

Museum manager Lynda Jackson said: “Huge thanks to the team here at the Judges’ Lodgings for putting together a fantastic exhibition.

“We can’t wait to see people come through the doors and experience it for themselves.”

The garments are all originals and include walking dress, morning dress and ball gowns which once graced the figures of affluent women across Lancashire and the North West.

A close-up of thistle embroidery on a Regency day dress from 1800-1810 on display at the Style & Sensibility exhibition in the Judges' Lodgings Museum.

Among them is a dress worn for her son’s 21st birthday party by Maria Hulton whose husband ordered the Peterloo Massacre in Manchester.

The garments and accessories are accompanied by original fashion plates, letters and poems.

The exhibition runs through several rooms of Lancaster’s oldest townhouse with each space telling its own story of the era’s fashion.

It also delves into the colonial trade connections that are woven into the fabric of the dresses.

A vibrant blue silk waistcoat from the 1830s, on display at the Style & Sensibility exhibition at the Judges' Lodgings Museum.

Lancashire County Council Museums collections and conservation staff based at Preston worked with the Judges’ Lodgings team to prepare the exhibition which is dedicated to the

memory of Dr John Dyer, Lancaster district’s former district medical officer of health.

Style & Sensibility was made possible by loans from Preston’s Harris Museum & Art Gallery, Tullie House Museum & Art Gallery Trust in Carlisle, and Lancashire Archives, as well as a

generous donation from the Judges’ Lodgings Trust for conservation work.

Judges' Lodgings Museum manager, Lynda Jackson, examines a walking dress from around 1825 ready for display at the Style & Sensibility exhibition.

The exhibition runs until November 17 from Thursday-Sunday, 11am-4pm.

For more information, visit https://www.lancashire.gov.uk/leisure-and-culture/museums/exhibitions/style-and-sensibility/

*The Judges’ Lodgings Museum experienced a surge in visitor numbers throughout 2023, largely attributed to the Facing the Past – Black Lancastrians exhibition by Lela Harris.

The Facing the Past portraits are now permanent exhibits, following their acquisition through funds provided by the Art Fund and the Association of Independent Museums.