Now that we are in the midst of Carnival celebrations it is fitting to glance back and remind ourselves of one aspect of Carnival in times gone by – the annual Carnival fancy dress ball at the Governor’s Palace in Valletta. Fortunately, the Malta newspapers of the late 19th century provided a great deal of information about the comings, goings and doings of Maltese, British and European high society.

The principal English-language newspapers of the day were The Daily Malta Chronicle and The Malta Standard. This article also draws on sketches of military artist Albert Crawford McFall and the extensive scrap album of Captain Spencer Ewart, Assistant Military Secretary to Governor Lyon-Fremantle.

The first hint of the approaching festivities was generally a public announcement in the newspapers from one of the aides-de-camp to the Governor a week or 10 days before the event stating:

“Ladies and gentlemen attending the fancy dress ball at the Palace . . . are requested to write their names and costumes on cards, which they will be good enough to hand to the sergeant at the head of the stairs.”

By order

G. Chesney, Capt.

A. D. C.

This was generally followed by the single most important rule for the evening – We have been authorised to state that the two services uniforms at the Carnival Ball at the Palace on. . . will not (except in the cases of officers of and above the rank of full Colonel) be considered as fancy dress.

Some newspapers commented that this stipulation may have deterred a number of elderly officers under the requisite rank from attending. Nevertheless, they were adequately represented by their wives which contributed to the plethora of the ‘fairest of creation’.

The Governor frequently relaxed the rule of fancy dress for the dignified members of the Council, the judges and the superintendent and magistrates of Police. The foreign consuls were permitted to wear consular uniform.

Let us take a peep into the proceedings of the Fancy Dress Ball of February 21, 1887. The Ball was hosted by Governor Sir Lintorn and Lady Simmons featured here in portraits by Giuseppe Calì (wearing formal dress).

In attendance and enhancing proceedings by the presence of Royalty were Her Royal Highness Princess Louise and Their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh. Princess Louise was Queen Victoria’s fourth daughter and Prince Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh, was the Queen’s second and favourite son, who at the time was serving as vice-admiral and Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet stationed at Malta.

As guests started arriving at the Palace around 9.30pm they made their way through the colourfully illuminated entrances and courtyards up to the Hall of St Michael and St George. At precisely 9.30pm the doors of the hall were thrown open and the guests filed past the Royal party as well as the Governor and his wife, curtseying and bowing as required by the protocol of the day.

These acts of obeisance must have presented a surreal sight since the Royal ladies were dressed up in their fancy dress costumes as Powder and Patches (with splendid parures of sparkling diamonds), while the Prince was kitted out in the handsome outfit of a 16th-century Russian Boyard or nobleman. This costume was given to him by the Czar of Russia in 1885 and it was only the second time that the Prince had worn it.

The hostess, Lady Simmons looked magnificent in the costume of a Sicilian lady of the 16th century. This consisted of a bodice and train of black brocaded velvet and puffed cream satin petticoat fastened at intervals with ornaments of rubies and diamonds. The sleeves were sashed with cream satin. She also wore a high beaded ruff and a girdle of pearls and rubies, a velvet coif and a long white veil.

The Governor, despite his reputation as a bluff and genial officer maintained his dignity by wearing the full dress uniform of a General Officer, including his decorations and the impressive Collar of the Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath.

The Governor frequently relaxed the rule of fancy dress

Blanch Simmons, their daughter, chose a costume depicting Joan of Arc. A sketch drawn by Albert Crawford McFall of the Yorkshire Light Infantry gives us an excellent impression of this outfit. It shows her in a suit of gold chain armour and white cloth skirt. Over her shoulders is draped a long white mantle embroidered with gold fleur-de-lis. Her outfit is adorned by a gold hilted sword (no doubt borrowed from her father’s wardrobe) fastened to a plain leather belt.

The entertainment commenced with two waltzes and by 10pm the majority of the guests were in attendance and the gathering had transformed into a dazzling spectacle. The account given in The Malta Chronicle, while valuable in its detail, wasn’t short of imagination:

“The scene brought before us, with what seemed a startling reality, the appearance that an Eastern palace must have presented. . . The mani-coloured dresses of the representatives of every people and nation to be found on the face of the earth, the flashing ornaments, the many twinkling feet so small and sylph-like, suggesting the more secret symmetry of the fair forms which terminate so well, floating like light clouds betwixt our gaze and heaven, combined with the graceful movements, the music and the sweet odours, formed a scene, shifting and changing as it did in all the gaudy combinations of a kaleidoscope, worthy of a painter’s brush”.

The third dance was set apart for Mrs Davis’ Eastern Lancers. The troupe assembled in the State Drawing Room and as they marched in procession before the dais each of the six couples saluted the hosts in the manner of the country they represented (Albania, India, Egypt, Japan, Algeria and Greece).

The fifth dance on the card was Lady Dingli’s Maltese Country Dance which being a novelty to the British contingent drew much attention, appreciation and applause. The dancers were: Mr H. Mirabita, Dr A. Gasan, Mr Vella, Mr Ghio, Mr Alf. Gatt, Mr Briffa, Mr Leonardini, Mr S de’ Baroni Sceberras Trigona, Mr C. Fiteni, Mr Martorello, Mr R. Ullo Xuereb, Mr V. Rizzo, Mr Reynaud, Dr Fiteni, Mr R. Bonello, Mr T. Vella,  Mrs A de’ Marchesi De Piro, Miss E. Spiteri, Miss Gollcher, Miss Vell, Mrs Reynaud, Miss Curmi Cecy, Miss V. Debono, Mrs. S de’ Baroni Sceberras Trigona, Miss Curmi Cecy, Miss Sciortino, Miss Gasan, Miss Galizia, Mrs A. Gatt, Miss Frendo  Azzopardi, Miss Chapelle and Miss R. Spiteri.

And what of the costumes of the guests? Those that stood out for special mention, other than the ones already mentioned, were the Misses Parnis dressed as Japanese ladies who attracted much attention, Miss Boyes represented a “killing” chasseresse (huntress), Miss Hughes Hallett as Queen Elizabeth I was “perfect” in both outfit and demeanour, Miss Zammit wore the outfit of a midshipman, the Marchesina Olivier dressed as Thermitis and Baronessina Galea the outfit of a marquise.

Other guests who contributed greatly to the general amusement were Messrs Livingstone and Cooper Key dressed as Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee and Messrs C. P. Livingstone and Ferrier Kerr as The Babes in the Wood in their original costumes and with their queer gesticulations. Possibly the most menacing was Mr Bain in the original armour of a Japanese warrior.

Supper was served in the Armoury at midnight. The Governor led the procession with Princess Louise on his arm, the Duke with Lady Simmons and Lord Sidmouth with the Duchess.

The Royal party departed around 1am and soon after three o’clock the playing of the National Anthem announced that the Palace Fancy Dress Ball for 1887 was a sweet memory of the past.

In March 1889 it was the turn of the newly appointed governor and his wife, Sir Henry and Lady Torrens, to try their hand at hosting the Carnival Fancy Dress Ball. They brought a fresh approach to the arrangements and made more space available for the guests by clearing the dining room where a new dance floor was laid down. The State Drawing Room was also thrown open and refreshments were served in the aides-de-camp’s office and the billiard room. The courtyard adjacent to the armoury was covered over to create a smoking room.

The Black Watch regiment were on duty and provided an impressive, yet informal guard of honour by lining the main stairs. Their regimental band (illustrated here) provided the musical entertainment.

In 1889 the hosts wore more restrained outfits. Sir Henry wore court dress and Prince Alfred the full dress uniform of an admiral. The ladies, however, were more inclined to enter into the spirit of the occasion. Lady Torrens wore a Rose du Barry Dress of the time of Louis XV and Lady Dingli chose the costume of a 15th century lady. Mrs Wilkie and Baroness Inguanez, dressed as ladies of the time of Louis XV, attracted much attention as also did Miss Sant Fournier. Our reporter, most likely a member of the Governor’s staff, seems to have had fun describing some of the other costumes.

“Mr Fitz Herbert [Royal Berkshire Regiment], who had evidently been thinking of Lent, brought a very fine lobster for supper and an excellent bonbon turned up, the owner of which will doubtless make a noise in the world some day. . .  Dr Samut as a Black Brunswicker was really too ‘killing’ for a medical man.”

The events seem to have gone of well and an extract from a humorous poem published in The Malta Standard sums things up nicely.

“I must state that Sir H-nry is commonly said

To have given a really excellent ‘spread’;

He has smiles and a word for all comers in plenty,

And he waltzes as brisk as a young spark of twenty.

Lady T. who was ‘sweetness and light’ bore the bell

With her brilliant good looks and her dancing as well.

Lady D.[ingli] was as usual genial and nice;

Mrs. C. was, Fred said, ‘a sweet bit of spice.’

But, O dearest Isabel, when I recall

The delights and the charm of each sumptuous ball,

And the sweet pretty nothings the gentlemen said

Quite sufficient to turn a poor maid’s little head.”

General Sir Arthur Lyon-Fremantle was sworn in as Governor of Malta on January 13, 1894 and less than one month later he and Lady Fremantle hosted the Carnival Ball at the Palace. Despite their recent arrival Sir Arthur and Lady Fremantle together with their staff, which included Captain (later Lieutenant General) Spencer Ewart, gave an excellent ball.

The Gavotte, organised by Lady Seymour, wife of Admiral Sir Michael Culme Seymour, Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet, deserved special mention. Fortunately, Captain Ewart’s scrap album contains some very informative photographs of the whole troupe of dancers as well as a shot of three couples in their period costumes. These costumes were quite special and as well as being extremely ornate had a special significance. Again, to understand the full impact of the novelty we turn to The Daily Malta Chronicle.

“As the grave partners entered the Throne-room each with his lady on his arm we fairly rubbed our eyes and fancied ourselves back in old Waterloo days. Dresses of Gentlemen were the state liveries of Lord Stuart de Rothesay, British Ambassador to the Court of France from 1814 to 1830. Some of these liveries were worn at the historical ball given by the Duchess of Richmond at Brussels on June 17, 1815 the night before the battle of Waterloo and were brought out from England on purpose”.

To this almost incredulous claim must be added a note of bathos since the unfortunate Miss Laura Culme Seymour (on the left in her dance costume) was to die tragically the following year and was buried at Ta’ Braxia cemetery.

Acknowledgments
The author wishes to acknowledge Peter Bartolo Parnis’s valuable assistance in photographing the illustrations.

Chris Grech is currently giving a series of five lectures on Military Art and Artists in Malta. For details contact: info@prevarti.com.