Sea water cure
Dr. Russell’s sea water cure enticed many of the rich to move to the Square and to Brighton itself. The seawater cure was when you went swimming in the sea and swallowed large amounts of seawater. This was supposed to improve your health. The experiment proved so successful that Dr. Russell decided to establish a practice in the town.
Elleray who wrote the book “founding and Elleray days” quoted “Dr. Russell seawater cure began at Brighton around 1750. Visitors taking the treatment were in the care of dippers (for ladies) and Bathers (for gentlemen) Smoker miles were the first of the Brighton bathers machines. Miles attended in the Prince Regent following his arrival in 1783”.
The Prince Regent
When George, Prince of Wales - later to become Prince Regent and then George IV - decided to make his home here, Brighton's popularity soared.
The town underwent an amazing transformation. Local people made money by providing bathing machines, which carried the bathers into the sea and bathing attendants’ known as 'dippers' stood by - ready to duck reluctant bathers. One of the most famous of these, Martha Gunn, is buried in St Nicholas churchyard.
Although well known for its connection with the Prince Regent, the first recorded Royal visitor was Charles II. After his escape from the Battle of Worcester in 1651, he hid from the Roundheads disguised as a servant. He stayed in the George Inn in West Street (later renamed the Kings Head) and escaped to France by boat, now celebrated every May with a race from Brighton to France, appropriately named the Royal Escape.
As Prince Regent, he gave lasting fame to Brighton as a resort after his arrival in September 1783. The Prince first occupied Grove House, and then the Marine Pavilion, commissioned from Henry Holland in 1787. George IV’s last visit to Brighton extended from January until the 7th of March 1827, ending an association with the town for nearly 44 years. The Prince regent has been said to be the reason for the design of Brunswick Square because of the way he built his palace.
His majesty George IV on his accession to the throne, from a print published by Henry Colburn in 1820.
Leisure
“It was a social necessity to be seen promenading or being driven in one’s carriage along the seafront and around the green lawns of the Steine opposite the Royal Pavilion.
E. Scott wrote this quote in 1984. This means that the quote maybe inaccurate because it was not written in the time of the Prince Regent but the writer has used quite normal, useful information to write his book so, the evidence for this quote being true is very strong. Also why would he want to lie?
Another place of leisure is the green in the middle of Brunswick Square. The paths were wide indicating that the women of the time would walk alone the paths and not have to touch each other, whilst passing.
Architecture
“The first housing development in Hove was Brunswick Square. Its Regency architecture, looking out to sea from around a central garden, typifies what makes Brighton and Hove different from any other coastal resort.”
“The ammonite decoration - a pun on designer Amon Wilds’ name - appeals to my sense of humour. I am fascinated by the variation of internal design behind the matching facades.”
“Once sad, the square is fashionable again and during Open Weekend comes alive with visitors. No Sea-front Square or building is grander.”
Bob Allen wrote a Brighton enthusiast all three of these quotes. This just tells you that Brunswick Square’s Architecture means a lot to a lot of people. I very much doubt that Bob Allen would have lied but I found it on a small Brunswick Square web site and the information may have been fake to attract extra viewers.
Amon Wilds used many different types of Architecture from around the world when he designed this masterpiece. Here are some of the different pillars used:
The Bow Street Runner
The bow street runner was supposedly the police station of Brunswick Square. Next to the Bow Street Runner pub is the town hall. The owners of the Bow Street Runner say that the sellers link with the town hall. This would have be a strong point for the Bow Street Runner being the police station because the town hall was a court, convicted prisoners could go from one place to the another without having to go outside. This made it harder for prisoners to escape.
Although there are many points for The Bow Street Runner being the police station, its next-door neighbour “Grahams Breakfast Bar” say that they are really the police station.
One reason that I think the pub may be saying they are the old police station is because they would get more business from visitors. That is also another reason for “Grahams Breakfast Bar” saying that they are the old police station.
Overall I believe that as there is more evidence for the Bow Street Runner being the police station, it probably was.
The Iron Duke
The Iron Duke for many years has been said to have an interesting past.
It was open by 1828, and may even have preceded the erection of Brunswick Town. The first name for the Iron Duke was the Kerrison Arms.
“The Kerrison Arms was defiantly not an ordinary pub, and was considered to be of sufficient class for the Brunswick Square Commissioners to hold meetings there in 1839”
P. Smith made this quote in 1990 from the book “A Short History of Hove”. This quote would have been truthful because the book would have collected many sources to make one book. One quote though is the fact that the quote was not written in the time that the quote talks about.
This was why the Iron Duke was so suspicious because, it was known as a ‘more than a friendly pub’ a ‘brothel’. I wondered if this quote was true, so I decided to investigate into the pubs history. I found that the pub was known to have been a ‘more than friendly pub’ but it never actually has been listed as a Brothel.
Overall I truly believe that the Iron Duke pub may have had a strange pub but I don’t think that it was actually a brothel. One other thing against it was the fact that would the men of Brunswick square really want to be socialising with the women of the Brothel in a rather adult nature so close to their loving families?
The Star of Brunswick
The star of Brunswick was supposedly a fire station for Brunswick Square. This is what many people from the area believe. The Star Of Brunswick has always been quite controversial because some people say that it was just a place where the fire officers drank. Other people say that it was a fire station from the start otherwise why would they have a fire badge on their pub sign. Also one writer ‘Smith’ wrote that:
“In Brunswick Street East in 1867, along with the Denmark, Tavern and Star Of Brunswick inn, was the station inn, not to mention the freemason’s tavern on the corner.”
This basically says that the Star Of Brunswick was an inn when Brunswick was built. I myself believe that it was where the Fire Men went to relax but not where they worked. In Bingham’s book also, it quotes:
“In Brunswick Square West, Busby built the Star of Brunswick public house, a local escape for local servants.”
This does mean that The Star of Brunswick was made as an inn for local servants because I strongly believe that Bingham would have researched a lot into the plans of Brunswick Square before making such a vital quote. He could be lying though because the quote is not from the time but I do not believe this is so.
The Stables
When Busby was designing Brunswick Square it was also his job to design the service streets behind Brunswick square. As Bingham Wrote:
“The design of the service streets behind Brunswick Square also occupied Busby. Brunswick Square East and Brunswick Square West were narrow alleys of stabling, with cramped living quarters for the coachmen on the first floors.”
This quote tells you that Busby tried to make the service streets as narrow as possible because the glamour of Brunswick Square was on its outside facing the green no the inside (West and East Brunswick) there was also a Riding Academy, that was in Lower Market Street and Waterloo Street. It was called Du Pont’s West Brighton Riding Academy. It hired and sold horses and carridges and provided stabling rooms for coachmen. The building was opened on 30th October 1828 as a market for Brunswick Square. The market was not very succesfull though.
