Group of Yachtsmen. — Drawn by Phiz. (Hablot Knight Browne). The Illustrated London News 22 August 1846: 121. 14 cm high by 22.7 cm wide (5 ½ by 9 inches), vignetted.
In this feature "Yachting at the Isle of Wight" in The Illustrated London News for 22 August 1846, Phiz provides one of three large-scale illustrations that could be a seaside scene straight out of Dickens's Dombey and Son, shortly to begin its serial run in nineteen monthly instalments (October 1846 through April 1848), and illustrated by Phiz. A prime example would be Major Bagstock is delighted to have that opportunity (Chapter XXI, Part 7, April 1847).
Excerpt from "Yachting at The Isle of White"
Last week we chronicled the sports of the annual regatta of the Royal Yacht Squadron, at Cowes — the crowning glories of the yachting amusements of the season. We this week present our readers with three of the most stirring scenes of this great national festival.
First is a group of Yachtsmen, most characteristically sketched by Phiz. The companion print [bottom half of the page] is a picture of Ryde Pier, on Wednesday, which we find thus sketched graphically in the Sunday Times. . . . [212]
Commentary: The Sail-past a Mere Backdrop for Middle-Class Conversation
Under the hand of the visual satirist, "yachting" is a purely incidental activity, relegated to the background. What fascinates Phiz is how none of the nautically well-dressed spectators on the beach at the Isle of Wight (hardly the "Yachtsmen" that his caption proclaims) is much interested in the sail-past — even the fashionably attired child to the left, alienated from the adults, is not much engaged in watching the spectacle, and leans listlessly over the railing. We might as well be in a West End drawing-room or the parlour of a country-house.
Links to Related Material
Scanned image and text Philip V. Allingham [You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned the image and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]
Bibliography
Browne, Hablot Knight. Group of Yachtsmen. The Illustrated London News. 22 August 1846: 121.
Dickens, Charles. Chapter XXI, "New Faces." Dombey and Son. Illustrated by Hablot K. Browne ("Phiz"). The Clarendon Edition, ed. Alan Horsman. Oxford: Clarendon, 1974 (rpt. of the 12 April 1848 Chapman and Hall edition).
"Yachting in the Isle of Wight." The Illustrated London News. No. 225, Vol. IX (22 August 1846): pp. 121-124.
Created 24 June 2025