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 Beau Nash ( 1674-1762 )
Richard "Beau" Nash was originally from
Swansea but came to Bath to make his fortune from gambling having already
served as an army officer and as a lawyer. Although he had no social standing
(his father had been a bottle maker), he was considered rather a 'dandy' and
when Webster, Bath's Master of Ceremonies, was killed in a gambling quarrel
"Beau" Nash took the title and all the powers it yielded. His influence was
soon to be felt by all of Bath's residents. He conducted lavish public balls,
dictated dress and social etiquette and even offered his opinion on new
building proposals. Strict rules were put in place governing what time public
balls could begin and end and Nash dictated that the opening dance was always
to be a Minuet.
His position also enabled him actively to promote
gambling in Bath, in which he also had private interests. To his credit,
however, he did ban pipe-smoking in Bath's public rooms and the wearing of
swords in public. He died in Bath at age 87 leaving his partner Juliana Popjoy
impoverished and, the story goes, to spend the last of her days living within
the trunk of an old, hollowed-out tree!
In the 1960's, Nash's memory
lived on with the establishment of a casino operating under his name in Bristol
a mere 10 miles from Bath. |
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