Wyllie (William Lionel)

, , c.1890.
an atmospheric view of the famous chain pier at Brighton, sometimes given the alternative title of ‘Southerly Gale, Brighton Chain Pier’, captured in the dying years of existence by one of the acknowledged masters of British maritime art, William Lionel Wyllie R.A. (1851-1931). The Royal Suspension Chain Pier, to give it its formal name, was opened in November 1823, the same year that Brighton Pavilion was completed. It was originally intended to serve as a landing stage for cross-channel sailings to and from Dieppe of both passengers and cargo, previously involving hazardous transfers to small craft to be brought ashore. It was designed and built by Captain Sir Samuel Brown, and comprised wrought iron chains suspended from cast iron pylons, modelled on the ancient gateways at Karnak, in Egypt. In this they were precursors to the pylons designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel some years later for his Clifton Suspension Bridge. The pier very quickly became a destination in its own right, attracting huge numbers of visitors each year. This helped keep it open after the cross-channel traffic had been diverted to nearby Newhaven from 1847. However, interest declined in the 1860s with the construction of the West Pier, a more overt pleasure ground, in 1866, followed by the opening of the Aquarium in 1872. It finally closed in 1896, and was then destroyed in a fierce storm later the same year..
200 by 360mm (7¾ by 14¼ inches).