This day, 18 November, in 1852 was the day of the funeral of the Duke of Wellington. Here we have a

This day, 18 November, in 1852 was the day of the funeral of the Duke of Wellington. Here we have a framed funeral ticket for a spot along the route of the procession. The Duke died at the age of 83 on 14th September 1852 and his funeral, which was held over two months later on 18th November, was an event of national importance. The funeral procession route ran from Horse Guards to St Paul’s and the way was lined with over a million people. Those who owned businesses or homes that overlooked the route sold tickets to people who wanted a better view than could be guaranteed at street level. An account of this, mentioned in “A London Year: 365 Days of City Life in Diaries, Journals and Letters” (eds. Travis Elborough, Nick Rennison) describes how some ticket sellers could be dishonourable, but as this ticket is for the “Opera Colonnade” of “Her Majesty’s Theatre” (Haymarket), has an assigned seat (No. 110), and also bears a signature (presumably of one of the Theatre’s staff), one hopes the bearer of this ticket had more luck than the writer of the quoted journal: “Today I witnessed the Duke of Wellington’s funeral. Never saw London in such a bustle or so visibly excited in all parts as on this occasion … I hired a seat in a window … but on going to take possession found the house belonged to some swindlers who kept a betting house, and that the seats had been sold over and over again, and were filled by the first claimants among the many who had bought tickets. However, I got a very good standing place in Fleet Street, and saw everything well.” -- source link

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