The Bicentenary of Charles Frederick Worth born at Wake House on 13 October 1825 will be celebrated in October 2025 at Wake House
​Celebrations to mark 200 years since the birth of Charles Frederick Worth – the father of haute couture, 41 North Street, Bourne, Lincolnshire.
During the weekend of 11th and 12th October, 2025, Wake House will host a celebration of the 200 year anniversary since the birth of Charles Frederick Worth – please see below for more details and a brief history of Worth. As the details of plans evolve, they will be publicised on the Wake House website and social media - more details below.
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Charles Frederick Worth was born in October, 1825 in 41 North Street (later known as Wake House), Bourne, which was at that time an isolated small rural town in South Lincolnshire. Not at all the start in life one would expect for such an eminent member of the Paris based fashion world.
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Charles Frederick Worth’s father was a lawyer, who struggled with alcohol and gambling; he finally moved away from his family in 1836 when Charles was only 11. After his father left, Charles finished school and began work, aged 12, as an apprentice to a local Lincolnshire printer. However, this work did not suit him, so Charles asked a friend in London to see if he could find work for him. A year later he was working at the prestigious department store of Swan and Edgar, Regent Street, selling fabrics and textiles. Inspired by his working environment, at the age of 20, Worth decided to move to Paris, with £5 in his pocket, to widen his experience of the world of fashion.
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In Paris, he found employment with the House of Gagelin, a well respected fashion house, and whilst working there, he produced medal winning items for both the Great Exhibition in Crystal Palace and the Grande Exposition in Paris. However, he felt he was not being sufficiently well recognised for his work and partnered with Otto Gustav Bobergh, who was a fellow employee. Together, they set up the House of Worth and Bobergh at 7 Rue de la Paix. Charles Worth was now on his way up in the fashion industry, introducing many innovations including the use of live models in his salon to display his gowns in movement; branding his own designs with House of Worth labels being sewn into his work; and being a pioneer designer creating his own “house designs”. Clients would then look to the expert designer to inform them what to wear – helping to pave the way to Haute Couture as we still know it today.
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Worth met his wife – Marie-Augustine Vernet - whilst they were both working for House of Gagelin. She was key to Worth’s eventual success. Marie persuaded Princess de Metternich who was married to the Austrian Ambassador to let them make a dress for her, which she wore at an event attended by Napoléon’s wife, Princess Eugénie. Eugénie was so impressed by the dress that early in 1860 she asked Worth to make a dress for her, and as a result, Worth became the favourite designer and dressmaker of the Empress. This marked the beginning of Worth’s international success in the world of fashion. Subsequently, he designed for many members of European royal families, including Queen Victoria, as well as for wives of rich aristocrats and visitors from the USA.​
As Worth’s reputation and fortune grew, the Cartier family became aware of his increasing success, and approached Charles Frederick to ask if they could display some of their jewellery in the shop at 7 Rue de la Paix. Agreement was reached, thereby establishing a strong commercial link between Worth’s fashion and Cartier’s jewellery. In 1898, the families were linked by marriage when Louis-François Cartier’s grandson, Louis, married Charles Worth’s granddaughter, Andrée-Caroline. In 1902, Worth and Cartier opened a shop together in Mayfair, London, which was Cartier’s first permanent commercial enterprise outside of France. A further link was forged between the two families in 1907, when Suzanne Cartier married Jacques Worth.
Wake House, Bourne, where Worth spent his childhood, has been the home of Bourne Arts and Community Trust since 1999. The trust runs Wake House as a Community Centre for the benefit of the local population, used mainly for socially useful groups (as can be seen from the rest of this website). During the weekend of 11th and 12th October, 2025, celebrations at Wake House will include talks on Worth’s history by an author who has recently published a book (in English and in French) about Worth; talks by descendants of Worth’s family; a talk by a member of the Costume Society in addition to talks by other knowledgeable enthusiasts of Worth’s work. There will also be other activities linked to the history of fashion and Worth’s place as the father of haute couture. It is also planned to have a two House of Worth garments on display. This programme of events to celebrate Worth has been made possible following a successful bid to National Lottery Heritage Fund.
As arrangements for the celebrations in Wake House are finalised, they will be publicised on the Wake House website and social media. If you have any specific queries, please contact CFWorth200years@outlook.com.
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Also, if you are able to travel to Paris this year, there are two significant exhibitions organised with the input of Worth’s descendants – one at the Petit Palais from May 7th until September 7th 2025. The second exhibition will be held later in 2025 in the museum at Suresnes, in the suburbs of Paris, where Worth lived.
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Suggestions for further reading
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Trubert-Tollu, C., Tétart-Vittu, F., and Olivieri, F. (2017) The House of Worth. London, Thames and Hudson.
Clarke, S. (2025) Charles Frederick Worth – The Englishman who invented Parisian Haute Couture, pAf.
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Cartier Brickell, F. (2019) The Cartiers, Ballantine Books.