Before social media and cute terms like “influencer,” there were plenty of people who made names and reputations for themselves as trend-setters, intentionally or otherwise. In each blog post in this series, I’ll look at one historical influencer, propelled to fashion fame by the social media of their day: chiefly gossip, monthly fashion magazines, and the attention of caricaturists.

Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire; George “Beau” Brummell; and Queen Adelaide are three British “influencers” I’ll get to shortly.