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Season (society)
Encyclopedia
The social season or Season has historically referred to the annual period when it is customary for members of the a social elite
of society to hold debutante
balls
, dinner parties
and large charity
events. It was also the appropriate time to be resident in the city rather than in the country, in order to attend such events.
The London social season evolved in the 17th and 18th centuries, and in its traditional form it peaked in the 19th century. In this era the British elite was dominated by landowning aristocratic and gentry families who generally regarded their country house as their main home, but spent several months of the year in the capital to socialise and to engage in politics. The most exclusive events were held at the town mansions of leading members of the aristocracy. Exclusive public venues such as Almack's
played a secondary role. The Season coincided with the sitting of Parliament
and began some time after Christmas
and ran until midsummer
, roughly late June). The social season also played a role in the political life of the country: the members of the two Houses of Parliament were almost all participants in the season. But the Season also provided an opportunity for the children of marriageable age of the nobility
and gentry
to be launched into society. Women were formally introduced into society by presentation to the monarch at Court
.
In London society, the Season traditionally began after Easter and ended with the "Glorious Twelfth
" (August 12), the start of the shooting season for red grouse
.
The traditional Season went into decline after the First World War, when many aristocratic families gave up their London mansions. From this time on an increasing number of society events took place at public venues, making it harder to maintain social exclusivity.
Many events that take place far from central London came to be regarded as part of the social season, including Royal Ascot and the Henley Regatta. The presentation of débutantes at court was abolished by Queen Elizabeth II
in 1958. The events which now comprise the London social Season are increasingly hosted or sponsored by large companies (ie. "corporate hospitality"). Dress codes still apply to certain events in the season, especially where the Queen plays an official role.
According to the peerage
guide Debrett's
, the traditional Social Season runs from April to August.
Today there is no official organization of the Season, although many of the traditions and customs remain.
— Royal Academy Summer Exhibition
— West End theatre
— The Grand National
— The Royal Windsor Horse Show
— The Epsom Derby
cheltenham gold cup
— Polo
— Wimbledon
— Cowes Week
— The Lord's Test Match
Although several of these events are not actually held in London, such as the Hurlingham Polo Cartier International
at Guards Polo Club
, the organisers of most events attempt to avoid date clashes, so it is generally possible to visit all of them in the same year (given sufficient leisure
time, disposable income
and stamina).
The traditional end of the London Season is the Glorious Twelfth
of August, which marks the beginning of the shooting season. Society would retire to the country to shoot birds during the autumn and hunt foxes during the winter, before coming back to London again with the spring.
cities have a more-or-less official social season, although only those persons on the social register
may be aware of its existence. In the United States, the timing of the social season is adapted to the local climate
, rather than to the sitting of a legislative body and may start as early as the autumn
and end in the early summer when the rich elite traditionally fled the hot and humid cities for the camps of the Adirondacks, seaside retreats such as the Hamptons
, or, in California, the Napa
and Sonoma
Valleys.
In New York
, the opening of the Metropolitan Opera
in September is a major event of the early social season, which includes the International Debutante Ball
in December. In Los Angeles
, it is the Las Madrinas debutante ball, and in San Francisco, the Opening Night Gala of the San Francisco Opera
.
Elite
Elite refers to an exceptional or privileged group that wields considerable power within its sphere of influence...
of society to hold debutante
Debutante
A débutante is a young lady from an aristocratic or upper class family who has reached the age of maturity, and as a new adult, is introduced to society at a formal "début" presentation. It should not be confused with a Debs...
balls
Ball (dance)
A ball is a formal dance. The word 'ball' is derived from the Latin word "ballare", meaning 'to dance'; the term also derived into "bailar", which is the Spanish and Portuguese word for dance . In Catalan it is the same word, 'ball', for the dance event.Attendees wear evening attire, which is...
, dinner parties
Dinner party
Dinner Party or The Dinner Party may refer to:* A type of party* The Dinner Party,an installation artwork by Judy Chicago* The Dinner Party , by Neil Simon* Dinner Party , by Pier Vittorio Tondelli...
and large charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
events. It was also the appropriate time to be resident in the city rather than in the country, in order to attend such events.
The Season in London
Almack's
Almack's Assembly Rooms was a social club in London from 1765 to 1871 and one of the first to admit both men and women. It was one of a limited number of upper class mixed-sex public social venues in the British capital in an era when the most important venues for the hectic social season were the...
played a secondary role. The Season coincided with the sitting of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
and began some time after Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
and ran until midsummer
Midsummer
Midsummer may simply refer to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, but more often refers to specific European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice, or that take place on a day between June 21 and June 24, and the preceding evening. The exact dates vary between different...
, roughly late June). The social season also played a role in the political life of the country: the members of the two Houses of Parliament were almost all participants in the season. But the Season also provided an opportunity for the children of marriageable age of the nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
and gentry
Gentry
Gentry denotes "well-born and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past....
to be launched into society. Women were formally introduced into society by presentation to the monarch at Court
Royal court
Royal court, as distinguished from a court of law, may refer to:* The Royal Court , Timbaland's production company*Court , the household and entourage of a monarch or other ruler, the princely court...
.
In London society, the Season traditionally began after Easter and ended with the "Glorious Twelfth
Glorious Twelfth
The Glorious Twelfth is usually used to refer to 12 August, the start of the shooting season for Red Grouse and to a lesser extent the Ptarmigan in the United Kingdom. This is one of the busiest days in the shooting season, with large amounts of game being shot...
" (August 12), the start of the shooting season for red grouse
Red grouse
The Red Grouse is a medium sized bird of the grouse family which is found in heather moorland in Great Britain and Ireland. It is usually classified as a subspecies of the Willow Grouse but is sometimes considered to be a separate species Lagopus scoticus...
.
The traditional Season went into decline after the First World War, when many aristocratic families gave up their London mansions. From this time on an increasing number of society events took place at public venues, making it harder to maintain social exclusivity.
Many events that take place far from central London came to be regarded as part of the social season, including Royal Ascot and the Henley Regatta. The presentation of débutantes at court was abolished by Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
in 1958. The events which now comprise the London social Season are increasingly hosted or sponsored by large companies (ie. "corporate hospitality"). Dress codes still apply to certain events in the season, especially where the Queen plays an official role.
According to the peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
guide Debrett's
Debrett's
Debrett’s is a specialist publisher, founded in 1769 with the publication of the first edition of The New Peerage. The name "Debrett's" honours John Debrett...
, the traditional Social Season runs from April to August.
Today there is no official organization of the Season, although many of the traditions and customs remain.
Events in the London Season
Arts
Glyndebourne — The PromsThe Proms
The Proms, more formally known as The BBC Proms, or The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in London...
— Royal Academy Summer Exhibition
Royal Academy summer exhibition
The Summer Exhibition is an open art exhibition held annually by the Royal Academy in Burlington House, Piccadilly in central London, England, during the summer months of June, July, and August...
— West End theatre
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
Equestrianism
Royal Ascot — Glorious Goodwood — BadmintonBadminton Horse Trials
The Badminton Horse Trials is a three-day event, one of only six annual Concours Complet International Four Star **** events as classified by the Fédération Équestre Internationale , which takes place in April or May each year in the park of Badminton House, the seat of the Dukes of Beaufort in...
— The Grand National
Grand National
The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...
— The Royal Windsor Horse Show
Royal Windsor Horse Show
The Royal Windsor Horse Show is a horse show held annually since 1943 for five days in May or June in Windsor Home Park....
— The Epsom Derby
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
cheltenham gold cup
Sport
The Boat Race — Henley Royal RegattaHenley Royal Regatta
Henley Royal Regatta is a rowing event held every year on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. The Royal Regatta is sometimes referred to as Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage...
— Polo
Guards Polo Club
Guards Polo Club is the polo club most closely associated with the British Royal Family. HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh has been President of the club since its formation in 1955 and HM The Queen is its Patron...
— Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
— Cowes Week
Cowes Week
Cowes Week is one of the longest-running regular regattas in the world. With 40 daily races, up to 1,000 boats, and 8,500 competitors ranging from Olympic and world class professionals to weekend sailors, it is the largest sailing regatta of its kind in the world...
— The Lord's Test Match
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
Although several of these events are not actually held in London, such as the Hurlingham Polo Cartier International
Hurlingham Polo Association
The Hurlingham Polo Association is the governing body for polo in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The Federation of International Polo produces the International Rules of Polo through a cooperative agreement with the Hurlingham Polo Association, the Asociación Argentina de Polo , plus...
at Guards Polo Club
Guards Polo Club
Guards Polo Club is the polo club most closely associated with the British Royal Family. HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh has been President of the club since its formation in 1955 and HM The Queen is its Patron...
, the organisers of most events attempt to avoid date clashes, so it is generally possible to visit all of them in the same year (given sufficient leisure
Leisure
Leisure, or free time, is time spent away from business, work, and domestic chores. It is also the periods of time before or after necessary activities such as eating, sleeping and, where it is compulsory, education....
time, disposable income
Disposable income
Disposable income is total personal income minus personal current taxes. In national accounts definitions, personal income, minus personal current taxes equals disposable personal income...
and stamina).
The traditional end of the London Season is the Glorious Twelfth
Glorious Twelfth
The Glorious Twelfth is usually used to refer to 12 August, the start of the shooting season for Red Grouse and to a lesser extent the Ptarmigan in the United Kingdom. This is one of the busiest days in the shooting season, with large amounts of game being shot...
of August, which marks the beginning of the shooting season. Society would retire to the country to shoot birds during the autumn and hunt foxes during the winter, before coming back to London again with the spring.
Dress Codes
Many events of the season have traditional expectations with regard to dress.- At Royal Ascot, for example, hats are a must and to be admitted to the Royal Enclosure for the first time one must either be a guest of a member or be sponsored for membership by a member who has attended at least four times. This continues to maintain a socially exclusive character to the Enclosure. If permitted to enter the Royal Enclosure, gentlemen are required to wear either black or gray morning dress, including a waistcoat, with a top hat. A gentleman may remove his top hat within a restaurant, a private box, a private club or that facility's terrace, balcony or garden. Hats may also be removed within any enclosed external seating area within the Royal Enclosure Garden. Ladies must not show bare midriffs or shoulders and must wear hats.
- At Henley Royal RegattaHenley Royal RegattaHenley Royal Regatta is a rowing event held every year on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. The Royal Regatta is sometimes referred to as Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage...
, in the Stewards' Enclosure gentlemen must wear a jacket and tie. Rowing Club colours on a blazer or cap are encouraged, as is the wearing of boaterBoaterBoater may refer to:*Boater, a type of hat*Boater, one of the first disposable diapers*Someone involved in boating...
s. A lady's skirt hem must reach below the knee and is checked before entry by the Stewards' Officers. Hats are encouraged but not required for ladies. When a student protested being denied entry to the Stewards' Enclosure for failing to meet the dress code, saying she had worn the dress "in the Royal Enclosure at Ascot and nobody said anything," a spokesman defended the dress code saying "The intention is to maintain the atmosphere of an English Garden party of the Edwardian period by wearing a more traditional dress." Members must display their enamel badges at all times. Anyone found using a mobile phoneMobile phoneA mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
is asked to leave immediately and their Stewards' Enclosure host, identified by the number on the guests badge, may have his membership withdrawn as a result.
- At polo matchesPoloPolo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Sometimes called, "The Sport of Kings", it was highly popularized by the British. Players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a...
it is usual for gentlemen to wear a blazer and always white trousers. Ladies should wear flat shoes, as the tradition of "treading in the divots" precludes wearing heels. The famous Club House at Guards Polo ClubGuards Polo ClubGuards Polo Club is the polo club most closely associated with the British Royal Family. HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh has been President of the club since its formation in 1955 and HM The Queen is its Patron...
in Windsor Great ParkWindsor Great ParkWindsor Great Park is a large deer park of , to the south of the town of Windsor on the border of Berkshire and Surrey in England. The park was, for many centuries, the private hunting ground of Windsor Castle and dates primarily from the mid-13th century...
is for the use of Club members only, who wear individually made gold and enamel badges. Members' guests are given special gold-embossed tags.
The Season in the United States
Many large AmericanUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
cities have a more-or-less official social season, although only those persons on the social register
Social Register
Specific to the United States, the Social Register is a directory of names and addresses of prominent American families who form the social elite, . The "Directory" automatically includes the President of the United States and the First Family, and in the past always included the U.S. Senators and...
may be aware of its existence. In the United States, the timing of the social season is adapted to the local climate
Climate
Climate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elemental measurements in a given region over long periods...
, rather than to the sitting of a legislative body and may start as early as the autumn
Autumn
Autumn is one of the four temperate seasons. Autumn marks the transition from summer into winter usually in September or March when the arrival of night becomes noticeably earlier....
and end in the early summer when the rich elite traditionally fled the hot and humid cities for the camps of the Adirondacks, seaside retreats such as the Hamptons
Hamptons
The Hamptons may refer to several villages and hamlets in the towns of Southampton and East Hampton on the far east end of Suffolk County in Long Island, New York. These townships occupy the South Fork of Long Island, stretching into the Atlantic Ocean. The Hamptons form a popular seaside resort,...
, or, in California, the Napa
Napa County, California
Napa County is a county located north of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is coterminous with the Napa, California, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010 the population is 136,484. The county seat is Napa....
and Sonoma
Sonoma Valley
Sonoma Valley is the birthplace of the California wine industry and often called The Valley of the Moon. Sonoma Valley is home to some of the earliest vineyards and wineries in the state, some of which survived the phylloxera epidemic of the 1870s and the impact of Prohibition...
Valleys.
In New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, the opening of the Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
in September is a major event of the early social season, which includes the International Debutante Ball
International Debutante Ball
The International Debutante Ball is a formal ball to present ladies to society within New York City's Waldorf Astoria at Manhattan in the USA. This ball was first held in 1954, when it was founded by Beatrice Dinsmore Joyce, and is held biennially , most recently in December 2010...
in December. In Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, it is the Las Madrinas debutante ball, and in San Francisco, the Opening Night Gala of the San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera is an American opera company, based in San Francisco, California.It was founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola and is the second largest opera company in North America...
.
The Season in literature and popular culture
- A London Season features in Jane AustenJane AustenJane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
's Sense and SensibilitySense and SensibilitySense and Sensibility, published in 1811, is a British romance novel by Jane Austen, her first published work under the pseudonym, "A Lady." Jane Austen is considered a pioneer of the romance genre of novels, and for the realism portrayed in her novels, is one the most widely read writers in...
and is often a key plot device in Regency romanceRegency romanceRegency romances are a subgenre of romance novels set during the period of the British Regency or early 19th century. Rather than simply being versions of contemporary romance stories transported to a historical setting, Regency romances are a distinct genre with their own plot and stylistic...
novels. - The novel Lucia in LondonMapp and LuciaMapp and Lucia is a collective name for a series of novels by E. F. Benson, and is also the name of a television series based on those novels.-The novels:...
by E. F. Benson is set during the London season in the 1920s. - Edith WhartonEdith WhartonEdith Wharton , was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, short story writer, and designer.- Early life and marriage:...
's The Age of InnocenceThe Age of InnocenceThe Age of Innocence is a novel by Edith Wharton published in 1920, which won the 1921 Pulitzer Prize. The story is set in upper-class New York City in the 1870s. In 1920, The Age of Innocence was serialized in four parts in the Pictorial Review magazine, and later released by D...
uses the New York social season as a backdrop. - Julian FellowesJulian FellowesJulian Alexander Kitchener-Fellowes, Baron Fellowes of West Stafford, DL , known as Julian Fellowes, is an English actor, novelist, film director and screenwriter, as well as a Conservative peer.-Early life:...
's novel, Past Imperfect, takes place during the 1968 Season in London. - In the 2003 film What a Girl WantsWhat a Girl Wants (film)What a Girl Wants is a 2003 film starring Amanda Bynes, Colin Firth, Kelly Preston and Oliver James. Directed by Dennie Gordon, the film is a remake of the 1958 film, The Reluctant Debutante which had a screenplay by William Douglas-Home, based on his play of the same name.The title, "What a Girl...
, Lord Henry Dashwood invites his new-found daughter Daphne to attend the London Season. - The 2009 young-adult novel, The Season, by Sarah MacLeanSarah MacLeanSarah MacLean is a best-selling American author of young adult novels and romance novels. Her first adult romance novel, Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake debuted on the New York Times Bestseller List, where it stayed for four weeks.-Biography:MacLean was born in Lincoln, Rhode Island to...
portrays a young woman entering her first London Season. - Another film using the London Season as a backdrop is the historic romantic comedy "An Ideal Husband" starring Rupert Everett, Minnie Driver, Cate Blanchett, Julianne Moore.
- Vincente Minelli's The Reluctant DebutanteThe Reluctant DebutanteThe Reluctant Debutante is a 1958 comedy film directed by Vincente Minnelli and produced by Pandro S. Berman from a screenplay by Julius J. Epstein and William Douglas-Home based on Douglas-Home's play of the same name...
- Downton AbbeyDownton AbbeyDownton Abbey is a British television period drama series, produced by NBC Universal-owned British media company Carnival Films for the ITV network. The series is set during the late Edwardian era and the First World War on the fictional estate of Downton Abbey in Yorkshire, and features an...
released in 2010 mostly features the relationships of and between the two eldest daughters of the fictional Earl of GranthamEarl of GranthamEarl of Grantham was a title in the Peerage of England created on 24 December 1698, along with the titles Viscount Boston and Baron Alford, for Henry de Nassau d'Auverquerque, with a special remainder, failing heirs male of his body, to his three brothers Cornelius, Maurice and Francis, in like...
. However, during the course of the series, the outspoken youngest daughter Sybil is presented to society in London. The family are also portrayed to move to London for the duration of the season, returning to their country pile at the end of it.
Sources
- Florence Adele Sloane (ed. Louis Auchincloss): Maverick in Mauve: Diary of a Romantic Age, Doubleday, 1983.
- Kate Simon: Fifth Avenue: A Very Social History, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1978.