Debrett's () is a British professional coaching company, publisher and authority on etiquette and behaviour, founded in 1769 with the publication of the first edition of ''The New Peerage''. The company takes its name from its founder,
John Debrett
John Debrett (8 January 1753 – 15 November 1822) was an English publisher and compiler. His name has become associated with reference books.
Life
Debrett took over the business of John Almon, opposite Burlington House in Piccadilly, in 1781. His ...
.
Coaching
Debrett's Academy was established in 2012 to provide coaching in (''i.e.,'' enhancing) interpersonal skills to individuals and corporations. Its courses for businesses cover topics such as public speaking, networking, sales pitches, relationship management, personal presentation and dress codes. Its private client courses focus on confidence-building and social competence, as well as personal presentation and impact, career progression and digital networking.
A non-profit arm, Debrett's Foundation, provides coaching through the Debrett's Academy to sixth form students from UK schools in business skills, as well as access to internships, work experience and mentoring opportunities.
Publications
Debrett's has published a range of guides on traditional British
etiquette, dating from the mid 1900s. Those currently in print include ''Debrett's A–Z of Modern Manners'', ''Debrett's Guide for the Modern Gentleman'' and ''Debrett's Handbook'', a revised and updated version of its ''Correct Form''. ''Debrett's Wedding Guide'' (first published in 2007) was revised in 2017 and published as ''Debrett's Wedding Handbook''.
''Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage'', a book which includes a short history of the family of each titleholder, was previously published roughly every five years. The last printed edition was the 2019 and 150th edition, published in the company's 250th year. Charles Kidd was the editor of the ''Peerage'' for nearly 40 years; he was the consulting editor on the last edition, which was edited by Susan Morris, Wendy Bosberry-Scott and Gervase Belfield of Debrett Ancestry Research Ltd, a sister company of Debrett's.
''Debrett's People of Today'', an annual publication between 1988 and 2017, contained biographical details of approximately 20,000 notable people from the entire spectrum of British society.
The selection of entrants was made by the editorial staff of Debrett's and entries were reviewed annually to ensure accuracy and relevance. Entries include details of career, education, family, recreations and membership of clubs as well as contact addresses. An additional feature was the style of address to be used when addressing correspondence to an entrant. The last edition of this book was published in 2017. Like its rival publication ''
Who's Who'', selection of entrants was at the editorial team's discretion and there was no payment or obligation to purchase. However, unlike ''Who's Who'', entries were removed if the subjects were no longer deemed to be suitable for inclusion.
''Debrett's
llustrated Heraldic and BiographicalHouse of Commons and the Judicial Bench'' was published from 1867 to 1931. Butler calls it "particularly useful".
''Debrett's 500''
Since 2014 Debrett's has published an annual list of the UK's 500 most influential people across 24 sectors. In 2017 the list was published in the ''Saturday Telegraph Magazine''.
Debrett's website
Debrett's website contains information on British tradition, etiquette, dress codes and style, and the biographical profiles of those featured in ''People of Today'' and the Debrett’s 500.
Appearances in popular culture
An out-of-date Debrett's is a key plot element in an Elizabeth Mapp story (1920–1939) by
E. F. Benson
Edward Frederic Benson (24 July 1867 – 29 February 1940) was an English novelist, biographer, memoirist, archaeologist and short story writer.
Early life
E.F. Benson was born at Wellington College (Berkshire), Wellington College in Berkshir ...
.
In series three of the television series ''
Downton Abbey
''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. The series first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United States o ...
'', Lady Cora Grantham mentions ''Debrett's'' in jest when defending the choice of her late daughter, Sybil, to have her daughter baptised as
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.
There was a storyline in ''
Doonesbury
''Doonesbury'' is a comic strip by American cartoonist Garry Trudeau that chronicles the adventures and lives of an array of characters of various ages, professions, and backgrounds, from the President of the United States to the title character, ...
'' where
Zonker had a large cash windfall with which he planned to purchase a British
peerage. To prepare for his new role, he had a friend quiz him from ''Debrett's'', to great comic effect.
In ''
Brideshead Revisited
''Brideshead Revisited: The Sacred & Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder'' is a novel by English writer Evelyn Waugh, first published in 1945. It follows, from the 1920s to the early 1940s, the life and romances of the protagonist Charles ...
'' by
Evelyn Waugh
Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires '' Decl ...
, Sebastian and Charles visit Brideshead together for the first time, and Sebastian will not let Charles meet his family. He comments: "You don't know what you've been saved. There are lots of us. Look them up in Debrett."
In
Montague Rhodes James's ''The Residence at Whitminster'', Uncle Oldys draws his information about the spooking Viscount Kildonan from ''Debrett's Peerage'': "It's all in Debrett's – two little fat books".
John Debrett
John Debrett (8 January 1753 – 15 November 1822) was the London-born son of Jean Louys de Bret, a French cook of
Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
extraction and his wife Rachel Panchaud. As a boy of thirteen, John Debrett was apprenticed to a
Piccadilly bookseller and publisher, Robert Davis. He remained there until 1780, when he moved across Piccadilly to work for John Almon, bookseller and stationer. John Almon edited and published his first edition of ''The New Peerage'' in 1769, and went on to produce at least three further editions. By 1790 he had passed the editorship on to John Debrett who, in 1802, put his name to the two small volumes that made up ''The Correct Peerage of England, Scotland and Ireland''. Despite twice being declared bankrupt, Debrett continued as a bookseller and editor of the ''Peerage''; the last edition edited by him was the 15th edition, which was published in 1823. He was found dead at his lodgings on 15 November 1822, and was buried at
St James's Church, Piccadilly.
John Debrett married on 27 April 1787 in Piccadilly to Sophia Granger (1762–1833), daughter of Captain John Granger and Sophia Spencley. They had six children, none of whom followed their father into the book trade although Sophia did work with her husband and at one point ran the business herself.
See also
*''
Almanach de Gotha
The ''Almanach de Gotha'' (german: Gothaischer Hofkalender) is a directory of Europe's royalty and higher nobility, also including the major governmental, military and diplomatic corps, as well as statistical data by country. First publish ...
''
*
Burke's Peerage
Burke's Peerage Limited is a British genealogical publisher founded in 1826, when the Irish genealogist John Burke began releasing books devoted to the ancestry and heraldry of the peerage, baronetage, knightage and landed gentry of Great ...
*
Carnet Mondain
*
High Life de Belgique
The ''High Life de Belgique'' (French for High Life of Belgium) is a Belgian publishing house that was founded in 1880.
History
It publishes annually a directory containing the contact details of more than twelve thousand families of the high s ...
*
Libro d'Oro
The ''Libro d'Oro'' (English: ''The Golden Book''), originally published between 1315 and 1797, is the formal directory of nobles in the Republic of Venice (including the Ionian Islands). It has been resurrected as the ''Libro d'Oro della Nobil ...
*
Powerlist
The ''Powerlist'' is a list of the 100 most influential people of African or African Caribbean heritage in the United Kingdom. The list is updated annually and has been published in book format by Powerful Media since 2007. The ''Powerlist'' is ...
*
Social Register
The ''Social Register'' is a semi-annual publication in the United States that indexes the members of American high society. First published in the 1880s by newspaper columnist Louis Keller, it was later acquired by Malcolm Forbes. Since 2014, ...
*
Kulavruttanta
A Kulavruttanta or a Kul-vrttant ( mr, कुलवृत्तांत; IAST: Kula-vr̥ttānta; ), is a genealogical almanac and biographical dictionary, a format of genealogical record keeping predominantly found in the Indian state of Mahar ...
References
Bibliography
* Hankinson, Cyril Francis James. ''My Forty Years with Debrett''. London: R. Hale, 1963.
*"Debrett" (1868–1869) 9 ''The Reliquary, Quarterly Archaeological Journal and Review'
124
External links
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7th edition – 1809 – Volume 1 – Hathitrust7th edition – 1809 – Volume 2 – Hathitrust10th edition – 1816 – Volume 1 – Archive.org10th edition – 1816 – Volume 1 – Hathitrust10th edition – 1816 – Volume 2 – Hathitrust 13th edition – 1820 – Volume 1 – Internet Archive13th edition – 1820 – Volume 1 – Archive.org13th edition – 1820 – Volume 2 – Archive.org14th edition – 1822 – Volume 1 – Hathitrust14th edition – 1822 – Volume 2 – Hathitrust14th edition – 1822 – Volume 2 – Google Books15th edition – 1825 – Volume 1 – Google Books15th edition – 1825 – Volume 2 – Archive.org17th edition – 1828 – Volume 1 – Archive.org17th edition – 1828 – Volume 2 – Archive.org19th edition – 1831 – Volume 1 – Hathitrust19th edition – 1831 – Volume 2 – Hathitrust19th edition – 1831 – Volume 2 – Archive.org22nd edition – 1838 – Archive.org22nd edition, with additions – 1839 – Google Books 1840 – Internet Archive1840 – Archive.org1847 – Google Books1847 – Hathitrust1864 – Google Books1865 – Google Books1865 – Hathitrust1869 – Hathitrust1876 – Archive.org1893 – Archive.org1903 – Archive.org1921 – Archive.org1936 – Archive.org2019 – Google Books
{{Authority control
English society
British biographical dictionaries
Publishing companies established in the 1760s
Peerages in the United Kingdom
1769 establishments in England
Companies established in 1769