The Royal Caledonian Ball is a

ball A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but can sometimes be ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used f ...

held annually in London for the benefit of Scottish charities. With few exceptions, the Royal Caledonian Ball has been held annually since 1849, and is the oldest charity ball in the world.

History

The ball dates to the 1840s, when George, Duke of Atholl and his wife,

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

, wanted to entertain their Scottish friends residing in London.Clark McGinn, ''The Ultimate Guide to Being Scottish: Put Your First Foot Forward'', Luath Press, 2014, p. 24

/ref> By 1849, it had become a fundraiser for Scottish charities helping vulnerable schoolchildren, the homeless, and cancer patients. The Royal Caledonian Ball has been held every year since, except during the Second Boer War, Boer War,

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

; following the death of King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria an ...

on 6 May 1910, and during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

in 2020. The ball has been under the royal patronage since Edward VII. Since the 1930s, the event has been held at the

Grosvenor House Hotel ] JW Marriott Grosvenor House London, originally named the Grosvenor House Hotel, is a luxury hotel that opened in 1929 in the Mayfair area of London, England. The hotel is managed by JW Marriott Hotels, which is a brand of Marriott Internationa ...

Park Lane, London Park Lane is a dual carriageway road in the City of Westminster in Central London. It is part of the London Inner Ring Road and runs from Hyde Park Corner in the south to Marble Arch in the north. It separates Hyde Park to the west from Ma ...

. The Queen is often in attendance. In recent years, the ball has been featured in the ''Bystander'' section of ''

Tatler ''Tatler'' is a British magazine published by Condé Nast Publications focusing on fashion and lifestyle, as well as coverage of high society and politics. It is targeted towards the British upper-middle class and upper class, and those interes ...

''.Bystander: Mayfair: Royal Caledonian Ball
''

'', 1 July 2008Bystander: Mayfair: Royal Caledonian Ball
''

'', 1 June 2009Bystander: Mayfair: Royal Caledonian Ball
''

'', 1 June 2010Bystander: Mayfair: Royal Caledonian Ball
''

'', 8 June 2012Bystander: Mayfair: Royal Caledonian Ball
''Tatler'', 16 July 2013Bystander: Mayfair: The Caledonian Ball
''

'', 22 July 2014Sophia Money-Coutts
The Future of Scotland?
''

'', 8 December 2014

Dance and dress

The Royal Caledonian Ball

dress code A dress code is a set of rules, often written, with regard to what clothing groups of people must wear. Dress codes are created out of social perceptions and norms, and vary based on purpose, circumstances, and occasions. Different societies an ...

stipulates that male attendees wear Highland evening dress, evening tails with

white tie White tie, also called full evening dress or a dress suit, is the most formal in traditional evening western dress codes. For men, it consists of a black tail coat (alternatively referred to as a dress coat, usually by tailors) worn over a whit ...

, or

mess dress Mess dress uniform is the most formal (or semi-formal, depending on the country) type of uniforms used by military personnel, police personnel, and other uniformed services members. It frequently consists of a mess jacket, trousers, white d ...

. Women should wear floor-length evening dress or mess dress;

tartan Tartan ( gd, breacan ) is a patterned cloth consisting of criss-crossed, horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven wool, but now they are made in other materials. Tartan is particularly associated with Sc ...

sashes are encouraged. Originally, men wore full evening tartan while women were dressed in while, with a tartan sash.Angela Lambert, ''1939: The Last Season of Peace'',

A & C Black A & C Black is a British book publishing company, owned since 2002 by Bloomsbury Publishing. The company is noted for publishing '' Who's Who'' since 1849. It also published popular travel guides and novels. History The firm was founded in 18 ...

, 201

/ref> Indeed, it was the only socially acceptable opportunity to wear full tartan outside Scotland. The event is known for its Scottish country dance, Scottish country dancing, and it is traditional for guests at the ball to dance every

reel A reel is an object around which a length of another material (usually long and flexible) is wound for storage (usually hose are wound around a reel). Generally a reel has a cylindrical core (known as a '' spool'') with flanges around the en ...

: Traditionally, the

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

and Duchess of Atholl are the first couple to start the dance, followed by his private army, the

Atholl Highlanders The Atholl Highlanders is a Scottish ceremonial infantry regiment. They are the only remaining private army in Europe, and act as the personal bodyguard to the Duke of Atholl, chieftain of the Clan Murray, a family that has thrived in Perthshire ...

.'Royal Caledonian Ball: Regimental Reels for Reels', ''

The Glasgow Herald ''The Herald'' is a Scottish broadsheet newspaper founded in 1783. ''The Herald'' is the longest running national newspaper in the world and is the eighth oldest daily paper in the world. The title was simplified from ''The Glasgow Herald'' in ...

'', 22 April 196

/ref>

Charities

The ball supports numerous charities in Scotland and has raised an estimated £3 million since its inception. Among the charities the ball supports are

Queen Victoria School Queen Victoria School (QVS) is a non-selective, co-educational, boarding school predominantly for children of Scottish Servicemen/women (but see full admissions criteria, below) aged 10/11 to 18. It occupies a Scottish Baronial-style building on ...

Dunblane Dunblane (, gd, Dùn Bhlàthain) is a small town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links ...

Erskine Hospital Erskine is a veterans care and support charity headquartered in Erskine, Renfrewshire, but operating across the Central Belt of Scotland. It provides a range of services to British Armed Forces, veterans of all ages and their families, who have s ...

, and St Catherine’s Homeless Project in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Caledonian Ball Recurring events established in 1849 Dance in London Balls in the United Kingdom Scottish country dance Entertainment events in the United Kingdom Charity events in the United Kingdom Annual events in London Mayfair Philanthropy in Scotland 1849 establishments in England