Anne Glover
Pen and Sword History
30 August 2025
240
eBook - PDF
Non-Fiction/History
ARC via NetGalley
The 18th-century masquerade didn’t die at the dawn of the new century. Instead, spectacle helped these risqué events achieve new grandeur. From indoor balloon displays to lavish food and wine, masquerades in the early 1800s were hyper-real sites of consumption. Dressed in dominoes, character costumes, and fancy dress, the fashionable and titled of London society flocked to these events in the hundreds to thousands to entertain and be entertained. Amidst the bacchanalian, motley events were signs and symbols that masquerade balls were about more than a good time.
In the first comprehensive look at early 19th-century British masquerades, Glover uses primary sources to identify venues, décor, performers, costumes, and other details about public and private masquerades.
Masquerades flourished from London to far-flung imperial strongholds. Comparing the details over the long Regency, Glover teases out common themes and then examines them through the lens of national identity, cultural appropriation, and gender. This research sheds new light on Regency people, culture, and society and on what we know about the British masquerade.
Masquerade Balls in Regency Britain offered a detailed snapshot of entertainment in the long Regency period. The book covered venues, performances, food and drink, costumes, and attitudes, making it an informative and interesting read. The inclusion of images added an extra layer and helped to illustrate the text, and there were certainly a lot of fascinating facts presented, making this a book that will appeal to both history buffs and writers of Regency fiction looking to ensure historical accuracy in their tales. I am giving it four stars.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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