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.

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 Etiquette () is the set of norms of personal behaviour in polite society, usually occurring in the form of an ethical code of the expected and accepted social behaviours that accord with the conventions and norms observed and practised by a ...

, 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 ''Who's Who'' (or ''Who is Who'') is the title of a number of reference publications, generally containing concise biographical information on the prominent people of a country. The title has been adopted as an expression meaning a group of not ...

'', 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 in Berkshire, the fifth child of the headm ...

. In series three of the television series '' Downton Abbey'', 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 A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks. Peerages include: Australia * Australian peers Belgium * Be ...

. To prepare for his new role, he had a friend quiz him from ''Debrett's'', to great comic effect. In '' Brideshead Revisited'' 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 Montague Rhodes James (1 August 1862 – 12 June 1936) was an English author, medievalist scholar and provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–1918), and of Eton College (1918–1936). He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambrid ...

'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 Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road that connects central London to Hammersmith, Earl's Cour ...

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.

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 – Hathitrust

7th edition – 1809 – Volume 2 – Hathitrust

10th edition – 1816 – Volume 1 – Archive.org

10th edition – 1816 – Volume 1 – Hathitrust

10th edition – 1816 – Volume 2 – Hathitrust

13th edition – 1820 – Volume 1 – Internet Archive

13th edition – 1820 – Volume 1 – Archive.org

13th edition – 1820 – Volume 2 – Archive.org

14th edition – 1822 – Volume 1 – Hathitrust

14th edition – 1822 – Volume 2 – Hathitrust

14th edition – 1822 – Volume 2 – Google Books

15th edition – 1825 – Volume 1 – Google Books

15th edition – 1825 – Volume 2 – Archive.org

17th edition – 1828 – Volume 1 – Archive.org

17th edition – 1828 – Volume 2 – Archive.org

19th edition – 1831 – Volume 1 – Hathitrust

19th edition – 1831 – Volume 2 – Hathitrust

19th edition – 1831 – Volume 2 – Archive.org

22nd edition – 1838 – Archive.org

22nd edition, with additions – 1839 – Google Books

1840 – Internet Archive

1840 – Archive.org

1847 – Google Books

1847 – Hathitrust

1864 – Google Books

1865 – Google Books

1865 – Hathitrust

1869 – Hathitrust

1876 – Archive.org

1893 – Archive.org

1903 – Archive.org

1921 – Archive.org

1936 – Archive.org

2019 – 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