The Regency  Romance
A Very Brief History

The Regency period in Great Britain
began in 1811 when King George III
“officially” was declared mad and his oldest
son, George, the Prince of Wales, became
the Prince Regent. It ended in 1820 when
King George III died and the Prince Regent
became King George IV.  Regency novels,
on the other hand can take place anytime
from 1800 to 1820, and some are even set as late as 1825.  

The Regency was a wonderfully fascinating time in British
history.  The rich were very rich – or spent money as if they
were.  Britain was on the cusp of the industrial revolution. It
was the end of the Napoleonic War and the beginning of the
Great British Empire.  It was a time when the ton (the wealthy
and aristocratic society) was all-powerful and everyone who
was anyone wanted to be a part of it.  People partied hard,
worked hard and quite few sought to do nothing more than
have a lot of fun.  It is against this backdrop of beautiful
people and fabulous parties that we set our romances.  

Georgette Heyer began the genre in the 1920s and ‘30s and
immediately had a following beyond belief.  Since then men
and women have been reading and loving Regency
romances. I think you will too.