During the Regency once a gentleman asked for a lady’s hand and she accepted, he was stuck. There was no way he could honorably jilt her without ruining her reputation. Why? Because if he broke the engagement, it was presumed that she was not of good character.
The lady, however, could break a betrothal for any number of reasons without ruining either of their reputations. The main reason used was that she discovered they would not suit. The only time jilting a gentleman could cause a scandal is if it happened very close to the wedding date. Still, that wouldn’t last long.
There have been some very funny scenes in books that revolve around gentlemen attempting to convince a lady to break a betrothal. Two that come immediately to mind are The Grand Sophy and The Bath Tangle, both by the great Georgette Heyer.
#RegencyTrivia #HistoricalRomance #ReadaRegency #GeorgetteHeyer
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Ella Quinn ~ Author 
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