The Ton comes from the French phrase le bon ton, which roughly translates as “good manners” or “good taste”. It was the name given to elite society in the Regency period. During the early 19th-century, these were the values expected to be observed by members of the beau monde, or “beautiful world”, of fashionable society.

As shown in Bridgerton, etiquette was rigorously observed in this world, and strict etiquette governed the social season: from which daughters were ‘out’ in society, to how many dances one person could allot to another, to the secret language of the fan.

The Regency refers to the years between 1811–1820 in British history, when George III, King of Great Britain and Ireland, was incapacitated by illness. His son, also called George, assumed the throne in a regency. George III was still the king in name, his son ruled as Prince Re...