CityandLivery

Anyone who has attended a City of London civic or livery company banquet will be familiar with the numerous toasts that follow after the meal and before the speeches. These toasts are usually taken with port wine, or occasionally madeira. Quite when port became the wine of choice for toasts is unclear, but the custom is as well entrenched in the City as it is in the ward rooms and messes of HM Armed Forces, at Oxbridge Colleges, Masonic dinners and elsewhere. Port wine was originally, and very specifically, developed for the English palette and nowhere is it more popular than in Britain.  Britain's relationship with port began in the Georgian era. Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger was described as a 'three-bottle man' with port even being prescribed for his recurring bouts of gout. First a little history The history of port wine is inextricably linked with Britain's connection to Portugal and the numerous British families who developed the Douro wine region...

The traditions of the City of London and its Livery Companies rival those of the Royal Household for their displays of pageantry and public spectacle, blending of the past with the present and sense of majesty that no other city can rival. The fact that more troops of the Crown participate in the annual Lord Mayor's Show than parade in the Sovereign's annual birthday parade (Trooping the Colour) illustrates the scale of the City's ability to put on a show. In fact the very word show when taken to mean a public spectacle derives from the requirement that the City's elected chief magistrate 'show himself' to the Monarch or his justices and swear allegiance, hence the Lord Mayor's Show. The early 20th century antiquarian and author Dr George Williamson captured the panoply of City ceremonial in Curious Survivals, a book presented to Queen Mary and now in the Royal Collection. The opening chapter of his comprehensive work on British customs and traditions read...

The Livery Companies are known for their formal dining in grand style at halls throughout the City of London. To the uninitiated, who may be attending a Livery Company dinner or banquet for the first time, these events can appear a daunting prospect, yet it need not be so - in fact it should be an entirely enjoyable experience.  A Livery Company dinner or banquet will, at its very best, be both fun and formal but never stuffy or unwelcoming. The essence of a successful event is that everyone should feel comfortable and enjoy the experience.  The following guidelines (which may vary in minute detail from one Company, banquet or dinner to the next) will help you enjoy the experience and remember it for all the right reasons. The invitation When invited to attend any event it is simple courtesy to respond in a timely manner indicating whether or not you will be able to attend. Livery Company dinners and banquets take an immense amount of planning and organisa...