From the 15th century onwards, country dancing was widespread in Britain. In 1651, John Playford published “The English Dancing Master” which described the then popular dances. If the dance tune was Scottish, the dance was considered as Scottish. The circle, line and square formations were in common usage together with reels and jigs but the slow, graceful strathspey tempo developed in Scotland in the middle of the 18th century. Following the development of ballet in France during the 17th century, ballet was introduced into the Scottish style of country dancing together with the French words that have continued in use to this day.
After the collapse of the 1745 rebellion, bagpipe music, as well as the kilt, were banned by Act of Parliament. Consequently, the fiddle became the principal musical instrument for dancing accompaniment. The ban was removed in 1782 but the popularity of Scottish country dancing came under a new attack in the early 19th century with the arrival of new dances such as the quadrille, the waltz and the polka. Although the popularity of country dancing triumphed in Scotland, its popularity was much reduced in England.
In 1923, the Scottish Country Dance Society was formed in Glasgow for the purpose of preserving the country dances as danced in Scotland and encouraging new dancers. King George VI conferred the title “Royal” on the Society in 1951. Today, Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, is the patron. Now based in Edinburgh, the Society currently has over 25,000 members spread worldwide.
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