The Burgon Society

We are a learned society for study of academic dress and regalia  - design, history and practice around the world.

Founded in 2000, we hold regular meetings comprising a lively mixture of social interaction and scholarship. The peer-reviewed journal, Transactions of the Burgon Society, publishes many papers arising from the Society's research, and is supplemented by the newsletter, Burgon Notes. 

Latest News

Getting into Academic Dress - Online Tutorials

Posted: 29th November 2024

For those curious to know more about the basics of academic dress or simply to have a refresher, do sign up for a new series of three online tutorials to be presented early in the New Year by Dr Alex Kerr FBS.

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Burgon Society Congregation

Posted: 5th August 2024

The 2024 Congregation will take place on Saturday 5th October at the York Medical Society in York.

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Hood of the Month

Fellow of the Royal College of Organists

The Royal College of Organists was founded in 1864, and gained its Royal Charter in 1893. The original FRCO hood, in a sober brown lined with light blue silk, was of the Wales simple shape but with the point of the liripipe rounded off. This design, shared by King’s College, London, obtained until 1971. The current spectacular example of red rose damask lined with triple-shot silk (yellow, orange and pale blue) is well matched to what is frequently acknowledged as one of the most exacting of all performance diplomas. We owe its design to the late Dr Francis Jackson, Hon. FBS, Organist of York Minster, and his wife Priscilla, who, at the centenary of the College, persuaded its Council to ‘try something else’. The shot silk, used for the Music faculty of the University of Wales, has been described as ‘maize’ and ‘oyster’, but it is now generally known as ‘pearl’.

In the late 1990s, the shape of the FRCO was slightly revised by John Birch and Rev. Philip Goff. This increased the visual strength of the liripipe, and resulted in a hybrid between the London full shape [f3] and the Durham BSc [f7].

Andrew Plant, FBS

Photographs by Chris Williams FBS courtesy of Burgon Society Archive.

Fellow of the Royal College of Organists
Membership

Join Us

Membership of the Society is open to anyone who is interested in academic  dress. The annual subscription entitles Members and Fellows to a free copy of our annual peer-reviewed journal Transactions of the Burgon Society on publication, as well as our quarterly newsletter Burgon Notes. Members enjoy discounts on purchases from the Society’s shop, including tickets for events, and may apply for Fellowship of the Society by examination.