Court Circular

Preserved but no longer current.

Meaning · English

The information con- cerning the movements and doings of Royalty and the Court generally, supplied to the newspapers by the Court Newsman. He gives reports of levees, drawing-rooms, state balls, royal concerts, meetings of the cabinet ministers, deputations to ministers, and so on. George III. in 1803, introduced the custom to prevent misstatements on these subjects.

Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)

Sources & notes

Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.

Common questions

What does “Court Circular” mean?

The information con- cerning the movements and doings of Royalty and the Court generally, supplied to the newspapers by the Court Newsman. He gives reports of levees, drawing-rooms, state balls, royal concerts, meetings of the cabinet ministers, deputations to ministers, and so on. George III. in 1803, introduced the custom to prevent misstatements on these subjects.

Is “Court Circular” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.