The confusing reason Bridgerton’s Hyacinth had to dress up as a maid to go to the ball

After watching Bridgerton season four, lots of people are wondering why the youngest sibling, Hyacinth, had to disguise herself as a maid to get into the ball. Here’s the reason, if you’re confused.

In episode six, Cressida Cowper hosts a tacky ball when she returns to Mayfair as the new Lady Penwood after marrying Lord Penwood, Sophie’s father’s cousin. The ball is a measly attempt to re-establish her place in society after the scandals of season three. She was sent to live with her aunt in the countryside after blackmailing Penelope into revealing she was Lady Whistledown.

Eloise snuck Hyacinth into Cressida’s ball by dressing her up as a maid, and the youngest Bridgerton quite liked the fact she could “be invisible”. People think that’s a hint she’s the new Lady Whistledown. But why couldn’t she just go to the ball as herself? It all comes down to the strange rules for women in Regency England, when Bridgerton is set.

Credit: Netflix

Hyacinth hasn’t officially “come out” to society yet, which means she’s still considered a child. In season four, she’s around 13 years old. Girls would be formally presented to the Queen when they were 17 or 18, which showed that they were ready to marry.

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Before making their official debut into society, young girls weren’t allowed to go to balls, as they’d be entering a space that was only supposed to be for marriageable women. In the 1800s, balls were primarily used for courtship (finding a partner to marry), social networking and showing off wealth.

Women under marriageable age couldn’t do any of that. So, they wouldn’t attend. If the Bridgerton family let Hyacinth go to a ball underage, they would be considered careless, and it could ruin their reputation. Even when the Bridgerton family hosted their own masquerade ball, the one where Benedict met Sophie, Hyacinth wasn’t allowed to attend. But young men were a lot freer than women.

It seems stupid and confusing in the context of our modern world, but Regency England was full of social rules that nobody dared to break. And that’s what it comes down to.

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Featured image credit: Netflix