<p>This is the scene outside Buckingham Palace on the day of a Court Drawing Room showing the Prince of Wales coach and two members of the Metropolitan Police on the left.
Court Drawing Rooms were held four times a year, two before Easter and two in the summer. This was the time when young ladies were presented to the Monarch and in Queen Victoria's time kissed her hand. There were strict criteria as to who could be presented. The dates of the Drawing Rooms were announced by the Lord Chamberlain whose job it was to vet the applicants. There were three main criteria.
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<ol><li>The young Lady had to be of good moral and social character.</li>
<li>She had to be presented by a lady who had already been presented at court and had kissed the Monarch's hand.</li>
<li>The status of the young lady, i.e. a daughter of an aristocratic family, daughter of a professional family, lawyers, clergy, army etc.</li></ol>
The Court Drawing room was the forerunner of the debutante Ball which was discontinued by Queen Elizabeth II in 1958. I think that this photograph was taken at the end of Queen Victoria's reign or the beginning of King Edward VII's reign. The postcard was published by Wrench &amp; Co and printed in Saxony.
E. Wrench &amp; Co.
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