Cotillion
Also known as: Cotillon, Quadrille Cotillion
History & Cultural Context
The Cotillion (French cotillon) emerged in France in the early-to-mid 18th century as a square dance for four couples — the form known in France as the contredanse française. Unlike country dances performed in facing lines, the cotillion placed four couples in a square, dancing a published main figure that alternated with a sequence of standard "changes," all learned in advance. Hundreds of cotillions were issued in printed collections by Paris publishers such as La Cuisse and Landrin. The dance reached England and America in the later 18th century and was enormously popular in ballrooms before being largely superseded by the quadrille in the early 19th century.
Cultural Significance
The cotillion represented formalized square-dance traditions and influenced American square dance development. Its caller-led structure and social nature made it popular for formal balls.
Peak Popularity
Signature Figures
- Figures vary
- Caller-led
Notable Codifiers
- French ballroom tradition
Track Your Cotillion Progress
Practice Cotillion figures between lessons with Figure Focus — step-by-step breakdowns, floor diagrams, and progress tracking. Free to use.
Cotillion Playlists
Curated collections on the LODance YouTube channel — performances to watch, lessons to learn from, and the right music to practice with. Tap a collection to play.
▶ Performances · Open on YouTube →
Cotillion Music & Tempo
Drawn from 25 Cotillion tracks in the LODance music library.
Example tracks at practice tempo
- The German Waltz — Traditional (19th c.)108 BPM
- L'Été (Cotillion Figure) — Anonymous100 BPM
- Vauxhall Gardens Cotillion — Traditional (18th c.)120 BPM
- Prince's Cotillion — Various (18th c.)120 BPM
- German Cotillion — Various (18th c.)116 BPM
- Hunt the Pack Cotillion — Traditional120 BPM
What to Wear
Attire guidance for Cotillion and other Historic Regency Country dances. Each card below is sized to the moment — class, practice, social, or competition — because the wardrobe shifts as the stakes do.
Reading the cards
In Class
Soft-soled shoes, comfortable clothing. Long skirts optional but helpful for learning to manage period movement.
Social Dancing
Regency balls are popular: women in Empire-waist gowns and long gloves, men in breeches and tailcoats or period-adjacent formalwear. Jane Austen societies maintain active social dance calendars.
Competition
Not competed; performed at historical events in full Regency costume.
Shoes
Women: flat ballet-style slippers or character shoes without heel. Men: flat dress shoes or period boots. The dances were designed for flat shoes on polished wood floors.
In Practice
The dances were built for flat shoes on polished wood floors — heels work against the geometry of the figures.
Price Range
- Budget: Flat ballet slippers or oxford-style flats $40–90; modern formal-adjacent clothing.
- Mid: Period-styled Empire-waist gown $200–600; men's tailcoat and breeches $250–700.
- Premium: Bespoke Regency reproduction costume $1,200–4,500.
Quick Tips
- •Suede-soled shoes allow controlled sliding and pivoting — essential for most partner dances.
- •Avoid rubber soles on dance floors; they grip too much and can cause knee injuries.
- •Bring a separate pair of clean shoes for the dance floor to keep it in good condition.
Recommended Gear for Cotillion
Essential equipment and apparel selected for dancers learning Cotillion.
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Sources & Further Reading
Where This Dance Is Documented
Thomas Wilson – A Companion to the Ball Room (1816)
An editor's note on where the technique for this dance is actually written down — sometimes a named book, sometimes the fact that no such book exists. A judgement, not a count of what we hold.
Cultural & Historical Context
Cotillion emerged from France/England during the 1750s—1850s. Understanding the cultural roots, musical traditions, and social circumstances of this era enriches appreciation for the dance's characteristics and significance.
Formative Influences
Codifiers & Standardizers:
French ballroom tradition
Signature Movement Vocabulary:
Figures vary, Caller-led
Primary Source Documents
The Library of Dance contains public-domain primary sources for dance history. Copyrighted modern syllabi are indexed with purchase links to their respective copyright owners. Search by dance name or codifier to discover primary source documents.
Last reviewed: August 2026 — This dance profile synthesizes historical research, cultural documentation, and contemporary practice knowledge to provide authoritative context.
Related Dances
More in Historic Regency Country
English Country Dance
English Country Dances were group dances in line or square formations, performed to lively music and featured alternating partner exchanges and figures. They became enormously popular in 17th-18th century England and influenced American colonial dance.
Longways Set
Longways set dances were English line dances performed in two parallel lines, featuring partner exchanges and figures typical of Regency-era dancing.
Quadrille
The Quadrille was a highly structured square dance for four couples, systematized with five figures and remaining popular throughout the 19th century in aristocratic society.
Scottish Reel
The Reel was a rapid Scottish couple or group dance featuring continuous turning and was related to English country dances. It became popular throughout the UK and influenced American square dance.
Round Dance
Round dances were circle-formation couple dances popular from the Renaissance through 19th centuries, featuring rotating movement and partner exchanges.
Grand March
A processional in march time used to open a formal ball, in which the assembled couples form a single column and are then divided and recombined into twos, fours and eights as they travel the room. It is less a dance than an organising device: it presents everyone in the room to everyone else and delivers a crowded floor into order for the dancing that follows.
Lancers
A five-figure quadrille set with its own distinct figure content, including a visiting figure in which couples call on each other in turn and a closing figure built on a grand chain danced to march time. After an initial vogue it faded, was revived around the middle of the nineteenth century, and became the set that outlasted every other in the ballroom.
Plain Quadrille
The standard five-figure set of Le Pantalon, L'Ete, La Poule, La Trenis or La Pastourelle, and the Finale, danced by four couples in a square. This was the default set of the nineteenth-century ballroom, the one a dancer was assumed to know, and the frame against which every other quadrille set was described.
What did dancers wear?
Cotillion belongs to the Regency & Victorian (1800s) era. See how attire shaped the choreography — and the other way around.
Explore Regency & Victorian attire →Cotillion in art
Browse the gallery →Public-domain works our catalogue identifies as depicting cotillion.
Waltzes, cotillions, dances, &c.
Unknown artist
Ballroom scenes
Unknown artist
The dance
Unknown artist
Dancing a cotillion
Unknown artist · 2019
The cotillion dance
Unknown artist
Dancing a cotillion
Unknown artist
The cotillion dance
Unknown artist · 2019
The cotillion
Unknown artist · 2023
The waltz
Unknown artist · 2023
The dance
Unknown artist · 2023
The first cotillion of the century, given by Hon. W.C. Whitney, January 4, 1901
Unknown artist
Images of ballroom dancing
Unknown artist
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