Reading the Regency

Forms of Address - part 1

Before the mid 1700s, "Miss" only referred to a young girl who was not yet an adult, but by the end of the 18th century it could also refer to any woman who was not married, no matter how old they were.

The eldest daughter was always identified as Miss + surname, and any younger sisters were addressed as Miss + first name and surname, or sometimes just Miss + first name if they are in familiar company.

Using the Bennet sisters as an example, Jane would be addressed as Miss Bennet, being the eldest, and then her sisters would be Miss Elizabeth Bennet, Miss Mary Bennet, Miss Catherine Bennet and Miss Lydia Bennet. In a less formal environment, particularly among friends and neighbours they know well, or when speaking to the family's servants, they might be referred to as Miss Lizzy, Miss Mary, Miss Kitty and Miss Lydia.

"My dear Jane, make haste and hurry down. He is come -- Mr. Bingley is come. -- He is, indeed. Make haste, make haste. Here, Sarah, come to Miss Bennet this moment, and help her on with her gown. Never mind Miss Lizzy's hair.''
[Chapter 55, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen]

Once Jane and Elizabeth Bennet were both married, Mary Bennet would then be the eldest unmarried sister, and she would be introduced and addressed as Miss Bennet from that point on.

However, in a situation where a younger daughter was away from home, then she would have been identified as Miss + surname. This happened in Pride and Prejudice when Elizabeth visited the Collins' in Kent, and during her stay was addressed as Miss Bennet, rather than Miss Elizabeth Bennet because she was the only Bennet daughter in Kent:

"I have told Miss Bennet several times, that she will never play really well, unless she practises more; and though Mrs. Collins has no instrument, she is very welcome, as I have often told her, to come to Rosings every day, and play on the piano forte in Mrs. Jenkinson's room."
[Chapter 31, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen]

Master

"I heard to-day from Mr. Wilmot, riding with the Master Wilmots, 'reading, pondering and prospering'."
[Letter from Harriet, Countess Granville to Lady G Morpeth, written 2nd September 1820]

Where a young girl was styled "Miss", a young boy could be addressed as "Master". Samuel Johnson's dictionary, published in 1784, gives one definition of Master as "Young Gentleman" without suggesting a specific age. The time at which a man went from Master to Mr depended on the circumstances and the person who was addressing him.

Family members rarely used this term to describe their own relatives when talking between themselves. It was usually neighbours, friends and servants who would address male children as Master + surname or Master + first name depending on the relationship. A servant, who had known someone since childhood, was more likely to use the latter form:

"...the old nursery-maid of the family, one who having brought up all the children, and seen the very last, the lingering and long-petted Master Harry, sent to school after his brothers, was now living in her deserted nursery."
[Chapter 13, Persuasion by Jane Austen]

This form of address was usually replaced with "Mr" once the young man completed school and entered society. The main exception would be the older servants who had known him as a child and still thought of him as the "young master", no matter how old he actually was. 

Other people who might be addressed as "Master" included anyone who employed servants or apprentices, and ship captains.

Addressing Parents and Grandparents

"They are going to be encamped near Brighton; and I do so want papa to take us all there for the summer! It would be such a delicious scheme, and I dare say would hardly cost any thing at all. Mamma would like to go too, of all things!"
[Chapter 39, Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen]