Glorious Twelfth

The Glorious Twelfth is the twelfth day of August, the start of the shooting season for red grouse (Lagopus lagopus scotica), and to a lesser extent the ptarmigan (Lagopus muta) in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The date itself is traditional; the current legislation enshrining it in England and Wales is the Game Act 1831 (and in Northern Ireland, the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985). Not all game (as defined by the 1831 act) have the same start to their open seasons – most begin on 1 September, with 1 October for woodcock and pheasant. Since English law prohibits game bird shooting on a Sunday, the start date is postponed to 13 August on years when the 12th falls on a Sunday.

Because heather moorland is managed for shooting, the population density of red grouse is unnaturally high. However, advocates claim that moorland managed for grouse shooting typically contains high levels of biodiversity, including ground-nesting birds (such as lapwing, curlew, meadow pipit, golden plover, redshank and woodcock, in addition to red grouse) and raptors. Diseases such as sheep tick, heather beetle (which affects the heather which several of these species eat) and the gut parasite Trichostrongylus tenuis, can impact population sizes.

In recent years, the Glorious Twelfth has also been hit by hunt saboteurs, the 2001 foot and mouth crisis (which further postponed the date in affected areas) and severe flooding and bad weather. In some seasons where certain moors are hit by low numbers of grouse, shooting may not occur at all or may be over by September.

Some restaurants in London have prided themselves for years on being able to serve grouse on the Glorious Twelfth, with the birds shot that morning immediately transported to London by train. This continues to this day.