Piers Gaveston Society


The Piers Gaveston Society is a dining club founded in 1977 at the University of Oxford. It is named in honour of Piers Gaveston, favourite and supposed lover of King Edward II of England. In recent years, parties run by the society have been the focus of increased tabloid news coverage.

Motto

The club's motto is " non memini ne audisse unum alterum ita dilixisse" which translates roughly as "Truly, none remember hearing of a man enjoying another so much".

Activities

While some have described it as an extreme club that hosts secret events which include drug use and promiscuous sex, others have said that the society's events – at least during the 1990s – were not as debauched or scandalous as the media portrayed.

Membership

Membership is limited to 10 undergraduates, grouped into 'Masters' and 'Minions'.
To join the Society as a 'Minion' an undergraduate must attend a party before submitting an application and being elected by existing members. In their second year as a member they become Masters, and are paired with a Minion.
Non-members are invited to most events including the winter, spring and summer balls. Each member may invite dozens of guests, who may be blackballed by other members if deemed unsuitable.