St Andrew’s students go to war in 600-year-old foam fight

St Andrews may be one of the UK’s most esteemed universities, but its students are proving that it’s not all dons and dissertations after taking to its grounds to partake in one of its oldest and messiest traditions: a foam party.

Hundreds of first-year students have amassed in the seaside university’s St Salvator’s Quad to be welcomed by their older peers with lashings of shaving foam as part of a 600-year-old ritual.

The annual foam fight, which takes place at the start of each academic year, stems from a tradition known as Raisin Monday.

Students at St Andrew’s University don fancy dress costumes and amass on St Salvator’s Quad to pelt each other with foam as part of the centuries-old Raisin Monday ritual

St Andrew’s has a strong culture of mentorship, where older students, typically third-year and above, take younger students under their wing.

Raisin Monday would traditionally see younger students, ‘children’, give their academic seniors, ‘parents’, a pound of raisins to thank them for welcoming them to the university. 

Raisin Monday refers to a 600-year-old tradition in which first-year students would gift their elders with a pound of raisins as a thank you for welcoming them to the university

Raisin Monday refers to a 600-year-old tradition in which first-year students would gift their elders with a pound of raisins as a thank you for welcoming them to the university

Over the years, however, the tradition has evolved to focus on a huge foam party in which students gather on a field to pelt each other with shaving foam

Over the years, however, the tradition has evolved to focus on a huge foam party in which students gather on a field to pelt each other with shaving foam

In return they would be gifted with a finely written Latin script, or Raisin Receipt, to prove that they had paid their due. 

In English it would read roughly as follows: 

 I, __(parent’s name)__ a third year/fourth year/graduate fellow member of this celebrated university of St Andrews who with great natural ability and toil studies __(degree)__ gives this to you, __(child’s name)__ my beloved bejant, of tired and invalided mind, from __(town)__ who studies __(degree)__ and as thanks for this will accept from you one pound of raisins.

In recent decades the tradition of raisin giving has diminished and celebrations now centre on the mass fancy-dress foam fight. 

A student is pictured being given a hand with his cigarette as he is covered head to toe with shaving foam

A student is pictured being given a hand with his cigarette as he is covered head to toe with shaving foam

However, parents are still typically expected to provide their children with a Latin Raisin Receipt, as well as devising a fancy dress costume for their child. 

The University of St Andrew’s is situated in the Scottish town of St Andrew’s and was attended by Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge, as well as former first minister of Scotland Alex Salmond.  

The foam fight is a huge event in St Andrew's calendar and involves cooperation from the whole town as roads are closed and police watch over the proceedings

The foam fight is a huge event in St Andrew’s calendar and involves cooperation from the whole town as roads are closed and police watch over the proceedings

Some students take extreme measures to protect themselves from the attack, wearing swimming hats to protect their hair while wearing IRN-BRU costumes

Some students take extreme measures to protect themselves from the attack, wearing swimming hats to protect their hair while wearing IRN-BRU costumes

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