Miss World: The History Of Beauty Pageants And Interesting Facts

Today, traditional beauty pageants are not as popular as they used to be. Now there are many ways for beauties to declare themselves to the world without any competition. But several decades ago, such events were a real event.

The content of the article

• 1 The emergence of beauty contests
• 2 Competitions of beauties in the 19th and 20th centuries
• 3 Beauty contests in Russia

Female beauty then seemed to be something unusual, covered with a veil of uncertainty. Now the whole world is familiar with how charming women can be, and the organizers of competitions are forced to come up with more and more new types of competitions.

The emergence of beauty contests

The very appearance of this type of competition has roots in ancient times. It is based on Greek mythology. According to records and legends that have survived to our time, the first competition in beauty took place between the goddesses of Olympus - Hera, Athena and Aphrodite.

To make everything as honest and impartial as possible, the goddesses appointed themselves a judge from among mortals - a shepherd named Paris. It was he who chose the first winner of the beauty contest - Aphrodite, who became the eternal patroness and protector of the young man and all his people.

In addition, there is indirect evidence that contests were also held in the ancient city of Troy to determine the most beautiful girl. The candidates were judged by representatives of all classes and spheres of activity - from artists to soldiers and farmers.

The oldest documented competitions between beauties took place in the 5th century BC in a city called Corinth. The then ruler of these lands, Kipelis, ordered to create not just a competition, but a real annual holiday in honor of the goddess of the earth Gaia.

The whole country appreciated the undertakings of Kipelis, so this holiday began to be held throughout Ancient Greece. Most impressive were the celebrations and contests of beauties that took place in Athens. But after the center of beauty contests and the celebration of the Day of the Goddess of the Earth, unofficially moved to the island of Lesvos, located in the Aegean Sea.

Some time after that, the tradition of holding beauty contests reached Ancient Babylon. In general, it was a traditional competition in which noble women competed for the right to be called the most beautiful in the whole kingdom. But the Babylonian beauty contests had one feature - after the end of the competition, auctions were arranged, similar to a modern auction. The winner could be redeemed from the family by noble men and take her as their wife.

The inhabitants of such ancient states as China and Malaysia also held their own competitions between beauties. However, they were significantly different from all similar competitions around the world. It was a deeply religious ceremony, the purpose of which was to find the most beautiful and magnificent virgin in order to solemnly sacrifice her. It was a cruel and bloody way to show your respect to one of the ancient gods or a bloodthirsty spirit.

Even in the harsh religious countries that were subordinated to the Ottoman Empire, there were something like beauty contests. The owners of numerous harems constantly competed among themselves, choosing the most beautiful among the free maidens. And, of course, they took the winner of this competition under their protection.

For a long time, competitions between young girls were held (and are still being held today) in numerous tribes of Australia and the adjacent islands. They compete with each other in order to win the attention of the most "eligible" groom in the tribe and the opportunity to become the mother of his children. Although in some places they strive with the same zeal to win in order to be fed to wild animals as a sacrificial offering.

African contests between beauties also distinguished themselves from all the others. Traditionally, African tribesmen chose the most beautiful African women at an annual ceremony. Only now no one paid attention to the appearance, face and skills of young women.

People were only interested in … the size of their priests. Most of the winners actually possessed such volumes of their dignity that they could not walk and get up without the help of strangers. But the impressive volumes of the buttocks were considered by Africans as a guarantee of healthy and strong offspring.

A kind of beauty contests were also held in Russia. They were not a simple competition, but a real holiday timed to coincide with the marriage of a tsar or prince. Thus, the ruler of the state was looking for a spouse. Beauties from all over Russia were invited to the competition, moreover, social status, nobility and the level of wealth of her family did not matter. Only beauty and health necessary for the birth of healthy heirs.

Competitions of beauties in the XIX and XX centuries__XIX_XX

Until 1888, all beauty contests were largely local in nature. The very first competition, which laid the foundations of the world competition, was held in the same year, on September 19, at one of the best holiday destinations in Belgium. Few of the organizers guessed the foundation of what phenomenon they laid on that day. If you look at that competition and at all that are taking place in our time, then you will notice several serious differences.

All candidates were assessed by anonymous members of a judicial organization created specifically for this purpose. Moreover, initially there was a strict selection only for the photographs that were sent in advance. The main stage of the competition was also closed.

The participants were strictly forbidden to contact any outsider, appear in full view of the public and, moreover, communicate with the jury members. They moved in closed carriages. The contestants lived and prepared for the tests in a separate building for them. They were not even allowed to communicate with each other.

According to the few members of the press who were admitted to the competition, all the men and women who were present as spectators were dressed almost the same.

For men, a tailcoat was obligatory, and for women, a long dress in neutral colors. The winner of this serious and strict competition was a young eighteen-year-old girl from Guadeloupe named Berta Sukare. As a reward, she received a cash prize of 5,000 francs.

Representatives of other countries warmly welcomed the offer to hold this competition. The German and American organizers showed the most enthusiasm. Germany was the first country, after Belgium, to officially hold a beauty contest. This event became a real sensation for the European people and quickly assumed the status of a traditional one.

Why was there such a wide response? Simply because girls of any class could participate in it - each had an honest chance to win in this difficult competition. This was proved by the very first winner of the German competition between women for the right to wear the title of the most beautiful girl in the country in 1909. She became an ordinary tobacco saleswoman, originally from East Prussia. This example has inspired many girls all over Germany.

The Americans joined the event in their homeland a little later. But the long preparation paid for itself - it was the competitions held in the USA that later became the standards for the whole world. In September 1921, the first competitions were held and, of course, the first winner emerged. She was a girl named Margaret Gorman. She was the daughter of one of the officials in the US Department of Agriculture.

Notable is the fact that it was the world's first public demonstration of a half-naked female body. The contestants performed in the same swimsuits, which allowed them to appreciate their beauty on a deeper level.

At the same time, Miss America was an example of modesty and purity. According to the contract, the winners had to travel around the country as the face of advertising companies for another year after the end of the competition.

During this year-long tour, there were severe restrictions on the girls. They were not allowed to go out into society, drink alcoholic beverages, and appear at events. The main condition is to maintain the image of a young, chaste and modest virgin.

And a special commission strictly monitored compliance with these rules. In case of violation of any of these conditions of the contract, the winner was deprived of the opportunity to continue cooperation with the organizers, prizes and titles were withdrawn from her.

And the awards were really serious and varied. In addition to the usual monetary reward (albeit considerable), other prizes were presented. The most remarkable thing that was on the list of awards was a grant to study at a higher educational institution of the girl's choice, with the cost of all tuition not exceeding $ 50,000. This award was especially desirable, because at that time female education was considered a very prestigious and promising investment.

The emergence and popularization of television has become a new round in the development of beauty contests. The 1954 Miss America pageant was broadcast live to all viewers for the first time in history. All records that were set before were broken that day. The program was watched by more than 40% of all TV viewers, in the amount of more than 30 million people.

It was in the 20th century that the first competitions between beauties on a global scale were held. This event took place in 1951 in the capital of Great Britain. The winners were determined in two nominations at once - "Miss World" and "Miss Universe". The world community was first faced with such open performances of girls in bathing suits, so the reaction was very stormy and emotional.

Beauty contests in Russia2

The first Russian beauty contests … were not Russian. Although all the participants were from this country. The very competition between the Russian women was held in Paris and became an annual event. In 1927, the first winner was announced - a 19-year-old Russian woman named Kira Sklyarova. Until 1929, there were no strict regulations for this competition, so several enthusiasts from among the jury members proposed their own version of these rules.

Many national cultural and art workers participated in this competition. Among the most notable figures were Bunin, Korovin, Kuprin, Chaliapin and Rachmaninov. But with the development of the Soviet Union, beauty contests ceased to be held so often.

The first competitions between beauties in the USSR were held as early as 1988, almost 60 years after the first competitions with the participation of Russian women. The Komsomol was responsible for organizing this event, the sponsor was the Burda printing concern. The scale of this event shocked the imagination of the then resident of the country - the qualifying competitions were held between tens of thousands of Moscow residents.

Beauty contests are especially fond of Russian people, so almost immediately a huge number of serious and not so much competitions arose throughout the country. They were held on different scales, but there was always a Russian flavor.

What competitions were held throughout the USSR:

1. Comic competitions like "Miss Hips" or "Miss Chest".
2. Contests among representatives of certain professions: "Miss journalist", "Miss tourism", "Miss factory", "Miss department store".
3. Competitions between pupils of schools and universities, for example, "Miss Moscow State University".
4. Traditional contests "Miss Russia", "Beauty of Russia".

Participants from Russia also paid attention to the international competitions. In 1992, there was one of the loudest victories of Russian women at the Miss World competition. This honorary title was achieved by 18-year-old Yulia Kurochkina.

Literally 6 years later, a Russian woman named Rosalia Muravyova achieved even greater success - she achieved first place in the competition between supermodels from around the world. Elena Rogozhina has twice won prizes at such prestigious competitions as Miss Russia and Miss Europe.

Beauty contests have always been a controversial phenomenon. Even now, many are not sure about the advisability of holding this competition, because beauty is a very subjective thing. In the 80s of the last century, numerous protests took place in Europe and America against the active use of attractive and sexy female images in advertising and business. The main mass of negativity is the scandals surrounding these shows. Constantly in someone's address there are announcements about unfair competition.

Even the earliest Miss America winners were accused of being dragged into first place by wealthy relatives. And in 1972, the European public was shocked by another scandal - it turned out that the entire jury at the competitions for a long time was just a deception, and the fate of the participants was solely decided by the organizer of the competition, named Eric Morley.

And today the passions around these shows almost never stop. And scandalousness and discussion are the key to popularity.