Tom Pete ~ Howe

La Tempete ~ Reilley La Tempète ~ Whale#1 La Tempète ~ Whale#2 La Tempête ~ Hillgrove La Tempete Originale ~ Hofer Tempete ~ Carpenter The Original Tampete ~ Burnton The Tempest ~ Howe The Tempest ~ Washburn/Modern The Tempest ~ Squire The Tempest ~ Washburn Tom Pete ~ Howe Ted's Tempest The Tempest ~ Holden (Sicilian#1) The Tempest ~ Holden #1 Tempête ~ Liller Hart's Tempẽte Dance La Tempête ~ Bohn La Tempete ~ Henderson#1 Tempete Dance ~ Chivers The Tempest ~ Thompson Tom Pate La Tempête ~ Lowe (Original) La Tempete ~ Skinner La Tempête ~ RSCDS La Tempête ~ RSCDS 2x2

This is supposed to have come to the UK from the continent, the earliest source I have found so far was published by Johann Heinrich Kattfuss in Leipzig in 1802 Choregraphie Oder Vollständige Und Leicht Falssiche under the title of "Der Tempẽte".

The earliest English source I have found is Joseph Hart's "Tempẽte Dance". The French word "Tempête" was somewhat mangled as it moved into English, sometimes it became "Tempest", sometimes "Tom Pat" and in this case "Tom Pete".

In his Hart's Second Set of Quadrilles, Hart writes:

Form a line of 4, the 2 Ladies on the 2 Gentlemens right, 4 more opposite to the first 4, form lines of 4 behind the 2^d. line as many as intend to dance.

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FIGURE

The first 2 lines right and left, chassez across to the right and left with your partner, dechassez, in returning you go behind the 2^d. Couple The Center 4 hands round, the outside couple's turn and back all 8 Set quite round to the right re set to your places, the top four lead through the 2^d. line and begin the same figure with the 3^d. line & so on to the bottom of the dance.

Howe writes:

All join hands forward and back, chassee by couples — all forward and back, all chassee by couples — couples 2 and 3 cross right hands half round, left hands back — (couples 1 and 4 at the same time) (each separately) join right hands swing half round left hands back (couples 2 and 3 four hand half round and back — (couples 1 and 4 at the same time) each give hands half round and back — all forward and back, forward and pass through to next couples.

Howe then draws a picture showing a standard four face four line, set up so that all the couples would start at once rather than only starting at the top.

In The American Dancing Master, 1862, and The Pianist's Social Circle, 1869, Howe uses the same words to describe the figure, but has renamed the dance to La Tempete (No circumflex).

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I'm going to assume that chassee by couples means: a sort of mad robin for couples (as that's what is probably meant in Hart's version of the dance) All couples take partner's hand, the leftmost couple in each line moves right and inside the set, while the rightmost couples move left and outside, when they reach the other end they switch with the new rightmost couple now moving left and outside (behind) while the new leftmost moves right and in. All ending back where they started.

How does Howe number his couples? His illustration suggests that, when facing up, the top couple to the left is couple 1, the top couple on the right is 2, the bottom couple on the right (still facing up) is 3, and the bottom couple on left is 4.

What does Howe mean by (couples 1 and 4 at the same time) each give hands half round and back? The first thing that springs to my mind is that they also circle half and back, but why not use the same words as he did for the 2s+3s. Giving hands might also mean another star, but again the wording isn't the same as that used for the 2s+3s. They probably don't want to do the same thing as they did before, so perhaps they give hands to their opposites (rather than partners) and right turn over and left turn back.

Note: in a modern 4 face 4 contra dance people switch from the left to the right side of their line (and vice versa) each time through the dance. That doesn't happen here. But at the end of the line if each foursome wheels around (as a foursome) they will switch roles. Howe doesn't say what should be done at the end.

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