Daily AncestorMichaelmas
Michaelmas is September 29, the feast of St. Michael, and one of the English quarter days when rents fell due.
Michaelmas is the feast of St. Michael and All Angels on September 29. It was a quarter day, when rents and debts were paid, and it also marked the start of a court term and an academic term in England.
In records you may see "at Michaelmas next" or "Michaelmas Term." Read it as a date, around the end of September, rather than a vague season.
As seen in a recordClause in a colonial lease
one half of the rent at Michaelmas next ensuing
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Daily Ancestor. "Michaelmas." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/dates-calendar/michaelmas. Last checked 2026-10-01.