National Roast Pheasant Day – October 15, 2026

History of National Roast Pheasant Day

The pheasant is a wild bird from Asia but has been in Europe for quite a long time. Evidence obtained from Roman archeology sites suggests that the caucasian species of the pheasant bird was first introduced to the British by the Romans as game birds, but there is little evidence to back this claim. After the Romans left, the bird became extinct for quite some time, as the first evidence of pheasants in Britain came in 1059 when King Harold offered the canons of Waltham Abbey a common pheasant instead of the usual brace of partridge as a privilege of their office.

Another record of pheasants surfaced in 1089 when the monks of Rochester received 16 pheasants as gifts. Much later, the Normans made pheasants popular as game birds in the 11th century. Gradually, the bird moved from the U.K. to the U.S. The English Blackneck pheasants were the first breed to be brought into North America by the governors of New York and New Jersey in 1773. In 1789, George Washington imported the American ruffed grouse, and in 1881, Owen Nickerson Denny imported the Chinese ring-necked pheasants into his native Oregon. From then on, new breeds started to appear.

In the U.K., pheasants are now one of the most common birds and can be found almost everywhere. Though they became largely forgotten and locally extinct, their popularity was revived in the 19th century, and gamekeepers extensively reared them. The traditional way to prepare pheasants is by roasting, hence the name National Roast Pheasant Day instead of just National Pheasant Day.