WARNING: This article contains spoilers for Bridgerton season 2.
Colin returns home from his travels with a mysterious calming drug for Benedict, which leads to one of Bridgerton season 2’s best sequences. While Bridgerton does feature many historical inaccuracies, the series is quite adept at including minor details that reflect the high society culture of the Regency era. From Queen Charlotte sniffing tobacco to frequent games of pall-mall, Bridgerton season 2 dives into the more casual culture of the real-life ton with its characters.
In episode 3 of Bridgerton season 2, Colin Bridgerton reveals that he has come home from his travels in Greece with a few souvenirs, including an unnamed drug that he gives to Benedict. At the time, Benedict Bridgerton was still nervously waiting to hear back from the Royal School about his acceptance, so Colin gave him a powdered drug in his tea that would make him more relaxed during their dinner with the Sharmas. However, Benedict took a bit more than he could tolerate, which left him extremely high, overly giddy, and overall the most fun attendee at the dinner.
While Colin doesn’t reveal the name of the purple substance he brought from Greece, it seems the drug that artist Benedict Bridgerton takes is opium powder. According to a historian (via Women’s Health), it would have been common for wealthy families during the Regency era to be found with opium powder, as laws about recreational drug use weren’t quite so strict in early 1800s London. Since certain types of laced opium were among the more expensive drugs of the time, it wouldn’t have been uncommon to see high society members like the Bridgerton family indulging in opium-based psychedelics.
The Bridgertons would have also had access to psychedelic drugs like psilocybin (magic mushrooms) during this era, but they weren’t ground into powder for teas like opium. While the opium powder would have originally been a brownish color, Colin brings home a drug with a purple hue in Bridgerton season 2, which is likely due to a natural indigo dye that would have made the product more expensive. Additionally, while Colin Bridgerton’s trip to Greece is what leads him to buy the psychedelic drug, it wouldn’t have been difficult for Bridgerton’s characters to find the substance around London. During Bridgerton’s true Regency era, such wealthy citizens would have found it in trading ports, the shipping industry, or even sourced from their local chemists.
However, considering how much the drugs affected Benedict, it doesn’t seem that Bridgerton’s characters often engage in such activities casually, with Colin only really mentioning his use of it while meditating in Greece. Benedict later uses the opium again to gain a “clear mind” while painting, though it seems the second time around he took a much lighter dose. While Benedict’s casual parties with his art friends and drug use to “open his mind” may see the opium powder drug return, Bridgerton isn’t apt to see the second son Benedict and his brother Colin getting high at important dinners very often.