This paper examines the family background, premorbid personality traits and adverse life events preceding childhood depression. The non-depressed group proved more likely to have experienced pre-school bereavement and familial disturbance, and to come from the more deprived background; there was also an excess of premorbid anxiety and hysterical personality traits in this group. School phobia and premorbid obsessional traits were associated with the depressed group. Although there was an association between depression and the total number of adverse life events, this was more substantial when the perceived impact of the events was taken into account. Of the individual classes of life event, only illness and a change in social relationships were associated specifically with depression.