EnglishCostume 10000593

EN GL ISH CO ST U M E
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I L
D O N C AYT ON C A T H R OP L
I L L US T R A T E D W IT H FU LL - PA G E P LA T S
E IN
C L
O OUR A ND M ANY DIA G RA M S IN T H E T T
E!
E A CH S TIO
EC N PR I C E 7 s. 6 d . N E T
( O ST
P F R E E 73 . 11d .
)
I E A R LY E N GL I SH
.
II M I DD LE A G ES
.
III . TU DOR A N D ST U A RT
IV . GE O R GIA N
Pu é lz s/ze d
'
AG E NTS
A MERICA THE M A CM I L L A N COM PANY

T O
.
64 I
66 F F H AV E NU E . NE W Y R K
CANA DA THE M A CM I L L A N COM PA NY OF C A NA D A LT D

M O N D ST R T TO R O N TO . .
7 RI 2 CH EE ,
IND IA M A CM I L L AN COM PA NY L T D
M A C M I LLA N B U I LD I NG B OM BA Y
.
3 9 B o w B A ! AAR ST R r C A L C U TT A
.
0 EE ,
A MAN OF TH E T I M E OF CH A R L E S I I .
( 1 660 — 1 68 5 )
THI S sh o w s the d d u ing the fi st h l f of the

re ss r r a
re l g n Th e fe t u e of g p of bb i g i s h w
a r ro u s rI on n s o n,
w i th the sleeve the fu ll sh t d the p
.
sh o r t , u , an e t tl c o a t .
E N G L IS H C O ST U M E
—
D I O N C L AYT O N C A LT I IR O P
IV
.
G EO R GIA N
LO ND ON
AD A M A N D C H ARLE S BLAC K
1 90 6
TO MY F R I EN D
BYA M SH AW
Co n t e n t s
C HARL E S T H E S EC O N D
M EN A ND W O M EN
JAM ES T H E SE C O N D
A ND WO M EN
W I LL I A M AN D M A RY
! U EEN AN N E
M EN AN D WO M EN
GE O R GE I
'
T H E F RST
‘
M EN AN D W O M EN
v i ii CON TEN TS
G E O RG E T H E SE C OND
G E O RG E TH E TH I RD
M EN AND W O M EN
G E O R G E TH E FO U RTH
‘
CU R OSY REM A R K S ON T HE S
L A T N EW FA SH I O NS
’
PO W D E R AND PA T C H ES
BEAU BR U M M ELL A ND C LO T H ES
L ist of Illu st r at io n s
1 . A Man of t he Ti m e of Ch ar les II . 1 660 1 68 5

-
2 . A Ma nof t h e Ti m e of Ch les I I ar .
3 . A W om n of t he Ti m e of Ch les I I
a ar .
4 . A M n of t h e Ti m e of J m es I I
a a . 1 68 5 - 1 68 9
5 . A Wom n of t h e Ti m e of J m es I I
a a .
6 . A M n of t h e Ti m e of W i lli m
a a
nd M
a ar 1 68 9 1 702
y
-
7 . A W om n of t h e Ti m e of Wi lli m
a a
nd M
a
y ar
8 . A M n of t h e Ti m e of Q uee n A nn e
a 1 702- 1 71 4\
9 . A W om n of t h e Ti m e of Q uee n
a
An ne
10 . A M n of t h e Ti m e of Ge o g e I
a r . 1 71 4 - 1 727
11 . A W om n of t h e Ti m e of Ge o g e I
a r .
12 . A M n of t h e Tim e of Ge o g e I I
a r . 1 727- 1 760
13 . A Wom n of t h e Ti m e of Ge o g e I I
a r .
14 . A M n of t he Ti m e Of Ge o g e I I I
a r . 1 760- 1 8 20
15 . A W o m n of t h e Ti m e of Ge or g e I I I
a .
ix
LIST O F ILLUSTRATION S
A Man of t h e Ti m e of Ge or g e I I I . 1 760- 1 8 20
A W om a n of t h e Ti m e of Ge o rg e I II .
A S e ri es of Wa sh D ra w i n g s t o
I llust ra t e t h e Co st um e of t he
Re i gn of Ge or g e I II .
A Man of t h e Ti m e of Ge o rg e IV . 1 8 20 1 8 30
-
C H A RLES TH E SE C O ND
Re ign ed t we nt y fi ve yea rs ! 1 660— 1 68 5
-
.
B o n 1 630 M arr i ed 1 662 K at he in e o f Por t uga l

r .
, , r .
TH E MEN AND W OMEN
E N GL A N D appar ,
ently wi th a sigh
o f relie f lays aside ,
her hair shirt and ,
proves that she has

been wearing a silk
vest under it R ib .
bon makers and

wig makers lace
-
,
makers tailors and , ,
shoemakers pour ,
out thankful offerings at the altar o f Fashion .
O ne kind o f folly has replaced another ; it is only

the same goddess in different clothes The lamp .
V OL . IV . 1
2 ENGLIS H COST UME
that winked and flickered before the stern black

figure in Geneva bands and prim curls is put to
shame by the flare o f a thousand candle s s hin ing
on the painted face the exposed bosom the
, ,
flaunting love locks of this C arolean deity

-
.
We have burst out into pe rIWIgs monstrous

, ,
bushy ; we have donned petticoat breeches ru ffled

li ke a pigeon ; we have cut our coats till they
are mere apologies serving to show o ff our fine
,
shirts ; and we have done the like with our coat

sleeves leaving a little cu ff glittering with buttons
, ,
and above that we have cut

a great slit all to show the
,
marvel o f our linen .
Those o f us who still

wear the long wide breeches
adorn them with heavy
frills o f deep lace and se w
,
bunches o f ribbons along

the seams . We tie our
cravats in long sti ff bows or knot them tight
, ,
and allow the wide lace ends to float grace fully .
O ur hats broad brimmed and sti ff are loaded

,
-
,
with feathers ; our little cloaks are barred with

silk and lace and gold cord ; our shoes are square
C H ARLE S TH E SECOND 3
toed and high heeled and are tied with a long

-
,
ended bow o f ribbon .
Ribbon reigns triumphant ! it ties our periwigs

into bunches at the ends ; it hangs in loops round
our waist s ; it ties our shirt sleeves up in several -
places ; it twists itself round our knees I t is on .
o ur hats and heads and ,
necks and arms and legs ,
an d shoes and it peers out

,
o f the t 0ps o f our boots .
D ivines rave morali sts ,
rush into print to no pur ,
pose The names seem to

.
convey a sense o f luxury

dove coloured silk bro
-
cade R hingrave breeches

, ,
white lutestring seamed

all over with scarlet and
silver lace sleeves whipt
,
with a point lace coat tri mmed and figured with

,
silver twist or satin ribbon ; canvas camblet galloon , ,
and sha me y vellam buttons and taffety ribbons

, .
The cannons those bunches o f ribbons round our

,
knees and the co nfi den t s those bunches o f c urls by

, ,
our ladies cheeks do not shake at the thunderings

’
1— 2
4~ ENGLIS H COST UME
of Mr Baxter or other moral gentlemen who

.
regard a M aypole as a stinking idol M r Hall . .
writes on The L oathsomeness o f L ong Hair ,

’
M r Prynne on The U nloveliness o f L ovelocks

’
.
,
and we do not care a pinch of rappe .
L ittle moustaches and tiny lip beards grow

under careful treatment and the ladie s wear a ,
solar system in patches on their cheek s .
The ladies soon escaped the bondage o f the

broad Puritan collars an d all these had hid was ,
exposed The sleeves left the arms bare to the

.
elbow and being slit above and j oined loosely

, ,
by ribbons showed the ar mnearly to the shoulder

, .
The sleeves o f these dresses also followed the

masculine fashion of little cu ffs and tied up linen -
under sleeves The bodices came to a peak in

-
.
front and were round behind The skirts were .
full satin being favoured and when held up

, ,
showed a satin petticoat with a long train The .
ladies for a time i n dulged in a peculiar loop of

, ,
hair on their foreheads called a fore top which ,

-
,
’
gave rise to another fashion less common called , ,
a taure or bull s head being an arrangement o f

,
’ ’
hair on the forehead resembling the close curls

o f a bull The loose curls on the forehead were
.
A MAN OF TH E T I M E OF CH A RL ES I I
—1 68 5 )
.
( 1 660
TH I S i s the ch ng e wh i ch c m e o ve m e n s d ess on
a a r
'
r
or a bou t Oct o be 666 I t i s t he w f sh ion ed ves t

r, 1 ne -
a
b od y co t int o d u ced t o the no t i ce of C h les
.
or - a r ar
b y J o h n E vel yn .
C H ARLES T H E SECOND 5
called favorites the long locks arranged to hang

away from the face over the ears were called heart
breakers and the curls close to
the cheek were called con fi
dents L adies wore cloaks with
.
’
baggy hoods fo r travelling and ,
fo r the M all the same hats as

men loaded with feathers
, .
I am going to leave the change

in dress during this reign to the
next chapter in which you will
,
read how it struck

M r Pepys
. This .
change separates the

old world o f dress
from the new ; it is the advent o f
frocked coats the an cestor of our frock
,
coat I t finishes completely the series

.
o f evolutions beginning with the old
tunic running through the gown s tages

,
to the doublet o f E lizabethan times ,
lives in the half coat half doublet o f ,
C harles I and ends in the absurd li ttle

.
,
j ackets of C harles I I who sart orially steps fr om

.
, , ,
the end of the M iddle Ages into the N ew Ages ,

6 ENGLIS H COS T UME
closes the door on a wardrobe o f brilli ant e ccen
t r i ci t y and opens a cupboard containing our first
,
frock coat
-
.
PE P Y S AND CLOTH ES
I t is not really necessary fo r me to remind the
reader that one of the best companions in the world ,
S amuel Pepys was the so n o f a tailor Possibly

, .
I say possibly because the argument is really absurd

— he may have inherited his gr eat interest in clothes
~
from his father You se e where the argument leads

.
in the end ! that all men to take an interest in

clothes must be born tailors sons This is no more’
.
true o f Adam who certainly did interest himself

, ,
than it is o f myself .
Pepys was educated at S t Paul s S chool went .

’
to Trinity C ollege C ambridge got drunk there

, , ,
and took a scholarship He married when he was

.
twenty two a girl o f fifteen the daughter of a

-
,
Huguenot H e was born in 1 633 three years

.
,
after the birth o f C harles I I o f outrageous .

,
but delightful memory and he commenced his

,
D iary in 1 660 the year in which C harles entered

,
L ondon ending it in 1 669 owing to his in creasing

, ,
weakn ess o f sight H e was made S ecretary to the

.
C H ARLES TH E SECOND 7
A dmiralty in 1 672 i n 1 673 he became a member ,
o f Parli ament was sent to the Tower as a Papist

,
in 1 679 and released in 1 68 0 I n 1 68 4 he became

, .
President o f the R oyal S ociety and he died in ,
1 703 and is buried in S t O la ve s C rutched Friars

’
.
, .
,
Pepys mentions in 1 660 his coat with long , ,
skirts fur cap and buckles on his shoes The

, , .
coat was doubtless an old fashioned C romwellian

, ,
-
coat with no waist .
L ater he goes to see M r C althrop and wears .

,
his white suit with silver lace having left o ff his ,
great skirt coat He leaves M r C althrop to lay

-
. .
up his money and change his shoes and stoc kings .
He mentions his scarlet w ai st clot h e s presumably ,
a sash and regards M r John Pickering a s an a ss

, .
because of his feathers and his new suit made at

the Hague He mentions his linning stockings
.
and wide cannons This mention o f wide cannons .
leads me to suppose that at this time any ornament

at the kn ee would be called cannons whether it ,
was a part o f the breeches or the stockings or a ,
separate frill or bunch o f ribbons to put on .
O n July 1 still in the same year comes home

, ,
his fi n e camlet t cloak and gold buttons ; also a

silk suit L ater he buys a j ackanapes coat with
.
8 ENGLIS H COS TUME
silver buttons Then he and M r Pin the tailor
. .
, ,
agree upon a velvet coat and cap the first I ever

He buys short black stockings to wear over
silk ones for mourning .
O n O ctober 7 he sa ys that long cloaks being out

,
o f fashion he must get a short one

, He speaks o f
.
a suit made in France fo r M y L ord costing £ 200 .
He mentio ns ladies masks ’

.
I n 1 662 his wife has a pair o f pe r uqu e s o f hair

and a new fashioned petticoat of san cen e t t with
-
black broad lace

, .
S mocks are men

t i on ed and linen
,
petticoats .
He has a ridin g
suit with close knees .
His new lace band

i s so neat that he is
resolved they shall
be his great expense .
He wears a scallop .
I n 1 663 he has a new

black cloth suit wi th white linings under all as
,
—
the fashion is— to appear under the breeches .
The ! ueen wears a white laced waistcoat and a

-
A W OMA N OF T H E T IME OF CH A R L E S II
.
( 1 660 1 68 5 )
YOU w i ll noti ce h h i in i ng lets t i ed w i th i bbon

er a r r a r
an d d essed o ve
r r a f m e the s i des
ra at .
C H A R LE S UEUE SECOND 9
crimson short petticoat L adies are wearing hats .
covered with feathers .
G od wi lling he will begin next week to wear his

,
three pound periwig

-
.
He has spent last month ( O ctober ) £ 1 2 on M iss

Pepys and £ 5 5 on his clothes He has silk tops
, .
fo r his legs and a new shag gown .
He has a close bodied coat light

-
,
coloured cloth with a gold edge .
He sees L ady C astlemaine in yellow

satin with a pin ner on .
I n 1 664 his wi fe begins to wear

light coloured locks
-
.
I n 1 665 there is a new fashion

for ladies of yellow bird s eye hood
’
-
.
There is a fear o f the hair o f periwigs

during the Plague E ven in the
.
middle o f the Plague Pepys ponders

on the next fashion .
I n 1 666 women begin to wear

buttoned u p riding coats hats and
- -
,
periwigs .
O n O ctober 8 the Ki ng says he will

set a thrift y fashion in clothes A t this momentous .
date i n history we must break for a minute from

VOL . IV . 2
10 ENGLIS H COST UME
our friend Pepys and hear how this came about
, .
E velyn had given the King his pamphlet entitled

Tyrannus or the ,
M ode The King reads

’
.
the pamphlet and is ,
struck with the idea

of the Persian coat .
A long pause may be

made here in which ,
the reader may float

on a mental cloud back
into the dim ages in
the E ast and there ,
behold a t r an smogr i fi e d
edition of his own frock
coat gracing the back
of some staid philosopher E velyn had also
.
published M undus M uliebris ; or the L adies ,

’
’
D ressing R oom U nlocked
-
.
S o only one month after the G reat Fire o f

,
L ondon only a short time before the D utch burnt

,
ships in the M edway only a year after the Plague

, ,
King C harles decides to reform the fashion By .
O ctober 1 3 the new vests are made and the King ,
and the D uke o f York try them on O n the .

C H ARLES TH E SECOND 11
fift eenth the King wears his in public and says he ,
will never change to another fashion I t is says .

,
’
Pepys a long c a sso ck e close to the

,
body o f black cloth and pinked w ith

,
white silk under it and a coat over ,
it and the legs ru ffled with black

,
ribband like a pigeon s legs ’

.
’
The ladies to make an alteration

, ,
are to wear short skirts N ell .
G w ynne had a neat ankle so I imagine ,
she had a hand in this fashion .
O n O ctober 1 7 the King seeing ,
L ord S t A lban in an all black suit

.
,
says that the black and white makes them look

too much like magpies He bespeaks one o f all .
black velvet .
S ir Philip Howard increases in the E astern

fashion and wears a nightgown and a turban li k e
,
a Turk .
O n N ovember 2 Pepys buys a vest like the

King s ’
.
O n N ovember 22 the King o f France L ouis ! IV , .

,
who had declared war against E ngland earlier in the

year says that he wi ll dress all his footmen in vests
,
like the King o f E ngland However fashion is .

,
2— 2
beyond the power o f royal command and the ,
world soon followed in the matter of the Persi an

coat and vest even to the present
,
day
.
N ext year 1 667 Pepys notes that

, ,
L ady N ewcastle in her velvet cap

,
and her hair about her ears is the ,
talk o f the town S he wears a .
number o f black patches because of

the pimples about her mouth she is ,
naked necked ( no great peculiarity )

-
,
and she wears a just a n corp s which ,
i s a close body
coat .
Pepys notices the shepherd at

E psom with his wool knit stock-
ings o f two colours ml x e d He

, .
wears a new c amle tt cloak The .
shoe strings have given place to

-
buckles , and children wear long

coats.
I n 1 668 hi s wi fe wears a flower

tabby suit everybody in love with
He is forced to lend the D uke o f York
his cloak because it rains His barber agrees to
.
C H ARLES T H E SECOND 13
keep his periwig in order fo r £ 1 a year He buy s

.
a black bo mbaz i n suit

.
I n 1 669 his wi fe wears the new French gown

called a sa c ; he pays 5 5 s fo r his new belt His
. .
wife still wears her old flower tabby gow n S o .
ends the dress note in the D iary

.
J A M E S TH E SEC O ND
years 1 68 5 — 1 68 9
R e ign ed fo u r .
B orn 1 633 Ma rr i ed 1 661 A nn e Hyde

.
, , 1 673,
M ar y o f M ode n a.
TH E MEN AND W OMEN

such a short space
IN
o f time as this reign
occupies it is not
possible to S how any
great difference in
the chara cter o f the
dress but there is a ,
tendency shown over ,
the country at large ,
to discard the earli er

beribboned fashions ,
and to take more seriously to the long coat and

waistcoat There is a tendency even to become
.
, ,
more buttoned up—to present what I can only call

a fro ck coat figure The coat became closer to the
-
.
14
A MA N OF TH E T I M E O F J AM ES I I .
( 1 68 5 —1 68 9 )
T HE b od y c o t h no w becom e the u n i ve s l f sh ion

-
a as r a a
ve ls o t he W i de kn ee b eeches Bu c kles
,
a s ha a -
r a re
u sed on t he sh o es in s t e d of st ing s
.
a r .
J AMES TH E SECOND 15
body and was braided acro ss the front in many

,
rows the ends fringed out and held by buttons

, .
The waistcoat with the pockets an arm s length

,
’
down was cut the same leng t h as the coat

, .
Breeches were more frequently cut tighter an d ,
were buttoned up the side of the leg The cu ffs .
o f the sleeves were wide and were turned back

,
well over the wrist .
O f course the change was gradual and more ,
men wore the transitional coat than the tight one .
By the coat in its changing stages

I mean such a coat as this ! the
short coat o f the early Charles I I .
period m ade long an d following

, ,
the old lines o f cut correspondingly

,
loose The sleeves remained much

.
the same well over the elbow

, ,
showing the white shirt full and

tied with ribbons The shoe
.
strings had nearly died out giving ,
place to a buckle placed on a strap

well over the instep .
There i s a hint o f growth in the periwig and o f ,
fewer fea thers round the brim o f the hat ; indeed ,
little low hats with broad brims merely ornamented

,
16 ENGLIS H C OS T UME
with a bunch or so o f ribbons began to become ,
fashionable .
S words were carried in broad baldricks richly

orn amented .
The w a i st clot he s o f M r Pepys would by now

.
, ,
have grown into broad sashes with heav i ly fri nged

,
ends and would be worn round the outside coat ;

,
fo r riding this appears to have been the fashion

, ,
together with small peaked caps like j ockey caps , ,
and high boots .
The ladies o f this reign simplified the dress into

a gown more tight to the bust the sleeves more ,
like the men s the skirt still very

’
full but not quite so long in the

,
train .
Black hoods with or without

capes were worn and wide collars ,
coming over the shoulders again

came into fashion The pin ner .
,
noticed by Pepys was o ft en ,
worn .
But the most noticeable

change occurs in the dress o f
countryfolk and ordinary citizens .
The men began to drop all forms o f d oublet and ,

A W OMA N OF TH E T I M E OF J AM E S I I .
( 1 68 5— 1 68 9)
the b o d c oll
N OT I C E r a ar a g in in u se ls o the
a a
no seg y T h sleeves mo e in t he m nn i sh
,
a e a re r a
f h ion
.
as .
J AMES TH E SECOND 17
take to the long coat a suit o f black grogram below ,
the knees a sash and a walkin g stick fo r the cold

, ,
-
,
a short black cloak I n the country the change .
would be very noticeable The country town the .

,
’
countryside was until a fe w years back distinctly

, , ,
Puritanical in garb there were E lizabethan doub

lets On old men and wide C romwellian breeches, ,
patched doubtless walked the market place Hair ,

-
.
w a s worn short N ow the russet brow n clothes

.
take a decided character in the direction of the

Persian coat and knickerbockers closed at the knee .
The good wi fe o f the farmer kn ots a

-
loose cloth over her head and pops a ,
broad brimmed man s hat over it S he

-
’
.
has the sleeves o f her dress made with

turned back cu ffs like her husband s
-
,
’
ties her shoes with strings laces her ,
dress in front so as to show a bright

,
coloured under bodice and as like as -

, ,
not wears a green pinner ( an apron with

,
bib which was pinned on to the dress )

, ,
and altogether brings herself up to date .
O ne might se e the farmer s wi fe riding to market

’
with her eggs in a basket covered with a corner of

her red cloak and many a red cloak would she meet
,
VO L . IV . 3
18 ENGLIS H COS T U M E
on the way to clep with on the times and the
fashions . The green apron w a s a mark o f a ! uaker
in A merica and the S ociety o f Friends was not by
,
an means sa d in colour until late in their history

y .
M ost notable was the neckcloth in this unhappy

reign which went by the name o f Judge J e ffr eys
,
’
hempen cravat .
W I LL I A M A ND M A R Y
y ea r s ! 1 68 9— 1 702
R e ign ed t h i r t ee n .
T he K ing b o r n in 1 65 0 ; t he Q uee n bor n in 1 662

m arr i ed in 1 677 .
TH E MEN
F I R S T and foremost t he wig , .
Periwig peruke campaign wig

, ,
with pole locks or dildos all

-
,
the rage all the thought of

,
the first gentlemen Their

heads loaded with curl upon
curl long ringlets hanging
,
over their shoulders and down

their backs some brow n some
, ,
covered with meal until their

coats looked like millers coats ; ’
scented hair almost hiding the,
loose tied cravat most agree

-
,
ably discoloured wi th snu ff

from top to bottom
’
.
19 3— 2
M y fin e gentleman walki ng the street with the

square cut coat open to show a fine waistcoat his
-
,
stick hanging by a ribbon on to his wrist and rattling

on the pavement as it dragged along his hat care ,
fully perched o n his wig the crown made wide and

,
high to hold the two wings of curls which formed ,
a negligent central parting His pockets low down

.
,
in his coat show a lace kerchief half dropping from

,
one o f them O ne hand is in a small mu ff the

.
,
other holds a fine S ilver gilt box filled with V igo

-
snu ff He wears high heeled shoes red heeled

.
-
, ,
perhaps and the tongue of ,
his shoe sticks up well above

the instep Probably he is on .
his way to the theatre where ,
he will comb his periwig in

public and pu ff away the
,
clouds of powder that come

from it The fair lady in a
.
side box who hides her face ,
behind a mask is delighted ,
i f S ir Beau will bow to her .
We are now among most

precise people O ne must walk here with just
.
such an air of art ifi ci ali t y as will account one a

A M AN OF THE T I M E OF W I LLI AM AN D
MA RY ( 68 9 7 )
1 1 02
ST S g i n in u se on t he sh oes Cu ffs mu ch
R I NG a a
b o de ; W i g s mo e fu ll ; s ki ts W i d Co t le ft
.
r a r r r er a
o pe n to sh o w t he l ong w i s t c o t
.
a a .
W ILLIA M AND MAR Y 21
fellow of high tone The more enormous is our

.
wig the more frequently we take a pinch o f V iolet

,
S trasburg or Best Brazil O rangery Bergamotte or , , ,
Ja ssam e n a the more shall we be followed by persons

,
anxious to learn the fashion We may even draw .
a little silver bowl from our pocket place it on ,
a seat by us and in meditative mood spit therein

, , , .
We have gone completely into skirted coats and

big flapped waistcoats ; we have adopted the big
cu ff buttoned back ; we have given up altogether
the wide knee breeches and wear only breeches not
-
,
tight to the leg but just full enough for comfort

, .
The hats have altered considerably now they are

cocked up at all angles turned o ff the forehead , ,
turned up one side turned up all round ; some are

,
frin ged with gold or silver lace others are crowned ,
with feathers .
We hear o f such a number o f claret coloured suits -
that we must imagine that colour to be all the rage ,
and in contrast to other times not long gone by

, ,
we must sti ffen ourselves in buck ram lined skirts -

.
These powdered Absaloms could change them

selves into very fine fighting creatures and look twice ,
as sober again when occasion demanded They .
rode about the country in periwigs certainly but , ,

not quite so bushy and curl ed ; many o f them

took to the travelling or campaign wig with
the dildos or pole locks These
-
.
wigs were full over the ears

and at the sides o f the fore
head but they were low in the
,
crown and the two front ends

,
were twisted in to single pipes o f

hair ; or the pipes o f hair at the
side were entirely removed and ,
one sin gle pipe hung down the

back . The custom o f thus
twisting the hair at the back ,
and there holdin g it with a

ribbon gave rise to the later
,
pigtail The periwigs so altered

.
were kn own as short bobs the bob being the full

,
ness o f the hair by the cheek s of the wig .
The cu ffs of the coat sleeve varied to the idea

-
and taste o f the owner o f the coat ; sometimes the

sleeve was widened at the elbow to 1 8 inches and ,
the cu ffs turned back to meet the sleeves were

, ,
wider still Two three or even more buttons held

.
, ,
the cu ff back .
The pockets on the coats were cut vertically and

W ILLIAM AND MAR Y 23
horiz ontally and these also might be buttoned up

, .
O ften the coat was held by only two centre buttons ,
and the waistcoat flaps were

not buttoned at all The
.
men s and women s mu ff s were

’ ’
small and o ften tied and slung

,
with ribbons .
Plain round riding coats

were worn fastened by a clasp
,
or a couple of large buttons .
The habit of tying the neck

cloth i n a bow with full
hanging ends was dying out ,
and a more loosely tied cravat

was being worn this was
finished with fine lace
ends and was frequently
,
worn quite long .
S tockings were pulled

over the knee and were ,
gartered below and rolled

above it .
The ordinary citizen

wore a modified edition
o f these clothes — plain in cut full without half the
, ,
number o f buttons and without the tremendous
,
periwig wearin g merely his own hair long

, .
For convenience in riding the skirts o f the coats

,
were slit up the back to the waist ; this slit could

be buttoned up i f need be .
N ow let us give the dan dy o f this time his pipe

, ,
and let him go in peace L et us watch him stroll

.
down the street planti ng ,
his high heels carefully ,
to j oin two companions

outside the tobacco shop .
Here by the great carved

,
wood figure o f a smoking

I ndian with his kilt of
tobacco leaves he meets ,
his fellows From the.
hoop hung by the door

one chooses a pipe ,
another asks for a quid to chew and a spittoon the ,
thir d calls for a paper o f snu ff newly rasped Then .
they pull aside the curtains and go into the room

behind the sh0p where seated at a table made o f
, ,
planks upon barrels they will discuss the merits of

,
smok ing chewing and sn uffmg

, , .
W e t hr ee a r e e ngaged in o ne ca u se ,
I snu ffs I sm oke s a nd I cha ws

, , .
’
W ILLIAM AND MA R Y 25
TH E W OMEN
L et me picture for you a lady of this time in the

language o f those learned in dress and you wi ll see ,
how much it may benefit .
We see her coming afar o ff ; again st the yew

hedge her weeds s hine for a moment We see her .
fi gur e tt o gown well Iooped and pu ffed with the

monte la haut Her é chelle is beautiful and her
- -
.
,
pinn er exqui s itely worked We can see her com .
mode her top not and her font ag e for she wears
,
-
, ,
no rayonn é A s i lver pin holds her meurtriers

.
,
and the fashion suits better than did the creve

c oeurs O ne hand holds her S axon green mu ffetee
.
,
under one arm is her chapeau bras S he is bea u -

.
tiful she needs no plumpers a nd she regards us

, ,
kindly with her watchet eyes .

’
A lady o f this date would read this and enj oy it ,
just as a lady of to day would understand modern

-
dress language which is equally peculiar to the

,
mere man For example this one of the ! ueen

.
,
of S pain s hats from her trousseau ( curiously enough

’
a trousseau is a little bundle)

The hat is a paille d It ali e trimmed with a pro
’
fu s ion of p i nk roses accompanied by a pin k chiffon

,
V OL . 1v . 4
ru ffle fa shioned into masses bouillonn é e arranged

at intervals and circled with wreaths of shaded
roses .
’
The modern terms so vaguely used are shocking ,
and the descriptive names given to colours by

dress artists are horrible
-
beyond belief such as

Watteau pin k and ele
phant grey not to speak ,
o f S evres blue cherri es

-
.
However the female ,
mind delights in such

j argon and hotch potch -
.
L et me be ki nd enough
to translate our William
and M ary fashion language .
Weeds is a term still in use in widow s weeds ‘ ’
,
’
meaning the entire dress appearance o f a woman .
A fi gur ett o gown Iooped and pu ffed with the monte

‘
la haut is a gown o f figured material gathered info

-
loops over the petticoat and sti ffened out with wi res
monte la haut -
The é chelle is a stomacher
-
.
’
laced with ribbons in rungs like a ladder Her .
pin ner is her apron The commode is the wire

.
frame over which the curls are arranged piled up in ,

W ILLIAM AND MAR Y 27
high masses over the forehe ad The top not is a .

-
large bow worn at the top o f the commode and the

fo n t ag e or tower is a French arrangement o f
alternate layers of lace and ribbon raised one above
another about half a yard high I t was invented .
in the time o f L ouis ! IV .

,
about 1 68 0 by M ademoiselle
,
F o n t ag e. The rayonn é is a
cloth hood pinned in a circle .
The meurtriers or murderers

‘
,
’
are those twists i n the hair

which tie or unloose the
arrangements o f cu rls and
'
the creve c oeurs ar e the row

-
o f little forehead curls o f the
previous reign A mu ff etee .
is a little mu ff and a chapeau bras i s a hat never

,
-
worn but made to be carried under the arm by

,
men or women ; fo r the men hated to disarrange

their wigs .
Plumpers were artificial arrangements fo r fill

ing out the cheeks and watchet eyes are blue
,
‘
eyes.
The ladies have changed a good deal by the

middle of this reign ! they have looped up the gown
4— 2
28 ENGLIS H C OS TUME
till it makes side panniers and a bag like droop at

- -
the back ; the under gown has a long train and the
-
,
bodice is long waisted -

The .
front o f the bodice is laced

open and shows either an
,
arrangement o f ribbon and

lace or a piece o f the material
o f the under gown -
.
Black pinners in silk with a

deep frill are worn as well as
the white lace and lin en ones .
The ladies wear short black

capes o f this
stu ff with a
deep frill .
S ometimes ,
instead of the
fo n t ag e a lady
,
wears a lace shawl over her head

and shoulders or a sort o f lace cap
,
bedi zened with coloured ribbons .
Her sleeves are like a man s ’
except that they come to the elbow

only showin g a white under sleeve o f lace gathered
,
-
into a deep frill o f lace j ust below the elb ow .

W OMA N O F TH E T I M E OF W ILLI AM
AN D MA RY ( 68 9— 7 ) 1 1 02
H yo u see the p c lled the f g t he bl c k

ER E ca a o n ta e,
’
a
s i l k p on the l oo p ed s ki t d t h e h i on the h ig h
a r r an a r
f m e c lled c ommo de
, ,
’
ra a a .
WILLIAM AND MARY 29
S he is very stiff and tight — laced and very long in ,
the waist ; and at the waist where the gown opens

and at the loopings of it the
richer we ar j ewelled brooches .
L ater in the reign there began

fashion fo r copying men s
’
a
clothes and ladies wore wide

,
skirted coats with deep fl appe d -
pockets the sleeves of the coats

,
down below the elbow and with

deep turned o ver cuffs They
-
.
wore like the men very much

, ,
p u ffe d
and r uf
fled linen an d lace at the
wri s ts A lso they wore
.
’
men s waistcoat fashions ,
carried sticks and little arm

hats chapeau bras To .
complete the dress the hair

was done in a bob wig style -
,
and the cravat was tied

Cou t y F lk n r o .
round their necks and

pin ned For the wi n ter one o f those loose D utch
.
j ackets lined and edged with fur havi ng wi de sleeves , .

30 ENGLIS H COST U ME
The general tendency was to look D utch sti ff

, ,
prim but ve ry prospe rous ; even the country maid

,
in her best i s close upon the heel of fashion with

her laced bodice sleeves with cu ff s apron and high
, , ,
heeled shoes.
! U EEN A NNE
R e ign ed t wel ve y ear s ! 1 702— 1 71 4
B orn 1 665 M arr i ed
.
, 1 68 3, Pri n c e
D e n m a rk .
TH E ME N AND W OMEN
W H E N I turn to the opening of the eighteenth
centu r y and leave D utch William and his Hollands
,
and his pipe and his bulb gardens behind it seems

-
,
to me that there is a great noise a tumultuous ,
chattering We seem t o burst upon a date o f

.
talke rs o f coffee houses of snu ff and scandal All

,
-
, .
this was going on before I say to my s elf— people

,
were wearing powdered wigs and were taking snu ff , ,
and were talking scandal but it did not appeal so

,
forcibly .
We arrive at S edan chairs and hoops too big for

-
them we arrive at red heeled shoes Though both

-
.
chairs and red heels belong to the previous reign ,
still we rrive at them D O

, a W — they are very much
31
in the picture We seem to see a profusion a con
.
,
fused mass o f bobbins and bone lace mourning hat ,
bands silk garters amber canes correctly conducted

, , ,
country men in red coats coxcombs brass and , ,
look ing glass snu ff boxes

- -
.
G entlemen walk past our mental Vision with

seals curiously fancied and exquisitely well cut .
L adies are sighing at the toss o f

a wig or the tap on a snu ff box -
,
falling sick for a pair o f striped

garters or a pair o f fringe d gloves .
G entlemen are sitting baldheaded

in elegant dressing gowns wh ile -
,
their wigs are being taken out o f

roulettes The per u qu i e r removes
.
the neat warm clay t ube gives

, ,
a last pat to the fine pipes o f the

hair and then gently places the
,
wig on the waiti ng gentlemen .
If you can look through the

walls o f L ondon houses you w ill
next see reg iments o f gentle
men their faces pressed into glass cones while
, ,
the per uqui er tosses powder over their newly

put ou periw igs
-
The bow at the end of the
.
A MA N OF THE T I M E OF ! U EE N AN N E
THE co t
a h as bec om e s t i ll mo e fu ll
r at the s i des
mo e g e n e ou b i m d heels
.
T h e hat has a r r s r . Re In
f sh ion
a .
QUEEN ANNE as
long pigtail on the R amillies wig IS tied— that

is over .
R unning footmen looking rather li ke I ndian s

,
from the outsides o f tobacco shops speed past They , .
are dressed in close tu ni cs with a fr inged edge ,
which flicks them j ust above the knee Their legs .
are tied up in leather guards their feet are strongly ,
shod their wigs are in small bobs O n their heads

,
.
are little round caps with a ,
feather stuck in them In .
one hand they carry a long

stick about 5 feet high in ,
the top knob of whic h they

carry some food or a message .
A message to whom !
T he runnin g footman kn ocks
on a certain door and delivers,
to the pretty maid a note fo r

her ladyship from a hand
A R un i g F tm
some well shaped youth who
,
-
n n oo an .
frequents the co ffee houses about C harin g C r os s

-
.
There is no answer to the note ! her ladyship i s too

disturbed with household affairs Her Welsh maid .
has left her under suspicious circumstances and has ,
carried o ff some articles The lady is even now.
VO L . IV . 5
34 ENGLI S H COST UME
writing to M r Bickerstaff of the Ta tler to implore
.
his aid .
This is the list of the things sh e has missed— a t

least as much o f the list as my mind remembers as
,
it travels back over the years

A thick wadded C alico Wrapper .
A M usk coloured V elvet M antle lined with

-
S quirrels S kins
’
.
E ight night shift s four pairs of ,
stockings curiously darned .
S ix pairs o f laced S hoes new ,
and old with the heels o f

,
half 2 inches higher than their

fellows .
A quilted Petticoat o f the

largest size and one o f C an,
vas with whalebone hoops

, .
Three pairs o f S tays bo ulst er ed

below the left shoulder Two .
pairs o f Hips of the newest

fashion .
S ix R oundabout Aprons with ,
Pock ets and four st rip d M uslin night

,
’
rails very little frayed .
A S ilver C heese toaster with three tongues .
A silver Posnet to butter eggs .
A Bible bound in S hagreen with guilt L eaves

,
and C lasps never opened but once

, .
Two L eather Forehead Clo at hes three pair of ,
oiled D ogskin Gloves .

QUEEN ANNE 35
Two brand new Plumpers three pair o f fashion

,
able E yebrows .
A dam and E ve in Bugle work without Fig ,
leaves upon C anvas curiously wrought

, ,
with her L adyship s own hand’

.
Bracelets o f braided Hair Pomander and S eed

, ,
Pearl .
A large old Purple V elvet Purse embroidered , ,
and shutting with a spring containing two ,
Pictures in M iniature the Features visible

, .
A S ilver gi lt box fo r C ashu and C arraway C om

fi t s to be taken at long sermons .
A new G old R epeating Watch made by a

Frenchman .
Together with a C ollection o f R eceipts to make

Pastes fo r the Hands Pomatums L ip , ,
S alves White Pots and Water of Talk

, , .
Of these things one strikes the eye most curiously

the canvas petticoat w ith whalebone h o ops I t .
dates the last making me know that the good

,
woman lost her things in or about the year 1 71 0 .
We are ju st at the begin ning o f the era o f the

tremendous hoop skirt .
This gentleman from the country will tell me all

about it I stop him and remark his clothes ; by
.
them I guess he has ridden from the cou n try He .
i s wearing a wide s kirted coat of red with deep

-
flap pockets his coat hasbuttons from neck to hem ,
5—2
but only two or three— at the waist— are buttoned .
O ne hand with the deep cu ff pushed back from the

,
wrist to S how his neat frilled shirt is thrust into his

,
unbuttoned breeches pocket the two pockets being

,
across the top o f his breeches R ound his neck is a

.
black S teenki rk cravat ( a black silk tie kn otted and

twisted or allowed to hang over loose ) His hat is o f .
black and the wide brim is turned ba ck from hi sfore

,
head His wig is a short black periwig in bobs — that

.
is it is gathered into bunches just on

,
the shoulders and is twisted in a little

,
bob at the back of the neck I have .
forgotten whether he wore red or blue

stockings rolled above the knee but ,
either is likely His shoes are strong

. ,
high heeled and have a big tongue

-
,
showing above the buckle .
He tells me that in N orfolk where ,
he has come from the hoop has ,
not come into fashion that ladies

there dress much as they did before ! ueen A nne
came to the throne .The fo n t ag e is lower ,
perhap s the waist may be longer but skirts are

, ,
full and have long trains and are gathered in

,
loops to show the petticoat o f silk with its deep .

A W OMA N O F T H E T I M E OF ! U E E N
AN NE ( 7 — 7 4) 1 02 1 1
N OT C t h t the f
I E a g h bec om e mu ch l o we
o n ta e as r,
and t he h oo p of t he s k i t h becom e eno mou s

r as r
Th h i mo e n t u ll y d essed
.
e a r 15 r a ra r .
QUEEN ANNE 37
double row o f fl o un ce s A prons are worn long

.
,
’
and have good pockets C u ffs are deep but are

.
,
lowered to below t he elbow The bodice o f the .
gown is cut high in the back and low in front ,
and is decked with a deep frill o f lace or linen ,
which allows less bare neck to show than formerly .
A very observant gentleman ! But you have

s een the new hoop I a sk him
’
! .
Ye s he has seen it A S he rode into

, .
town he noticed that the old fashions

gave way to new that every mile,
brought the fo n t a g e lower and the

hair more hidden until short curls
,
and a little cap of linen or lace

entirely replaced the old high h ead
dress and the profusion of curls on
the shoulders The hoop he noticed
.
, ,
became larger and larger as he

n eared the to w n and the train grew shorter and
, ,
the patterns on the under skirt grew larger w ith

-
the hoop .
I leave my gentleman from the c ountry and

I stroll about the streets t o regard the fashions .
Here I se e i s a gentleman in one of the new

, ,
R amill ies wigs — a wig o f white hair drawn back

38 ENGLIS H COSTUME
from the forehead and pu ffed out full over the
ears A t the back the wig is gathered into a
.
long queue the plaited or twisted tail o f a wig

, ,
and is ornamented
at the top and bottom
o f the queue with a
! MU E
B LA K C
black bow .
S
4” EN IRK
TE K
I notice that this
gentleman is dressed
in more easy fashion
than some Hi s coat
.
is not buttoned the ,
flaps of his w aist

coat are not over
big his breeches are
,
easy his tie is loose

, .
I know where this

gentleman has stepped from he has come straight
out of a sampler o f mine by means o f which
,
piece o f needlework I can get his story with

out book I kn ow that he has a tremendous
.
peri w ig at home covered with scented powder ; I

know that he has an elegant suit with fullness
o f the skirts at his sides gathered up to a button
,
o f silver gilt ; there is plenty o f lace on this coat .

QUEE N ANNE 39
an d deep bands of it on the cu ffs He has also .

,
I am certain a cane with an amber head very

,
curiously clouded and this cane he hangs on to

,
his fi ft h button by a blue silk ribbon This cane .
is never used except to lift it up at a coachman ,
hold it over the head of a drawer or poin t out ,
the circums tances o f a story Al so he has a single .

,
eyeglass or perspective which he w ill advance to

, ,
his eye to gaze at a toast or an orange wench .
There is another figure on the sampler— a lady

in one o f those W ide hoops ; she has a fa n in her
hand I kn ow her as well as
.
the gentleman and know that ,
she can use her fan as becomes

a prude or a coquette I kn ow .
sh e takes her chocolate in bed
at nine in the morning at ,
eleven sh e dri nks a dish o f

bohea tries a new head at
,
her twelve o clock toilette ’
and at two cheapens fans at

the C hange .
I have seen her a t her mantua makers ; I have

'
watched her embroider a corner o f her flower

handkerchief and give it up to si t before her
,
glass to determin e a patch S he is a good coach .
woman and puts her dainty laced shoe a gainst

,
the Opposite seat to balance herself against the

many j olts ; meanwhile she takes her mask o ff
for a look at the passing world If only I could .
ri de in the coach with her ! If only I could I

should se e the fruit wenches in sprigged petticoats
and flat broad brimmed hats ; the
,
-
ballad sellers in tattered long

-
skirt ed coats ; the country women

in black hoods and cloaks and ,
the men in frieze coats The ladies .
would pass by in pearl necklaces ,
flowered stomachers artifici a

l ,
nosegays and shaded furbelows ,
( Lu
- 1;
one
( L1 ! (
is
1(
noted by her mu ff one by ,
her tippet one by her fan Here , .
( ! HIL A L
a gentleman bows to our coach ,
and my lady s heart beats to se e his open waistco at

’
his red heels his suit of flowered satin I s hould

,
.
not fail to notice the monstrous petticoats worn by

ladies in chairs or in coaches these hoops stu ffed ,
out with cordage and stiffened wi th whalebone and , ,
according to M r Bickerstaff making the women

.
,
look like extinguishers with a little knob at the

QUEEN ANNE 41
upper end and widening downward till i t ends in a

,
basis o f a most enormous circumference .

’
To finish I quite agree with M r Bickerstaff

. .
,
when he mentions the great shoe shop at the-
S t James s end o f Pall M all that the shoes there

.
’
displayed notably the slippers with green lace and

,
blue heels do create irregular thoughts in the

,
youth o f this nation .
V OL . IV .
GE O RGE TH E F I RS T
R e ign ed t h i tee n yea rs 1 71 4— 1 727

r .
B or n 1 660 M a r i ed 1 68 2 S oph i a o f B run s w i ck

. r , ,
.
TH E MEN AND W OMEN

W E cannot do better
than open Thackeray ,
and put a fi nger on this

passage
There is the L ion s ’
Head down whose j aws ,
the S pectator s own let ’
ters were passed ; and

over a great banker s in ’
Fleet S treet the effi gy o f

the wallet which the founder o f the firm bore when
,
he came into L ondon a country boy People this .
street so ornamented with crowds o f s w inging

,
chairmen with servants bawlin g to clear the way

, ,
with M r D ean in his cassock his lacquey marching

.
,
42
GEORGE TH E F IRS T 43
before him ; or M rs D inah in her sack tripping to

.
,
chapel her footboy carrying her ladyship s great

,
’
prayer book ; with itinerant tradesmen singing ,
their hu n dred cries ( I remember forty years ago as ,
a boy in L ondon city a score o f cheery familiar

, ,
cries that are S ilent now ) .
Fancy the beaux thronging to the chocolate

houses tappin g their snu ff boxes as they issue
,
-
thence their periwig appearin g over the red

,
curtain s Fancy S a c chari ssa beckoning and smiling

.
from the upper windows and a crowd o f soldiers

,
bawling and bustlin g at the door— gentlemen o f

the L ife G uards clad in scarlet with blue facin gs
, ,
and laced with gold at the seams ; gentlemen o f

the Horse G renadiers in their cap s of sky blue
,
-
cloth with the garter embroidered on the front in

,
gold and silver ; men o f the Halberdiers in their ,
long red coats as blu ff Harry left them with their

, ,
ru ffs and velvet flat caps Perhaps the King s

-
.
’
M aj esty himself is going to S t James s as we pass

’ ’
. .
We fi n d ourselves very willingly discussing the

, ,
”
shoes of the King o f France with a crowd o f

powdered beaux ; those shoes the dandyism o f
6— 2
4 4. EN GLIS H COST UME
which has never been surpassed the heel s if you , ,
please painted by V andermeulen with scenes from

,
R henish victories ! O r we go to
the toy shops in Fleet S treet
-
,
where we may make assignations

or buy us a mask where lo aded ,
dice are slyly handed over the

counter E verywhere— the beau
. .
He rides the world like a cock

horse or li ke Og the giant ro de
,
the Ark o f N oah steering it with ,
his feet getting his washin g for

,
nothing and his meals passed up

,
t o him out by the chimney Here .
is the old soldier begging in his

tattered coat o f red ; here is a
suspicious looki ng character with a
-
black patch over his eye ; h ere the

whalebone hoop o f a petticoat takes
up the way and above the mon
,
strous hO Op is the tight bodice ,
and o ut o f that comes the shoulders

supporting the radiant M olly
patches powder paint and smiles Here a woman
, , , .
passes in a Nithsdale ho od covering her from head

,
A MA N OF THE T IME OF G E O RG E I
—1 7 7)
.
( 1 71 4 2
TH E bu c kles on the sh o es no w m u ch l ge the

a re ar r
s toc k i ng s a re l oosel y olled bo ve the kn ee T h

r a e
g e t pe i w ig i s go i ng o u t d th e l ooped d c u led
.
r a r an an r
W i g v e y wh i te w i th p o wde i s i n f sh i on
,
, r r a .
GEORGE TH E F I R S T 45
to f oot — this great cloak with a piquant history of

prison breaking ; here with a clatter o f high red
-
,
heels the beau the everlasting beau in gold lace

, , , ,
wide cu ffs full skirts swin ging cane A scene o f

, , .
flashing colours The coats embroidered with

.
flowers and butterflies the cu ff s a mass o f fine ,
sewing the three cornered hats cocked at a j aunty

,
-
angle the stockings rolled above the

,
knee Wigs in three divisions o f loops

.
at the back pass by w igs in long ,
queues wi gs in back and side bobs

, .
L acquer hilted swords paste buckl es

-
, ,
gold and silver snu ff boxes flashing in -
the sun which struggles through the

,
mass of s w inging signs .
There is a cu rious sameness about

the clean shaven faces surmounted by
-
white wigs ; there is— i f we believe the

pictures — a tendency to fa t due to the
tight waist o f the breeches or the
buckling o f the belts T he ladies wear .
little lace and linen caps their hair ,
escaping in a ri nglet or so at the side and flowin g ,
do w n behind or gathered close up to a small knob

,
on the head The gentlemen s coats fall in full

.
’
46 ENGLIS H COST U M E
folds on either side ; the back at present has , ,
not begun to stick out so heavily with buckram .
A prons fo r ladies are still worn S ilks and satin s .

,
brocades and fine cloths white wigs powdering

,
velvet shoulders crowds o f cut throats elegant

,
-
,
gentlemen patched A spa si as tavern swindlers

, , ,
foreign adventurers thieves a highwayman a foot

, , ,
pad a poor poet— and narrow streets and mud

,
.
E verywhere we se e the skirted coat the big ,
flappe dwaistcoat ; even beggar boys little pot high ,

-
urchins are wearing some old laced waistcoat tied

,
with string about their middles —a

pair o f heel trodden buckleless shoes
-
,
on their feet more likely bare footed

,
-
.
Here is a man snatched from the

tripe shop in Hanging S word A lley
-
by the King s men— a pickpocket a

’
highwayman a cut throat in hidin g

,
-
.
He will repent his j okes on Jack

Ketch s kitchen when he feels the lash
’
o f the whip on his naked sh oulders
as he screams behind the cart— tail ;

ladi es in flowered hoops will st 0p to look at him ,
beaux will lift their quizzing glasses a young girl ,
will whisper behind a fan painted with the loves o f

,
GEO R GE TH E F IRST 47
Jove to a gorgeous young fo p in a light buttoned

,
-
coat o f sky blue

-
.
There is a sadder sight to come a cart on the ,
way to Tyburn a poor fellow standing by his coffin

,
with a nosegay in his breast ; he is full

o f D utch courage fo r a s becomes a
, ,
notorious highwayman he must S how ,
game before the cro w d so he is full ,
o f stum and Yorkshire stingo M aybe .
we stop to see a pirate hanging in

chains by the ri ver and we are j ostled
,
by horse officers and

watermen revenue men ,
and j erkers and as , ,
usual the curious beau

, .
his glass to his eye .
N ever was such a time

fo r curiosity ! a man is preaching
mystic religion ; there is a n e w
flavour to the Rainbow Tavern
furmity ; there is a fellow who
can sew with his toes ; a man
is in the pillory fo r publishing Jacobite ballads
and always there is the beau looking on .
C ountry ladies st ill in small hoops even in full

, ,
48 E NGLIS H COST UME
dresses innocent of whalebone are bewildered by
,
,
the noise ; country gentlemen in plain coloured ,

-
coats and stout shoes have come to ,
L ondon on S outh S ea Bubble business .
They will go to the Fair to see the Harle

quin and S caramouch dance they will bu y ,
a new perfume at The C ivet C at and they ,
will go home— the lady s head full o f the ’
new hoop fashion and she will cut away

,
the sleeve o f her old dress and put in

fresh lace the gentleman full o f curses on
tavern bills and the outrageous
price o f S outh S ea shares .
A nd what says country dame to

’
country dame lately from to wn what

is the mode in gentlemen s hair ’
Her
own goodman has an old periwig ,
very full and a small bob fo r ordinary

,
wear .
The very full periwig is going out ,

’
our lady assures her a tied wig is

‘
quite the mode a wig in three queues

,
tied in round bobs or in hair loops and

, ,
the long single queue wig is coming in rapidly ,
and will soon be all the wear S o with talk of

.
’
,
A W OMA N OF T H E T IME OF G EO RGE 1 .
( 1 71 4
— 1 72 7)
YOU W i ll
see th t t he f g h g i ve n w y to
a ont a e as a a
s m ll l ce p Th h i d w n off the fo ehe d

a a ca e a r 15 ra r a .
T h h oo p of the s ki t i s s t i ll l g e
.
e r ar .
GEO R GE TH E F IRST 49
flowered tabbies and fine lutestrin g are the fashions ,
passed on .
Just as S ir R oger de C overley nearly called a

—
young lady in riding dress sir because o f the ‘
,
’
upper half o f her body s o the ladie s of this day

,
might well be taken for sirs ,

’
with their double breasted

ridin g coats like the men and
-
,
their hair in a queue sur

mounted by a cocked hat .
C olours and combination s

o f colours are very striking
petticoats of black satin

covered with large bunches
o f worked flowers morning ,
gown of yellow flowered satin faced with cherry

coloured bands waistcoats of one colour with a
,
fringe o f another bird sE ye hoods bodices covered

’
-
, ,
with gold lace and embroidered fl o w e rs— all these

gave a gay artificial appearance to the age ; but we
,
are to become still more quaintly devised still more ,
powdered and patched in the next reign, .
V OL . IV .
GE O RGE TH E SE C O ND
R e ign ed t hi r t y t hr ee y ea s 1 727—1 760

-
r ! .
B or n 1 68 3 M r r i ed 1 705 Caro l in e o f A n spa

. a , , c h .
TH E MEN
J U ST a fe w names of wigs and you will see how ,
the periwig has gone into the background how ,
the bobwig has superseded the campaign wig ; you -
will find a veritable confusion o f barbers e n t hu ’
si a sm s half forgotten
,
-
designs names dependent ,
on a twist a lock a careful disarrangement

. ,
pigeon s wing wigs with wings of hair at the sides

’
-
,
comets with long full tails cauliflo w er s with a

, ,
profusion o f curls royal bind wigs staircase wigs

,
-
, ,
ladders b rushes Count S axe wigs cut bobs long

, , , ,
bobs n eglig en t s chain buckles drop wigs bags

, ,
-
,
-
, .
G o and look at Hogarth ; there s a world o f dress ’
fo r you by the grim humori st who painted S arah

M alcolm the murderess in her cell ; who painted
, ,
Taste in High L ife Wigs in exhaustible subj ect

.
’
— wigs passing from father to son until they arrived

50
GEORGE TH E SECOND 51
at the second hand dealers in M onmouth S treet and

-
,
there aft er a rough overhauling began a new life

, , .
There was a wig lottery at S ixpence a ticket in

R osemary L ane and with even ordinary wigs
,
G rizzle M aj ors
at twenty fi ve -
shillings Great,
Tyes at a
g u i n e a an d
,
B r o w n B ag
wigs at fifteen
shillings
quite a con
si de r ab le sa v
ing might be
made by the
lucky lottery
winn er .
On wigs ,
hats cocked to suit the passing fashion broad ,
brimmed narrow brimmed round three cornered

,
-
, ,
-
,
high brimmed low brimmed turned high o ff t he

-
,
-
,
forehead turned low in front and high at the back

,
— an endles s crowd S uch a day for clothes for

.
,
patch es an d politics Tory side and Whig to your

, ,
—
7 2
face, Tory or Whig cock t o your hat ; pockets high ,
pockets low sti ff cu ffs crushable cu ffs a regular

, , ,
j umble of g o as -
you please L et .
me try to sort the

jumble .
Foremost the ,
coat The coat is

.
growing more full ,
more spread ; it be
comes o n the beau
, ,
a great spreadin g ,
flau n t i n g skirted ,
affair j ust buttoned by

a button or two at the
waist I t is laced or
.
embroidered all over ;

it is flowered or plain .
The cu ffs are huge ;

they w ill o f course
, ,
suit the fancy o f the

o w ner or the tailor
, .
A bo ut 1 74 5 they will
get small— s ome will
get s mall ; then the fashi o ns begin to run riot ;
A M AN OF T H E T I M E O F G EO R G E I I .
( 1 727 1 760 )
NOTI C E t he he v y c u ffs d the ve y fu ll s ki ts
a an r r
of the c o t H e c i es l p u b s un de h i s
,
a a rr a c ia ea ra r
m— h t f c ying on l y s in ce he w i ll no t
.
ar a a or a rr
u ffl e h i s w ig H e we s bl c k s tin t i e t o h i s w ig
,
r ar a a a
the en ds f wh i ch ti e com e o u n d h i s n ec k m de
.
,
O r ar e a
in t o b o w d b oo ched w i th s o l it i e
,
a , an r a a r .
the cut o f coat you may not kn ow the date o f it ,
then when you pass it in the street From 1 74 5

, .
there begi ns the same j umble as to day a hopeless -

,
thing to unravel ; in the n e x eign certai nly you ‘ r
, ,
may tell yourself here is o n e o f the new M aca

r o n i e s but that will be all you will mark out o f the
,
crowd o f fashions — one more remark able newer ,
than the rest but perhaps you have been in the

,
country fo r a week and a new ,
mode has come in and is dying out .
From coat let us look at waist

coat Fu ll flaps and long almost to
.
the kn ees ; but again about 1 75 6 , ,
they wi ll be shorter They are .
fringed ,flowered laced open to

, ,
S how the lace cravat fall so daintily ,
to Show the black velvet bow tie -
that comes over from the black

velvet or silk or satin tie o f the
, ,
queue . R u ffles o f lace of all qualities at the

, ,
wrists the beau s hand emerging with his snu ff box

,
’
-
from a filmy froth o f white lace .
I n this era o f costume — from G eorge I to .
G eorge I V — the great thing to remember is that

.
the coat change s more than anyth i ng else ; from

the sti ff William and M ary coat with its deep stiff ,
cu ffs you s ee the change toward s the G eorge 1

, .
coat a looser cut o f the same design still simple in

, ,
embroiderie s ; then the coat skirts are gathered to

a button at each side of the coat j ust behind the
pockets Then in G e o rge I I s reign the skirt hangs
.
, .
’
in parallel folds free from the button and shapes to

,
the back more closely the opening o f the coat from

, ,
the neck to the

waist being so cut ,
as to hang over
the butt ons and
S how t he cravat
and the waistcoat .
Then later in the ,
same reign we see ,
the coat wi th the

skirts free o f buck
ram and very full
all round and the ,
cu ffs also free o f

sti ffening and fold
ing with the crease o f the elbow Then about 1 74 5
. , ,
we get the coat left more open and for the b e an

, , ,
cut much s horter— this o ft en worn over a double

brea s ted waistcoat Then arrivin g at G eorge I I I

.
,
we get a long series o f coat changes with a collar on ,
it turned over and standing high in the neck with

, ,
the skirts buttoned back then cut away ; then the

,
front o f the coat cut away like the modern dress

coat .
I n following out these really compli cated changes .
I have done my best to make my meaning clear by

placing dates against those drawi ngs where dates
ar e valuable hoping by this mean s to show the rise
,
and fall o f certain fashions more clear ly than any

description would do .
I t will be noticed that fo r ceremony the periwig

, ,
gave place to the tie w i g or in some fe w cases to

-
, , ,
natural hair curled and powdered The O lder men .
kept to the peri w ig no doubt from fondness o f the

old and as they thought more grave fashion ; but
, , ,
as I showed at the beginning of the chapter the ,
beau and the young man even the quite middle ,
class man wore or had the choice of wearing

, , ,
endle ss varieties o f false attires of hair .
The sporting man had his own idea o f dress ,
even as t o day he has a piquant idea in clothes and

-
,
who shall say he has not the right A black w ig ,
a j ockey cap with a bow at the back of it a very ,

resplendent morning gown richly laced a mornin g ,
cap and very comfortable embroidered slippers

, ,
such mixtures o f clothes in his wardrobe— his coat ,
no doubt a little over full but o f good cloth his

,
-
, ,
fine clothes rather over embroidered his tie wig -

,
-
often pushed too far back on his forehead and so ,
showi n g his cropped hair underneath .
M u ffs must be remembered as every dandy carried ,
a mu ff in winter some big others grotesquely small

, , .
Bath must be remembered and the great Beau ,
—
N ash in the famous Pump R oom as Thackeray -
says so say I I should like to have seen the Folly

, ,
’
he says meaning N ash

, I t was a splendid em
broidered be ruffl ed snu ff boxed red heeled imper
, ,
-
,
-
,
t i n e n t Folly and knew how to make itsel f respected

, .
I should like to have seen that noble old madcap

Peterborough in his boots ( he actually had the
audacity to walk a bout Bath in boots wi th his
blue ribbo n and stars and a cabbage under each
,
arm and a chicken in his hand which he had been

, ,
cheapenin g fo r his dinner .

’
I t was the fashion to wear new clothes on the

! ueen s birthday M arch 1 and then the streets
’
, ,
noted the loyal people who indulged their e xt r a va

gance or pushed a new fashion on that day .
v oL . IV . 8
Do not forget that no hard and fast rules can be
- -
laid down a man s a man for all his tailor tells hi m

’
he is a walking fashion plate Those who liked

.
short cu ffs wore them those who did not care for
,
solitaires did without ; the height of a heel the ,
breadth of a
buckle the sweep ,
o f a skirt all lay ,
at the taste o f the

owner merely
would I have you
r e m e m b e r th e
essentials .
There was a
deal o f dressing
up — the King ,
bless you in a ,
Turkish array at a masque—the day o f the C orydon

and S ylvia ! mock shepherd dainty shepherdess was
,
here ; my lord in s ilk loose coat with paste buttons ,
fringed waistcoat little three cornered hat under his

,
-
arm and a pastoral staff between his fingers a crook

, ,
covered with cherry and blue ribbons and my lady

in such a hoop o f sprigged silk or some such stu ff ,
the tiniest of straw hat on her head high heels ,

GEORGE TH E SECOND
c u es
60 E NGLIS H COST U M E
tapping the ground all a shepherding what ! ,
-
C upids I suppose little D resden loves little

, , ,
c o m fi t box jokes little spite ful remarks about the

-
,
G ermans .
C ome let me do ff my K e ve n hulle r hat with the

,
gold fringe bring my red heels together with a

,
smart tap bow with my hand on the third button

, ,
o f my coat from which my stick dangles and let ,
me introduce the ladies .
T H E W OMEN
I w illintroduce the fair painted powdered , , ,
patched perfumed sex ( though this would do fo r

,
man or woman o f the gr eat world then ) by some

lines from the B a th G uide
Br ing 0 br ing t hy esse n ce pot
,
-
,
A m ber m usk a n d ber ga m o t

, ,
E a u de ch i pr e ea u de l uce , ,
S an spare i l a nd c it ro n jui ce
, .
I n a b n d b x i s con ta in ed
a -
o
Pa int ed l a w n s n d hequ er ed sh des , a c a ,
C pe t h t s w orn by l o ve l or n ma i ds
ra a
’
-
,
W t er ed ta bbi es flo we ed broc des

a , r a
S t r w bui lt h t s nd bonn ets gr ee n

a -
a , a ,
C t gut g uz es t ippet s r uffs

a ,
a , ,
Fa n s a n d ho o d s a nd fe at h er ed m u ffs , ,
A W OMA N OF T H E T IME OF G E O RG E II.
( 1 —1 760 )
727
SHE i s we ing l g e p i nn e o ve h d ess

ar a ar r r er r Noti ce
the l g e p nni e s t he sleeves Wi t h o u t c uffs b t i ed
.
ar a r , e
d the sh o tn ess of t he s ki ts
,
cap , an r r .
S t o m a he r s n d Pa r i s n e t s
c ,
a ,
E rr ings n eckl a ces a igre t s

a , , ,
Fr inges bl o u ses n d mi gn i onet s ;

, , a
F in e ver m i ll i o n for t he heek c ,
Velve t pat che s a la gr e cq u e .
Co m e but d o n t forget t he g lo ves

,
’
Wh i ch w i t h a ll t he smi l ing l o ves

, ,
Ve nu s ca ught yo ung C upi d pi cking

Fro m t he t en der b ea st f chi cke n r o .
’
I think it will be best to describe a lady

of quality I n the first years o f the reign she
.
sti ll wears the large hoop skirt a circular whale ,
bone arrangement started at the waist and at , ,
i n t e rva l s,
the hoops
were placed
so that the
pett i co at
St o o d o u t
al l r o u n d
like a bell
over this the
skirt hung sti ff and solemn The bodice was tight .
laced cut square in front where the neckerchief

,
of linen or lace made the edge so ft The sleeve s .
still retained the cu ff coverin g the elbow and the ,

ENGLIS H COST U ME
GEO R GE TH E SECOND 63
under sleeve o f linen with lace frills came hal f

-
way down the forearm leaving bare arm and ,
wrist to show .
O ver the sk irt she would wear as her taste ,
held her a long plain apron or a long tucked

, , , ,
apron or an apron to her knees The bodice

, .
generally formed the top o f a gown which gow n ,
was very full skirted a nd was di vided so as to

-
,
hang back behind the dress showing often very , , ,
little in front This will be seen clearly in the

.
illustrations .
The hair is very tightly gathered up behind ,
twisted into a small knob on the top o f the head ,
and either drawn straight back from the forehead

or parted in the middle allo w ing a small fringe
,
to hang on the temples N early every woman .
wore a small cap or a small round straw hat with

a ribbon round it .
The lady s shoes would be high heeled and

’
-
pointed toed with a little buckle and strap

-
, .
A bout the middle o f the reign the sacque

became the general town fashion the sacque being ,
so named on account o f the back which fell from ,
the shoulders into w ide loo s e folds over the hooped

,
petticoat The sacque was gathered at the back

.
64 ENGLIS H COSTUME
in close pleats which fell open over the skirt part
,
o f this dress The front of the sacque w as some

.
times open sometimes ,
made tight in the

bodice .
N ow the lady would

pu ff her hair at the
side s and powder it
i f sh e had no hair she
.
wore false and a little ,
later a full wig S he .
would now often di s

card her neat cap
and wear a veil be
hin d her back over h er hair and falling over her
, ,
shoulders .
I n 1 74 8 so they say and so I believe to be true

, , ,
the King walking in the M all saw the D uchess

, ,
o f Bed ford riding in a blue riding habit with white -
silk facings — this would be a man s skirted coat ’
double breasted a cravat a three corned hat and

-
, ,
-
,
a full blue s kirt He admired her dress so much

.
and thought it so neat that he straightway ordered

that the o fficers o f the navy who until now had
, , ,
worn scarlet should tak e this coat for the model

,
GEORGE T HE SECOND 65
of th eir new uniform S o did the navy go into .
blue and white .
The poorer classes were not o f course dressed , ,
in hooped skirts but the bodice and gown over

,
the petticoat the apron and the turned back cu ff

, ,
to the short sleeve were worn by all The orange .
wench laced her gown

neatly and wore a
,
white cloth tied over

h er head ; about her
shoulders she wore a
kerchief o f white and ,
often a plain frill of

lin en at her elbows .
There were blue can

vas , striped dimity ,
flannel and ticken for

,
the humble ; fo r the

rich lustrings satins Pade soi s velvets damasks
, , , , , ,
fans and L eghorn hats band s o f V alenc i enn es ,
and Point de D unquerque— these might be bought

o f M rs Holt whose card Hogarth engraved at
.
, ,
the Two O live Posts in the Broad part o f the

S trand .
S eventeen hundred and fift y fi ve saw the one -
VOL . 1v . 9
horse chairs introduced from France called ,
cabriolets the first o f our own extraordinary

,
w ild looking conveyances contrived fo r the min i

-
mum o f comfort and the maximum o f danger .
This invention captivated the hearts o f both men

and women The men painted cabriolets on
.
their waistcoats they embroidered them on their

,
stockings they cut them out in black silk and

,
”
patched their cheeks with them horse and all ; ,
the women began to take up a little later the , ,
cabriolet caps with round sides like linen wheels ,
and later still at t he very end o f the reign there

, ,
—
began a craze fo r such head dresses — post chaises
- -
,
chairs and chairmen even waggons and this craze

. ,
grew and grew and hair grew— in wigs to meet

,
the cry for hair and straw men o f war for loads - -
,
o f hay fo r birds o f paradise fo r goodness knows

, ,
what forms of utter absurdi ty all of which I put ,
down to the introduction o f the cab I! .
I think that I can best describe the lady o f

this day as a swollen skirted figure with a pinched
,
waist little head of hair or tiny cap developin g

, , ,
—
into a loose sacque backed figure still whaleboned
out with hair pu ffed at the sides and powdered
, ,
getting ready to develop again into a queer figure

under a tower o f hair but that waits for the ,
next reign .
O ne cannot do better than go to H og art h s prints

’
an d pictures — wonderful
records o f this time— one
picture especially Taste ,
in High L i fe being a fine

,
’
record of the clothes o f

1 74 2 here you will see
the panier and the sacque ,
the monstrous mu ff the ,
huge h 0 0p the long tailed

,
-
w i g the black boy and the

,
monkey I n the N oon of

.
the Four Parts o f the D ay there are clothes again

satiri zed .
I am trustin g that the drawings will supply what

f —
my words have ailed to picture and I again fo r the ,
twenty fi r st time— repeat that given the cut and the

-
,
idea of the time the student has always to realize

,
that there can be no hard and fast rule about the - -
fashions ; with the shape he can take liberties up

to the points shown with colour he can do anything
,
patterns o f the materials are obtainable and ,
Hogarth will give anything required in detail .
9— 2
GE O R GE TH E TH I RD
R e ign ed si x ty ye s 1 760— 1 8 20ar ! .
B o rn 1 738 M rr i ed 1 761 C h r l o tt e S o phi

. a , ,
a a
o f M e ckle n b u g S t r el i t
r -
z .
TH E MEN AND W OMEN

TH R OU G H OU T this long reign the changes cos of ~
tume are so frequent so varied and so jumbled , ,
together that any precise account o f them would

,
be impossible I have endeavoured to give a

.
leading example o f most kind o f styles in the

budget of drawings which goes with this chapter .
D etails concerning this reign are so numerous !

Fashion books fashion articles in the L on don
,
M ag a z i n e the S t J a mess Chr on i cle works i n

’
, .
,
numerable on hair dressin g tailors patterns — these

-
,
’
are easily within the reach o f those who hunt the

second hand shops or are within reasonable distance
-
,
o f a library .
Following my draw ings you will see in the ,
68
A MAN OF TH E T I M E OF G E O R G E I I I
—
.
(1 76 0 8 ) 1 20
TH E full s ki t ed c o t th oug h st i ll w o n h s gi ve n
- r a r a
w y in g e n e al t o t he t i l c o t T h w i stc o t i s
, ,
a r a -
a e a a
mu ch sh o te B l ck Si l k kn e e b eeches d st o c king s
, , .
r r a r an
ve y ge n e l
.
a re r ra .
GEORGE T H E TH IR D 69
70 ENGLIS H C OSTU ME
first the ordinary wig skirted coat kn ee — breeches

, , ,
chapeau bras cravat or waistcoat of the man about

-
, ,
town I do not mean Of the exquisite about town

.
,
but i f you will take it kindly ju st such clothes as

, ,
you or I might h ave worn .
I n the second drawing we se e a fashionable man ,
who might have stru tted past the first fellow in

the Park His hair is dress e d in a twisted roll ;
-
he wears a tight brimmed little hat a frogged coat

-
, ,
a fringed waistcoat striped breeches and buckled

, ,
shoes .
I n the third we see the dress o f a M acaroni .
O n his absurd wig he wears a little N e vern o i se

hat ; his cravat is tied i n a bow ; his breeches are
loose and beribboned at the knee M any of these
, .
M acaronis wore coloured strings at the knee o f

their breeches but the fashion died away when Jac k
,
R ann S ixteen S tring Jack as he was called after

, ,
’
this fash i on had been hung in thi s make o f breeches

,
.
I n number four we see the development o f the

tail coat and the high buttoned waistcoat
-
The
-
.
t ail coat is o f course son to the frock coat the

-
, ,
-
,
skirts of which being inconvenient for ridin g had

, ,
first been buttoned back and then cut back to

give more play .
A W OMA N OF THE T I M E O F G EO RGE I II
—8
.
( 1 760 1 20
)
IN the e l i e h l f of t he eign N ot i ce h s c k
ar r a r er a
d ess o ve s t i n d ess d t he wh it e e l bo t el y
.
r r a a r an a ra
m de s ki t Also t he big p d t he c u ls of W h it e
, ,
a r ca an r
Wig
.
.
GEORGE TH E TH IRD 71
I n the fi ft h drawing we se e the do uble breasted-
cut away coat

-
.
N umber six is but a further tail coat design -

.
N umber seven shows how di fferent were the

styles at one time I ndeed except fo r the
.
,
M acaroni and other extreme fashions the entire ,
budget of men as shown might have formed a

crowd in the Park on one day about twenty year s
before the end o f the reign There would not be.
much powdered hair aft er 1 79 5 but a fe w examples ,
would remain .
A distinct change is show n in the eighth draw

ing o f the long tailed full coat the broad hat the
-
, , ,
hair powdered but not tied

, .
N umber nine is another example o f the same

style .
The tenth dr awi ng shows the kin d o f bat we

associate w ith N apoleon and in fact very N apo
, , ,
le o n i c garments .
I n eleven we have a di stinct change in the

appearance o f E nglish dress The gentleman is .
a ! ebra and is so called from his striped clothes

,
-
.
He i s o f course i n the extreme o f fashion which

, , ,
did not las t for long; but it shows a tendency

towards later G eorg ian appearance— the top hat -
,
ENGLIS H COS TUME
i 8 20 .
A M AN OF TH E T I M E OF G EO R G E I II .
( 1 76o
-
1 8 2o )
TH E h ve gon e d no w the sleeve i s left

a an
u n b u tton ed t he w i s t T h c o t i s l ong d full
,
at r e a an
s ki ted but not st i ffe ned T h c v t i s l oo sel y ti ed
.
r e ra a
d the f i lled e n ds st i c k o u t T hese f i lls we e
, . .
an r ! r r it
t he e n d m de on the S h i t dwe e c lled ch i tte l i ng s

. ,
, a r , an r a r .
GEO R GE TH E TH I R D 73
the shorter hair the larger neck cloth the panta

,
-
,
Ic on s— forerunners o f B r umm e ll s invention— the

’
open sleeve .
N umber twelve shows us an ordinary gentleman

in a coat and waistcoat with square flaps called
, ,
’
dog s ears .
A s the drawings continue you can see that the

dress became more and more simple more like ,
modern eveni ng dress as to the coats more like ,
modern stiff fashion about the neck .
The drawings o f the women s dresses should ’
also speak fo r themselves You may watch the .
growth of the wig and the decline o f the hoop

I trust with ease You may se e those towers o f
.
hair o f which there are so many stories Those ’
masses o f meal and stu ffi ng powder and pomatum , ,
the dressing o f which took many hours T hose .
piles of decorated perfumed reeking mess by

, , ,
which a lady could show her fancy for the navy

by balancing a straw ship on her hea d fo r sport ,
by showing a coach for gardening by a regular

,
bed o f flowers Heads which were only dressed

.
,
perhaps once in three weeks and were then r e

, ,
scented because it w as necessary Monstro us .
germ gatherers of horse hair hemp wo ol and ,

-
,
V OL . IV . 10
powder laid on in a p aste the cleaning o f which
, ,
is too awful to g ive in full detail Three

.
weeks says my lady s hairdresser is as long as

,
’ ’
,
‘
a head can go well in the summer without being

o e n e df
p
Then we go on to the absurd idea which came
over womankin d that it was most becomi ng to
A W OMA N OF TH E T I M E OF G E O R G E I I I
—
.
( 76 1 8 )0 1 20
T HIS sh o ws t he l st of t he p nni e d esses wh i ch

a a r r
g ve w y in 794 795 t o E m p i e d esses A
,
a a 1 or 1 r r
ch ng e c m e o ve ll d ess fte the Rev ol u tion
.
a a r a r a r .
GEO R GE TH E T H IRD 75
look like a pouter pigeon S he took to a bu ffon .

,
a gauze or fi n e linen kerchief which stuck out ,
pigeon like in front giving an exaggerated bosom

-
,
to those who wore it With this fashion of 1 78 6

.
came the broad brimmed hat -

.
Travel a little further and you have the mob

cap.
A ll o f a sudden out go hoops full skirts high , ,
hair powder buffon s broad brimmed hats patches

, , ,
-
, .
high heeled shoes and in come willowy figures

-
,
and thin nearly transparent dresses turbans low

, , ,
shoes straight fringe s !

, !
I am going to give a chapter from a fashion

book to show yo u how impossible it is to deal
,
with the vagaries o f fashion in the next reign and ,
if I chose to occupy the space I could give a similar ,
chapter to make the confusion of this reign more

confounded .
10 2
GE O RGE TH E F O U R TH
Re ign ed t en years 1 8 20—1 8 30 .
B or n 1 762 M rr i ed 1 795 Ca ro l in e o f B run swi ck

. a , , .
O UT the many fashion books o f this time I have

of
chosen from a little brown boo k in front of me a

, ,
description o f the fashions for ladies during one

part o f 1 8 27 I t will serve to S how how mere
.
man blundering on the many complexities of the

,
feminine passion fo r dress — I was going to say

clothes — may find himself left amid a fr oth o f frills ,
high and dry except fo r a wh i ff o f spray standing

, ,
in his unroman tic garments on the shore o f the

great world o f gauze and gussets while the most,
noodle headed girl sails gracefully away upon the

-
high seas to pirate some new device o f the D evil or

Paris .
O ur wives— bless them occasionally treat us

to a few bewildering terms hoping by their gossamer
,
knowledge to present to our gaze a ment al picture

76
D R A I VI N G S TO I L L U STR A TE TH E C O ST U M E TH E
R E I GN
GEO R GE T H E T H I R D
FI RS I
’ ’ ‘
—I
FOR I Y E G H T I
D R A W NG S BY TH E A U T H OR A ND
R E M A N NG I I T WE L VE BY
F A TH E R A ND S ON
T he K ing .
T he N a vy .
T he A my
r . e n s ion e s
P r .
T he C h u ch
r . T he La w .
T he St g e
a . T he U ni ve s i t i es
r .
T he C o u nt y
r .
T he D uk e of No fol k
r .
T he C ity .
T he D u k e of ! u ee n sbe y
rr .
GEO R GE TH E F OU RTH 77
of a new adorable ardently desired — hat Perhaps

, , .
those nine proverbial tailors who go to make the

one proverbial man least o f his sex might by a
, , ,
strenuous e ffort confine the history of clothes

,
during this reign into a compact literature o f forty

volumes I t would be indecent as undecorous as
.
,
the advertisements in ladies papers to attempt to ’
fathom the language o f the man who endeavoured

to rea d the monumental effi gy to the vanity o f
human desire for adornment But is it adorn .
ment
N owadays t o be dressed well is not always the
same thing as to be well dressed O ft en it i s fa r .
from it The question o f modern clothes is one o f

.
great perplexity I t seems that what is beauty

.
one year may be the abo mination o f desolation the

next because the trick o f that beauty has become
,
common property You pu ff your hair at the sides

.
,
y o u are in the true sanctum o f the mode ; you

pu ff your hair at the sides you are fo r ever utterly
,
cast out as one havin g no understanding I shall .
not attempt to explain it ! it passes beyo nd the

realms o f explanation into the pure air o f Truth .
The Truth is simple Aristocracy bei ng no longer

.
real but only a cult one is afraid o f one s s ervants

, ,
’
.
Your servan t pu ffs her hair at the sides and hang , ,
it ! she becomes exactly like an aristocrat O ur .
servant having dropped her g s for many years a s ’
well as her It s it behoved us to pronou n ce our g s

’
,
’
and our h s O ur servants havin g learned our

’
.
E ngli sh it became necessary for us to drop our g s;

,
’
we seem at present unwilli n g in the matter o f the b ,
but that will come .
To cut the cackle and come to the clothes horse -

,
let me say that the bun glem en t o f clothes which

passes all comprehension in King G eorge IV S .
’
reign i s best explained by my cuttings from the

book of one who apparently knew L et the older .
writer h ave hi s or her fling in his or her words

, , , , .
CU R OSY RE MA RK S ON T H E LA S T NE W
F AS H IONS .
The C ity o f L ondon is now indeed most

‘
, ,
splendid in i t s buildi n gs and extent ; L ondon is

carried into the country ; but never was it more
deserted .
A very very few years ago and during the

, ,
summer the dresses of the wives and daughters o f

,
our opulent tradesmen would furnish subj ects fo r

the investigators o f fashion .
GEORGE T H E F OU R TH 79
N ow if those who chance to remain in L ondon

,
take a day s excursion o f about eight or ten miles

’
di stance from the M etropolis they hear the inn

,
keepers deprecating the steamboats by which they

,
declare they are almost ruin ed on S undays which ,
would sometimes bring them the clear profits o f

ten or twenty pounds they now scarce produce ten
,
shilli ngs
.
N o ; those o f the middle class belonging to

Cockn ey I sla n d must leave town though the days
,
are short and even getting cold and comfortless the

,
steamboats carrying them o ff by shoals to M argate

and its vicinity .
The pursuit after elegant and superior modes o f

dress must carry us farther ; it is now from the
rural retirement o f the country seats belonging to
the noble and wealthy that we must collect them .
Young ladies wear their hair well arranged but ,
not quite with the S implicity that prevailed last

month during the warmth o f the summer months ,
the braids across the forehead were certainly the

best ; but now when neither in fear o f heat or
,
damp the curls again appear in numerous clusters

,
round the face ; and some young ladies who seem ,
to place their chief pride in a fine head o f hair ,
have such a multitude o f small ringlets that give to

what is a natural charm all the p oodle li ke appear
-
ance of a wig .
80 ENGLIS H COSTUME
The bows of hair are elevated on the summit o f

the head and confin ed by a comb o f tortoise shell
,
-
.
C aps of the cornette kind are much in fashion ,
made o f blond and ornamented with flowers or

, ,
pu ffs of coloured gauze most o f the cornettes are

small a nd tie under the chin with a bow on one
, ,
side o f white satin ribbon ; those which have

,
ribbons or gauze lappets floating loose have them

much shor ter than formerly .
A fe w dress hats have been seen at dinner

parties and musical amateur meeti ngs in the country ,
o f transparent white crape ornamented with a s mall

,
elegant bouquet of m a r abo n e s .
When these dress hats are of coloured crape

‘
,
they are generally ornamented with flowers of the

same tint as the hat in preference to feathers
, .
Printed muslins and chintzes are still ver y

much worn in the morning walks with handsome ,
sashes havin g three ends depending do w n each

,
With one o f
'
s ide not much beyond the hips

, .
these dresses we saw a young lady wear a rich black

satin peleri ne handsomely trimmed with a ver y
,
beautiful black blond it had a ver y neat e ffect as ,
the dress was light .
White musli n dresses though they are always

,
worn partially in the countr y till the winter actually

commences are now seldom seen except on the
,
young ! the embroidery on these dresses is exquisite .

GEORGE TH E F OURTH 81
D resses of I ndian red either in taffety or chintz , ,
have already made their appearance and are ex ,
e ct e d to be much in favour the ensuin g winter ;

p
the chintzes have much black in their patterns but
this li ght material will in course be soon laid aside , ,
fo r silks and these like the taffeties which have

, ,
partially appeared will no doubt be plain ! with

,
these dresses was worn a Ca n ez on spence r wit h ,
long sleeves of white muslin trimmed with narrow ,
lace.
G ros de N aples dresses are very general espe ,
c i all for receiving dinner parties and fo r friendly

y
-
,
evening society .
A t private dances the only kind o f ball that has

,
at present taken place are worn dresses o f the ,
white fi g ur e d gauze over white satin or gros de

-
N aples at the theatricals sometimes performed by

noble amateurs the younger part o f the audience
, ,
who do not take a part are generally attired in ,
very clear muslin over white satin w ith drapery

, ,
scarves o f lace bar ég e or thick embroidered tulle

, , .
C achemire shawls with a white ground and a, ,
pattern o f coloured flowers or green foliage are ,
now much worn in outdoor costumes especially ,
fo r the morning walk ; the mornings being rather

chilly these warm envelopes are almost i n di spen s
,
able We are sorry however to find our modern

.
, ,
V OL . Iv . 11
belles so tardy in adopting those coverings which ,
ought now to su cceed to the light appendages of

summer costume .
The muslin C an e z on spencer the silk fi ch u , ,
and even the lighter bar ég e are frequently the ,
sole additions to a high dress or even to one but ,
partially so .
We have lately seen finished to the or der of a

lady o f rank in the county of S u ffolk a very ,
beauti ful pelisse o f j onquil coloured gros de N aples

-
.
I t fastens close down from the throat to the feet ,
in fr ont with large covered buttons ; at a suitable

,
distance on each side of this fastening are three

bias folds rather narrow brought close together
, ,
under the belt and enlarging as they descend to

,
the border of the Skirt A large pelerine cape is

.
made to take on and o ff ; and the bust from the

back o f each shoulder is ornamented with the same
bias folds forming a stomacher i n front o f the
,
waist The sleeves a la M a r i e are puckered a fe w

.
, ,
inches above the wrist and confined by three straps ;

,
each with a large button Though long ends are

.
very much in favour with silk pelerines yet there ,
are quite as many that are quite round ; such was

the black satin pelerine we cited above .
C oloured bonnets are now all the rage w e are

happy to say that some though all too large are in
, ,
the charming cottage style , and are modestly tied

GEORGE TH E F OURTH 83
under the chin S ome bonnets are so excessively

.
large that they are obliged to be placed quite at

the back o f the head and as their extensive brims
will not support a veil when they are ornamented ,
with a broad blond the edge o f that just falls over ,
the hair but does not even conceal the eyes

, .
L eghorn hats are very general ; their trimmings

consist chiefly o f ribbons though some ladies add ,
a fe w branches o f green foliage between the bows

or pu ffs ! these are chiefly o f the fern ; a great
improvemen t to these green branches is the having
a fe w wild roses intermingled .
The most admired colours are lavender E ster ,
hazy olive green lilac marshmallow blossom and

,
-
, , ,
I ndian red .
At rural fét e s the ornaments o f the hats gene

,
rally consist o f flowers these hats are bac kward in

the A rcadian fashion and discover a wreath o f ,
small flowers on the hair ea! ba n dea u I n Paris the , .
most admired colours are ethereal blue Hortensia -

, ,
cameleopard yellow pink grass gr een j onquil and

-
, ,
-
, ,
Parma violet — S ep tember 1 1 8 27

-
.
’
R eally this little fashion book is very charming

it recreates for me the elegant simpering ladie s ; it
, ,
gives in its style j ust that artificial note which

, ,
conjures this age o f ladies with hats in the charm

ing c o ttage style mode s tly tied under the chin
, .
’
1 1—2
84 ENGLIS H COS TUME
They had the complete art of languor these dear ,
creatures they lisped I talian and were fine needle ,
women ; they pain ted weak little landscapes nooks

or arbours found them dreaming o f a G othic revival
—they were all this and more ; but through this sweet
envelope the delicate refined souls shone ! they were
true women o ften great women their loops o f
,
hair their cameleopard pelerines S hall not rob them

, ,
of immortality cannot destroy their soft ening

,
influence which permeated even the outrageous

,
dandyism o f the men o f their time and steered the

three bottle gentlemen their husbands and our
-
,
grandfathers in to a grand old age which we rever

,
ence to day and wonder at seeing them as giants

-
, ,
against our nerve shattered drug takin g generation

-
,
-
.
A s for the men look at the innumerable pictures

, ,
and collect for instance the material fo r a colossal

, ,
work upon the stock ties o f the time run your li s t ,
o f varieties into some semblance o f order ; commence
with the varieties of macassar—brown stocks pass ,
on to patent leather stocks take your man for a ,
walk and cause him to pass a window full of

Hibernian stocks and let him di scourse on the
,
stocks worn by tur f enthusiasts and when you ar e , ,
approaching the end o f your twenty third volume -

,
GEOR GE TH E F OUR T H 85
gi ve a picture o f a country dinner party and end -

,
your work with a description o f the gentlemen

under the table being relieved o f their stocks by
the faithful family butler .
P O W DE R AND P A T C H ES
The a ffe ct a t i o n o f a m o le ,
to se t o ff t he i r bea u t y ,
s u ch as Venu s h a d .
’
A t t he de vi ll s Sh opps yo u buy
’
A dr esse o f po wder ed hayr e ’

.
From the splendid pageant o f history what figures

come to you most willingly ! D oes a great pro
cession go by the window o f your mind Knights
bronz ed by the su n o f Palestine kin gs in chains , ,
emperors in blood drenched purple poets clothed

-
,
like grocers W ith the souls o f angels shining

through their eyes fussy S ecretaries o f S tate i n
, ,
formers spies inquisitors C ourt cards come to life

, , , ,
harlequins statesmen in great ru ffs wives o f Bath

, ,
in foot mantles and white wimples sulky Puritans

-
, ,
laughing C avaliers D utchmen drinking gin and

,
talking politics men in wide skirted coats and

,
-
huge black periwigs — all walking riding being , ,
carried in coaches in sedan chairs over the face o f

,
-
,
E ngland E very step o f the procession yields

.
wonderful dreams o f colour ; in every group there

is one who by the personality o f his clothes can
, ,
claim the name o f beau .
N ear the tail o f the throng there is a chattering ,
bowing rustling c rowd dimmed by a white mist

, ,
o f scented hair powder -

They are headed I think
.
,
— fo r one cannot see too clearly— b the cook of

y
the C omte de Bellemare a man by name L egro s , ,
the great hairdresser U nder his arm is a book

.
,
the title o f which reads A rt de la C oiffure des ,
D ames F r an cai se s Behind him is a lady in an

’
.
enormous hoop her hair is dressed a la belle Poule

she is arg uing some minute point o f the disposition
o f patches with M onsieur L eo n ar d another artist ,
in hair . What will be the next wear ! she ask s ’

.
—
A heart near the eye l a ssassi n e eh O r a star
’
near the lips — la f r ip on n e ! M ust I wear a g a la n te

on my cheek an enjou ee in my di mple or la
’
, ,
majestueuse on my forehead ! Be fore we can hear ’
the reply another voice is rai s ed a guttural G erman ,
voice it is John S chnorr the ironmaster o f E rz g e ,
binge . The feet stuck in it I tell you he says , ,

’
actually stuck ! I got from my saddle and looked

at the ground M y horse had carried me on to
.
GEORGE TH E F OU R T H 87
what proved to be a mine o f wealth Hai r powder .

-
I sold it in D resden in L eipsic ; and then at

, ,
M eissen what does Bottcher do but use my hair

,
powder to make white porcelain ! A nd so the ’
chatter goes on Here is C harles Fox tapping the

.
ground with his red heels and proclaiming in a ,
voice thick with wine on the merits of blue hair

,
powder ; here is Brummell free from hair powder ,

-
,
free from the obnoxious necessity o f going with his

regiment to M anchester .
The dressy person and the person who is well

,
dressed— these two showing everywhere The o ne is .
in a screaming hue of woad the other a quiet note ,
o f blue dye the one in excessive velvet sleeves that

he cannot manage the other controlli ng a ri ch
,
amplitude o f material with perfect grace Here a .
liripipe is extravagantly long ; here a gold circlet

decorates curled locks with matchless taste E very .
where the battle between taste and gaudiness .
High hennins steeples of millinery stick up out

, ,
o f the crowd below these the towers o f powdered

,
hair bow and sw ay a s the fine ladies patter along .
What a rustle and a bustle o f silks and satins ,
o f flowered tabbies rich brocades cut velvets

, , ,
superfin e cloths woollens cloth o f gold

, ,
S ee there are the square shouldered Tudors ;

,
-
there are the steel glints o f Plantagenet armour ;

the E astern robed followers o f C oeur de L ion ; the
-
swaggering beribboned R oyalists the ru ffs trunk s , ,
and doublets o f E lizabethans ; the snu ffy wide ,
skirted coats swaying about ! ueen A nne There .
are the soft swathed N orman ladies with bound up

,
-
chins ; the tapestry figures o f ladies proclaiming

Agincourt the dignified dames about E lizabeth o f
York ; the playmates o f Katherine Howard ; the
wheels o f round farthingales and the high lace collars
o f King James s C ourt the beauties bare breasted ’
-
, ,
o f L ely ; the Hogarthian women in close caps .
A nd in front o f us two posturing figures in

, ,
D resden china colours rouged patched powdered , , , ,
perfumed in h OOp s kirts flirting with a fan — the

, ,
lady ; in gold laced wide coat solitaire bagwig -

, , ,
ruffles and red heels — the gentleman

, I protest .
,
madam he is saying but you flatter me vastly

,
’
, .
’
L a si r she replies I am prodigi ously truth ful

, ,
’
, .
’
A nd how are we to know that all this is true !

’
the critics ask guarding the interest o f the public

, .
We see that your book is full o f statements and ,
there are no or fe w authorities given for your

, ,
studies Where they ask

. are the venerable ,
’
,
GEO R GE TH E F OURTH 89
anecdotes which are given a place in every respect

able work on your subj ect
To appease the appetites which are always
hungry for skeletons I give a short list o f those ,
books which have proved most useful
MS Co t t on C l u d iu s B i v
.
,
a , . .
MS H l 603 P sa l t e r E ng l i sh eleven t h e nt ur y
. ar .
,
.
, ,
c .
T h B y e u x T pes t y
e a a a r .
MS C o t t o n Ti be i us C v i Ps l t e
.
,
r , . . a r.
MS T in C o l l C a m b R 1 7 1 I ll ust ra t ed by E dw in e
. r . .
, .
, .
, . a ,
a m o n k 1 1 30 1 1 74
,
-
.
MS H ar l R o ll Y v i
. .
, . .
MS H a r l 5 1 02
. .
, .
S t o t h a ds M on u m e n t l E ffi gi e s
’ ’
r a .
MS C C C C m b x vi
. . . .
, a .
, .
MS C o t t N e o D 1
. .
, r ,
. .
MS C o tt N e o C i v F ull o f d ra wings
. .
,
r , . . .
MS R oy 1 4 C v ii
. .
, , . .
L n sd o w n e M S B i t i sh M u se u m
a .
, r .
M a ckli n s M o n u m e n t l B ra sses
’
a .
’
J our n a l o
f the A r chaeolog ic a l A ssoci a ti on .
MS . B v ii
R oy .
, 2, . .
MS R oy 1 0 E i v
. G o od m ar gin a l d raw ings
.
, , . . .
T he L o ut r e ll P s a l t e r I n va l ua ble for cos t u m e . .
MS Bodl M i s c 264 1 338 1 344 Ve ry fu ll o f usefu l

. . .
, .
-
.
d ra w ings .
D r Fur n i vall s ed i t i o n o f t h e E lle sm e r e MS o f C ha u ce r s

’ ’
. .
Ca n t e rbu ry T le s a .
’
Bo ut ell s M o num e n t a l B ra s ses

’ ’
.
VO L IV . .
MS . H ar l .
, 1 31 9 . M et r i ca l h i st or y o f t he l e
c os of
R i ch ar d Il .
’
sr e ign . G oo d d a w ing s for co st u m e
r .
MS H l . ar .
, 1 8 92 .
MS H l . ar .
, 2278 .
L ydg a t e s i fe ’
E d m un d L of St . .
’
S
M R oy , 1 5 ,
. E v i F in e m ini t ur es
. . . a .
T h B ed for d M i ss l MS A dd 1 8 8 5 0
e a , . .
, .
MS H a l 298 2 A B oo k o f H ou r s M a ny goo d
. r .
, . .
d w ings
ra .
M S H a l 4 425 Th R o m a n e of t he R ose Fin e and

. r .
, . e c .
u se ful dra wing s .
MS L a m bet h 265
.
, .
M S R y 1 9 C v iii
. o .
, , . .
M S R oy 1 6 F ii
. .
, , . .
T u ber vi ll s B o o k o f Fa lcon r i e a n d B oo k o f Hunt ing

’ ’ ’
r e .
Sh w s D r es ses nd De co a t i on s
a
’
a r .
’
J usser n ds E ngl i sh N o vel a n d Way fa ing L i fe Ve r y

’ ’ ’
a r .
ex elle n t books full o f r epro d u ct i o n s fro m i ll u m in at ed

c ,
books pr in t s a n d pi ct u r e s
, , .
T h S heph e r d s Ca le n d r 1 5 79 B r i t i sh M u se um
’
e a , , .
H r d ing s Hi st or i l Po t ra i t s
a ca r .
’
N i h ols s P ogr e sse s o f Q uee n E l i be t h

c
’
,
r za .
’
S t ubbe s s A n t o m i e o f A bu se s 1 5 8 3
’ ’
a , .
Br un s C i v i ta t e s o b i s t errar um
a
’
r .
’
Ve st ust M o n um e n t a
’
a .
H oll ar s O r n at u s M u l i ebr i s A ngli canus

’
.
’
Ho ll r s A u l a Ve n er i s
a
’
.
’
P pyss D i a y
’
e r .
E velyn s D i ry ’
a .
Te m pe st s C i es of Lon do n’
F i fty pl at e s
r . .
At kin son s Co st u m e s of Gr ea t B r i t a in
’
.
’
GEORGE TH E FOURTH 91
I n addition to these course many , t he r e a re , o f ,
other books prints engra vings sets o f pictures

, , , ,
and heaps o f caricatures The excellent labours o f .
the S ociety o f A ntiquaries and the A rch aeological

A ssociation have helped me enormously ; these ,
with wills wardrobe accounts S atires by Hall

, ,
and others A natomies o f A buses broadsides and

, ,
’
other works on the same subj ect French G erman , , ,
and E nglish have made my task easier than it

,
might have been .
I t was no use to spin out my list Of manuscripts

with the numbers— endless numbers — of thosewhi c h
proved dry ground so I have given those only ,
which have yielded a rich harvest .
B EAU B RUMMELL AND CLO TH ES

A per son , my dea r , who will pr oba bly come a nd
en ter s i n to con ver sa ti on , be
pea k to us ; a nd
if he
ca r
f
e ul to
g i ve hi m a
f a vour able i mpr essi on o
f y ou ,
f d she sun k her voice to a whisper , he i s the

’
or , an
Mr B r ummell Li fe of Be u B mm ell ,
’ ’
cele br a ted . . a ru
C apt a in J esse .
Those who care to make the melancholy pilgrim

age may see in the Protestan t Cemetery at C aen
, ,
1 2— 2
the tomb o f G eorge Bryan Brummell He died at .

,
the age of sixty two in 1 8 4 0 -

, .
I t is indeed a melancholy pilgrimage to View the

tomb o f that once resplendent figure to think , ,
before the hideous grave o f the witty clever , , ,
foolish procession from E ton to O riel C ollege ,
O x ford ; from thence to a captaincy in the l ot h

’
Hussars from N o 4 C hesterfield S treet to N o 1 3

, . .
C hapel S treet Park L ane ; from C hapel S treet a

,
flight to C alais ; from C alais to Paris ; and then at ,
last to C aen and the bitter bitter end mumbling

, , , ,
and mad to die in the Bon S auveur

, .
Place him beside the man who once pretended

to be his friend the man o f whom Thackeray spoke
,
so truly ! But a bow and a grin I try and take .
h i m to pieces and find silk stockin gs padding

, , ,
stays a coat w ith frogs and a fur coat a star and a

, ,
blue ribbon a pocket handkerchief prodigiously

,
scented one o f Tru e fi tt s best nutty brown wigs

,
’
-
reeking with oil a set of teeth and a huge black , ,
stock under waistcoats more under waistcoats a n d

,
-
,
-
,
then nothing .
’
N othing Thackeray is right ab s olu tely nothin g

remains o f this King G eorge o f our s but a sale list
o f hi s wardrob e a wardrobe which fetched ,
A MAN OF TH E T I M E OF G E O R G E IV .
( 1 8 20 —1 8 30 )
H ER E you see t he co t wh i ch w no w we sl i g htl y

a e ar ,
alte ed in u eve n i ng d ess I t c m e into f sh ion
r o r r a a
w i th t h i s fo m of top b oot s in 799 d w s c lled
.
, ,
r -
1 an a a
J e n de B y N oti ce t he c omm e n ce m en t of the

, .
a a - -
r
wh i s k e f sh ion
.
r a .
GEORGE T H E F OU R TH 93
second hand— a wardrobe that had been a man

-
.
He invented a shoe buckle 1 inch long and -
5 inches broad He wore a pink silk coat with

.
white cu ffs He had

. steel beads on his hat .
He was a coward a good natured contemptible ,

-
,
voluptuary Beside him in o ur eyes walks for a

.
, ,
time the elegant figure o f Beau Brummell I .
have said that Brummell was the inventor o f

modern dress ! it i s true He was the Beau who .
raised the level o f dress from the slovenly dirty ,
linen the greasy hair the filthy neck cloth the

, ,
-
,
cr umbled collar to a position ever since held

, ,
by E nglishmen o f quiet unobtru sive cleanliness

, , ,
decent linen an abhorrence o f striking forms of

,
dress.
He made clean linen and washing daily a part

o f E nglish li fe .
S ee him seated before his dressing glass a -

,
mahogany framed sliding cheval glas s with brass

-
arms on either sides for candles By his side is .
G eorge I V recovering from his drunken bout o f

.
,
last night The B e an s glass reflects his clean com

.
’
-
le x i on e d face his grey eyes his li ght brown hair

p , , ,
a n d sandy whiskers A servant produces a shirt

.
with a 1 2 inch collar fixed to it assists the Beau

-
,
into it arranges it and stands aside The collar
, , .
’
nearly hides the D e an s face N ow with his hand .
,
protected with a discarded shirt he folds his collar ,
down to the required height N ow he takes his .
white stock and folds it carefully round the collar

the stock is a foot high and slightly starched .
A supreme moment o f artistic decision and the ,
stock and collar take their perfect creases I n an .
hour or so he will be ready to partake o f a light

meal with the royal gentleman He will stand up .
and survey himself in his morning dress his regular , ,
quiet suit A blue coat light breeches fitting the

.
,
leg well a light waistcoat over a waistcoat o f some

,
other colour never a startling contrast Hessian

, ,
boots or top boots and buckskins

,
-
There was .
noth i ng very peculiar about his clothes except as ,
’
L ord Byron said an exquisite propriety , His .
evening dress was a blue coat white waistcoat , ,
black trousers buttoned at the ankle — these were

o f his own invention and one may say it was the ,
wearing o f them that made trousers more popular

than knee breeches — striped Si lk stocki ngs and a
-
,
white stock .
He was a man of perfect taste—o f fastidious

taste O n his tables lay books o f all kinds in fine
.
GEORGE T H E F OURTH 95
cover s Who would suspect it ! but the Prince is

.
lean ing an arm on a copy o f E llis s E arly E nglish

’
M etrical R omances The Beau is a rhymer an

’
.
,
elegant verse maker Here we see the paper

-
.
presser o f N apoleon — I am flitting for the moment

over some years and se e him in his room in C alais
,
here we notice his passion for buhl his S evres ,
chin a painted with C ourt beauties .
I n his house in C hapel S treet he sa w daily por

traits o f N elson and Pitt and G eorge I I I upon his .
walls This is no Beau as we understand the term

.
,
fo r we make it a word o f contempt a nickn ame fo r ,
a feeble fellow in magnificent garments R ather .
this is the room o f an educated gentleman o f

exquisite propriety .
’
He played high as did most gentlemen he was

,
superstitious as are many o f the best of men

, .
That lucky S ixpence with the hole in it that

you gave to a cabman Beau Brummell was , ,
that loss the commencement o f your downward

career
There are hundreds o f anecdotes o f Brummell
which despite those o f the G eorge ring the bell
, ,
’
character and those told of his heavy gaming are

, ,
more valuable as show ing his wit his cleanliness , ,

hi s distaste of display— i n fact , his exquisite pro
rie t
’
p y .
A Beau is hardly a possible figure to day we -

;
have so fe w personalities and those we have are ,
chie fly concerned with trade — men who uphold

trusts men who fight trusts men who speak fo r
, ,
trade in the House o f C ommons We have not .
the same large vulgarities as our grand fathers nor ,
have we the same wholesome refinement ; in kill

ing the evi l— the great gambler the great men o f ,
the turf the great prize fi ght e r s the heavy wine

,
-
,
drin kers— w e have killed also the good the classic , , , ,
well spoken civil gentleman O ur manners have

-
.
s u ffered at the expense o f our morals .
Fi fty or sixty years ago the world was full

o f great men saying writing thinking great
, , , ,
—
things To day perhaps it is too early to speak
.
-
of to day Personalities are so little marked by

-
.
thei r clothes by any stamp o f individuality that

, ,
the c aricaturist or even the min ute and truth ful

,
artist be he painter or writer has a difli cult task

, ,
‘
before him when he sets out to point at the men o f

these our times .
G eorge Brummell came into the world on June 7

1 778 .He was a year or so late for the M acaroni
GEO R GE T H E FOURTH 97
style o f dress many years behind the Fribbles after

, ,
the S marts and must have seen the rise and fall o f
,
the ! ebras when he was thirteen D uri n g his li fe .
he saw the old fashioned full frock coat bagwi g

- -
, ,
solitaire and ru ffles die away ; he saw the decline

,
and fall o f knee breeches fo r common wear and

-
,
the pantaloons invente d by himself take their place .
From these pantaloons reaching to the ankle came

t h e trousers as fashionable garments ope n over the
, ,
instep at first and j oined by loops and buttons then

, .
strapped under the boot and after that in every ,
manner o f cut to the present style He saw the .
three cornered hat vanish from the hat boxes of the

- -
polite world and he saw fi n e coloured clothes give

,
-
way to blue coats with brass buttons or coats of

solemn black .
I t may be said that E ngland went into mourning

over the French R evolution and has not yet ,
recovered Beau Brummell on his way to E ton

.
, .
saw a gay coloured crowd o f powdered and patched

-
people saw claret coloured coats covered with

,
-
embroidery gold laced hats twinkling shoe buc kles

,
-
,
-
.
O n his last walks in C aen no doubt he dreamed , ,
o f L ondon as a place o f gay colours instead o f the
drab plac e it was beginning to be .
V OL . 1V .
98 ENGLIS H COS T U M E
To day there i s no more monotonous sight than

-
the pavements o f Piccadilly crowded with people

in dingy sad clothes with silk tubes on their heads
, , ,
their black and gray su its being splashed by the

mud from black hansoms or by the scatterings o f ,
motor cars driven by aristocratic looking mechanics

- -
,
in which mechan ical looking aristocrats lounge -

,
darkly clad Here and there some woman s dress

.
’
enlivens the monotony here a red pillar box shines -
in the sun ; there again we bless the Post O ffi ce

, ,
-
fo r their red mail carts and perhaps we are -

,
strengthened to bear the gloom by the sight o f a

blue or red bus .
But our hearts are not in tune with the picture ;

we feel the lack o f colour o f romance o f everything
, ,
but money in the street S uddenly a magnificent

,
.
policeman stops the traffic ; there is a sound o f

’
j ingli ng harness O f horses hoo fs beating in unison
, .
There flashes upon us an esco rt o f L i fe G uards

sparkling in the sun flashing specks o f light from
,
swords breastplates helmets The little forest o f

, , .
w avin g plumes the raising o f hats the polite mur

, ,
muring o f cheers warms us We feel young our

, .
,
hearts beat ; we feel more healthy more alive fo r , ,
this gleam o f colour .

GEORGE T H E F OURTH 99
Then an open carriage passes us swift ly as we

stand with bared heads There is a momentary sight
.
o f a man in uni form — a man with a wonderful face ,
clever dignified kind A nd we say with a catch

, , .
,
in our voices !
TH E K I N G — G OD B LE SS H IM
TH E EN D
B I LL I NG A N D SO S
N , LTD .
,
T S
PR I N E R , GU I LD F OR D

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EN GL ISH CO ST U M E

A MERICA THE M A CM I L L A N COM PANY

CANA DA THE M A CM I L L A N COM PA NY OF C A NA D A LT D

THI S sh o w s the d d u ing the ﬁ st h l f of the

1 . A Man of t he Ti m e of Ch ar les II . 1 660 1 68 5

B o n 1 630 M arr i ed 1 662 K at he in e o f Por t uga l

TH E MEN AND W OMEN

her hair shirt and ,

proves that she has

bon makers and

makers tailors and , ,

out thankful offerings at the altar o f Fashion .

O ne kind o f folly has replaced another ; it is only

that winked and ﬂickered before the stern black

ﬂaunting love locks of this C arolean deity

We have burst out into pe rIWIgs monstrous

bushy ; we have donned petticoat breeches ru fﬂed

shirts ; and we have done the like with our coat

and above that we have cut

marvel o f our linen .

Those o f us who still

bunches o f ribbons along

and allow the wide lace ends to ﬂoat grace fully .

O ur hats broad brimmed and sti ff are loaded

with feathers ; our little cloaks are barred with

toed and high heeled and are tied with a long

ended bow o f ribbon .

Ribbon reigns triumphant ! it ties our periwigs

places ; it twists itself round our knees I t is on .

o ur hats and heads and ,

necks and arms and legs ,

an d shoes and it peers out

o f the t 0ps o f our boots .

D ivines rave morali sts ,

rush into print to no pur ,

pose The names seem to

convey a sense o f luxury

cade R hingrave breeches

white lutestring seamed

with a point lace coat tri mmed and ﬁgured with

silver twist or satin ribbon ; canvas camblet galloon , ,

and sha me y vellam buttons and taffety ribbons

The cannons those bunches o f ribbons round our

knees and the co nﬁ den t s those bunches o f c urls by

our ladies cheeks do not shake at the thunderings

of Mr Baxter or other moral gentlemen who

regard a M aypole as a stinking idol M r Hall . .

writes on The L oathsomeness o f L ong Hair ,

M r Prynne on The U nloveliness o f L ovelocks

and we do not care a pinch of rappe .

L ittle moustaches and tiny lip beards grow

solar system in patches on their cheek s .

The ladies soon escaped the bondage o f the

exposed The sleeves left the arms bare to the

elbow and being slit above and j oined loosely

by ribbons showed the ar mnearly to the shoulder

The sleeves o f these dresses also followed the

under sleeves The bodices came to a peak in

front and were round behind The skirts were .

full satin being favoured and when held up

showed a satin petticoat with a long train The .

ladies for a time i n dulged in a peculiar loop of

hair on their foreheads called a fore top which ,