THE OF BRITISH

FASHION HISTORY
The 17th century was a period
of great turbulence in British
history and this was reflected
in art and design. The period
began with the ending of the
Tudor dynasty and the rise of
the Stuarts. In the middle of
the century, the Civil War and
execution of Charles I saw
Puritanism take hold. After
Charles II's restoration to the
throne in 1660, a new period
of decadence began.
Clothes could be purchased from many different
places. Wealthy women, such as the wives of
London citizens, shopped at the Royal Exchange
and the New Exchange, but tailors, shoemakers,
embroiders, glove-makers and milliners could be
found throughout the City and in neighbouring
Westminster.
As the clothing industry developed, more ready-
to-wear clothes became available at cheaper
prices. But many women continued to make
their own clothes or purchased second-hand
ones, often from other women who were
prominent in the trade. Many of these second-
hand items would have been stolen, and
shoplifting by women became a growing
problem in the later decades of the 17th
century.
Man’s Formal Clothes about 1600 (left)
This gentleman (pictured left) wears a
padded doublet with pointed waist and short
padded breeches, with tapering ‘canion’ at
the knee, over which the stocking is pulled.
His ‘Spanish’ cloak is heavily embroidered.
Possibly Sir Walter Raleigh threw down a
similar one to protect Queen Elizabeth from
the mud!
He wears a starched and gathered ruff,
developed from the shirt neck frill after
about 1560. His jewellery includes the collar
of the Order of the Garter. His hat would
have been conical
Lady’s Formal Dress about 1610
This lady shows the dress which first
appeared in the later portraits of Queen
Elizabeth about 1580 and remained
fashionable in the reign of James I. The
bodice is very long, pointed and stiff, and
the wide skirt is supported by hip
‘boulsters’ of the ‘drum farthingale’.
The sleeves are wide and the neckline low,
with ruff open to frame the face. It is
trimmed with lace newly introduced from
Flanders and Spain. Her pleated fan is a
new fashion from China. Fashionable ladies
no longer wore a cap and her uncovered
hair is dressed high with ribbons and
feathers.
 Elizabethan
Style
Since Elizabeth I, Queen of England,
was the ruler, women's fashion became
one of the most important aspects of
this period. As the Queen was always
required to have a pure image, and
although women's fashion became
increasingly seductive, the idea of the
perfect Elizabethan women was never
forgotten
Elizabethan Sumptuary Laws were
used to control behavior and to
ensure that a specific structure was
maintained. These set of rules were
well known by all the English people
and penalties for violating these
Sumptuary Laws were harsh - fines,
and most of the time ended in the
loss of property, title and even life
Regarding to fabrics and
materials for the clothes
construction, only Royalty
were permitted to wear
ermine. Other nobles
(lesser ones) were
allowed only to wear
foxes and otters. Clothes
worn during this era were
mostly inspired by
geometric shapes,
probably derived from the
high interest in science
and mathematics from
that era.. "Padding and
quilting together with the
use of whalebone or
buckram for stiffening
purposes were used to
gain geometric effect
with emphasis on giving
the illusion of a small
waist
Depending on social
status, the color could be
used in any clothing or
would be limited to
mantles, doublets,
jerkins, or other specific
items.Lower classes were
only allowed to use
brown, beige, yellow,
orange, green, grey and
blue in wool, linen and
sheepskin, while usual
fabrics for upper crusts
were silk or velvet.