Daily Life During The Reformation (29 page)

Puritan men tended to cut their hair fairly short, scorning
the long curls of the aristocrats; their moustaches were well trimmed.

Shoes had square toes and boots, made of soft leather,
without laces at the top. Hats with broad brims and high crowns were used by
both men and women, and men’s were frequently adorned by a ribbon and a buckle.

Puritan Women

Women wore sheer linen caps covering the hair, wide
collars, and cuffs. There was no lace edging at all. Those who were less
zealous tended to wear a full skirt that, hooked up, showed a petticoat that
was sometimes quilted and of a contrasting color. These women also wore a cap,
collar, and cuffs that were often embroidered.

A large beaver or felt hat was worn over a cap in summer
and over a black hood in winter. Cloaks were ample, and muffs were used to keep
the hands warm. Shoes for women had square toes and small shoe roses. Not much
in the way of ribbons were used, and most materials were in subdued tones.

FRANCE

Clothing was somewhat different across France, depending on
the region. A bourgeois in Roussillon, for example, might wear a hat and cloak
embellished with silver, a gray coat with green sleeves, and blue breeches. His
wife would have a dress of blue, with silver and green around the edges. Her
sleeves and cape could be crimson with silver or gold relief, and her hat could
be the color of gold. Another woman from elsewhere might be seen wearing a
white, striped bonnet, a shawl, and a black cape with perhaps some silver or
gold embellishments. She might also be wearing a white apron. Her shoes would
be high and adorned with alternating white and gold zigzags.

Men

A priest could be seen in a white silver-embossed surplice
over a black garment and crimson stockings with silver relief. When the Abbot
Locatelli went to Lyon in the early seventeenth century dressed in the Italian
style that included a ‘sugar loaf’ hat and colored hose, he was greatly mocked,
especially by the children, and hastily changed to the French style of black
stockings, a shorter cassock, narrow shoes with buckles, and a narrow-brimmed
hat. In these clothes he did no’t feel like a priest any more, but rather,
thought he looked like a scholar or doctor.

Spanish influence was still apparent, especially in the
style of short boots, which came in light colors and were made of soft leather.
The tops were turned down, and spurs were attached for both indoors and out.
The high red heels and red soles continued to be fashionable. Hooks and eyes replaced
ribbons for fastenings, and breeches were fairly full and tied with ribbons
below the knee.

The cravat, which was popular after 1636, began as a piece
of fine white material with lace on the ends. At that time it was folded and
tied loosely around the neck. From this period on, a ‘well-dressed’ man always
used a cravat, scarf, or tie.

Interested in investing in French industry, Henri IV
encouraged factories in Lyon to produce brocades, velvets, and silk and those
in Tours to provide heavy taffeta for the markets. Other beautiful materials
were imported from Italy and Spain, and from the Far East came perfumes. When
Henri died in 1610, the French middle class began, for the first time, to show
an interest in fashion.

Under Louis XIII, France became a major influence in the
world of
haute-couture
. In 1625, Richelieu banned the importation of
certain luxury clothing goods such as silver and gold material, and in 1633,
another ban was passed against gold, silver, or embroidered braid for
decoration. In short, clothes were now made from fabric produced in France and
more simplicity of design was stressed as well as more neutral colors. At this
time trimming of lace and ribbon became popular.

Women

Women wore a chemise, a corset, and several skirts or
petticoats over a hoop that was much smaller than the farthingale. On top of
all this went an outer skirt that was looped up or sometimes drawn up at the
sides along with a low necked bodice with a moderate ruff or collar and pale
colored sleeves of satin or similar material. Finally, a lightweight outer
coat, open at the front with slashed sleeves, displayed the contrasting colors
worn underneath. In winter, capes were worn, but once gowns began to be lined
with heavier fabric, the capes were not always necessary.

When the hoop disappeared, the corset became looser.
High-waisted bodices began to have wide collars and cuffs and sometimes were
laced at the back. Aprons trimmed with lace were used on occasion.

From Austria came a headdress with a fringe across the forehead,
the sides of the hair cut short with ringlets hanging over the ears, the rest
of the hair knotted at the back. Stylish aristocratic women went bareheaded
outside, but bourgeois women wore veils, hoods, or hats similar to the men’s
with wide brims and plumes.

Women’s long, narrow square-toed shoes were often adorned
with large shoe roses with jewels in the center. Shoes were made of satin or
leather from Morocco and worn with pink stockings. Slippers had flaps in front
and red velvet patterns on them. Soles were thick and made of cork. Long gloves
and muffs of fur and perfumed leather gauntlets were popular. Perfume was now
available in liquid form, cosmetics were freely applied, and the fan was used
by both men and women.

As France became established as a leader of fashion, the
doublet evolved into the vest, the jerkin into a jacket, and the cloak became
today’s overcoat.

HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE

In the first half of the sixteenth century, Germans tended
to use slashing in their clothes. This style was begun by Swiss soldiers in the
late fifteenth century when they repaired their uniforms with strips of
material from tents, banners, etc. left behind by the enemy. Slashing and
puffing was very popular with the Germans, and the style spread to the rest of Europe
especially between 1520 and 1535. Clothing of all kinds, including gloves,
shoes, and hose, were made in this fashion using puffs of variously colored
fabrics.

Men

Men elected to have a broad, square look and wore large
hats over a cap, their hair in waves or ringlets. Hats were often made of felt,
and sometimes on holidays, they were adorned with feathers. Brims were slashed
and frequently a string held the hat in place. Shoes were wide with square
toes, swords, and daggers in elaborately decorated cases hung from the belt.

The Germans began weaving linens and cottons as well as
gauze and fine muslins. At this time, too, heavy, rich materials in wool and
brocade were used for tunics and robes.

Women

Women had high, tight waistlines, narrow shoulders, with
extra fullness over the stomach achieved by aprons with materials that often
hung in heavy folds. The petticoat was of a different color and material and
had embroidered bands under which several linen underskirts were worn. A shirt
went underneath, next to the skin.

For formal outerwear, the colors were usually black and
white. Veils were worn as were white collars and hairnets of satin. Hair was
drawn tightly away from the face and concealed by a cap or embroidered hats
that were decorated by ostrich feathers or jewelry. Hats were frequently made
of fur and were pointed, square or flat. No cosmetics or perfume were used at
this time. Accessories included gold and silver brooches and buckles, and a
small dagger was often carried along with an ornate bag hanging from the sash.
Pearls and mother of pearl were very popular; rings and heavy gold necklaces
were worn by both sexes.

Before 1550, dresses had high waistlines and rounder
shoulders, seen in portraits and paintings by such artists as Holbein, Durer,
and Brueghel. Later waistlines became longer, and high puffs appeared at the
shoulders. Wool was greatly utilized, skirts tended to be long (the overskirt
reaching to the ground), and women of all classes drew them up at the sides if
they needed to.

Hair was generally kept up and covered much of the time,
although young women wore their hair down in ringlets or braids. Upper class
German women followed the latest fashions; and although the basic model of
dress was similar to the style worn by the lower class women, the materials
were of fine, high-quality wool, brocade, velvet, and silk that was
additionally used for accents. Sleeves, sometimes laced, were again fairly
tight from elbow to wrist and had several puffs on the upper part. Colors were
varied and included red and black (the latter especially for aristocracy and
nobles). Gold and black embroidery was popular and jewelry included gold
chains, pearls, rings with precious stones. Earrings were not popular in
Germany.

Many plumes decorated their hats, but aprons were not
regularly worn unless they were embroidered and used for decoration.

Hats were of various shapes and included flat ones with
large brims made of straw, wool, or velvet decorated variously with plumes,
jewelry, and pleated ribbons. Belts were of leather, cord, or cloth and had
keys, a purse, or a knife (for eating) attached to them. They were occasionally
decorated. Lined woolen cloaks, with or without a hood, were worn.

Shoes were of leather with flat or low heels. They were
sometimes slashed and of black or some other solid color and worn with colored
or striped hose made of cotton or wool with patterns on them.

Upper Class

A German noble might be seen in a red hat decorated with a
white feather, a striped jacket with slit upper sleeves in orange with gold
embossing, and white with silver decoration. The lower part of the sleeves
might be crimson light and dark striped, with silver relief, and his breeches
also crimson with silver on them. The stockings would be orange and white stripes,
trimmed with gray fur. His wife might wear a red cap, a neckband of orange with
gold embossing, a dress of red and silver with black edges, and a shawl of
white and silver. Her gloves would be white, and the laces of the bodice and
the purse would be grayish green.

Middle Class

For the lower middle class, bodices sometimes had high
necks with a mandarin type of collar as in a doublet. Sleeves regularly had
slashes and were fitted from elbow to the wrist. Materials were probably finer
than those used by the lower class, including low quality brocades, velveteens
in deep green, dark blue, or plum colors. The aprons for these women were more
decorative than utilitarian. Materials of all colors were of wool, brocade, and
velvet with silk or satin decoration. Necklines were embroidered or smocked,
and slashing and puffing were used. Gold chains, strings of pearls, and fine
slashed leather gloves accompanied a cloak.

Lower Class

Lower class German women wore simple clothing of sturdy and
durable material such as rough wool, which was often old and worn as they lived
and worked in it. Normally the dress consisted of a bodice with square or round
neck. Sleeves tended to fit from the elbow to the wrist, and skirts frequently
hung in several layers. An embroidered or smocked apron was normally worn over
the skirt.

NETHERLANDS

Men

The same clothes were worn as long as possible by many
people in the working class, after which they were turned into rags or mops for
scrubbing the floors. Ragmen collected used clothing and sold it to the very
poor. There was always the danger of plague-carrying fleas in the lining of
these garments if the person had died of that disease; but there were many poor
and handicapped people in need of clothes.

The shirts men used for work was also slept in. When they
awoke in the morning, they slipped into stretch stockings that pulled up to
just above the knee and fastened them with a garter. They shaved with a
straight razor and without lather. The shirt was tucked between their legs in
the front and the back, and the pants pulled up over the top. Pants were short,
reaching down to the stockings and bulged out on all sides giving a balloon
effect. They came in several varieties. There were the simple, working man’s
pants, fancy, puffed pants for the middle class man, and the so-called plunder
pants that were often brightly colored and had slits in them. No under garments
were worn, but a codpiece was attached to make room for the male organ so that
the wearer looked manly. A doublet had the pants tied to it with strings. A
ruffled collar, tied in front by ribbons, was added that showed above the
doublet.

Men did not usually go into the streets wearing only the
doublet; instead, either a jerkin was worn over it or a coat with long sleeves and
holes for the elbows through which, for more flexibility, the entire arms could
be extended.

Shoes were fastened on with leather shoelaces and were
completely flat without supports under the heels. A slip-on served as an
overshoe to traverse the muddy streets. Wooden shoes were generally worn in
winter. When weather permitted, country people usually went around barefoot.