17th Century Life

Fashion in 17th century London. Social hierarchy, trade, architecture, politics, religion, all influenced the fashions of the 17th century. The burgeoning fashion industry in London encouraged all kinds of trades to flourish. The city's wealthiest residents demanded rich fabrics and feathers. Shoes, boots, gloves, hats, purses and jewellery, which remain to this day an important part of the city's history. At the forefront of fashion would be the reigning monarch, the most powerful person in the kingdom. His attire would reflect his wealth and power, not only to his immediate courtiers, but also to the rest of the world. At this time, Europe was in a constant state of flux, its rulers globetrotting in search of further riches and vying over territories. Appearing to be omnipotent was vital. Even if, beneath the golden carapace of kingship, he was just a human being. James VI of Scotland, First of England, and his son Charles I, who succeeded him, still believed in the divine right of kings and enjoyed dressing up in the most lavish materials and jewels. As we know, this eventually led to their undoing during the Commonwealth period. But during their reign, they epitomised the fashion for lavish dressing. The Commonwealth era, 1642 to 1649, was followed by a period when fashion was frowned upon. Instead, clothes denoted which side you were on, the roundheads or the cavaliers. After the Civil War, however, when the monarchy had been restored, colour and frivolity returned to the streets of London. Travel was a powerful stylistic influence. More people were visiting Europe, and young men of means would do the Grand Tour, a kind of 17th century gap year, to broaden their minds. Possibly visiting the ruins of Athens, the Colosseum in Rome, and even as far afield as Palmyra in Syria. This in turn influenced artists and architects, most notably Inigo Jones, one of the greatest English architects of the century, and later Christopher Wren. Lord Burlington, the man who built Savile Row, was also struck by the architecture of the ancient world. Distilled and revised by Palladio, a Renaissance visionary, he brought what came to be known as Palladianism to England. His Chiswick Villa, influenced by the work of Palladio, was the start of a deluge of classical building all over the country, which in turn influenced the way people socialised, ate and dressed. Politics played a part in the way Londoners went about their daily lives too. The sumptuary laws of earlier times were less punitive, but even so it was a punishable offence to wear royal purple, unless you were a royal or senior member of the clergy. Unlike the anything-goes attitude of today, 17th century fashions were much more fixed. It took a relatively long time for outer influences to reach our shores, and only the wealthy could afford to dress in the latest garb. Thus it was that new styles only really emerged from the upper echelons of society.