THE NINETEENTH CENTURY

THE ROMANTIC PERIOD

Made by: Anshika Agarwal

 THE ROMANTIC PERIOD
• The term Romantic is applied to the literature,
music, graphic arts and the dress of about
1820 – 1840.
• The emphasis was on emotion, sentiments
and feelings.
• An interest in history not only stimulated the
arts, but also revivals of fashions in dress and
in interior design and architecture from earlier
periods.
 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
• Romantic art and literature emphasized emotions,
sentiments and feelings.
• Romanticism represented a reaction against the formal
Classical style of the 17th and 18th centuries.
• Romanticism was a from of rebellion against restrictions on
artistic expression.
• Romantics ignored social conventions, including marriage.
• They resorted to tears and violent emotions, loving and
hating fiercely.
• The Romantic lifestyle included wearing beards, long hair
and unusual clothing.
• Romantics preferred other times and places and one of
their favorite times was the Middle Ages.
• Subjects of Romantic paintings were often events from the
past as well as Oriental and Mediterranean scenes of
violent action.
• These trends in arts were reflected in costume.
• After 1820, elements related to Romanticism in the arts
began to appear, especially in women’s dress.
• Many costumes showed conscious attempts to revive
certain elements of historical dress like neck ruffs, the
ferronaire or sleeve styles from earlier costume periods.
• Costume balls at which men and women appeared dressed
as figures from the past were in vogue.
• The leading Romantic poet Lord Byron, through exotic
costume, inspired some styles or names of styles in men’s
clothing.
COSTUME FOR MEN AND WOMEN
COSTUME FOR WOMEN (1820 – 1850)
UNDERGARMENTS
• Knee-length chemises with short sleeves were
worn, with more women adopting the drawers
worn below multiple petticoats.
• Since small waists were fashionable, women
wore short corsets which were laced lightly to
pull-in the waist.
• Small hip pads were tied at the back of the waist
to give emphasis.
Dress for evening in 1823 shows the
elements of the transition that is taking
place from Empire to early Romantic styles.
The waistline has moved to a somewhat
lower placement, the skirt is more bell-
shaped and ornamented around the hem,
and the sleeves are beginning to be
somewhat larger.
Caricature of 1831 shows the down-filled
hip pad called bustle that was worn under
full-skirted dresses. Other garments
depicted include a corset worn over a
chemise. The sleeves of the chemise are
puffed and stiffened to support the large
sleeves of dresses of the period. Several
layers of petticoats are visible. The lady is
tucking a handkerchief into a pocket
suspended from the waist. These pockets
were reached through the openings in the
skirt seams.
DRESSES
• By nineteenth century gowns were generally referred as
dresses in the fashion plates and magazines which
advertised the new trends.
• Dresses were sold under different categories according to
the occasion or time of the day i.e. “day dresses”, “morning
dresses”, “promenade or walking dresses”, “evening or ball
dresses” etc.
• The basic silhouettes remained the same for all the above
but differences were seen in details, fabric used or sleeves
and necklines of the garment.
• The neoclassical gowns of the first two decades slowly gave
way to newer styles using popular fabrics like printed
cottons, muslins, silk, tafettas, light-weight wool etc.
• Some of the common styles of the period were :
a. Dresses with lower waistlines and small waists, full skirts
and wide sleeves were worn. V-shaped or high till the
neck necklines ending in a ruffle or draped with cross-over
folds were fashionable. Sashes and belts with buckles
were also worn.
b. Sleeves showed the maximum variation. These included –
i. Fitted sleeves with small puffs at shoulders.
ii. Exaggerated leg-of-mutton sleeves which were a rage in
the 1830s.
iii. Sleeves with fullness from shoulder to elbow and tightly
fitted from elbow to waist were called demi-gigot.
iv. Another style was fullness from top to wrist and tied at
intervals with ribbons. This style was called Marie sleeve.
v. Idiot or imbecile sleeves referred to those which were
extremely full from shoulder to wrist and ended into a
fitted cuff.
Woman’s printed cotton dress of 1830 – 1835 has demi-gigot
sleeves.
One of the popular sleeve styles of the
Romantic Period was the Marie sleeve,
made with puffs formed by using ribbons or
bands to pull a full sleeve close to the arm.
A pelisse with the enormous sleeves that were
called imbecile sleeves, so named because they
were similar to the sleeves used for confining the
mentally ill who became violent.
c. The silhouette of the dresses became slightly subdued
after mid-1830s and the exaggerated fullness of the
sleeves completely disappeared by 1840.
i. The bodice of the dress usually ended in a point in the
front and was closed with buttons, hooks or ribbons.
[Link]-piece dresses with jacket style bodice and a separate
skirt also became fashionable.
[Link] the jacket even resembled a men’s waistcoat.
[Link] sleeve styles evolved during the 1840s.
v.A popular sleeve en bouffant which had alternate places
of tightness and puffed areas.
[Link] times the puff appeared only at the elbow and was
called the Victorian sleeve.
[Link] gathers at the waist gave fullness to the skirt. For
the first time, pockets were sewn into skirts.
d. Techniques for decorating the dresses included
flounces, ruching i.e. pleated or gathered strips
of fabric, cording, scallops and trimmings like
artificial flowers, laces or ribbons.
e. Short cape-like garments were often worn
around the shoulder and were known by
different names like Pelerine which was a wide,
cape-like collar. Bertha collars followed the
neckline of dress.
f. Evening dresses used deep necklines or the
popular off-shoulder necklines.
Evening dress of the period of 1830 – 1835
was generally short enough to reveal the foot
and the ankle, often had a large padded
trimming around the hem, a belt at the
waistline, and an off-the-shoulder neckline
edged in a lace or ruffled bertha collar.
Elaborately curled hairstyles and large hats
with feathers, ribbons or other trimmings
were worn in the evening.
OUTDOOR GARMENTS
• Pelisse was a sort of full length coat-dress, closed in
the front with buttons or ribbon ties and worn during
the first half of the century.
• Evening styles were made in more luxurious,
decorative fabrics such as velvet or satin and trimmed
with braid.
• Different types of mantles were :
a. Mantlet or shawl-mantlet – a short garment rather
like a hybrid between a shawl and a short mantle
with points hanging down at either side of the front.
b. Pelerine-mantle – with a deep cape, coming well
over the elbows and having long, broad front
lappets worn over, not under a belt.
Both the pelisse and the dress are made in
colors that fashion commentators of the
period called “amber”, “apricot” or “citron”.
The white, embroidered pelerine is a typical
feature of dresses of the period and its shape
is echoed in the collar of the pelisse. The
yellow dress has gigot or leg-of-mutton
sleeves.
c. Burnous – a large mantle of about three-
quarter length with a hood, the name and
style deriving from a similar garment worn by
Arabs who lived in the Middle Eastern deserts.
d. Paletot – about knee-length and having three
capes and slits for the arms.
e. Pardessus – a term applied to any of a
number of garments for outdoor wear that
had a defined waistline and sleeves and were
from one half to three quarters in length.
HAIR AND HEADDRESS
• During the early decade hair was parted in the
center with tight curls around the forehead
and temples and a knot or bun at the back.
• Elaborate loops or plaits of false hair was
added during the late 1820s.
• By 1830s, it was common to arrange the hair
in hanging sausage – shaped curls or with a
loop of hair encircling the ears.
WOMEN’s HAIRSTYLES AND
HEADDRESSES : 1820 - 1850
FOOTWEAR
• Generally, stockings were knitted of cotton or silk or
worsted wool.
• For evening in the 1830s and 1840s, black silk stockings
were fashionable.
• Most shoes were of the slipper type.
• Toes became somewhat square after the late 1820s.
• Very small heels were applied in the late 1840s.
• Black satin slippers predominated for evening until about
1840 after which ribbon sandals and white satin evening
boots appeared.
• In cold weather, women wore leather shoes or boots with
cloth gaiters in colors matching the shoe.
• Rubber galoshes or overshoes were introduced in the late
1840s.
ACCESSORIES
• Gloves were worn for both daytime and evenings.
• Daytime gloves were short and made of cotton,
silk or kid.
• Evening gloves were long until the second half of
the 1830s after which they were shortened.
• Gloves, cut to cover the palm and back of hand
but not the fingers were called mittens or mitts.
• Hand carried accessories included reticules,
handbags, purses, fans, muffs and parasols.
JEWELRY
• In 1820s and 1830s women wore gold chains with
lockets, scent bottles or crosses attached.
• Chatelaines were ornamental chains worn at the waist
from which were suspended useful items such as
scissors, thimbles, button hooks, and penknives.
• Other items in wide use were brooches, bracelets,
armlets and drop earrings.
• In the 1830s, a narrow tress of hair or piece of velvet
ribbons was used to suspend a cross or heart of pearls
around the neck.
• By 1840s, less jewelry was being worn.
• Watches were suspended around the neck or placed in
a pocket made in the skirt waistband.
ACCESSORIES OF THE ROMANTIC
PERIOD
COSTUME FOR MEN
• Although men’s clothing had become more subdued in
color and ornamentation, there were subtle details in cut
and style that marked the dress of men who wanted to be
fashionable.

COSTUME FOR MEN (1820 – 1850)

UNDERGARMENTS
• Undervests and drawers made of linen or cotton similar to
18th century continued to be worn.
• Some men preferred to use corsets and padding at the
shoulder, chest, hip and calves to achieve a fashionable
figure.
• Shirts too remained unchanged with high, standing collars
and pleating or ruffles in the front.
Caricature of 1822 depicts the
artificial assistance required by some
men to achieve a fashionable
silhouette, pads at the shoulder,
chest, hip and calf and a tight corset.
SUITS
• The term suit was used for coat, waistcoat and breeches or
trousers collectively.
• Generally contrasting colors were used for the above three,
the choice varied according to the occasion and time of the
day.
• Wool, velvets and silk fabrics were used for the suits.
• Some of the variety seen in the suit was as follows :
a. Coats –
i. the front of the coat generally ended at the waist and
either gradually curved back into two tails or was cut-in
with a square or rounded front. These were called the tail
coats, either single or double-breasted.
[Link] which appeared on coats in the second half of the
previous century became very popular.
 iii. Notched collar with lapels sometimes in contrasting
color with velvet facings was used.
iv. Frock coats which were not cut-away in front, had
small waist with flared hem and usually used standing
collar without a lapel.
v. Riding coats were similar to tail coats but had
exceptionally large collars and lapels.
vi. By 1840, the tail coat became a dress coat used for
formal occassions and not for the day time.
vii. Frock coats were used for more casual wear.

• Waistcoats –
i. Sleeveless, single or double-breasted with standing or
notched collar, waistcoats were visible only in the front
as coats were always worn over it.
Left to right : Boy in tunic suit. The
jacket has large, demi-gigot sleeves and
is worn over contrasting trousers. Man
in frock coat, top hat and trousers.
Man dressed in riding coat, knee-
breeches and boots.
 ii. Hence, waistcoats were made of plain cotton or linen
fabric at the back and expensive fabric in front.
iii. During severe winters two or three waistcoats were
worn over the other to provide warmth.

• Breeches or Trousers –
i. Breeches which ended at the knees were worn till the
first decade and were slowly replaced by ankle-length
trousers.
ii. Tight trousers used in-step strap to keep them from
riding up the leg.
iii. Breeches were later used only for sportswear.

• Neckwear – It included cravats finished in a knot or a bow

and wide neckpieces called stocks which were fastened at
the back.
OUTDOOR GARMENTS
• After the 1820s, the Spencer went out of fashion
but many other garments were quite similar to
those of the Empire period and included :
a. Greatcoats – a general term for overcoats. Coats
could be single or double breasted, were often
as long as the ankle and their collars had a deep
roll. Coats were made with and without lapels.
b. Box coats – large, loose greatcoats with one or
more capes at the shoulder.
Of all the items of menswear,
waistcoats were most likely to provide
touches of brightness. Man at left
wears an opera cloak over his evening
clothes and carries a chapeau bras.
Man at right wears a frock coat and
carries a top hat.
Paisley-patterned fabrics were widely
used in the 19th Century and the
garments that were made from them
ranged from women’s paisley shawls to
men’s dressing gowns. The one in the
picture is from 1845.
• Some new terms began to be used :
c. Paletot – a term first used in the 1830s. The styles
to which the term was applied vary over time. At
this period, it appears to have been a short
greatcoat, single or double breasted, with a small
flat collar and lapels. Sometimes it had a waist
seam, sometimes not.
d. Chesterfield – it was named after the Sixth Earl of
Chesterfield. This term was first used in the 1840s
and then applied to a coat with either a single or
double breasted closing, although the double
breasted closing was more closely associated with
this term. The coat had no waistline seam, a short
vent in the back, no side pleats and often had a
velvet collar.
Overcoat of the 1830s. Note fullness in sleeve cap
and close fit through the body, characteristics that
disappeared in the 1840s.
 e. Mackintosh – a waterproof coat made of rubber
and cut like a short, loose overcoat.
• Cloaks were especially used for evening dress.
• Cut with gores and fitting smoothly at the neck and
shoulder, capes had both large flat collars and semi-
standing collars.
• Some had multiple capes at the shoulders.
• Later, evening cloaks became more elaborate, with
large sleeves with slits in front that allowed the sleeve
to hang behind the arm like a medieval hanging sleeve.
• Lengths varied.
• In the late 1830s and 1840s, a short, round, full
Spanish cape lined in silk of a contrasting collar was
worn for evening.
HAIR AND HEADDRESS
• Most men preferred short, curly or waved hairstyles.
• Beards gained popularity around late 1820s.
• By 1850s, moustaches started to be fashionable.
• The most popular headgear was the top hat. It had
cylindrical crown and narrow brims.
• The gibus hat, a collapsible top hat named for its
inventor, was fitted with a spring so that the hat could
be folded flat and carried under the arm.
• Derby hats in the U.S. or bowlers in England began to
be worn at the close of the period.
• These hats had stiff, round, bowl-shaped crowns with
narrow brims.
• Capes were favored for sports.
FOOTWEAR
• Most stockings were knitted from worsted, cotton or
silk.
• Shoes had square toes and low heels.
• Boots were important for riding.
• The first rubber soles for shoes were made about 1832.
• By 1840s, rubber overshoes, galoshes and elastic-sided
shoes were available.
• Bedroom slippers were worn at home.
• Gaiters made of sturdy cloth and added to shoes for
bad weather or for hunting were called spatterdashers
or spats.
• Canvas shoes with rubber soles were used for
gymnastics while long boots were used for hunting.
JEWELRY AND ACCESSORIES
• Tie pins, watches, shirt studs and cuffs links were
the only jewelry used by men as it was not
considered masculine to wear jewelry.
• The most important accessory for men was
gloves.
• They were made of doeskin or kid leather,
worsted wool or cotton for daytime and of silk or
kid leather for evening.
• Snuff boxes and pocket handkerchief were
carried for sneezing by men who inhaled tobacco.
• Canes and umbrellas were used in rainy weather.