A Tudor banquet
In December, my hubby and I are attending a Tudor banquet hosted by the National Trust at Trerice, one of their properties in Cornwall. We thought this would be an enjoyable experience despite quite a long drive down to the south west of Cornwall! He booked it in advance, and found out that the dress code was “smart casual,” but I thought it would be a lot more fun to dress the part.
I have always been interested in historical costume and how it was constructed and worn, and the various rules and regulations associated with who was allowed to wear what, and when. Today’s fashions are so dull by comparison, even if they are a lot more comfortable and practical, and better suited to our modern lifestyle, and who doesn’t enjoy the chance to dress up?
A bit of history
A lady’s dress during the Tudor period was interesting because it consisted of various parts in many different layers. Many of the elements were not necessarily sewn together, but were either attached by ties or pins. This meant that they could be interchangeable. Also, the many layers meant that the wearer could keep warm in draughty castles and halls when there was no central heating! The elements of the dress gave the opportunity to wear rich fabrics, which were also embellished with jewelled trims and pearls. For a lady of high status, it would take a while for her to get dressed, and she would have maids to help her. Since my status is lower, and I have no maids at my disposal, I decided to keep the elements of my Tudor gown more simple!
Traditionally the layers, from inside to outside, consisted firstly of the chemise, a fine linen shift-like garment with a square neck or with a drawstring
I have a Romanian blouse which will do admirably for this; it has some red and black embroidery on it but what eventually shows will not clash with the rest of the colour scheme. A true chemise, though, would come down to just below the knees, and would have long sleeves with an embroidered and frilled cuff which would be visible beyond the outer sleeve layers. The chemise showed above the bodice and was for modesty – none of your Victorian décolletage in those days! Accompanying the chemise would be a pair of white stockings, held up by garters.
Tudor ladies wore no knickers!! Knickers didn’t come into fashion until the end of the 18th century. No illustration for this!
As I am not after 100 percent historical authenticity, I SHALL be wearing knickers. Just in case you were wondering…
After the chemise came the petticoat, which would have a minimal bodice.This garment was often red, the colour which was supposed to ward off disease. When Queen Elizabeth I was suffering from smallpox, her sickroom was furnished in red, in the hope that it would help her recover.
An alternative to the petticoat was the Spanish farthingale, a hooped undergarment, to give the outer skirt of the dress a cone shape. Sometimes both the petticoat and the farthingale would be worn.
There was also a fashion for the French farthingale, a long bolster-like object, thick at the centre back and tapering off towards the ends, worn around the waist and tied at the front. This also had the effect of giving the skirt more shape, a bit like the bustle worn by ladies in the late Victorian period.
The next layer was the kirtle. This was the under-dress, with a supportive, boned bodice. There was often a panel on the front of the skirt of the kirtle, of a rich fabric. This was the only visible part, showing beneath an open-fronted outer skirt; the rest of the skirt of the kirtle could be made of less opulent fabric, for economy, because it would not be visible. Alternatively, the outer skirt might not be open-fronted, in which case the kirtle would be plain.
These are all the under-garments. Covering the petticoat and/or farthingale and kirtle, would be the gown, or overgown. This was the part which was visible in its entirety, so gave the opportunity for the use of expensive and beautiful fabrics, such as velvet or damask or Cloth of Gold, depending on the wealth and status of the wearer.
The bodice of the gown could either be integral or separate. I am making mine separate. It would be boned. The front panel could match or be in contrast with the gown, and would be richly embellished with border trims and jewels. This front panel would be another interchangeable feature, being attached either by ties or by pins. Mine will be sewn in place.
The sleeves could be of several different styles. Most commonly they were narrow and tight-fitting over the upper arms, and often attached to the bodice with ties, making them another element of the costume which could be interchangeable. The forearms of the sleeves would have large trumpet-shaped oversleeves, often trimmed with fur, under which would be further oversleeves, often slashed so that the linen of the chemise could be pulled through.
Here is a portrait of Catherine Parr, King Henry VIII’s sixth wife. You can see that she is wearing a kirtle with a richly embellished panel, under her overgown. The front panel of the bodice matches the overgown, and she has fur oversleeves, under which the sleeves are of a contrasting fabric to co-ordinate with the panel on her kirtle. You can see the slashings with the linen pulled through. The skirt forms the traditional cone-shape, following the outline of her farthingale. On her head she is wearing a French hood.
The Tudor costume was eminently practical. This was a period of relatively cold climate – the “Little Ice Age” which occurred after the Mediaeval Warm Period. Houses and castles were not centrally-heated but had open fires, and it was essential to keep warm. The multiple layers were insulating, and could be adapted for warmer summer weather. Also, many of the highly decorative elements (front panel on the bodice, sleeves, exposed panel on the kirtle) were interchangeable, so you could have many variations on a single theme. They were also an instantly readable badge of status, because at the time, there were very strict rules about who in the rigid social hierarchy was permitted to wear what. Only persons above a particular rank were allowed to wear certain materials, for instance sable, silk, or Cloth of Gold. Finally, Tudor costume, for both men and women, was stylish and opulent (for the rich, at least), and was a ready canvas for embellishing with one’s wealth in the form of jewels galore. The female shape generated by the boning of the costume was generally cone-shaped, whereas the male form was broad-shouldered and square (see pictures of Henry VIII, for instance).
Please see my upcoming blog posts for plans and preparation, and the work itself.
