Petticoat

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American petticoat, 1855-1865 Petticoat MET 50.10.17 CP4.jpg
American petticoat, 1855–1865
Modern petticoat Whiteandpinkpetticoat.jpg
Modern petticoat

A petticoat or underskirt is an article of clothing, a type of undergarment worn under a skirt or a dress. Its precise meaning varies over centuries and between countries.

Contents

According to the Oxford English Dictionary , in current British English, a petticoat is "a light loose undergarment ... hanging from the shoulders or waist". In modern American usage, "petticoat" refers only to a garment hanging from the waist. They are most often made of cotton, silk or tulle. Without petticoats, skirts of the 1850s would not have the volume they were known for. [1] In historical contexts (16th to mid-19th centuries), petticoat refers to any separate skirt worn with a gown, bedgown, bodice or jacket; these petticoats are not, strictly speaking, underwear, as they were made to be seen. In both historical and modern contexts, petticoat refers to skirt-like undergarments worn for warmth or to give the skirt or dress the desired attractive shape.

Terminology

Sometimes a petticoat may be called a waist slip or underskirt (UK) or half slip (US), with petticoat restricted to extremely full garments. A chemise hangs from the shoulders. Petticoat can also refer to a full-length slip in the UK, [2] although this usage is somewhat old-fashioned.

History

Silk embroidery on petticoat, Portugal, c. 1760 Woman's Petticoat LACMA M.63.55.3.jpg
Silk embroidery on petticoat, Portugal, c. 1760
Washer woman petticoat inspired skirt and jacket by Sybil Connolly Washer Woman skirt and jacket by Sybil Connolly.jpg
Washer woman petticoat inspired skirt and jacket by Sybil Connolly

In the 14th century, both men and women wore undercoats called "petticotes". [3] The word "petticoat" came from Middle English pety cote [4] or pety coote, [5] meaning "a small coat/cote". [6] Petticoat is also sometimes spelled "petty coat". [7] The original petticoat was meant to be seen and was worn with an open gown. [3] The practice of wearing petticoats as undergarments was well established in England by 1585. [8] In French, petticoats were called jupe. [9] The basquina, worn in Spain, was considered a type of petticoat. [10]

The petticoat in western men’s dress, what would become known in later years develop into the waistcoat, was from the mid-15th century to around the 17th century an under-doublet. [11] The garment was worn in cooler months under a shirt for warmth, and was usually padded or quilted. [11]

In the 18th century in Europe and in America, petticoats were an integral component of a gown, considered a part of the exterior garment and were meant to be seen. [9] The term petticoat was used to refer to such an outer skirt from the 16th to the 19th century, which were fashioned from either matching or contrasting textiles, in simple fabrics, or were highly decoratively embroidered. [11] An underpetticoat was considered an undergarment and was shorter than a regular petticoat. [9] Underpetticoats were also known as a dickey. [12] Also in the American colonies, working women wore shortgowns (bedgowns) over petticoats that normally matched in color. [13] The hem length of a petticoat in the 18th century depended on what was fashionable in dress at the time. [14] Often, petticoats had slits or holes for women to reach pockets inside. [14] Petticoats were worn by all classes of women throughout the 18th century. [15] The style known as polonaise revealed much of the petticoat intentionally. [12]

In the early 19th century, dresses became narrower and simpler with much less lingerie, including "invisible petticoats". [16] Then, as the waltz became popular in the 1820s, full-skirted gowns with petticoats were revived in Europe and the United States.

In the Victorian era, petticoats were cemented as undergarments, used to give bulk and shape to the skirts worn over the petticoat. [12] By the mid 19th century, petticoats were worn over hoops also known as crinoline. [12] Popular white cotton petticoats as an undergarment in the 1860s, for example, regularly featured a lace and broderie anglaise decorative border. [11] As the bustle became popular in the 1870s, petticoats developed flounces towards the back in order to cater for this style of under structure. [17] Petticoats also continued to be worn in layers through this decade. [18] Coloured petticoats came into fashion by the 1890s, [17] with many being made from silk and featuring decorative frills to the bottom edge. [11]

In the early 20th century, petticoats were circular, had flounces and buttons, in which women could attach additional flounces to the garment. [19] Bloomers were also touted as a replacement for petticoats when working and by fashion reformers. [20] [21]

After World War I, silk petticoats were in fashion. [12]

Petticoats were revived by Christian Dior in his full-skirted "New Look" of 1947, and tiered, ruffled, stiffened petticoats remained extremely popular during the 1950s and 1960s. [12] These were sold in a few clothing stores as late as 1970.

Sybil Connolly recalled how a red flannel petticoat, worn by a Connemara woman, inspired her first international fashion collection which took place in New York in 1953. [22] [23] She had travelled to Connemara for inspiration, where she saw a woman wearing a traditional red flannel petticoat. She bought a bolt of the same fabric from the local shop and made it into a quilted evening skirt, which was a huge success at the fashion show. [23] One of these skirts is part of the collection at The Hunt Museum.

Non-Western petticoats

Compared to the Western petticoat, South Asian petticoats are rarely shorter than ankle length and are always worn from the waist down. They may also be called inner skirts [24] or inskirts.

In Japan, similar to a petticoat, a nagajuban (commonly referred to simply as a juban; a hadajuban is sometimes worn underneath a nagajuban) are worn under the kimono as a form of underwear similar in function to the petticoat. The juban resembles a shorter kimono, typically without two half-size front panels (the okumi) and with sleeves only marginally sewn up along the wrist-end. Juban are commonly made of white silk, though historically were typically made of red silk; as the collar of the juban shows underneath the kimono and is worn against the skin, a half-collar (a han'eri) is often sewn to the collar as a protector, and also for decoration. The hadajuban is sometimes worn underneath the juban, and resembles a tube-sleeved kimono-shaped top, without a collar, and an accompanying skirt slip.

The early feminist Mary Wollstonecraft was disparaged by Horace Walpole as a "hyena in petticoats". [25] Florentia Sale was dubbed "the Grenadier in Petticoats" [26] for travelling with her military husband Sir Robert Henry Sale around the British Empire.

The phrase "petticoat government" has referred to women running government or domestic affairs. [27] The phrase is usually applied in a positive tone welcoming female governance of society and home, but occasionally is used to imply a threat to "appropriate" government by males, as was mentioned in several of Henry Fielding's plays. [28] An Irish pamphlet Petticoat Government, Exemplified in a Late Case in Ireland was published in 1780. [29] The American writer Washington Irving used the phrase in Rip Van Winkle (1819). [30] Frances Trollope wrote Petticoat Government: A Novel in 1850. [31] Emma Orczy wrote Petticoat Government , another novel, in 1911. G. K. Chesterton (1874–1936) mentions petticoat in a positive manner; to the idea of female dignity and power in his book What's Wrong With the World (1910) he states: [32]

It is quite certain that the skirt means female dignity, not female submission; it can be proved by the simplest of all tests. No ruler would deliberately dress up in the recognized fetters of a slave; no judge would appear covered with broad arrows. But when men wish to be safely impressive, as judges, priests or kings, they do wear skirts, the long, trailing robes of female dignity. The whole world is under petticoat government; for even men wear petticoats when they wish to govern.

President Andrew Jackson's administration was beset by a scandal called the "Petticoat affair", dramatized in the 1936 film The Gorgeous Hussy . A 1943 comedy film called Petticoat Larceny (cf. petty larceny) depicted a young girl being kidnapped by grifters. In 1955, Iron Curtain politics were satirized in a Bob Hope and Katharine Hepburn film The Iron Petticoat . In the same year Western author Chester William Harrison wrote a short story "Petticoat Brigade" that was turned into the film The Guns of Fort Petticoat in 1957. Blake Edwards filmed a story of an American submarine filled with nurses from the Battle of the Philippines called Operation Petticoat (1959). Petticoat Junction was a CBS TV series that aired in 1963. [33] CBS had another series in the 1966–67 season called Pistols 'n' Petticoats . [34]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kimono</span> Traditional Japanese clothing

The kimono is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono is traditionally worn with a broad sash, called an obi, and is commonly worn with accessories such as zōri sandals and tabi socks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lingerie</span> Womens undergarments including sleepwear

Lingerie is a category of primarily women's clothing including undergarments, sleepwear, and lightweight robes. The choice of the word is often motivated by an intention to imply that the garments are alluring, fashionable, or both. In a 2015 US survey, 75% of women reported having worn "sexy lingerie" in their lifetime.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nightgown</span> Shirtlike garment intended for wear while sleeping most often used by women

A nightgown, nightie or nightdress is a loosely hanging item of nightwear, and is commonly worn by women and girls. A nightgown is made from cotton, silk, satin, or nylon and may be decorated with lace appliqués or embroidery at the bust and hem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1860s in Western fashion</span> Costume and fashion of the 1860s

1860s fashion in European and European-influenced countries is characterized by extremely full-skirted women's fashions relying on crinolines and hoops and the emergence of "alternative fashions" under the influence of the Artistic Dress movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1830s in Western fashion</span> Costume and fashion of the 1830s

1830s fashion in Western and Western-influenced fashion is characterized by an emphasis on breadth, initially at the shoulder and later in the hips, in contrast to the narrower silhouettes that had predominated between 1800 and 1820.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mantua (clothing)</span> Draped and pleated womans dress

A mantua is an article of women's clothing worn in the late 17th century and 18th century. Initially a loose gown, the later mantua was an overgown or robe typically worn over stays, stomacher and either a co-ordinating or contrasting petticoat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teddy (garment)</span> Type of garment

A teddy, also called a camiknicker, is a garment which covers the torso and crotch in the one garment. It is a similar style of garment to a one-piece swimsuit or bodysuit, but is typically looser and sheerer. The garment is put on by stepping into the leg holes and pulling the garment up to cover the torso. It may cover the whole of the torso or partially and may also cover the arms. They may open at the crotch so that the wearer may use the bathroom without taking it completely off. As an undergarment, it combines the functions of a camisole and panties, and may be preferred to avoid a visible panty line. It is also found as lingerie.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slip (clothing)</span> Womans undergarment worn beneath a dress or skirt

A slip is a woman's undergarment worn beneath a dress or skirt. A full slip hangs from the shoulders, usually by means of narrow straps, and extends from the breast to the fashionable skirt length. A half slip hangs from the waist. The word petticoat may also be used for half slips.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bedgown</span> Womens informal garment for the upper body

A bedgown is an article of women's clothing for the upper body, usually thigh-length and wrapping or tying in front. Bedgowns of lightweight printed cotton fabric were fashionable at-home morning wear in the 18th century. Over time, bedgowns became the staple upper garment of British and American female working-class street wear from the 18th to early 19th centuries, worn over petticoats and often topped with an apron. Made of sturdy cotton, linen, wool or linsey-woolsey, these bedgowns were simply cut to a T-shaped pattern, and were worn overlapped in front or with the front skirts cutaway. The term "bed gown" to describe this item of clothing was used as late as 1876.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1850s in Western fashion</span> Costume and fashion of the 1850s

1850s fashion in Western and Western-influenced clothing is characterized by an increase in the width of women's skirts supported by crinolines or hoops, the mass production of sewing machines, and the beginnings of dress reform. Masculine styles began to originate more in London, while female fashions originated almost exclusively in Paris.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1550–1600 in European fashion</span> Costume in the second half of the 16th century

Fashion in the period 1550–1600 in European clothing was characterized by increased opulence. Contrasting fabrics, slashes, embroidery, applied trims, and other forms of surface ornamentation remained prominent. The wide silhouette, conical for women with breadth at the hips and broadly square for men with width at the shoulders had reached its peak in the 1530s, and by mid-century a tall, narrow line with a V-lined waist was back in fashion. Sleeves and women's skirts then began to widen again, with emphasis at the shoulder that would continue into the next century. The characteristic garment of the period was the ruff, which began as a modest ruffle attached to the neckband of a shirt or smock and grew into a separate garment of fine linen, trimmed with lace, cutwork or embroidery, and shaped into crisp, precise folds with starch and heated irons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1750–1775 in Western fashion</span>

Fashion in the years 1750–1775 in European countries and the colonial Americas was characterised by greater abundance, elaboration and intricacy in clothing designs, loved by the Rococo artistic trends of the period. The French and English styles of fashion were very different from one another. French style was defined by elaborate court dress, colourful and rich in decoration, worn by such iconic fashion figures as Marie Antoinette.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1600–1650 in Western fashion</span> Costume in the first half of the 17th century

Fashion in the period 1600–1650 in Western clothing is characterized by the disappearance of the ruff in favour of broad lace or linen collars. Waistlines rose through the period for both men and women. Other notable fashions included full, slashed sleeves and tall or broad hats with brims. For men, hose disappeared in favour of breeches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1700–1750 in Western fashion</span> Clothing in Europe and areas under its influence from 1700-1750

Fashion in the period 1700–1750 in European and European-influenced countries is characterized by a widening silhouette for both men and women following the tall, narrow look of the 1680s and 90s. This era is defined as late Baroque/Rococo style. The new fashion trends introduced during this era had a greater impact on society, affecting not only royalty and aristocrats, but also middle and even lower classes. Clothing during this time can be characterized by soft pastels, light, airy, and asymmetrical designs, and playful styles. Wigs remained essential for men and women of substance, and were often white; natural hair was powdered to achieve the fashionable look. The costume of the eighteenth century, if lacking in the refinement and grace of earlier times, was distinctly quaint and picturesque.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dress</span> Garment consisting of a bodice and skirt made in one or more pieces

A dress is a garment traditionally worn by women or girls consisting of a skirt with an attached bodice. It consists of a top piece that covers the torso and hangs down over the legs. A dress can be any one-piece garment containing a skirt of any length, and can be formal or casual.

The Medieval period in England is usually classified as the time between the fall of the Roman Empire to the beginning of the Renaissance, roughly the years AD 410–1485. For various peoples living in England, the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Danes, Normans and Britons, clothing in the medieval era differed widely for men and women as well as for different classes in the social hierarchy. The general styles of Early medieval European dress were shared in England. In the later part of the period, men's clothing changed much more rapidly than women's styles. Clothes were very expensive and both the men and women of lower social classes continued also divided social classes by regulating the colors and styles these various ranks were permitted to wear. In the early Middle Ages, clothing was typically simple and, particularly in the case of lower-class peoples, served only basic utilitarian functions such as modesty and protection from the elements. As time went on the advent of more advanced textile techniques and increased international relations, clothing gradually got more and more intricate and elegant, even with those under the wealthy classes, up into the renaissance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caraco</span>

A caraco is a style of woman's jacket that was fashionable from the mid-18th to early 19th centuries. Caracos were thigh-length and opened in front, with tight three-quarter or long sleeves. Like gowns of the period, the back of the caraco could be fitted to the waist or could hang in pleats from the shoulder in the style of a sack back. Caracos were generally made of printed linen or cotton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1775–1795 in Western fashion</span> Western fashion throughout the late 1700s

Fashion in the twenty years between 1775 and 1795 in Western culture became simpler and less elaborate. These changes were a result of emerging modern ideals of selfhood, the declining fashionability of highly elaborate Rococo styles, and the widespread embrace of the rationalistic or "classical" ideals of Enlightenment philosophes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Overskirt</span>

An overskirt is a type of women's short skirt which is draped over another garment, such as a skirt, breeches, or trousers. Although peplum is often used as another term for overskirt, it should not be confused with the peplos or "peplum dress", which was worn in ancient Greece.

References

Citations

  1. ↑ "How to Put Together Cute Outfits With Skirts". classroom.synonym.com. Retrieved 2020-08-16.
  2. ↑ Oxford English Dictionary (1989) "A light loose undergarment ... hanging from the shoulders or waist"
  3. 1 2 Wilcox, Ruth Turner (1970). The Dictionary of Costume. London: Batsford. p.  267. ISBN   0713408561.
  4. ↑ "petticoat". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary .
  5. ↑ "Origin and meaning of petticoat". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 2018-01-29.
  6. ↑ Mitchell, James (1908). Significant Etymology: Or, Roots, Stems, and Branches of the English Language. William Blackwood and Sons. pp.  162.
  7. ↑ Picken 1957, p. 249.
  8. ↑ Cunnington & Cunnington 1992, p. 49.
  9. 1 2 3 Sholtz 2016, p. 216.
  10. ↑ Planché, James Robinson (1879). A Cyclopaedia of Costume Or Dictionary of Dress, Including Notices of Contemporaneous Fashions on the Continent: A general history of costume in Europe. Vol. 2. London: Chatto and Windus. pp. 158–159.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Cumming, Valerie; Cunnington, C. W.; Cunnington, P. E. (2017). The Dictionary of Fashion History (2nd ed.). London: Bloomsbury Academic. pp. 205–206. ISBN   978-1-4725-7770-2.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Adlington, Lucy (2015-10-08). Stitches in Time: The Story of the Clothes We Wear. Random House. ISBN   9781473505094.
  13. ↑ Baumgarten 2002, p. 118.
  14. 1 2 Sholtz 2016, p. 217.
  15. ↑ Sholtz 2016, p. 218.
  16. ↑ Cunnington & Cunnington 1992, p. 112.
  17. 1 2 Cunnington & Cunnington 1992, p. 196.
  18. ↑ Cunnington & Cunnington 1992, p. 177.
  19. ↑ "French Lingerie". The Tipton Daily Tribune. 1965-12-04. p. 2. Retrieved 2018-01-26– via Newspapers.com.
  20. ↑ "For the Housewife". Edgefield Advertiser. 1902. p. 4. Retrieved 2018-01-26– via Newspapers.com.
  21. ↑ Cunningham 2003, p. 94.
  22. ↑ "Sybil Connolly Interview". RTÉ Archives. Retrieved 2022-01-20.
  23. 1 2 Nemy, Enid (1998-05-08). "Sybil Connolly, 77, Irish Designer Who Dressed Jacqueline Kennedy". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2022-01-20.
  24. ↑ "How to wear saree perfectly". Glowpink. 26 March 2015. Archived from the original on 27 September 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  25. ↑ Bentley, Toni (29 May 2005). "A 'Hyena in Petticoats'". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
  26. ↑ Hugh Williams (2008), Fifty Things You Need to Know About British History, HarperCollins, pp. 302–303, ISBN   978-0-00-727841-1
  27. ↑ "Definition of petticoat government in English". Oxford Dictionaries. Archived from the original on January 27, 2018. Retrieved 2018-01-26.
  28. ↑ Campbell, Jill. Natural Masques: Gender and Identity in Fielding's Plays and Novels, p. 21. Stanford University Press.
  29. ↑ Higgins 2010, p. 184.
  30. ↑ "Rip Van Winkle", p. 60.
  31. ↑ Frances Milton Trollope (1850). Petticoat government: A novel, Volume 1. Henry Colburn. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
  32. ↑ Chesterton, Gilbert Keith (2007). What's Wrong With the World (Unabridged republication of edition: New York : Sheed & Ward, 1952; originally published: 1910 ed.). Mineola, New York: Dover Publication. p. 111. ISBN   978-0-486-45427-6.
  33. ↑ Du Brow, Rick (1963-05-18). "Jerry Lewis Bars Ads; Bea Set for Petticoat Junction". The Pensacola News. p. 6. Retrieved 2018-01-26– via Newspapers.com.
  34. ↑ Du Brow, Rick (1965-12-04). "Television in Review". The Tipton Daily Tribune. p. 2. Retrieved 2018-01-26– via Newspapers.com.

Sources

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