This is the first installment of a three-part series examining women's clothing and costume by Dr. Melanie Byrd, adapted from her Master's thesis written in 1987 and published here for the first time, along with illustrations done by Dr. Byrd especially for this series.

The typical young daughter of a lady of fashion in the late 1770s may have stood in awe of her mother's wardrobe, and longed for the day when she too could wear a towering powdered hairstyle, a grande robe a la francaise supported by wide paniers and a bonnet a la victoire with a forest of plumes and leaves. High heeled shoes, rouged cheeks, and a rope of pearls resting on the neck bow of her bodice, provocatively named parfait contentment, would complete the outfit (sych as the figure at left). By the time that same girl grew up in the 1790s, she scorned rouge for a pale complexion a la psychee, wore her short, curly, unpowdered hair a la Titus, and forsook the cumbersome paniers and boned bodice to reveal her natural curves under a thin, white gown in the Grecian mode.

This seemingly abrupt change in female attire, which went from exaggerated pomp to exaggerated simplicity in slightly less than twenty years, is frequently attributed to the obsession with Classical Antiquity in addition to the more violent events of the French Revolution. The process toward the simplification of dress and imitation of Classical Antiquity marks the NeoClassical style long before the political upheavals.

Inspiration from archeological excavations at Herculaneum and Pompeii between 1738 and 1763 joined with the classicizing tradition, which had manifested itself in Western art since the Renaissance, and resulted in the development of the Neo-Classical style. Greek, Roman, and Etruscan art became the inspiration for European painting, sculpture, and architecture. Then too the philosophes during the 18th Century Enlightenment emphasized the harmony between reason, nature and progress, and made their idealized concept of ancient values concomitant with European thought.

Classical inspiration in decorative arts was thoroughly established by the late 18th Century, and it blended with another trend to shape the direction of fashion. Enlightenment views on the supremacy of nature, eloquently promulgated by Rousseau, combined with the increasing influence of English, Gothic and Classical styles in the decorative arts to begin a transition in French fashion.

At right, this figure of a woman of the prosperous middle class during the ancien regime shows some of the typical undergarments worn: first a shirt or chemise, then paniers under the petticoat, the petticoat skirt, then the boned corset. Over this another petticoat or underskirt might be worn depending on the style of the outer garment or gown which was the final part of her ensemble. This drawing, as well as the others, are done in a paper doll format, similar to cut-out illustrations that first became popular in the 19th Century.

The unbridled frivolity of 18th Century French fashion was inextricably linked to Austrian-born Marie Antoinette, Queen to Louis XVI whose prodigal self-indulgences eventually contributed to the blackened reputation of the monarchy. Ross Bertin, a Paris dressmaker who became the leading fashion creator of the Era under the patronage of the Queen, encouraged the rise of wildly extravagant styles of the period noted for their excesses.

Placed on elaborate pads and scaffolding in the hair, these excesses included not only jewels and feathers but also things like miniature sarcophagi and sailing ships. Fresh flowers in water-filled cornets were sometimes stuck into the hair to turn the coiffure into a veritable hanging garden. These arrangements were even given names to express their individual themes, or to commemorate current events. "Juno's Frigate" bore a model of a sailing ship, another style was named in honor of Mesmer (a German physician who pioneered hypnotism-considered a quack, but very popular in the salons of the wealthy and well-educated, especially among women), and another for the new discovery of smallpox inoculations.

Late in the century, hairstyles became simpler and the use of powder decreased. Marie Antoinette favored the disuse of powder because she was proud of her naturally fair hair and wished to display it. Thus, hats soon became the focal point of the ensemble. Even when serious political crises threatened the complacent world of the aristocracy and wealthy middle class, fashions mocked current events. For example, the "Discount Bank" was a hat that satirized the disastrous state of government finances, and the bonnet a la revolte commemorated the bread riots. Another set of hats mocked the scandal of the diamond necklace, where a Marie Antoinette imposter, with the help of a clergyman, conned several people out of bribes including an expensive diamond necklace.

These escapades inspired the bonnets au collier de la reine (necklace of the Queen) and cardinal sur la paille (literally "Cardinal of the straw", a joke referring to the larcenous clergyman now imprisoned for his fraud). Interestingly, this scandal cast further discredit upon the real Marie Antoinette because there were so many people who were willing to believe that she could be bribed!

Though the head was the focus of attention, gowns were also notorious for their exaggerated features. Stiffly boned bodices had tight waists emphasized by the wide whalebone paniers worn underneath a ladies undergarments to make the skirt stand stiff and full. Heavy satin and brocades were fashionable, though by the 1780s, lighter cottons like muslin, lawns ( a sheer type of light cotton) and printed fabrics began to gain favor. In the early 1780s, when Marie Antoinette, who held much influence over the fashion able women of the court, decided to pass her time affecting the peasant lifestyle at the hameau (a cottage on the grounds of Versailles where Marie Anotinette escaped to), stylish dress assumed a rustic, romantic appearance. One fashionable "peasant" ensemble even featured a shepherd's crook. Though such costumes were still often worn with boned bodices, paniers and high heels, they indicated that, at least superficially, simpler designs were gaining ascendancy in the fashion world.

The trend toward the simple, flowing shape of gowns, which foreshadowed the Neo-Classical style in clothing, began slowly in France. The movement started in the late 1770s when stiff brocades gave way to softer romantic English inspired styles. In 1780, the taste for white gowns came to England from the West Indies, where flounced white skirts were commonly worn.

The most important female portrait painter, Madame Elizabeth Vigee-Lebrun, who attracted the attention of Marie Antoinette, did a portrait of an English lady in the fashionable white attire that inspired the French queen to adopt the mode herself. Vigee-Lebrun favored the style as well, and often encouraged her sitters to wear such gowns when posing for paintings.

A 1783 portrait of Marie Antoinette by Vigee-Lebrun showing the Queen in a simple muslin gown (gown illustrated at left) a la mode Creole caused a sensation. The costume, a variation on the provincial dress of planters' society in the French West Indies, was meant to be worn in the informal atmosphere of the Trianon; and the public exhibition of a work showing royalty clothed in little more than a chemise appeared to be a serious breach of propriety.

By 1785, at age thirty, Marie Antoinette decided to abolish youthful styles from her wardrobe. Some of the fashions were no longer in her favor included the simple chemise dresses which she had previously worn. Her decision had little impact on the prevailing fashion though, and simple styles continued to enjoy popularity.

The Galerie des modes, the leading French fashion periodical of the era, showed a gown a l 'anglaise, remarkably similar to the Creole style previously worn by the Queen. Though small bustles known as "rumps" continued to support full skirts, wide paniers disappeared, and the elaborate hairstyles and headdresses of the 1770s began to diminish in size as well.

By the time the Bastille fell on 14 July 1789, there was little change in the appearance of the dresses themselves, but the names given various styles reflected the turn of political events. Muslin dresses were worn with white cotton collars known as fichus called a la citoyenne or a la Charlotte Corday (see article on Charlotte Corday in Napoleon #2).

The tricolor, first promoted by a Paris dressmaker, Madame Eloff, appeared in a variety of forms, including prints on muslin dresses, feathers, fringes, and different types of headgear. The English masculine styled riding coat, complete with turned down collar, cuffs, wide lapel and large buttons was adapted to the new color scheme. The ensemble a la constitution consisted of a white dress, blue overcoat, and red muslin neck ruffle.

Headgear also reflected the changing political atmosphere. Bonnets la citoyenne (female citizen, "citoyenne" replacing the words mademoiselle or madame), aux trois ordres reunis (refers to the creation of the National assembly and its three estates) and a la Bastille were popular, the latter nearly resembled the wigs of the 1770s in its extravagance. It depicted a tower decorated with two rows of battlements made of black lace. Even as early as the convocation of the assembly of notables, bonnets a la notable trimmed with pearls, artificial flowers and plumes appeared.

As the Revolution progressed, so did the trend toward simplicity in dress. Powdered wigs and rouge, which had been heavily used during the late 18th Century were tainted by their association with the aristocracy and consequently disappeared. When patriotic women offered their jewels to the National Assembly, presumably to show support, they instead wore patriotic jewelry made of steel and copper. Jewelry displaying fragments of stone from the Bastille also came into vogue.

Though the prevailing fashions of the late 1780s and early 1790s were much less ornate than their predecessors, and though they clearly reflected current political trends, not all fashionable women sympathized with the aims of the Revolution. They followed the modes of the day and adapted them to reflect their own political views. Elegant royalists wore white cravats, waist-coats decorated with the fleur-de-lis motif, or a green ensemble with a pink collar and white cockade in opposition to the tricolor.

Though the ensembles favored by fashionable women of various political leanings may have appeared frivolous,since they continued the whim of naming costumes for sensational events, the Revolutionary governments found fashion worthy of serious interest. Decrees of floreal and prairail (months of the Revolutionary calendar coinciding with Spring) of the Year II (1793) requested Jacques Louis David to offer the committee of Public Safety his ideas for creating not only a national, military, and governmental costume but also ordinary civilian costume that would be compatible with the republican morals of the Revolution. The Revolutionary government realized the value of costume as propaganda: the festivals in honor of Jacobin martyrs featured Classical robes as an allusion to the democratic, republican governments of Classical Antiquity. Eventually, the societe populaire and the republicaine des arts formed in 1793 by the most revolutionary artists, devoted itself to remedying the physical inconveniences, unhygienic nature and symbolic inequality inherent in the current and former styles.

The society was also interested in the aesthetic appeal of costume, and used Greek, Etruscan, and Roman models for inspiration. The society put its views into a document they presented to the convention on 24 germinal, Year II (early Spring 1793), shortly before the official decrees regarding the creation of a national costume. Although the government did show genuine interest in producing costumes for the citizens of the new republic, none of David's sketches, which consist only of masculine attire, were ever adopted for wear.

Then on 9 thermidor, (27 July, 1794) the Jacobin regime of Robespierrre was overthrown, and official interest in civilian costume ended. Interest in antique costume had become thoroughly popularized, however, by the Revolutionary propagandists' use of it. Following the Thermidorian reaction, Classical Antiquity was creatively expressed in high fashion female attire.

Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of New York

Color illustrations of women's fashion from the Ancien Regime:

Fashionable Woman, mid 1770s
Middle Class Woman, 1770s-1780s
Woman in Formal Dress, 1770s
Woman in Muslim Gown, 1780s
Woman from French Revolution, 1792

The history of fashion in this era continues next issue as we explore the designs worn during the Directory and Consulate, when women's dresses became more revealing.

Part 2: One Excess Follows Another
Part 3: Temperence Follows Excess

Selected Bibliography:

Braun-Ronsdorf, Margaret, Mirror of Fashion: A History of European Costume 1789-1929 (NewYork: McGraw-Hill, 1964)
Challamel, Augustin, Histoire de la mode en France (Paris: A. Hennuyer, Bibliotheque de Magasin des demoiselles, 1881)
d'Assailly, Giselle, Ages of Elegance (Paris: Hachette, 1968)
Hawley, Henry, Neo-Classicism Style and Motif (Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1964)
Ribeiro, Aileen, Fashion in the French Revolution (London: Batsford Publishing Ltd., 1988)
Roche, Daniel, The Culture of Clothing: Dress and the ancien regime (London: Cambridge University Press, 1994)
Wilcox, R. Turner, The Mode in Costume (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1958)

About the Author:

Melanie Sue Byrd earned a doctorate in European History specializing in the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Era from Florida State University in 1992. She currently teaches European History at Valdosta State University in Valdosta, Georgia. Dr. Byrd is a Fellow of the International Napoleonic Society and has given papers and chaired presentations at the Consortium on Revolutionary Europe 1750-1850. She is also a contributor to Doll World, a doll collecting magazine.

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