Military Frock coats

The long coat is described as a frock coat, and is particular to the Household Cavalry, which is formed of two regiments - The Life Guards and The Blues and Royals - while another version with slightly different cuffs is also worn by the Foot Guards. (The style of the knee-length frock coat evolved from men's 19thc fashion, with additional inspiration from the Ottomans.) It was worn in "Undress" instead of Full Dress, most likely because the choice of Windsor Castle made the wedding a less formal affair. One thing that fascinated us the most was the dashing dark uniform that Prince Harry chose to wear to his wedding.

The uniforms were created by traditional military tailors Dege & Skinner on Savile Row, and were said to have taken over 100 hours to stitch and tailor by hand. Details are everything, even in a seemingly monochrome coat: the intricate interwoven braid on the sleeves (which was barely visible on television) took a single skilled craftsman over a week to create. The frock coat's primary fabric is doeskin, a fine satin-weave woolen cloth, and the lining is silk.

The frock coat is closed with hidden hooks instead of buttons. Many Americans were perplexed by what they saw as "ribbon bows" on the front of the jacket. This is instead a braiding made of black mohair, and is unique to the Household Cavalry and the Life Guards. While the braid loops appear to fasten to the olivets (the toggle-style buttons on the far sides of the chest), they are purely decorative.

The illustrations, right, are from Dress Regulations for Officers of the Army 1900, and show the approved pattern of the Frock Coat of the Household Cavalry.

While the very dark navy color made for a striking contrast to Meghan's bright white gown, it's not simply a style choice, but a uniform that Harry has earned the right to wear. He served as a Captain in The Blues and Royals, and after retiring from active duty in 2015, he received the honorary military title of Major from the Queen, as signified by the crown on his shoulder. According to Kensington Palace, he also requested and received express permission from the Queen to wear the uniform on his wedding day.

Many thanks to historian, author, and historic paint consultant Patrick Baty for his always-excellent assistance with this blog post.

✠

Comments

And the cars has a long century history

For a long time, the car was the ideal way to communicate wealth to the outside world. There is no doubt that this phenomenon has always existed, throughout the ages and in every countries: the car has a long history of use as a means of self-projection, a completely public and symbolic object with which we become one as we drive. That as a child I always thought to be a car of choice for the distinguished man. The German-American art historian Erwin Panofsky once examined the famous Rolls-Royce radiator grille and noted its similarities to antique temples. Even John Lennon fell victim to its aura and bought a Rolls-Royce Phantom V Touring in 1966 – only to have it painted almost immediately to look like a circus wagon in bright yellow with flowers and scrolls. An ironic gesture with which Lennon humorously took the classic status symbol to absurdity. Representatives of a younger affluent generation in particular are increasingly to excellent racing or invest on the cars expensive i...

TAKE IVY by Teruyoshi Hayashida

Take Ivy is a fashion photography book which documents the attire of Ivy League students. The New York Times described it as “a treasure of fashion insiders”. Take Ivy has been the Ivy League bible for Japanese baby boomers, among whom the Ivy League look is very popular, though original copies are very rare in the West, garnering auction prices as high as $2000. Take Ivy was authored by four Japanese sartorial style enthusiasts and is a collection of candid photographs shot on the campuses of America’s elite Ivy League universities. The series focuses on college-aged men and their clothes, capturing the unique fashion of the student population of that time. Whether getting a meal on campus, lounging in the quad, riding bikes, studying in the library, in class, or at the boathouse, the subjects of this photographic compendium are impeccably and distinctively dressed in some of the finest American-made garments of the time. Shosuke Ishizu, the director...

Gentlemen’s clubs savour quiet success

A recent visitor to White’s, the venerable gentlemen’s club housed in 18th century splendour in London’s St James’s, walked up to the bar to find it occupied by three dukes. “It’s the one place in town where they feel totally at home,” he said. Such encounters are custom-made to reinforce the stereotype of a traditional gentlemen’s club: a place of fusty exclusivity, where elderly gents snooze in leather armchairs beside marble fireplaces, disturbed only by the occasional retainer. Ranged against modern London’s raucous pleasures, including a new wave of tie-free, wifi-enabled rivals, these relics of 19th century culture would seem doomed to slow decline. Yet not only are they surviving but many are thriving, with membership and usage growing. “Standards have risen enormously since the 1980s,” said Rupert Lendrum, club secretary at Buck’s in Mayfair. “There’s been a significant shift to professionally run clubs and finances are far healthier.” Buck’s was dreamt up by cavalry offic...

The II Earl

Search This Blog