Men’s suits of the first decade of the eighteenth century closely resembled those of the 1690s in cut and decoration (Fig. 1 in Womenswear). The coat reached to just below the knees, almost completely concealing the full-cut breeches. The excess fullness at the sides, which would increase between about 1700 and about 1745, began to be set into pleats at this time (Waugh/Men 52). The coat’s center-front button closure extended from the round neckline to the hem and its deep, wide cuffs ended above the wrists, revealing the shirt frill (Fig. 1). The cuffs could have a slit at the back, a style known as “open sleeves” (Fig. 1) or “round [closed] cuffs” (Cunnington 56). Pockets were either vertical or horizontal; the latter style, with gently scalloped flaps, would become the dominant form throughout the eighteenth century (Fig. 1) (Cunnington 52).
Like its seventeenth-century predecessor, the early eighteenth-century waistcoat was similar in construction to the coat, but it had closer-fitting sleeves, less fullness in in the skirts, and it was several inches shorter than the coat, ending above the knee (Waugh/Men 54-55) (Fig. 1). Although matching suits conveyed “propriety of dress” (quoted in Cunnington 69), men often wore contrasting waistcoats—a personal choice that remained acceptable throughout the eighteenth century (Figs. 2, 3). Matching waistcoats were generally the rule for court or formal wear as well as for riding; the former were correspondingly rich, while riding waistcoats were more practical (Cunnington 71).
Fashionable men rolled their knitted stockings up over the bottom of their breeches (Cunnington 83) and these often matched the color of the suit, although white stockings were also worn. Shoes were generally of black leather shoes with square toes and high heels (red heels were worn at the French court, among the aristocracy, and by men who were considered fops) and the red-lined tongues that extended to the ankle were turned over the buckled latchets (See Fig. 1 in womenswear).
The T-shaped, white linen shirt was the primary undergarment for men and its cut remained the same throughout the eighteenth century. Made from a full selvage width of fabric with a keyhole shape cut out for the head, rectangular pieces added to create the lower sleeves, and a separate band collar and cuffs, the mid-thigh length shirt might be finished with a center front frill and cuffs of sheer muslin or lace (Fig. 3). The cravat, a long, rectangular piece of white linen or muslin was tied around the neck with the two ends left plain or knotted hanging over the chest (Fig. 2). Wealthy men often added lace ends to their cravats—a luxurious finish to this ubiquitous accessory (Figs. 3, 4).
On November 10, 1702, The Post Boy published the following announcement:
“Lost from behind the Rochester Stage-Coach on Sunday night last, the 8th instant, between London Bridge and Long Acre, a round Hair Trunk, containing several Cloaths belonging to His Grace the Duke of Ormond, viz. one Scarlet Suit, richly embroider’d with Gold; one Grey Cloath Suit with Steel Buttons; with Shirts, Periwigs, and other things belonging to His Grace’s Wardrobe, of considerable value. Whoever shall give notice of the said Trunk and Goods therein, at His Grace’s House in St. James’s Square, so as they may be had again, shall immediately receive 10 Guineas Reward.”
This partial list of lost garments and accessories and the amount of the reward offered—a huge sum in 1702 that translates to over £1,000 in today’s currency—attest to the extensive wardrobes required by men of fashion as well as the monetary value of men’s (and women’s) clothes that, whether lost or stolen, were often pawned for cash. The duke’s “Scarlet Suit” may have been silk, since his grey suit is specifically identified as “cloath,” or wool. While the latter was used widely for everyday wear, it was also considered appropriate for formal or court wear, if embellished with metal-thread embroidery (Cunnington 71). On February 11, 1708, the Daily Courant alerted readers to a heavily embroidered wool suit that was stolen out of a house in Bond Street, London: “a new Cinnamon Colour Cloth Coat, Wastcoat and Breeches, Embroider’d with Silver 4 or 5 inches deep down before and on the Sleeves and round the Pocket-holes and the Pockets and Knees of the Breeches: they are lin’d with a Sky Blue Silk” (Extracts from Notices, n.p.). The steel buttons on the Duke of Ormond’s grey wool suit were among the many types of metal used on men’s suits, including “gold, silver, gilt, white metal, dark metal, plate, pewter…wire, [and] brass” (Cunnington 47).
