Surf Wiki
Save to docs
general/14th-century-fashion

From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

Kirtle

Garment worn in the medieval period

Garment worn in the medieval period

A kirtle (sometimes called a cotte or a cotehardie) is a garment that was worn by men and women in the European Middle Ages. It eventually became a one-piece garment worn by women from the late Middle Ages into the Baroque period. The kirtle was typically worn over a chemise or smock, which acted as a slip, and under the formal outer garment, a gown or surcoat.

History

Kirtles were part of fashionable attire into the middle of the 16th century, and remained part of country or middle-class clothing into the 17th century.

Kirtles began as loose garments without a waist seam, changing to tightly fitted supportive garments in the 14th century. Later, in the Renaissance, kirtles could be constructed by combining a fitted bodice with a skirt gathered or pleated into the waist seam. Kirtles could lace up the front, back or side-back, with some rare cases of side lacing, all dependent upon the fashion of the day and place and upon the type of gown worn over it. Kirtles could be embellished with a variety of decorations including gold, silk, tassels, and knobs.

References

References

  1. Walter, Thornbury. (1875–1887). "The Costume of English Women from the Heptarchy to the Present Day. Chapter III. Henry VII. Henry VIII". The Art Journal.
Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

14th-century-fashion undergarments dresses gowns medieval-european-costume
Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about Kirtle — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report