Court Dresses, Overview

…much more strict, and became even more so during Victoria’s reign. For more information on court dress, see these sources: Nigel Arch and Joanna Marschner, Court Dress Collection, Kensington Palace,…

French Court Dress, April 1805

…fashionable high-waisted silhouette with traditional courtly accessories and opulence. The court dress shown here is an excellent example of the new imperial court dress for women. The high-standing color, called…

Court Dress, June 1817

…allows ladies to actually sit down. This dress, though following the dictates for court dress, also shows the elements of fashionable dress for 1817. All court dresses were fancy and…

French Court Dress, July 1814

Journal des Dames et des Modes, Paris, July 31, 1814. “Costume de présentation” This dress would have represented one of the early court dresses worn at the court of the…

French Gentleman’s Court Dress, February 1805

…the English court of the same period show very similar costumes. Court dress for men at both the English and French courts had long favored elaborately decorated military uniforms. But…

Court Dress, July 1807

La Belle Assemblée, July 1807. “Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales in her Court Dress on the 4. of June 1807, as authentically taken from the real dress made…

Court Dress, February 1808

…scaling” of the dress must have been spectacular in person, especially paired with the body and train of purple velvet. Court Dresses were every expensive and could only be worn…

Court Dress, January 1799

…the highest-ranking nobility. Dress-makers pulled out all the stops when designing dresses for the birthday drawing rooms. The dresses were expensive, extravagant, and cumbersome. Read about the rules for court

Court Dress, August 1820

…June. This dress, worn at that first Drawing Room, shows the new style of court dress. Finally, hoops were no longer required. White plumes, trains, and lappets were still required,…

Court Dress, May 1798

…as the high-waisted Regency court dresses. Most prints show the court dress straight on, so that it looks like a wide circular hooped gown. This print shows the figure at…

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