Figure 1.--German boys during the mid-20th century commonly wore short pants both when dressing up and for school and play. This undated snapshot was probably taken in the 1950s.

German boys like other European boys have worn a wide variety of pants or trousers. German boys have worn knee breeches, kneepants, sort pants, knickers, and long pants. Leather lederhosen are strongly associated with Bavaria and Alpine areas of neighboring countries. The types of pants worn have varied chronologically. Our information on the 19th century is limited, but we have quite a bit of information for the 20th century. There wee also social class differences which also varied over time. Other factors included demographic and regional differences. Boys like their fathers predominately wore knee breeches in the 18th century. This was the standard dress of German males after breeching, regardless of age. Long pants were adopted by laborers and peaseants before gentelmen began wearing them in in the 1820s. Boys generally wore long pants until after mid-century when kneepnts began increasing in popularity. Kneepants were very common in the late 19th and early 20th century, but were graduallt replaced by short pants. Older boys might wear knockers. While many German boys wore kneepants, short pants, and knickers many German boys also wore long pants. Shorts pants became very common in the mod-20th century, but long pants became increasingly popular in the 1960s. Lederhosen or modern leather short pants appeared first in the German state of Bavaria. I'm not sure when they were first worn. I assume they have originated with knee breeches and gradually become shorter.

Knee Breeches

Boys like their fathers predominately wore knee breeches in the 18th century. This was the standard dress of German males after breeching, regardless of age. The keebreeches worn by boys were identical to those worn by men. European boys began wearing longpants with skeleton suits before the turn of the 19th century, but HBC is less sure about Germany. German men continued weraring knee breeches well into the 19th century.

Long Pants

Long pants were adopted by laborers and peaseants before gentelmen began wearing them in in the 1820s. Boys generally wore long pants until after mid-century when kneeapnts began increasing in popularity. While many German boys wore kneepants, short pants, and knickers many German boys also wore long pants. Several factors were involved here, such as seasonality and social class. Some German boys in the first half of the 20th century wore short pants all yearlong, even during the winter. Mothers in cold weather might have boys wear long stockings with shorts--especially younger boys. Even when shirt pants were commonly worn by German boys, some mothers preferred long pants during the cold winter months. After World War II (1939-45) especially by the 1950s, long pants were increasingly worn--especially in cold weather. German boys by the 1960s were increasing wearing long pants even during the summer. This included even the younger boys.

Lederhosen

Lederhosen or modern leather short pants appeared first in the German state of Bavaria. I'm not sure when they were first worn. I assume they have originated with knee breeches and gradually become shorter. Thus you would assume they probably originated un the 18th Century. There are two types of lederhose, short pants and knicker-like pants. Lederhosen were also worn in rural parts of Austria and Switzerland. They are often associated with the local popular folk music. Boy scouts and other youth groups in those countries, like the Hitler Youth, also sometimes wore them too. Boys in the 1920s-40s wore them much as modern boys wear jeans.

Knee Pants

We have relatively limited information on kneepants in Germany. We are unsure if there were any destinctive aspect of German kneepants. German boys began wearing kneepants after the mid-19th century, although HBC has little information on this period. By the late 19th century, kneepants were very common among German boys, even teenagers. We note many schoolboys wearing kneepants at the turn of the 20th century. This appears to have varried from family to family. Social class factors apparently were important. They continued to be worn through the 1910s, although short pants and knickers were becoming increasingly popular in the 1910s. We are unsure about the age conventions which apparently varied over time.

Bloomer Knickers

Bloomer knickers were similar to proper knickers, but were primarily for younger boys. We first notice them in the mid-19th century. They were worn as late as the early 20th century, mostly before world War I. They look like the leg hem was elasticized, but they were actually closed using a draw string. They were primarily worn as suits in the mid-19th century. We see them worn with blouses and tunics in the ealy 20th century. They were often made with lighter material than proper knickers, especially the bloomer knickers worn in the early 20th century. Outfits with bloomer knickers tended for some reason to be more common with middle- and upper-class families than working-class families. This can be seen because the boys depicted in early-20th century commnercial post cards often are shown waring bloomer knickers rather than knee pants. Boys wore bloomer knickers with both three-quarter socks and long stockings, but rarely knee socks. We are not entirely sure why that was.

Knickers

We notice a lot of German German boys wearing knickers in the late 19th century. They seem to have been especially common with boys fashionally dressed boys from affluent families. Boys from working-class families more commonly worekneepasnts or their fathers cut-down long trousers. After World War I, short pants became more common for boys from all social backgrounds. Older boys might wear knickers. German boys beginning in the 1920s might wear short pants well into threir their teen years before receiving a knicker suit for best wear or for school. It was also very common to wear knickers instead of shorts during the colder winter months. HBC has not noted German boys commonly wearing knickers into the 1940s. The one exception was the Hitler Youth boys who had a knicker-like ski pants (longer-knickers) uniform for the winter. We are not sure what term was used for German knickes. One source suggests "Pumphose". We note boys wearing knickers inton the 1950s. They didnot entirely disappear even in the 1960s, although the style changed. An American reader writes, "I recall seeing boys and young men wearing the close-fitting knee breeches or tight knickers in Austria and Bavaria in the 1960s when I made a trip to Salzburg, Innsbruck, and Munich in 1963. One also saw this style of pants in Copenhagen, Denmark. They were usually worn with woolen knee socks (gray, dark blue, or even white) but sometimes also with tights. They were, I think, considered rather dressy and were sometimes worn with suit jackets. The material was usually gray or brown worsted, but perhaps corduroy was also used. The knee closures always had buckles, not elastic. It was very much a young man's and teenager's style, as I recall. I think it might have been a modification of Bavarian and Austrian national dress. It was popular with boys and men who rode bicycles because long trousers (unless worn with bicycle clips) tended to get caught in the bike chains." We notice these trim-cut knicker-length pants in German catalogs. I'm not sure whst they were called.

Short Pants

Short pants appeared in the late 19th century, they were initially worn by younger boys. They were worn in the 1890s beginning with the Wandervogel before the turn of the century and then the Scouts and other youth groups after the turn of the century. After World War I (1914-18) by the 1920s, short pants were very commonly worn by Germam boys including some older teenagers. Corduroy shorts were common. Lederhosen were primarily worn in Bavaria. One German reports, " In the fall of 1933 a new student named Horst came to our third grade class and was seated at a desk across the isle from me. Horst had recently moved to our village. He lived in a duplex in a newer area, nothing like our homes which were old farmhouses. Horst was different. He didn't talk in the local dialect, he was Protestant, his father was a railroad official who had been transferred to our local station. In many ways his behavior and language were foreign to me. He dressed differently, wearing Bavarian lederhosen while I wore corduroy kneelength pants." [Louis Maier, In Lieu of Flowers.] Shorts were still very common in the eqrly 1950s, in part because of economic conditions, but by the 1960s German boys were increasinly wearing long pants. German boys still wore shorts in the 1970s and 80s, but they were increasinly seen as cassual summerwear.

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Created: 9:10 PM 1/21/2006
Last updated: 5:01 PM 11/27/2008