Figure 1.--This CDV portrait shows an unidentified boy wearing a tunic suit with long pants, The boy looks to be about 5 years old. The tunic has elaborate stripe detailing. The portrait was taken in 1873. The studio was Mr & Mrs Payne at Aylesbury.

We continue to see English boys in the 1870s wearing tunics in England as was the case in several other European countries and America. We are not sure, however, just how prevalent they were. Just how common tunics were we can not yet say in part because our English 19th archive is still limited.The diagonal styling seems less common in England than America. We see a lot of stripe detailing on tunics. All of the tunics we have found so far are the shorter cut ones, well above the knees. Our archive, however, is still very limited. Tunics seem to be a style for the well-to do, but we see very few images of the working-class. We see images of a boarder social cross section in the American photographic record. We only see younger boys wearing them up to about 8 years of age. A factor here may be this is about the age that well-to-do boys began boarding school. We see tunics being worn as suits with matching pants. We see mostly belted tunics or at least tunics with waistbands. The diagonal styling popular in Anerica does not seem as popular in England although the plain tuics popular in the 1860s seem less common in the 70s. We note one Aylesbury boy in 1873 wearing a tunic with elaborate stripe detailing. He looks to be about 5 years old (figure 1).

Prevalence

We continue to see English boys in the 1870s wearing tunics in England as was the case in several other European countries and America. We are not sure, however, just how prevalent they were. Just how common tunics were we can not yet say in part because our English 19th archive is still limited. Our inital impression is that tunics were nore common in Britain than America in the 19th century. For some reason tunics syuddently became very popular in American at the turn of the 20th cebtury.

Suits

We see tunics being worn as suits with matching pants.

Styling

We see a lot of higly styalized English tunics in the 1870s. The styling seems mostly done with stripes. We see this on suits for younger boys as well. The diagonal styling popular in America seems less common than in America. This stripe detailing does not seem to be off the rack styling. Every tunic suit we see seems to be different. We see much less of this in America. The plain tunics that seem popular in the 1860s seem to give way to the more elaborate styling of the 70s. We note the Aylesbury boy in 1873 here wearing a tunic with elaborate stripe detailing (figure 1).

Construction

All of the tunics we have found so far are the shorter cut ones, well above the knees. Our archive, however, is still very limited. We see mostly belted tunics or at least tunics with waistbands. the belts varied, some were higly stylized.

Social Class

Tunics seem to be a style for the well-to do, but we see very few images of the working-class. We see images of a boarder social cross section in the American photographic record.

Age

We see boys wearing tunics from about 4-10 years of age. The boy here looks to be about 5 years old (figure 1). We only see younger boys wearing them up to about 8 years of age. A factor here may be this is about the age that well-to-do boys began boarding school. Some boys may have worn them to age 10 years, but mot o the images we have found are boys up to only about 8 years of age. Usually we can use school portraits to help refine age estimates. We do not see boys wearing tunics to state schools. And there was a significant expamsion of the state system in the1870s. Our 1870s archive is still limited, but with what we have found does not show boys wearing tunics which limits our age estimates.

Created: 3:26 AM 12/4/2011
Last updated: 3:12 PM 3/31/2019