Figure 1.--This unidentified CDV portrait shows a boy who looks to be about 13 years old. He wears a rather loud double-brasted knee pants suit with high-set lapels. He is holding what looks like a narrow brimmed straw hat. His outfit includes white long stockings and two-tone high-top shoes. We would guess the portrait was taken about 1870. Were it not for the white stckings, we might have dated the portraitclosr to the 80s. The studio was Macagno in Soissons.

We are slowly building a chronologu of French boys' suits. We know little about the 18th centurry, but as best we can understand, boys in the 18th century basically wore small editions of their fathers' clothes. Working-class children and peasant boys might wear their fathers' old clothes cut down to fit. Only in the late-18th century do we begin to see the first examples clothing especially designed for children--the boy's skeleton suit. At firstt they were done with knee breeches, but long trousers soon became standard and universal by the turn-of-the 19th century. Other than the skeleton suit we have little information on the early-19th century. We note boys wearing tunics and peaked caps with tassles. Unfortunately we have been able to find little information about suits. Even though commercial photography was developed in France with the Daguerreotype (1839) we have foind very few early French photographs. Only with the appearance of the CDV in large numbers (1860s) do we have a hotograohic recor to build a detailed chronology. We see many of the same styles in France that we see in the rest of Europe and Notth America. France was very imortant in setting women's fashions. While it was less important in male fashion trends, France's influence should not be discounted. Many boys wore collar-buttoning jackets at mid-century, mostly very plain suits. Vests were very common. We nore cut-away jackets for younger boys in the 1860s. These were mostly short jackets, but we also notice longer cuts like the boy here is wearing in the 1870s. Collar buttoning jackets seemed to have declined in the 70s and in addition to the cut-away jackets, we see more boys wearing lapel sack suits. Some were fancy suits. The inspiration for the Amnerican Fauntleroy suit was the fancy suits Mrs. Burnett saw French boys wearing while she was living in Paris. . And increasingly boys were wearing shortened-length pant with suits, mostly worn with long stockings. We begin to see the shortened-length pants worn with socks (1880s). Suits were not as common in France as many other countries, we think the fact that children wore soocks to school was a factor. After World War I we see both single- and double-breasted jackets. Short pants were very common, but we see some teenagers wearing knickers before switching to long trousrs. French boys tended to wear shorter-cut shorts with suits than British boys. This began to change in the 1969s when we see shorter shorts in Briain as wll. Thm by the late-1970s we begin to see longer sometimes cuffed shhrts in France. After World War II, short pants suit continued to be common, although we see fewer boys wearing suits. By the 1960s we increasingly see the boys who wore suits wearing long pants suits.

The 18th Century

The 19th Century

Skeleton suits worn with long pants were the classic style for boys in the early-19th century. Other than the skeleton suit we have little information on the early-19th century. We note boys wearing tunics and peaked caps with tassles. Unfortunately we have been able to find little information about suits. Even though commercial photography was developed in France with the Daguerreotype (1839) we have foind very few early French photographs. Only with the appearance of the CDV in large numbers (1860s) do we have a photographic record to build a detailed chronology. We see many of the same styles in France that we see in the rest of Europe and Notth America. France was very imortant in setting women's fashions. While it was less important in male fashion trends, France's influence should not be discounted. Many boys wore collar-buttoning jackets at mid-century, mostly very plain suits. Vests were very common. We nore cut-away jackets for younger boys in the 1860s. These were mostly short jackets, but we also notice longer cuts like the boy here is wearing in the early-1870s (figure 1). Collar buttoning jackets seemed to have declined in the 70s and in addition to the cut-away jackets, we see more boys wearing lapel sack suits. Some were fancy suits. The inspiration for the Amnerican Fauntleroy suit was the fancy suits Mrs. Burnett saw French boys wearing while she was living in Paris. And increasingly boys were wearing shortened-length pant with suits, mostly worn with long stockings. We begin to see the shortened-length pants worn with socks (1880s). Suits were not as common in France as many other countries, we think the fact that children wore smocks to school was a factor.

The 20th Century

Many boys in the early 20th century wore suits with bloomer knickers and socks. This is the style we usually see in the many French post cards of fashionably dressed children. Postcards of children were very popular at the time and France had the largest post card industry. Long stockings were not very common except during the winter and for formality. We see both suit jackets and heavy blouses that matched the suit pants, something we refer to as blouse suits. After World War I we no longer commonly see blouse suits. We see both single- and double-breasted jackets. Short pants were very common, but we see some teenagers wearing knickers before switching to long trousrs. French boys tended to wear shorter-cut shorts with suits than British boys. This began to change in the 1969s when we see shorter shorts in Briain as wll. Thm by the late-1970s we begin to see longer sometimes cuffed shhrts in France. After World War II, short pants suit continued to be common, although we see fewer boys wearing suits. By the 1960s we increasingly see the boys who wore suits wearing long pants suits.

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Created: 10:34 AM 3/28/2014
Last updated: 10:34 AM 3/28/2014