Figure 1.--This boy wasn't used to wearing short trouserss. His school unioform included shorts even during the Winter. So on a cold day he added an extra sweater. |
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Most British prep school boys boys since World War I wore short trousers. Usually this was grey shorts, but a few schools had a uniform of blue shorts or some other color. his was, however not very common. The shorts were at first flannel, but by the 1960s Terrelyn became more common as less ironing was required. The popularity of chool shorts began to change in the 1970s as fewer British boys wore shorts, especially during the Winter. Most sdchools required shorts all year round, even in the cold Winter weather. Several schools in the 1980s began introducing more seasonally based uniforms. Long trousers became increasingly common, especially for the older boys. Boys normallt wore either grey or black long trousers. Many schools required the boys to wear shorts. Some schools had an age or form limit. Some boys wore shorts even when not required, but most preferred to wear long trousers is permitted to do so.
School trousers may seem very basic, but there were actually a range of features and alternatives. English school trousers fully tailored with full zip fly, belt loops, and pockets. Traditionally the pants had button flys, but by the 1980s zippers were used. We note pants with both two front pockets and no back pockets as well as three pockets, two front pockers and a rear pocket. We are not sure just how this varied between short and long trousers. We are guessing that the assumption was that youjnger boys wearing short trousers did not need to carry a wallet which is the main purpose of a back pocket. Fastening a waistline designed varied. Hook and bar fastening were usually employed for waistband closures. We note tab styling. The shorts and longs for younger boys were were commonly elasticized at the back. Both shorts and longs have a sharp crease, except for the corduroy trousers. The shorts, but not the trousers are commonly lined, but less expensive non-lined shorts were available through the chain stores. The long trousers were often front pleated.
We note boys wearing different types of trousers. The British always say trousers and not pants like Americans. Almost all schools by the 1980s had short and/or long trousers. Knickers or breeches had once been common at Brirish schools, but this had generally changed in the early 20th century. The various schools had different regulations about who could wear what and when. This was particularly true of short and long trousers. A few schools required all boys to wear short trousers, but most schools allowed the older boys or prefects to wear long trousers. The precise rules varied from school to school. Some schools used age and ithers form levels as the determining factor. Some schools did not require boys to wear short trousers and generally all or mot of the boys wore long trousers at these schools, although there was some seasonal variation. Generally looking more grown up seemed to win out over comfort, even in warm weather. One school in London had an optional knickers uniform for the Winter.
British prep schools by far most commonly use grey or black trousers. Here shorts are only grey while long trousers can be both black and grey. Less commonly we see blue short and long trousers. Shorts come in some other colors such as khaki. Coruroy trousers also come in several different colors, incliding grey, blue, rust, and maroon. These different colored corduroy troysers are mostly shorts. Corduroy longs are usually dark blue.
British boys before World War II still commonly wore suspenders. This disappeared after the War. Boys wore different kinds of belts. Thus trousers were made with belt loops. This was common for lng pants and shorts for older boys. One of the most destinctive was snake belts, commonly done in the school colors. Other boys wore leather or imitation leather belts. Some shorts weremade with suspension devices. Shorts for younger boys might have elastic at the back of thewaistline. Other shorts had tabs which could be tightened. These were worn without belts.
Several machine washable materials were used for school trousers. Flannel was a long time favorite, but is now not very common. We did note a few schools which still had flannel shorts. More common were blened fabrics, especially Terrelyn woorsted which unlike flannel kept the crease very well. Most of the grey shorts and longs were done in Terralyn. Some schools used corduroy. Corduroy was mostly used for shorts, although we also noted cord longs. There were also cotton poplin trousers, usually the khaki shorts worn at a few schools. We also notice gaberdine-type material. Schools also had sports gear. Gym shorts were usually simple cotton shorts. The same was true with the the shorts used for rugby and football (soccer). Cricket whites were usually done in the traditional flannel.
