English Short Pants/Trousers: Types--Button-on Shorts
Figure 1.--The boy here was Rauf Mansel (1915-67). Rauf is not a very English sounding name. He was the son of Sir Courtenay Cecil Mansel, 13th Bt. His monther pictured here was Ranulf Dabridgecourt Mansel abnd his sister was Lady Mary Phillippa Agnes Germaine Mansel. We do not know much about Rauf, but we do know that he served in the Royal Maruines duruing World War II. looks to about 5-years old and wears a button-on outfit. We know the portrait was taken in 1921. The studio was Bassano & Vandyk, an important London studio. Source: National Portrait Gallery, London. Click on the image for more informationabout Rauf.
We see English boys wearing button-on shorts in the early-20th century. Our information is still limited, in part because our English archive is relatively limited. This was primarily a pre-school style, although some boys may have worn button-on shorts during the first year or two of primary school. This of course was because button-on styling was a younger boys to hold up their pants. We are not sure about the chronology, but the early-20th century seems to have been when the style was most popular. We note button-on outfits in which the shorts and blouse matched. In other ases they were coordinated, They had to be at least coordinated so as the holes in the shorts matched up with the buttons ion the blouse. We see button-on shorts in other countries at the same time. We do not know of any destinguishing features of British button-on shorts.
