bliauts, broad skirts and belled sleeves: making the court dress of 12th century western europe

Bliauts, Broad Skirts and Belled Sleeves: making the court dress of 12th century Western Europe


About the classThis is intended to be an intermediate-level class, however, I will touch on geometric cutting and construction theory for those who may be new to it. The class will detail the differences between court dress and everyday clothing, cover appropriate fabrics and ornament styles, and we will cover measuring and planning cutting layouts for court garments for both men and women.

This class will be presented in six segments of approximately 15 minutes each. I have scheduled a little extra time incase we run over, and you are welcome to stay after and discuss what is presented. The class segments are:1. Introduction, discussion of what a bliaut is for the purposes of this class, and a short overview of related fashions.2. Contemporary sources3. Construction and style variations; Fabrics, ornament, and accessories4. Geometric construction; Measuring techniques; Demonstration and practice5. Layout, cutting, calculating yardage; Demonstration and practice6. Review and question and answer period; “Show and tell” and open discussion

Handouts:There are a total of nine handouts for this class, including this one. Some are multi-page. The list of handouts (in the long version of the PDF, these are sections of one document) is as follows:1. General defining characteristics of “bliauts” or 12th century West European Court Dress2. Overview of evolution towards 12th century court dress (1p)3. Contemporary artwork and archaeological artefact examples (2p)4. Construction variations and sample cutting diagrams for men and women(4p)5. Geometric construction overview (1p)6. Fabrics and ornamentation (1p)7. Measurement worksheet (1p)8. Graph paper to chart your cutting layout based on your measurements (1p) (not included as a

page, please download it as a standalone document)

Instructor:This class is taught by Branwen M. Townsend, known in the SCA as Lady Marguerie de Jauncourt. I've been in the SCA for eight years. I have been studying and re-creating historic clothing for twice that long. My area of special interest in the SCA time frame is 12th Century clothing, and its evolution from earlier forms, as you may have guessed. I have been tracking the elusive bliaut (French court gown) for over seven years, and will share the results of that research, plus a few theories, with you today.

Copyright ©2004-2010 Branwen Maura Townsend. Please email for permission to reproduce. [email protected]


Bibliography/Further reading

Web Sites (all sites cited date as of June 20th 2004 unless otherwise noted)

Asplund, Randy Chausses and Braies (men's undergarments and hose)http://www.randyasplund.com/browse/medieval/chausse1.htmlCarlson, I. Marc Some Clothing of the Middle Ages (a survey of archaeolgical examples)http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carlson/cloth/bockhome.htmlCarlson, I. Marc Footwear of the Middle Ages (10th thru 13th century styles)http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carlson/shoe/SHOEHOME.HTMDoyle, Sarah Clothing of Norman Women in the Late 11th and Early 12th Centuries (Norman English women)http://freespace.virgin.net/sarah.doyle/KIT.htmEustace hight Broom, Emrys Shertes, Trewes & Hosen (parts i, ii, iii, cited as of 6-30-04)http://www.greydragon.org/library/underwear1.htmlhttp://www.greydragon.org/library/underwear2.htmlhttp://www.greydragon.org/library/underwear3.htmlFolsom, Branwyn The Bliaut Files (instructor's website, detailed information on court and women's dress)http://bliautlady.50megs.comPayne, Grace The Beautiful Bliaut (construction of separate-skirt type women's court dress in detail)http://www.chateau-michel.org/belle_bliaut.htmSpies, Nancy Ecclesiastic Pomp and Aristocratic Circumstance (tabletweaving)http://weavershand..com/arelatestudio.htmlVirtue, Cynthia, ed. Extant Clothing of the Middle Ages (extant examples from museums, 11th-12th C pieces)http://www.virtue.to/articles/extant.htmlVirtue, Cynthia Introduction to Garb: A Seminar (overview of basic everyday clothing)http://www.virtue.to/articles/in_depth_garb.htmlVirtue, Cynthia Practical Worksheet for Tunic Construction (measurement worksheet and construction method)http://www.virtue.to/articles/tunic_worksheet.htmlVogt, Kelly Making a Keyhole Neckline (detailed instructions for installing this neckline)http://home.gte.net/kmvogt/kkeyhole.htmlWymarc, Richard A Stitch Out Of Time (10th-12th century examples and Costume for a 12th Century Lady)http://www.wymarc.com

Books

Benton, John F. (Ed) Self and Society in Medieval France: The Memoirs of Abbot Guibert of Nogent University of Toronto Press,1984Burnham, Dorothy Cut My Cote Royal Ontario Museum, 1973Boucher, Francois 20,000 Years of Fashion - the history of costume and personal adornment Harry N. Abrams, no dateBradfield, Nancy Historical Costumes of England 1066-1968 Costume and Fashion Press, 1997Carretero, Concha Herrero Museo de Telas Medievales Monasterio de Santa Maria la Real de Huelgas Patrimonio Nacional, 1988Cunnington, C Willet and Cunnington, Phillis The History of Underlcothes Dover, 1992Davis, R.H.C. The Normans and their Myth Thames and Hudson, 1976Dodwell, C.R. The Pictorial Arts of the West 800-1200 Yale University Press, 1993Egan, Geoff and Pritchard, Frances Medieval Finds from Excavations in London:3 Dress Accessories 1150-1450 HMSO,1991Grew, Francis and de Neergaard, Margarethe Medieval Finds from Excavations in London:2 Shoes and Pattens HMSO, 1988Hunnisett, Jean Costume For Stage and Screen Patterns for OWmen's Dress Medieval - 1500 Player's Press, 1996Kohler, Carl A History of Costume Dover, 1963Piponnier, Francoise and Mane, Perrine Dress In The Middle Ages Yale University Press, 1997Stoddard, Whitney S. Sculptors of the West Portraits of Chartres Cathedral: Their Origins in Romanesque and Their Role inChartrain Sculpture: Including the West portals Norton, 1987Tate, Georges The Crusaders: Warriors of God Harry N. Abrams, 1996Tilke, Max Costume Patterns and Designs Rizzoli, 1990Oriental Costumes, their designs and colors Berlin: E. Wasmuth, 1922 (e-text athttp://www.indiana.edu/~librcsd/etext/tilke/ )Time-Life Books (eds.) The Divine Campaigns TimeFrame AD 1100 - 1200 Time-Life, 1988Waugh, Christina Frieder Well-Cut through the Body: Fitted Clothing in Twelfth-Century Europe Dress: the journal of theCostume Society of America , vol 26, 1999


http://www.wymarc.com/


General defining characteristics of “bliauts”The word “bliaut” has been subject to debate, both for its usage and its popular meaning. For the purposes of this class, I am using it to mean a specific set of high-fashion styles of court dress worn during the 12th century in Western Europe.

Overall differences between court and everyday dress:• Generally made of opulent fabrics (silks, fine brightly dyed wools, fur linings)• Elaborately decorated with embroidery and woven bands• Garment styles impractical for everyday tasks • Much more jewelry worn • More hair shown by women, men had longer hair and affected beards

All of these can be true of the garments in question. However, the “bliaut” as a subset of court dress styles needs to be more narrowly defined.

Specific defining characteristics of “bliauts”:• Numerous types of ostentatious sleeves, ranging from wide pointed “angelwing” sleeves, to relatively modest

gusseted points, and most familiar, long, tight sleeves with long, dangling cuffs (manches or maunches).• Snug fitting, often (but not always) laced to fit on one or both sides.• Some styles for women seem to have had the innovation of a pleated on skirt.• Some styles for men had side slits, some had front and back slits, some had only front slits.• Often worn with elaborately decorated, long, dangly belts (ceintures).

Example images:

Left: Herod and Salome from a Romanesque capital. Salome wears a tight fitting gown with long, tight sleeves and a full skirt. Herod seems to be dressed as a Byzantine nobleman.

Right: Line drawing of the knight-and-lady embroidery on the Chelles Reliquary pouch. Both the lady and her knight seem to be wearing fashionably body-hugging garments, his is slit up the front and hers has long, dangling, decorated cuffs.



Overview of evolution towards 12th century court dress

Main Points:• Many elements considered typical of 12th century court dress are actually much older and more typical of the Holy

Roman Empire (pointed sleeves, bicep bands). Many of these elements were also popular on looser, less fashionable clothing.

• There is some evidence that extremes of fashion came more from gradual cultural communication with Moorish spain and existing Eastern trade routes than from a sudden fashion “pollination” at the time of the Crusades.

• While gores had been around for along time, they began to be used more (four places rather than two) just before the 12th Century.

• The bliaut seems to have been the final flowering of conspicuous Romanesque fashion before the overall return to simplicity and looser garments in the 13th century.

Charlemagne Ivar the Boneless

King Herod (dressed in the manner of the Byzantine court)

Philologia and Isticia from the Quedlinberg Tapestry (loose gowns

with wide, flowing sleeves) Woman from Hortus Deliciarum (after Tilke)

Also worth mentioning are the people in the Bayeux Tapestry, women and men.

Many of the men show clothing split front and back for riding or movement, as later was fashionable

Both women show sleeves not unlike those on the women in the Quedlinberg tapestry – possibly indicating that they are also long and wide, but turned back .



Contemporary Artwork ExamplesMen

St George and the knight out hawking are both from the Moralia in Job from Citeaux.

They share many common features, such as draped sleeves and split skirts, and sleeves that are a slightly different color inside (which may well be an illuminator's whim).

St George's bliaut is ankle length and may only be split on one side (or perhaps it is front and back?). It has several bands of ornament, at biceps, across his chest, above the hem and around the keyhole neckline.

The knight's bliaut is shorter and plainer, but still fancier than most men's clothes.

This jongleur or troubadour, shown on a 12th Century marriage chest, wears an overly long bliaut, v-necked, split very high in front and back (showing his underclothes). It appears to be parti-colored, one side lighter than the other, though both sides are figured.

A reconstructed diagram of the brial of Don Garcia, a surviving example of this type of garment from Spain. The hemline is conjectural (much of the skirt is in tatters, leaving only enough to tell us it was gored in four places)

It is significant in that it shows evidence of slight shaping to the torso, as well as demonstrating actual gusseted sleeve points.

The young man (who is really the tempter seducing a foolish virgin) shown to the left may well be wearing a dandified ankle-length bliaut, though he's not very large or detailed.

This is after several 19th century redrawings of the lost Hortus Deliciarum.

Also, while I have not pictured any here, there are numerous examples of men in fashionable late bliauts in the Fecamp Psalter.

Some particular examples: David playing the harp, f29rApril (man holding flower) f4vMay (falconer) f5vDavid in historiated initial f117v



Women

Lady from marriage chest (same as jongleur, above). Very interesting

sleeves. After an 18th Century drawing of now-lost statues at St Denis. Gored bliaut, with wide sleeves.

Lady from pediment of the Royal Portal at Chartres cathedral.

These are only four of many examples of jamb statues depicted with apparent pleated on skirts, each with a band of ornament over the join.

These statues (and the several others I have not illustrated here) are so far the only depictions of pleated-on skirts in 12th century art that I have seen. This same observation has led some researchers to theorize that the pleated skirt is merely a sculptor's ploy to disguise a seam in the stone, though I find it mildly suspicious that the feature is so predictably positioned.

Especially notable is the first lady, at left, for the decoration on her hemline.



Construction Variations

Given that the clothing of the period is really fairly simple in cut, what sets the court garments apart, aside from richer cloth and ornament, is the amazing variety of styles achievable using just a few shapes of cloth. Mostly, these are created by various combinations of the several types of sleeves and the several types of body/skirts, but there were also a few different necklines, namely the keyhole, slit-v, and “q-keyhole” or off-center slit keyhole. Other necklines that can be seen are squarish ones, as well as some that may be horizontal slits, but these seem to have been worn only by the working classes.

Sleeve Variations:

Simple long tapered sleeves were worn by everyone. While not a specific defining style, if made very long and tight to the wrist, these certainly had their place in high fashion.

The sleeves worn by Salome in handout section 2 are of this type.

The next degree of ornamentation is the simple square gusset. A variety of different effects can be achieved depending on the size of the gusset. Small points can be achieved with squares of only 4 to 6 inches (the brial of Don Garcia).

Angel wing type sleeves are simply sleeves with very large square gussets.

To add the degree of drape seen in some depictions, triangular gores may have been used in various configurations, by themselves or in combination with square gussets.

Nearly infinite numbers of styles can be achieved using this method.

The well known manche or maunche style sleeve may have been made using a combination of a square gusset and a decorated strip. Earlier examples seem to have a larger point, while later examples show that the point had atrophied while the strip cuff had become the focus, decorated or not.

The above is my interpretation of a peculiar sleeve from a Spanish manuscript illustration (which can be seen on the Historia Viva Spanish SCA group web site). The sleeve was shown knotted on one arm and not on the other, and was clearly, from the draped hem drawn, open at the bottom, while the girl's hands were coming from a secondary opening about halfway down. Also the sleeve ends were clearly fuller than the main length of the sleeve, so I surmised that they might be gored.



Body/Skirt Variations:There were two basic styles for women's bliauts – the more traditional gored skirt style and the innovative pleated skirt style.

The gored style, while it got less exposure on the great jamb statues, was shown as often or more often on smaller carvings, such as the pediment lady at Chartres.

The pleated style, which has been the subject of much debate, seems to have been a distinct, if short-lived and exclusive type. One theory for its evolution suggests that it fulfilled a desire for different colored skirts, though there seems to be little evidence to back it up. I think that it evolved to make use of bordered textiles from the East. It may have been a result of both of these things – there's no way to know, as not one of these gowns has come down to us.

They probably lent themselves to being picked apart to make other things later, simply because the cut leaves much of the cloth uncut.

Some men's garments are shown as being split front and back, and these are usually not shown laced, even when clearly made to be very close fitting.

The front/back split is about mid-thigh, as depicted in some manuscript illustrations. However, the front-split garment shown in the Fecamp Psalter goes rather higher than that, showing a glimpse of the underclothes of its wearer.

Some other garments are shown split at the sides, and these are more likely to be shown laced.

There is some evidence that pointed hems on men's (only men's!) bliauts might have been achieved by tightly rucking up the torso with the side lacings.



Layout Diagrams, for Men

These are sample layouts, so the specific dimensions will be dictated by your shoulder to hem, hip to hem, arm length/circumference, etc. measurements. You should take your measurements, and using the layouts as a guide, work out what you need on graph paper or in a computer graphics program.

Above: Basic garment, loose cut body, waist to hem gores, straight sleeves, this layout is given with a slightly shorter skirt (thigh length) as you would wear for body linen.

Fashionable cut court garment, with tight belled sleeves and widely gored skirt. May be laced at sides and left open at side gore seams, or made closed with front/back slits.Braies. Very basic cutting diagram, and obviously, your mileage may vary. I highly recommend that you visit Randy Asplund's Chausses and Braies web site (see Web Sites listing).

Small drawing of the brial of Don Garcia, a snug fitted, but not laced, court garment made of a rich brocaded cloth. It has small belled sleeves, and was made for a young boy.



Layout Diagrams, for Women

These are sample layouts, so the specific dimensions will be dictated by your shoulder to hem, hip to hem, arm length/circumference, etc. measurements. You should take your measurements, and using the layouts as a guide, work out what you need on graph paper or in a computer graphics program.

Top: Conjectural method for widening skirts by adding extra gores.Above: Basic garment, loose cut body, waist to hem gores, straight sleeves, this layout is given with a slightly shorter skirt (ankle length) as you would wear for body linen.

Fashionable cut court garment, with tight belled sleeves and widely gored skirt. May be laced at sides, or made close fitting and pulled over the head.

Below: Diagram for cutting a pleated-on skirt type gown from a saree or other border patterned cloth.


Basics of Geometric Garment Construction

Main Points:• Geometric Construction, also called “rectangular construction” applies to any garment cut chiefly from geometric

pieces. For the purposes of this class, however, we are focusing on upper body garments worn in W.Europe.• Garments made this way can be made with a minimum of scissor cuts, and very little waste. • Much of the cutting can be done by tearing the cloth along the straight grain, which gives a pure straight edge. • Shaping and movement ease are provided by gores and gussets inserted into seams rather than shaped or

tailored pieces. Center gores for more even fullness seem to have become more common in the 11th C.• It is one of the oldest forms of garment construction and possibly the oldest form of constructed garment

construction. • This method of garment cutting was fairly highly developed by the middle of the 12th century, and was pushed to

its limits in variety of shapes and figure-accentuating designs. At the end of the 12th C, fashion, combined with a widespread, relative impoverishment of the nobility and wealthy merchant classes (caused by wars and the funding of the Crusades), brought about a return to simpler, looser garments with less decoration.

Assembling a Basic Geometric Cut Tunic1: Sew the gussets to the sleeves and finish the seam (1). Fold sleeves in half lengthwise, mark center point of sleeve. (1a)2: Fold body of tunic in half, hem edge to hem edge, and mark the center point. Match fold on sleeves to fold on body (2). Pin and sew. Finish seams. You should end up with a t-shape like the one in the illustration. 3: Pin side gores to body, starting at hem and matching the bias edge of each gore to the edge of the body. Make sure you are working on the right side of the tunic. Sew gores in place (if sewing by machine, sew from hem to point to reduce stretching), and finish seams.

4: Lay center gores out and mark length of slit by the bias edge, marking the slit about 1“ shorter than you need it. Cut the slit (4)and pin the gores in place, and when you reach the point, clip a little further if necessary, but end the slit in a “y” shape (4a). Sew gores in place (if sewing by machine, sew as above) up to points. Sew points by hand and finish seams.5: Finish neckline (not covered here due to variety of choices), and sew side seams in this order: Hem to armpit (protruding point of gusset), then armpit to cuff (5). Finish seams.

6: Hem the tunic. You are finished. This is not meant to be an in-depth set of instructions, but a shorthand overview of the basic steps involved in constructing a typical geometric-cut tunic of the period we are discussing. For example, if you want to make earlier styles without center gores, omit step four.



Measurement Worksheet How much cloth do I need?

The amount of cloth you will need to make your tunic is influenced by several factors. It depends on the width of the cloth you choose, how tall/wide you are, how large you want to make your sleeves, and how long or wide you want your skirts.

For a gored-skirt style bliaut, an average person will need enough to go from the hem, over the shoulders, and back to the hem again, plus between 1 and 3 yards (which can be attached to that first length or not). About half of the first part, lengthwise, is your main pattern piece (body piece). The rest, plus the second part of the yardage, is used to make up the remaining pattern pieces. Pleated-on skirt style bliauts will require enough to go from hip-level at front to hip-level at back, plus enough for sleeves and skirts, which varies according to skirt length/fullness and sleeve style. Graph paper is very helpful for working out fabric requirements for this type of garment.

Measurements needed

You will need to take the following measurements to work out your pattern. I recommend getting some help with doing this, so they are as exact as possible, before you start working out your cutting diagrams.

shoulder to hem, front/back

Underbust or chest bicep circumference

Waist high hip arm length, shoulder point to wrist

bust or pectoral measurement

high hip to hem Widest part of hand

What they determine: Measurement 1: shoulder to hem, front/back This is how long your body piece will be for gored styles. For pleated on skirt styles, measure from your shoulder to high hip front/back.

Measurement 2: waist If this measurement is significantly smaller than the hip (5), use this measurement to determine the width of the body piece, adding longer side gores to accommodate the hips (see diagrams). Note: This measurement isn't necessary for laying out undergarments.

Measurements 3 & 4: bust /pectorals and underbust/chest These two measurements determine if you need to add more fabric (through gussets) to help give a better fit to unlaced tight bliauts or underclothes. If there is more than a 4" difference, make your gussets larger than 6“, but allow for fitting. Laced bliauts need small (2” square) or nonexistent gussets, as ease is provided for by lacing. Measurement 5: high hip This, divided in half, dictates how wide the body piece will be for persons with straighter figures. If measurement 5 is much larger than 3 , you may want to make your side gores go up a little higher (to your waist) to accommodate your body.

Measurement 6: high hip to hem This measurement determines how long your gores and gore slits need to be. Always use this for the length of the center front and back gores, even if you need to lengthen your side gores. Cut your gore slits 1" shorter than the straight grain length of the gores. For pleated skirt styles, this, plus 2” (for hem and seam allowances) is the skirt length.

Measurement 7: bicep circumference The measurement around the widest part of your upper arm, normally your bicep (not including the area immediately around your armpit, which is usually fitted using gussets), is how wide you will need to cut the sleeve pieces, on all sleeves. Some women's bliauts, and possibly very dandyish men's bliauts, were laced from the bicep to the hip, rather than the armpit to the hip. If you are choosing this option, subtract 1” from this measurement.

Measurement 8: arm length, shoulder point to wrist Your arm length decides the length of all sleeves except the super-long, tight, high-fashion sleeve. That can be cut as long as your fabric width will allow after cutting the body piece.

Measurement 9: widest part of hand The widest part of your hand necessarily determines the width of the undersleeve at its narrowest point (the wrist).You need it big enough to get over your hand. Measure this with your hand compressed as much as you can to get the tightest possible wrist. Add 1/2 inch for seam allowances (that's for a 1/4 inch seam allowance). Note: You will not need this measurement for straight, untapered sleeves or bell sleeves.

bliauts, broad skirts and belled sleeves: making the court dress of 12th century western europe

Documents