[Ansteorra] Fw: [SCA-AE] Fwd: [DW-L] King Henry's post-Bosworth wardrobe - how much cloth per garment?

[Katrina]

>From Drachenwald via AEthelmearc
Katrina

--- On Sun, 10/18/09, bostonhahn at aol.com <bostonhahn at aol.com> wrote:

From: bostonhahn at aol.com <bostonhahn at aol.com>
Subject: [SCA-AE] Fwd: [DW-L] King Henry's post-Bosworth wardrobe - how much cloth per garment?
To: ae-laurel at yahoogroups.com, aethelmearc-ans at yahoo.com, discussion at aethelmearc.org
Date: Sunday, October 18, 2009, 8:35 AM


Thought this may be interesting to some of you!  

Elisabeth

-----Original Message-----
From: julian wilson <smnco37 at YAHOO.CO.UK>
To: DW-L at DRACHENWALD.SCA.ORG
Sent: Sun, Oct 18, 2009 7:47 am
Subject: [DW-L] King Henry's post-Bosworth wardrobe - how much cloth per garment?

Gentles of Drachenwald,

This humble veteran soldier thinks it may be helpful to some of you planning to make late-15th-century garb of the prevailing Burgundian* Court Fashions for your personas, - to add some further data derived from the Exchequer Pipe Roll account sections I have already posted.

[Note* - Burgundian? Yes, Princess Margaret of York, sister to the English King Edward IV, and Ruling Duchess of Burgundy, had created around her at her Palace at Mechelin in Flanders “the most brilliant Court in Europe”. To that Court she attracted the nobility and intelligentsia, the important merchant Houses of the Hansa, and of the Italian City-States, and greatest Artisans. Courts all over Europe followed the doings of her Court. England had suffered a Society disrupted by the 30-year-long Wars of the Roses, [which unsettled civilian life had not really encouraged the gentler Arts such as developing an "English Fashion"], and she was sister to King Edward. Furthermore, Henry Tudor had spent nearly 12 years as an “honoured Exile" at the Breton Ducal Court, and 3 years at the neighbouring French Court – where he would have worn - and become accustomed-to  - Burgundian fashions.]



Henry Tudor is described by a Spanish Ambassador [ in a confidential report to his own King] as being of average stature, and “spare in his body”.  The impression given is that Henry was of average height, and physique, for a physically-fit Western European of his Era. 



By all I have read of the general physique of the period, this would seem to give the King a height of around 5ft9ins. As a person practicing regular military training, including archery [we know he was a good archer] and daily horsemanship, - he would not have been over-weight for his height; and he was just 28 years old.

So methinks it will help some of you, to list for you the per-item-amounts of cloth that the Leicester tailors needed to make his new clothes, only two weeks after Redemore Fight [ which we now call "the Battle of Bosworth".].




Enjoy!




Henry VII’s household - the wardrobe of 30th August-5th September, 1485 – amounts of cloth needed for garments.

[Note* - I have read elsewhere that the general European loom width was 60cms]



Gown of cloth of gold – 11 yerdes*

Lynyngs for þe sayme – 11 yerdes

A doublet for þe kinge – 2 yerdes blak saten

2 short gownes for þe kinge – 10 yerdes cloth of gold, purpille

For the insides of the sayme – 10 yerdes sateen, blak

11 yerdes velvet, tawny, for a long* gowne for þe king

11 yerdes saten, violette, for the inside of þe sayme

[Note* - from the text, gowns seem to be of 3 lengths, - the long gowns,  - demy-gowns, - and short gowns]

Item, by John Englyssche, for 2 doublettes, 4&3/4 yerdes of blew chamlet

Item, by John Englyssche, for 3 doublettes, 6 yerdes of chamlet, blak

[Note* - from the text, one sees that each doublet must have required around 2 yards of cloth]

Item, delivered to John Englyssche sythen þe kinges commyng to towne: - 

Item, 8 yerdes velvet, blak, for a demy gowne

Item, 6 yerdes velvet, blak, for a short gowne for þe kinge

Item, 13 yerdes fine blak chamlet, for a cloke for þe kinge

Item, for a yerd of fine crymsyn in grayne, for hoses for þe kinges grace.

Item, þe sayme time, for 2 yerdes fine streit blake, for another paire hoses for þe kings grace.

Item, a yerd of white lynyng, for hoses for the kinges grace.



Kersey was bought for an unstated number of  “hosen for the servitours”



The Bill also mentions a bulk purchase of “fine lynen cloth, price the yerd – 7d” without mention of the garments for which it was intended. Possibly shirts for the Squires of the Body and other Upper Servants.



The only thread mentioned anywhere is “coton”, and this is bought by weight.



So we can derive the following quantities of 60cms-wide cloth needed per garment, from the above items.

A long and full cloak needed 13 yards

A cape to the cloak needed 2 yards

A long gown with sleeves needed 11 yards

A demy-gown with sleeves needed 8 yards

A short gown with sleeves needed 6 yards

Doublets seem to have needed around 2 yards each

And 1 yard seems to have been enough to make “a paire of hoses”



Unfortunately, no numbers are given where cloth has been bought for shirts, - only the total quantity of cloth - so we cannot derive the amount-per-shirt from those Pipe Roll entries.

Likewise, where cloth has been bought later, for the use of the Queen, we have a total quantity noted for each cloth, but not the number or type of garment for which the cloth was intended. Thus, no help in judging required quantities of 60cms.-wide cloth for making dresses, not from this period Source,



Analysis elsewhere of existing medieval garments has also shown us that medieval tailors/seamstresses were very economical in their use of  materials. “Piecing” was common – even in “high-status” garments - to a far greater extent than a modern Garment-maker would ever consider. When a Prince or a Noble could be wearing cloth to equal the cost of building two  “small manor houses”, this practice of economy  - which used even small scraps of cloth  - [pieces of no more than 2” per side on-the-face have been elsewhere noted as used in extant period garments]; - is understandable.



For the garb-making Populace, and 

In Service  to Drachenwald, 

Lord Matthew Baker, ODB