The Dress of the Eighteenth Century Gentleman

The fashionable 18th century gentleman was definitely a peacock. His ideal was to be able to live on his investments or income from land, and not be involved in ‘trade’. This led to a form of dress that we would consider impractical.

His outfit consisted of the three-piece suit — coat, waistcoat (which he called a vest) and breeches. These could all be made of the same fabric or have a waistcoat of different material, and it was often the latter which was the most decorative. This could be achieved by being quilted, embroidered with coloured silks, with or without metal thread and spangles (small sequins), or made of brocaded fabric or part velvet. The Devonshire Collection holds examples of each of these.

As the century progressed, the coat became more cut-away and the waistcoat became shorter. When looking at 18th century waistcoats it is convenient to expand the period into the early 19th century as styles roll over into this time.

The slideshow below shows some of the waistcoats that we own, including some plain ones, along with an early 18th century coat and a pair of breeches to show the three parts of the outfit. Use the arrows to browse through the pictures or go directly to a particular picture using the thumbnails at the bottom.