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Dressed to Rule: Royal and Court Costume from Louis XIV to Elizabeth II
Throughout history rulers have used clothes as a form of legitimization and propaganda. While palaces, pictures, and jewels might reflect the choice of a monarch’s predecessors or advisers, clothes reflected the preferences of the monarch himself. Being both personal and visible, the right costume at the right time could transform and define a monarch’s reputation. Many royal leaders have known this, from Louis XIV to Catherine the Great and from Napoleon I to Princess Diana.
This intriguing book explores how rulers have sought to control their image through their appearance. Mansel shows how individual styles of dress throw light on the personalities of particular monarchs, on their court system, and on their ambitions. The book looks also at the economics of the costume industry, at patronage, at the etiquette involved in mourning dress, and at the act of dressing itself. Fascinating glimpses into the lives of European monarchs and contemporary potentates reveal the intimate connection between power and the way it is packaged.
This intriguing book explores how rulers have sought to control their image through their appearance. Mansel shows how individual styles of dress throw light on the personalities of particular monarchs, on their court system, and on their ambitions. The book looks also at the economics of the costume industry, at patronage, at the etiquette involved in mourning dress, and at the act of dressing itself. Fascinating glimpses into the lives of European monarchs and contemporary potentates reveal the intimate connection between power and the way it is packaged.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published July 11, 2005
1 person is currently reading
164 people want to read
About the author
Philip Mansel
33 books67 followersPhilip Mansel is a historian of courts and cities, and of France and the Ottoman Empire. He was born in London in 1951 and educated at Eton College, where he was a King’s Scholar, and at Balliol College, Oxford, where he read Modern History and Modern Languages. Following four years’ research into the French court of the period 1814-1830, he was awarded his doctorate at University College, London in 1978.
His first book, Louis XVIII, was published in 1981 and this - together with subsequent works such as The Court of France 1789-1830 (1989), Paris Between Empires 1814-1852 (2001) - established him as an authority on the later French monarchy. Six of his books have been translated into French.
Altogether Philip Mansel has published eleven books of history and biography, mainly relating either to France or the Ottoman Empire and the Middle East: Sultans in Splendour was published in 1988, Constantinople: City of the World’s Desire 1453-1924 in 1995 and Levant: Splendour and Catastrophe on the Mediterranean in 2010.
Over the past 30 years he has contributed reviews and articles to a wide range of newspapers and journals, including History Today, The English Historical Review, The International Herald Tribune, Books and Bookmen, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent and Apollo. Currently he writes reviews for The Spectator, Cornucopia, The Art Newspaper and The Times Literary Supplement.
In 1995 Philip Mansel was a founder with David Starkey, Robert Oresko and Simon Thurley of the Society for Court Studies, designed to promote research in the field of court history, and he is the editor of the Society’s journal. The Society has a branch in Munich and is linked to similar societies in Versailles, Madrid, Ferrara and Turin.
He has travelled widely, lecturing in many countries - including the United States, France, Germany, Italy and Turkey - and has made a number of appearances on radio and television, including in the two-part Channel 4 documentary “Harem” and in two BBC2 documentaries on Versailles in 2012. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, the Royal Society of Literature, the Institute of Historical Research (University of London) and the Royal Asiatic Society, and is a member of the Conseil Scientifique of the Centre de Recherche du Chateau de Versailles. In 2010 Philip Mansel was appointed Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and in 2012 was the recipient of the annual London Library Life in Literature Award.
Philip Mansel wrote the introduction to the 2012 re-issue of Nancy Mitford’s The Sun King and is currently working on his own biography of Louis XIV. His short history of Aleppo: Rise and Fall of a World City is scheduled for publication in April 2016. His book on Napoleon and his court, The Eagle in Splendour, was republished by I. B. Tauris in June 2015.
In 1995 Philip Mansel started a campaign to save Clavell Tower, a ruined folly of 1831 which threatened to fall over the cliff above Kimmeridge Bay. This led, in 2007-8, to the Tower’s deconstruction, relocation, reconstruction, restoration and modernisation by the Landmark Trust. Clavell Tower is now the Trust’s most popular property.
Philip Mansel lives in London, travelling to Paris, Istanbul and elsewhere for research, conferences and lectures. He also runs the family estate at Smedmore, near Wareham in Dorset. For more information on this historic house, visit the web site and read the recent articles published in The World of Interiors and Country Life.
His first book, Louis XVIII, was published in 1981 and this - together with subsequent works such as The Court of France 1789-1830 (1989), Paris Between Empires 1814-1852 (2001) - established him as an authority on the later French monarchy. Six of his books have been translated into French.
Altogether Philip Mansel has published eleven books of history and biography, mainly relating either to France or the Ottoman Empire and the Middle East: Sultans in Splendour was published in 1988, Constantinople: City of the World’s Desire 1453-1924 in 1995 and Levant: Splendour and Catastrophe on the Mediterranean in 2010.
Over the past 30 years he has contributed reviews and articles to a wide range of newspapers and journals, including History Today, The English Historical Review, The International Herald Tribune, Books and Bookmen, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent and Apollo. Currently he writes reviews for The Spectator, Cornucopia, The Art Newspaper and The Times Literary Supplement.
In 1995 Philip Mansel was a founder with David Starkey, Robert Oresko and Simon Thurley of the Society for Court Studies, designed to promote research in the field of court history, and he is the editor of the Society’s journal. The Society has a branch in Munich and is linked to similar societies in Versailles, Madrid, Ferrara and Turin.
He has travelled widely, lecturing in many countries - including the United States, France, Germany, Italy and Turkey - and has made a number of appearances on radio and television, including in the two-part Channel 4 documentary “Harem” and in two BBC2 documentaries on Versailles in 2012. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, the Royal Society of Literature, the Institute of Historical Research (University of London) and the Royal Asiatic Society, and is a member of the Conseil Scientifique of the Centre de Recherche du Chateau de Versailles. In 2010 Philip Mansel was appointed Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and in 2012 was the recipient of the annual London Library Life in Literature Award.
Philip Mansel wrote the introduction to the 2012 re-issue of Nancy Mitford’s The Sun King and is currently working on his own biography of Louis XIV. His short history of Aleppo: Rise and Fall of a World City is scheduled for publication in April 2016. His book on Napoleon and his court, The Eagle in Splendour, was republished by I. B. Tauris in June 2015.
In 1995 Philip Mansel started a campaign to save Clavell Tower, a ruined folly of 1831 which threatened to fall over the cliff above Kimmeridge Bay. This led, in 2007-8, to the Tower’s deconstruction, relocation, reconstruction, restoration and modernisation by the Landmark Trust. Clavell Tower is now the Trust’s most popular property.
Philip Mansel lives in London, travelling to Paris, Istanbul and elsewhere for research, conferences and lectures. He also runs the family estate at Smedmore, near Wareham in Dorset. For more information on this historic house, visit the web site and read the recent articles published in The World of Interiors and Country Life.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 10, 2014
I will be honest and say that I'm a bit shallow - I would have liked to have seen more pictures. There were not nearly enough pictures (for what I wanted) and the pictures provided were small, making it difficult to see the details being described. Many of the pictures were in black and white and we had to depend on the narrative to describe the vivid colours.
November 29, 2016
This book discusses the associations between clothing and power, with a focus on Europe during the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries. It condenses an impressive amount of research into a short book and presents the material entertainingly and informatively. The element that was newest and most interesting to me was the rise of association between military uniforms and the monarchy in the late 18th century. It seems that pre-revolutionary France had the only European court at which military uniform could not be worn; specific court dress was still required.
As well as consideration of broad trends, such as the shifts between uniform and frock coat wearing as monarchs changed, 'Dressed to Rule' is enlivened by personal anecdotes from the period. For example, a number of monarchs and members of court evidently found the elaborate nature of the clothing that had to wear rather tiresome. Nonetheless they wore it as they understood its significance. The role of the city of Lyon as a tireless promoter of fancy silk garments is also rather fascinating. As Mansel comments, perhaps this explains some of its unwillingness to welcome the French Revolution, which destroyed demand for its luxurious products?
The twentieth century is covered in much less depth than the eighteenth and nineteenth, however the importance of military uniform to fascist and communist regimes is touched upon. Overall the book spends most of its time on the importance military uniforms. I would have liked to have seen a little more discussion of women's costumes, although these are mentioned at various points. Queen Victoria's mourning and Catherine the Great's uniform-gowns, for instance, are talked about. Perhaps not with quite the same respect as the male monarchs, though.
This is overall an interesting book on an intriguing subject. If you have an interest in the power of clothing, especially uniforms, in European history, I recommend it.
As well as consideration of broad trends, such as the shifts between uniform and frock coat wearing as monarchs changed, 'Dressed to Rule' is enlivened by personal anecdotes from the period. For example, a number of monarchs and members of court evidently found the elaborate nature of the clothing that had to wear rather tiresome. Nonetheless they wore it as they understood its significance. The role of the city of Lyon as a tireless promoter of fancy silk garments is also rather fascinating. As Mansel comments, perhaps this explains some of its unwillingness to welcome the French Revolution, which destroyed demand for its luxurious products?
The twentieth century is covered in much less depth than the eighteenth and nineteenth, however the importance of military uniform to fascist and communist regimes is touched upon. Overall the book spends most of its time on the importance military uniforms. I would have liked to have seen a little more discussion of women's costumes, although these are mentioned at various points. Queen Victoria's mourning and Catherine the Great's uniform-gowns, for instance, are talked about. Perhaps not with quite the same respect as the male monarchs, though.
This is overall an interesting book on an intriguing subject. If you have an interest in the power of clothing, especially uniforms, in European history, I recommend it.
October 12, 2016
I did quite enjoy this book, but from the title I did not expect there to be this much of a focus on military uniform. It seems like the author enjoys the subject very much and the book is very well researched, so this is not neccessarily a bad thing, but it just isn't particularly interesting to me.
For someone interested in the history of military-uniforms throughout the ages (definitely a neglected subject), this book is a great find!
For someone interested in the history of military-uniforms throughout the ages (definitely a neglected subject), this book is a great find!
Want to read
March 31, 2010georgian, historical, regency, royalty, victorian
August 26, 2010
I didn't like this one as much as I thought I would. Oh well.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews