Brunswick (clothing) explained

A Brunswick gown or Brunswick is a two-piece woman's gown of the mid-eighteenth century.

Description

The Brunswick comprises a hip-length (or three-quarter length) jacket with a high neckline and a hood, worn with a matching petticoat.^[1] The jacket sleeves consist of an upper sleeve with flounces at the elbow and a tight, wrist-length lower sleeve.

The Brunswick is one of several informal jacket-and-petticoat costumes popular in the later 18th century, derived from working class costume but made up in fine fabrics (usually silk).^[2]

Originating in France (based on a German fashion), the Brunswick was also popular in England and the United States as a traveling costume.

Today, the term is generically used to describe a hip-length, close-fitting padded coat with a neckline (and not necessarily with a hood).

Paintings depicting Brunswicks

• Portrait of Lady Mary Fox by Pompeo Batoni, 1767.
• Self-portrait of Anna Bacherini Piattoli, 1776.
• Portrait of a Girl Holding a Spaniel by Alexander Roslin.^[3]

References

1. Web site: A Colonial Lady's Clothing: A Glossary of Terms. 2020-08-21. ouramericanrevolution.org. en.
2. Web site: 2015-08-14. 18th Century Gowns: Round-Gown, Brunswick, and Sack-Back Gown • Paper Thin Personas. 2020-08-21. Paper Thin Personas. en-US.
3. Web site: 2018-04-02. Rate the Dress: an 18th century Hoodie. 2020-08-21. The Dreamstress. en-US.

Bibliography

• Baumgarten, Linda: What Clothes Reveal: The Language of Clothing in Colonial and Federal America, Yale University Press, 2002.
• Ribeiro, Aileen

The Art of Dress: Fashion in England and France 1750–1820, Yale University Press, 1995,

• Ribeiro, Aileen: Dress in Eighteenth Century Europe 1715–1789, Yale University Press, 2002,