The Jacobean Period 1603-1625

by admin
Upon the death of Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots' son, James VI of Scotland ascended the English throne as James I.   Although a more notorious clothes horse than Elizabeth, fashions did not change radically during James' reign.   White starched linen ruffs and farthingale-supported skirts were still the norm although the large "millstone" ruffs of the Dutch never caught on in England.   Soft, unstarched "falling ruffs" began to appear in this period and the waistline of men's doublet started to rise.   However, the style of clothing at the end of the Elizabethan period bled into the Jacobean period making James I's claims to fame limited to surviving Guy Fawkes Gunpowder Plot (November 5, 1605) and commissioning the King James version of the Bible in 1611.   James' biggest contribution to fashion: Charles I.  
© 2004 Kass McGann. All Rights Reserved. The Author of this work retains full copyright for this material. Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this document for non-commercial private research or educational purposes provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are preserved on all copies.

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