ABSTRACT
In early modern courts, fashionably dressed men embodied and represented aristocratic authority. This essay examines the fundamental importance of male attire and adornment, exploring the lavish materiality of noble array and the garments that clothed and accentuated ideal male bodies and silhouettes, including doublets, hose and breeches. Attention is drawn as well to accessories that early modern courtly men flaunted, notably shoes and codpieces. We will see that men were discerning fashion critics, closely attuned to fashion change. Focusing primarily on England and Italy, though venturing elsewhere in Europe and beyond, this essay demonstrates the ways that men’s dress communicated alliance, submission and domination and sent dynamic and politically charged messages loud and clear.
