garments, pendent sleeves, hoods, and gorgets, through this reign. The only exception is that of a lady, who astonishes us with a small waist and a kind of pointed tippet, the ends of which fall much below the waist. The cuffs of the under sleeves are now frequently ornamented with buttons, and the long cuffs, instead of hanging from the wrist as before described, are made like a long narrow bag, slit open from the elbow to the shoulder, where they are fastened into the robe; the arm passes through the opening, and the rest of the sleeve falls to the ground, and even trails upon it. The frightful gorgets concealed every thing but the eyes, nose, and mouth, and the hood fell over them. The men still wore long or short tunics, capuchons, and shoes, tied across the instep; the face was shaven, and the hair fell scarcely as low as the ears.

The capuchon of Jeanne, Comtesse de Champagne, is remarkable for its form, being pointed in front, with a jewel hanging upon the forehead. Instead of enveloping the face so as to conceal the hair, the ends merely hang down behind, and curls are seen beneath the folds.

In the reign of Philip of Valois, we find the dress much altered. The men appear in chaussées and doublets, some with long, some with very short skirts, scarcely reaching below the waist. The sleeves are generally rather larger, the shoes very pointed, and the hats much like those now worn. Red, blue, and green, were the prevailing colours for the garments. A curious appendage to the hats is a long piece of black stuff, which is fastened to one side of the hat, the other end being

thrown over the left shoulder.

This band was frequently held in the hand, and the hat was allowed to fall from the head upon the back. The capuchons varied in shape and size according to the taste of the wearer.

The materials of which the dresses were formed were splendid; silk, velvet, cloth of gold, and cloth of silver, with jewels of various kinds, were generally worn by the noblesse; and in this respect the French equalled, if they did not surpass, the English. The hood of Philip of Valois rather more resembles a hat than those usually seen. The coiffure of Jeanne de

Sancerre will not excite the admiration of

my

fair readers; it completely envelopes the head, joining the wimple, having a sort of ears standing out, which give it a very strange appearance.

Great extravagance in everything belonging to the toilette was very apparent

in France about the year 1357. Gold and silver glittered on the garments, and precious stones became very costly, from the immense demand there was for them. The côte-hardi was usually embroidered; the under sleeves quite tight, and the upper ones long and narrow. A feather is now for the first time seen to grace the cap of a gentleman, and the taste in bonnets, as they were called, was very various,—some were pointed, some broad, some with brims, some without; in short, the variety was quite endless.

About the year 1367 we first find the French ladies allowing their hair to ornament their heads,

without the addition of cap, bonnet, or hood. It was arranged in one large curl, or plait, on each side of the face, and only a small wreath of flowers or jewels interspersed with it.

Now, too, the trains of the gowns became very long, and they were held up by pages. The shape of the robe in other respects remained the same; but when Queen Isabella of Bavaria came to reign in France, great changes took place in the empire of fashion. Charles VI. and his court, prodigal as they are represented to have been in

every thing relating to dress, were still far behind the splendid magnificence introduced by the new queen, of whom Brantome says: "On donne le los à la Reyne, Isabelle de Baviere, femme du Roy Charles Sixième, d'avoir apporté en France les pompes, et les gorgiasetez, pour bien habiller

superbement et gorgiasement les dames."

The form of cap given above was soon followed by

the sugar-loaf; but

the capuchons, frightful as they were sometimes like cushions, sometimes like horns, stuffed out and ornamented with a couvre-chef thrown over the top-still continued la mode

with those who had not courage to wear a tower. The

gentlemen, too, seemed to amuse their fancy in inventing new coiffures, each one more ugly and clumsy than

CHARLES YT

the other. The change must have been great in these head-dresses when Isabella exerted her genius and power to remodel the toilette of her subjects. Gowns soon became lower in the body, the côte-hardi was adorned with ermine and jewels, the petticoat was splendidly emblazoned, the mantle was magnificent, and the shoes were pointed. The hair, perhaps out of compliment to the queen, was concealed; and before the end of the reign, we read that a deep flounce ornamented the jupe of one of the fair dames of the court.

The gentlemen shone in velvet, gold, and jewels; their chaussées were tight, their shoes ridiculously pointed; their doublets full,

short, and embroidered, the under sleeves tight, the

upper ones immensely long, open, pointed, and jagged. The hair was curled, and a kind of jewelled cushion was laid upon it; indeed, the coiffure of both ladies and gentlemen was not dissimilar.

The bipartite habit, introduced into France and England towards the close of the 13th century, was now falling into disuse amongst the higher classes; but in a journal of this time we find it recorded, "that in October 1409, the Sieur Jean de Montague was conducted from the châtelet to the halle, being seated high in a cart, and dressed in a garment half red and half white, and a hood of the same, with a red buskin and a white one, and gilt spurs upon his heel."

The reign of Charles VII. shews a great change in fashion. The sleeves of the doublet appear to be wadded upon the point of the shoulders, so as to raise thema mode that we perceive in the ladies' gowns in the reign of our Queen Elizabeth. Bottines appear to be worn, and jewelled collars and girdles. In short, every thing that riches could procure, or the inventive genius of man and woman conceive, was visible in the costume of the French nation.

In one portrait of Charles VII. the monarch is represented in a garment similar to a blouse; his hat is of a modern form, but has a pattern of lozenges worked upon it. In another picture he wears a full green casaque, reaching half way to his knees; it is edged with a fringe; the sleeves approach to the gigot form, the stockings meet the nether garments, which, unlike the usual fashion, are turned back. No hair is visible. A short time afterwards, we see gentlemen with vests covered with embroidery, and sleeves of a different shape, not very wide till they reach the