The word
culottes is of
French languageFrench is a Romance language globally spoken by about 65 million people as a first language , by 50 million as a second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired foreign language, with significant speakers in 57 countries. Most native speakers of the language live in France,...
origin. Historically, the word "culottes" has always referred to the knee-breeches commonly worn by gentlemen of the European upper-classes from the late Middle Ages or Renaissance through the early 19th century. Culottes were normally closed and fastened about the leg, to the knee, by either buttons, a strap and buckle, or by a draw-string. During the
French RevolutionThe French Revolution was a period of political and social upheaval and radical change in the history of France, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based...
(late 18th century), the working-class revolutionaries were known as the "
sans-culottesSans-culottes was a term created 1790 - 1792 by the French to describe the poorer members of the Third Estate, according to the dominant theory because they usually wore pantaloons instead of the fashionable knee-length culotte.-History:The term came to refer to the ill-clad and ill-equipped...
" (literally, "without culottes"), and derived their name from their preference for pantaloons rather than the upper-class culottes.
Military uniforms incorporated culottes as a standard uniform article, the lower leg being covered by either stockings, leggings, or knee-high boots.
The word
culottes is of
French languageFrench is a Romance language globally spoken by about 65 million people as a first language , by 50 million as a second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired foreign language, with significant speakers in 57 countries. Most native speakers of the language live in France,...
origin. Historically, the word "culottes" has always referred to the knee-breeches commonly worn by gentlemen of the European upper-classes from the late Middle Ages or Renaissance through the early 19th century. Culottes were normally closed and fastened about the leg, to the knee, by either buttons, a strap and buckle, or by a draw-string. During the
French RevolutionThe French Revolution was a period of political and social upheaval and radical change in the history of France, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based...
(late 18th century), the working-class revolutionaries were known as the "
sans-culottesSans-culottes was a term created 1790 - 1792 by the French to describe the poorer members of the Third Estate, according to the dominant theory because they usually wore pantaloons instead of the fashionable knee-length culotte.-History:The term came to refer to the ill-clad and ill-equipped...
" (literally, "without culottes"), and derived their name from their preference for pantaloons rather than the upper-class culottes.
Culottes in military uniforms
Military uniforms incorporated culottes as a standard uniform article, the lower leg being covered by either stockings, leggings, or knee-high boots. Culottes were a common part of military uniforms during the European war of the eighteenth-century (the
War of the Spanish SuccessionThe War of the Spanish Succession was fought among several European powers, principally the Holy Roman Empire, Great Britain, the Dutch Republic, Portugal, and the Duchy of Savoy, against the Kingdoms of France and Spain and the Electorate of Bavaria, over a possible unification of the Kingdoms of...
, the
War of the Austrian SuccessionThe War of the Austrian Succession involved nearly all the powers of Europe...
, the
Seven Years' WarThe Seven Years' War lasted between 1754 and 1763 and involved all of the major European powers of the period. The war pitted Prussia and Britain and a coalition of smaller German states against an alliance consisting of Austria, France, Russia, Sweden, and Saxony...
, the Franco-British Colonial Wars, and the
American RevolutionThe American Revolution is the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America at first rejected the governance of the Parliament of Great Britain, and later the British monarchy itself, to become the sovereign United States of...
).
Other, later definitions
The women's fashion industry commonly co-opts words that have historically been used to describe men's garments and uses them to describe an entirely different garment, often creating confusion among historians and those who read history. For example, currently, the term "culottes" in French is now used to describe women's
pantiesPanties or knickers or pants or undies are a form of underwear, usually light and snug-fitting, designed to be worn by women or girls in the area directly below the waist. Panties are not typically worn by men or boys...
, an article of clothing that has little or no relation to the historic culottes.
Women's culottes
Another latter-day use of the word
culottes describes a split or divided
skirtA skirt is a tube- or cone-shaped garment that hangs from the waist and covers all or part of the legs.In European culture, skirts are usually considered women's clothing. However, there are exceptions...
. During the
Victorian EraThe Victorian era of the United Kingdom was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from June 1837 until her death on the 22nd of January 1901. The reign was a long period of prosperity for the British people, as profits gained from the overseas British Empire, as well as from industrial improvements...
(mid- to late-nineteenth century) long split skirts were developed for horseback riding so that women could sit astride a man's
saddleA saddle is a supportive structure for a rider or other load, fastened to an animal's back by a girth. The most common type is the equestrian saddle designed for a horse, but specialized saddles have been created for camels and other creatures...
rather than riding side-saddle. The term "culottes" was co-opted from the original French definition of the word to describe these split riding skirts. Later, split skirts were developed to provide women more freedom to do activities such as
gardeningGardening is the practice of growing ornamental or useful plants. Ornamental plants are normally grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance. Useful plants may be grown for consumption or for a variety of other purposes, such as medicines or dyes...
, cleaning,
bikeA bicycle, also known as a bike, push bike or cycle, is a pedal-driven, human-powered vehicle with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist or a bicyclist....
riding, etc. and still look like one is wearing a skirt.
Skort
- In place of the term "culottes," the term skort
A skort is a pair of women's shorts with a flap of fabric in front to make it look like a skirt. The term "skort" is used idiomatically in some regions. While some garments sold as culottes resemble short trousers, to be a skort they need to look like skirts...
(a portmanteau for skirt and shorts) is more widely used in some areas. While some garments sold as culottes resemble short trousersFor the TrouSerS implementation of the TCG Software Stack, see Trusted Computing Group.Trousers are an item of clothing worn on the lower part of the body from the waist to the ankles, covering both legs separately...
, to truly be a skort it needs to look like a skirt. Thus, they differ from trousers or shortsShorts are a garment worn by both men and women over their pelvic area, circling the waist, and covering the upper part of the upper legs or more, sometimes extending as far as the knee, but not covering the entire length of the leg, either as outer or undergarment...
by being much fuller at the bottom (hemTo hem a piece of cloth , a garment workerfolds up a cut edge, folds it up again, and then sews it down. The process of hemming thus completely encloses the cut edge in cloth, so that it cannot ravel....
) than at the waistThe waist is the part of the abdomen between the rib cage and hips. On proportionate people, the waist is the narrowest part of the torso.Waistline refers to the horizontal line where the waist is narrowest, or to the general appearance of the waist...
. A skort is shorts that have a front covering to resemble a skirt or short pant legs with a same length or longer skirt sewn over the top.
- Some culottes have a part sewn over only the front, some are shorts with a skirt sewn over them.
- While these may not be completely the same, they are often called by either name, so either term can apply.
School uniforms
Culottes are used in girls school uniforms along with skirts as an option or culottes are brought in as a replacement to skirts. Culottes are mainly worn as part a uniform mainly to primary, middle and Catholic schools.
Culottes were also part of the uniform of Brownie Guides up until recently when the uniform was modernised and the traditional brown culottes were replaced.