New online course explores royal fashion through the years

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Mar 27, 2018

The University of Glasgow and independent charity Historic Royal Palaces have launched a new free online course analysing the royal wardrobes of Britain on the FutureLearn platform.

The course, called a History of Royal Fashion, explores the style secrets of British kings and queens over 500 years. It looks at the power-dressing Tudors, fashion-conscious Stuarts, and the complicated dress etiquette of the Victorians, and goes behind the scenes at the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, Kensington Palace and the Banqueting House to explore how royal fashion influenced society.

Sally Tuckett, lecturer in Dress and Textile Histories at the University of Glasgow said: “Seeing surviving historic garments, often in the palaces in which they were originally worn, offers a unique insight into the history of royal fashion, and we are really excited to show everyone the stories and discussions that the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection can lead to. 

“We’ve had a great response from people around the world with thousands of people already enrolled and we can’t wait to get started on the 7th May!”

The course will study items from the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection at Kensington Palace and the Tudor-era Bristowe hat – thought to have been worn by Henry VIII - at Hampton Court Palace, analysing how royal fashions over the centuries changed to be practical, to entertain or to impress.

The online course joins an increasing offer of online educational resources online, with Google’s Arts & Culture initiative leading the way with over 400 fashion features from leading institutions, 360-degree videos of iconic designs and more than 500 digital exhibitions.