Breeches Collection

The Ringers of Launcells Tower, Frederick Smallfield (1829-1915)
Oil on canvas, English School, 1887. This painting was inspired by the poem The Ringers of Launcells Tower by Rev. R.S. Hawker of Morwenstow in his book Cornish Ballads and Other Poems

Gentleman with shire horse, Mid Wales
A gentleman holding the reins of a shire horse in front of a house, probably somewhere in Mid Wales. A little girl watches from a distance

Integrity retiring from Office!, 1801
Integrity retiring from Office!, Pub. 1801 (hand coloured engraving). William Pitt the Younger (1759-1806) resigns as Prime Minister in protest at Kings rejection of the bills to unite England

German circus scrap -- dog jumping through a paper hoop. 19th century

Jem Mace, Boxer
" Gypsy" Jem Mace (1831 - 1910), English champion and known as the " Father of Modern Boxing"

BREECHES GENEVA BIBLE
Geneva Breeches Bible, photographed at Whitehall, Cheam. Date: 1557

Male Riding Dress 1813
Double-breasted cut-away coat worn open to reveal a white waistcoat with stand collar, shirt frill & white stock, leather breeches with falls, top boots, spurs & top hat

Modern era. Arquebusier. Engraving. Museo Militar, 1883. Later colouration. Date: 2019

Rescue with the breeches buoy
Antique illustration of a Rescue with the breeches buoy

SIMON FRASER (1667?-1747). 11th Baron Lovat. Scottish Jacobite intriguer. Etching, 1746, by William Hogarth

Breeches-Buoy used to save the crew of Esras, East Runton
Illustration showing a Breeches-Buoy in use, to save the crew of the Norwegian ship Esras, East Runton, Norfolk, 1901. Esras had run aground on the Hasboro sands

Dog Rescued from Wreck
All saved ! the last crew member of a sinking sailing boat is pulled to safety on a breeches buoy, clutching the ships dog

Board of Trade Rocket Apparatus for Saving Lives from Shipwr
Engraving showing Board of Trade equipment for use to help shipwrecked sailors, 1886. The items are (from left to right, top to bottom)

Woman Fencing 1930
Eleanor Macdonald, the only woman to whom the degree of Maitre d Armes de l Academie d Epee de Paris has been awarded, shows us how attractive breeches can be

Uncorking Old Sherry, 1805
Uncorking Old Sherry, pub. 1805 (hand coloured engraving). William Pitt (1759-1806) giving a speech on 6th March 1805

Two women in fancy dress with tankards
Two women in fancy dress costumes comprising of knickerbockers, shirts and waistcoats, raise a tankard of beer each - presumably they re meant to be some kind of 17th century roisterers? c.1928

English Royalists 1640-9
English Royalist soldiers: doublet & breeches, lace falling collars, lace-edged boot hose tops, bucket-top boots, plumed hats, cloak

Thomas Belcher, engraved by Charles Turner (1775-1857) (coloured litho)
BSA273455 Thomas Belcher, engraved by Charles Turner (1775-1857) (coloured litho) by Guest, Thomas Douglas (1781-c.1845) (after); 40x30 cm; Private Collection; (add.info.: Thomas Belcher (1783-1854)

A man outside Brookss Club, London, 1815. Artist: George Cruikshank
A man outside Brookss Club, London, 1815. Behold at Brookss step-nay! I ll be bound to say a figure such as this you ll see there every day

London Trade Card - James Potter, Leather Breeches Maker, at the sign of the Boot and Breeches, Shoemaker Row, near Aldgate. 18th century

3 Dolls Harlequin C1810
Harlequin, Pulcinello (Punch) and Bobeche (Clown)

Man & Woman Costume 1806
Man: top hat, top boots, drab coat with sleeves padded & gathered at the shoulder, breeches. Woman: close bonnet, blue pelisse, short cape, vandyked falling collar

Thomas Cribb, engraved by Anthony Molteno (fl. 1783-1830) (litho)
BSA273453 Thomas Cribb, engraved by Anthony Molteno (fl.1783-1830) (litho) by Guest, Thomas Douglas (1781-c.1845) (after); 53.5x68 cm; Private Collection; (add.info)

Ibant qui poterant, qui non potuere cadebant (Those who could
5864164 Ibant qui poterant, qui non potuere cadebant (Those who could, walked; those who could not, fell), 1739 (pastel, gouache on paper on canvas) by Troost

Playing in Parts, etched by James Gillray (1757-1815) published by Hannah Humphrey in
NCO191733 Playing in Parts, etched by James Gillray (1757-1815) published by Hannah Humphrey in 1801 (hand-coloured etching) by North

Lumber Jills, Land Girls in Devon, WW1
Lumber Jills, Land Girls in breeches, leggings and hobnailed boots, doing forestry work in Devon during the First World War. 1914-1918

Deaf Burke, 1839, engraved by C. Hunt, published in 1839 (colour litho)
BSA273464 Deaf Burke, 1839, engraved by C. Hunt, published in 1839 (colour litho) by Meyer, Henry Hoppner (c.1782-1847) (after); Private Collection; (add.info)

The Giant Factotum amusing himself, published by Hannah Humphrey in 1797
NCO190489 The Giant Factotum amusing himself, published by Hannah Humphrey in 1797 (hand-coloured etching) by Gillray, James (1757-1815); Courtesy of the Warden and Scholars of New College

Portrait of William Pitt, standing three-quarter length in a Dark Jacket and Breeches
824232 Portrait of William Pitt, standing three-quarter length in a Dark Jacket and Breeches, (oil on canvas) by Hoppner, John (1758-1810); 141.7x110.2 cm; Private Collection; (add.info)

John Plampin, c1752. Artist: Thomas Gainsborough
John Plampin, c1752. John Plampin (c1727-1805), inherited Shimpling and Chadacre Hall, near Lavenham, Suffolk, in 1757. From The Studio Volume 122. [The Studio Ltd, London, 1941]

Major Esterhazy
MAJOR MCFW ESTERHAZY French Major and German spy, connected with the Dreyfus Case Date: 1847 - 1923

Green Coat & Cane 1807
Green double-breasted cut-away coat with stand-fall collar & revers, white waistcoat, cravat & silk stockings, pale grey breeches, black pumps, top hat & fob ribbon

Man Dressing Circa 1800
An elderly gentleman at his toilet buttons up his waistcoat before donning his green coat. He also wears stockings & slippers, breeches a white shirt & cravat. circa 1800

Mending Day, by Ethel Parkinson. A little Dutch girl sits mending a little boys breeches, while he stands uncomfortably with a towel round his waist

French Velocipede C1820
An elaborately dressed man embarks on a velocipede ride, to the amazement of a lady spectator

Ceramic, The Boxer Tom Cribb: in canary breeches

Portrait of Two Women and a Boy, 1632. Creator: Thomas de Keyser
Portrait of Two Women and a Boy, 1632.

47th Rgt. Brooklyn - going to war games, between c1910 and c1915. Creator: Bain News Service
47th Rgt. Brooklyn - going to war games, between c1910 and c1915.

Labor Committee at Mill, Passaic, between c1910 and c1915. Creator: Bain News Service
Labor Committee at Mill, Passaic, between c1910 and c1915.

Strike committee at Gate of Mills - Passaic, between c1910 and c1915. Creator: Bain News Service
Strike committee at Gate of Mills - Passaic, between c1910 and c1915.

Wendell - Ex-capt. Harvard, 1913. Creator: Bain News Service
Wendell - Ex-capt. Harvard, 1913. Shows Harvard University football player Percy Langdon Wendell (1899-1932).

The Young Card Players, 1643. Creator: Antoine Le Nain
The Young Card Players, 1643. These rosy-cheeked children appear to play cards innocently, however they are actually trying to cheat the well-dressed boy, second from right.

The Right Hon. Benjamin Samuel Phillips, the new Lord Mayor of London, 1865. Creator: Unknown
The Right Hon. Benjamin Samuel Phillips, the new Lord Mayor of London, 1865. Engraving from a photograph by Messrs. Mayall. 'Mr

"The Time and Place", by J. Pettie, in the Exhibition of the British Institution, 1864. Creator: W Thomas
"The Time and Place", by J. Pettie, in the Exhibition of the British Institution, 1864. Engraving of a painting. '...the costume is that of the dissolute times of Charles II

Fashionable gentleman in coat, era of Marie Antoinette
5893570 Fashionable gentleman in coat, era of Marie Antoinette.; (add.info.: Fashionable gentleman in coat, breeches and boots with cane and hat, era of Marie Antoinette)

Parish Beadle, a petty officer of the police, in uniform with mace, bicorn and cape
FLO4688689 Parish Beadle, a petty officer of the police, in uniform with mace, bicorn and cape. Handcoloured copperplate engraving from William Henry Pyne's The World in Miniature: England

Guard of the Provosty of Paris, 1586. Drawn and lithographed by Alexandre Massard after a portrait in Roger de
FLO4571491 Guard of the Provosty of Paris, 1586. Drawn and lithographed by Alexandre Massard after a portrait in Roger de Gaignieres gallery portfolio IX 150 from Le Bibliophile Jacob aka Paul

French actor Jean Gauthier as Sully in Henri IV by Amable de Saint-Hilaire and Michel Delaporte, Cirque Olympique
FLO4632127 French actor Jean Gauthier as Sully in Henri IV by Amable de Saint-Hilaire and Michel Delaporte, Cirque Olympique, 1846

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"Breeches: A Timeless Garment Spanning Art, Sport, and Rescue" From the iconic painting "The Ringers of Launcells Tower" by Frederick Smallfield to the historic engraving "Integrity retiring from Office. " in 1801, they have left their mark on various aspects of human culture. These knee-length trousers were not only a fashionable choice but also served practical purposes. In the countryside, a gentleman with his shire horse in Mid Wales epitomized rural elegance while wearing breeches. Meanwhile, a German circus scrap showcased how this versatile garment transcended borders and found its place even under the big top. Breeches had an unexpected connection to religion too - the BREECHES GENEVA BIBLE was a significant translation that shaped religious discourse during its time. Male Riding Dress in 1813 demonstrated how these trousers became an essential part of equestrian attire for both style and functionality. Sports icons like Jem Mace, renowned boxer of his time, proudly donned breeches as they stepped into the ring. Thomas Belcher's engraved portrait captured this essence perfectly. The litho print depicted him with vibrant colors that brought out his fierce determination. But it wasn't just fashion and sports where breeches made their mark; they played a crucial role in rescue operations as well. The use of the breeches buoy to save stranded crews such as Esras at East Runton highlighted their life-saving capabilities. The Board of Trade Rocket Apparatus further exemplified how technology combined with these trousers could save lives from shipwrecks. Even women embraced this once-masculine garment as seen in Woman Fencing 1930 - challenging societal norms while displaying grace and strength simultaneously. Throughout history, whether adorning gentlemen or empowering women athletes, whether saving lives or gracing works of art – they have proven themselves timeless garments capable of capturing our imagination across various domains.