Beribboned

In honour of Eurovision, I bring you the epaulet. Mine are yet another frivolous rendition, concocted from fur, velvet ribbon and sequins. But this is not so far from the origins of the epaulet as you might imagine.

Louis the XIVEpaulets bear some relation to the tooled leather ‘pteruges’ of ancient Roman military uniforms. However, it was towards the end of the 17th century that bunches of ribbons were worn on the shoulder of the military coat. Men were far more frivolous about fashion in those days, even the military gentlemen, for these shoulder ribbons were in part a decorative trim. Just take a look Louis the XIV’s over-the-top numbers. They did serve a practical purpose too, preventing the shoulder belts from slipping.

It was only after the 18th century that epaulets denoted rank, whether worn on right or left shoulders, or both. Officers were distinguished by more ornate gold or silver epaulets. They came fringed, or winged, or balled, depending upon a man’s division.

Today epaulets have been largely replaced by shoulder straps made from cloth and sewn into the shoulder seam. How boring.