Dressing the Part: King Louis-Philippe I, Tailoring, and Fashioning the July Monarchy

Abstract

ABSTRACT The iconography of King Louis-Philippe I and his invoices for garments purchased new and refurbished between 1831 and 1846 bring to light how the July Monarchy deployed fashionable menswear in a canny politics of image-making. In doing so the regime used dress to establish the credentials of the new regime. This work examines Louis-Philippe’s iconography alongside the written records of his purchasing habits to show how the regime used a strategic combination of visually tame military uniforms and subdued, but fashionable civilian menswear to create a new visual and sartorial vocabulary meant to legitimize the monarchy.