The terms
breeches or
knee-breeches specifically designate the knee-length garments worn by men from the later 16th century to the early 19th century. After that, they survived in England only in very formal wear, such as the
livery worn by some servants into the early 20th century, and the court dress worn by others, such as
King's Counsel, down to the present day on formal occasions. •
Spanish breeches, stiff, ungathered breeches popular from the 1630s until the 1650s. •
Petticoat breeches, very full, ungathered breeches popular from the 1650s until the early 1660s, giving the impression of a woman's
petticoat. •
Rhinegraves, full, gathered breeches popular from the early 1660s until the mid-1670s, often worn with an overskirt over them. •
Fall front breeches, breeches with a panel or flap covering the front opening and fastened up with buttons at either corner. •
Dress breeches are tight-fitting and have buttons and a strap and buckle (which are detachable) closure at the bottoms, made of velvet or
barathea wool, used for livery, formal and court dress. • From the 1890s to the 1930s a form of breeches called
knickerbockers or knickers (US) were in fashion with both men and boys. Like their 18th century predecessor, they reached and were fastened just below the knees, but the thighs were more loosely worn. There were various versions including "
plus fours" for golf wear which reached down a further four inches below the knees, or "plus twos" that reached down only two inches, often used as apparel for the sport of bird-shooting, especially in Britain. • () are the traditional breeches of the islands of
Greece from the westernmost
Ionian Islands to the easternmost,
Cyprus, and the southern coast of the
Peloponnese. Greek breeches are extremely roomy and are meant to be tucked inside tall boots just below the knee. They were originally meant to facilitate movement on fishing boats and sailing ships. :They are usually accompanied by a long, wide piece of cloth turned many times around the natural waist as a belt. As the lack pockets, items (such as money) are stored inside the folds of this belt. are usually made of sturdy cotton
double cloth, usually dark blue or black, with brighter color cloth used as the belt. They were usually worn with white, long-sleeved shirts and a roomy waistcoat. : In Cyprus, the was originally made of white material which was then sent to a dyer known as a ( in
Cypriot Greek, related Standard Modern Greek , "painter", but semantically , ) to
garment dye the after making-up. : In contrast to its present-day use, black-coloured in Cyprus were worn as a formal dress in events such as weddings or for going to church on Sunday, whereas the everyday that Cypriot men wore were of thin blue or white cloth in the summer, and thicker dark blue cloth (similar to the Cretan blue ) in the winter. In the hills, Cypriot men wore shorter in order to make their work easier and wore (, "Frankish boots", i.e. boots in a Western European style), a knee-length boot. In large cities of Cyprus, the was always black. • Breeches () are still worn by many
Hasidic men, particularly those of
Galician or
Hungarian origin, such as
Satmar and
Sanz • In the 18th and 19th centuries, the term
breech-cloth or
breech-clout was also used to describe the apron-like
loincloths worn by some
Indigenous peoples of the Americas. • In the
Book of Exodus, the (priests) were commanded to wear white linen breeches, the
priestly undergarments.
Riding breeches by
David Morier around 1765.
Riding breeches are specifically designed for
equestrian activities. Traditionally, they were tight in the legs, stopping about halfway down the calf, with buttons or laces in the calf section, and had a pronounced flare through the thighs that allowed freedom of movement for the rider. Before the invention of the
fly front, they were made with flaps, to wide, called
falls. However, with the advent of modern stretch materials such as
spandex, many modern breeches have no flare and fit skin-tight. In some cases, zippers and velcro fastenings have replaced laces and buttons at the calves as well. The flared style is seen at times, and is available to
cavalry and other historic
reenactors. There are four main types of riding breeches: ;Knee-patch breeches :Breeches that stop mid-calf, designed to be worn with
tall boots, which come up to the knee, or with
half chaps and short
paddock boots. They have grippy material, usually suede leather or a "grippy" synthetic, only on the inside of the knee area. These are the only type of breeches worn by
hunt seat riders.
Show jumpers,
eventers,
show hunters, as well as some
endurance riders, and pleasure riders also often use the breeches. ;Full seat breeches :Breeches with suede or another grippy material from the knee, up the inner thigh, and across the buttocks. These breeches are primarily seen in
dressage competition, where the "sticky" seat helps riders stay quiet and deep in the saddle as they sit the
gaits of their
horses. However, they are also worn by
eventers and other riders. They are designed to be worn with
tall boots or
half chaps. ;Jockeys' breeches :Also known as
silks, jockeys' breeches are made from a white lightweight fabric, usually
nylon and typically have elasticised lower legs. Some racing authorities have regulations that require a jockey's name to be inscribed along the thigh of the breeches. ;Jodhpur breeches . :These breeches, which are also called
jodhpurs, are a type of riding pants with legs extending to the ankles, where they end in a small cuff that fits over the top of a low riding boot. They are commonly placed in a separate category from other types of breeches due to their additional length. They are most often worn by children. However, they are worn by adults in the show ring in the United Kingdom and Australia, and in the United States are seen on adults during riding lessons and for casual riding. These riding pants have elastic straps or "stirrups" that run under the rider's boots, and are usually worn with garters, to prevent them from riding up. They are meant to be worn with
jodhpur boots, also known as "paddock boots", which come up just above the ankles. The advantage of jodhpurs is that expensive high
riding boots are not required to protect the calf of the leg from rubbing against the horse's flank or the stirrup leathers. ;Kentucky jodhpurs :Kentucky jodhpurs are full-length riding pants used exclusively in
saddle seat style riding. Like hunt seat jodhpurs, they are close-fitting from waist to ankle, but differ in that they are much longer, ending with a flared bell bottom that fits over the jodhpur boot, usually extending longer than the heel of the boot in back, and covering the arch of the foot (but not the toe) in front. The overall look gives the impression of a rider with a long leg, a desired
equitation standard. Like the hunt seat jodhpur, they have elastic straps that run under the boot to help hold the pant leg in place. Color is important in selecting breeches for competition. Sanctioning organizations and tradition both dictate that show clothing is to be quiet, classic and conservative in design. White is common in
dressage, and is also seen in
show jumping. Beige is seen in most
hunt seat-style equestrian disciplines, though light grays, "canary" (a dull yellow), rust, tan, and an olive-greenish colour are periodically popular with hunt seat competitors.
Eventers wear classic colours for the dressage and stadium phase, but less classic colours may be seen on the cross-country course (especially at the lower levels) to match the "stable colours" of the rider.
Saddle seat riders, whose riding clothing styles derived from men's business suits, wear Kentucky jodhpurs in dark colors, usually black, navy blue, or a shade that matches the riding coat. Breeches may be front or side zip. Some competitors believe the side-zip to give a cleaner appearance and to be more flattering. Styles are also developing to parallel trends in street clothing, including low-rise breeches and brightly colored and patterned breeches & jodhpurs that are aimed primarily at children. Riding breeches were formerly made of thick cavalry-
twill and had flared thighs (balloon legs), until the invention and use of multi-stretch fabrics like
Nylon and
Spandex became widespread for riding in the 1960s. The balloon legs were there to accommodate the riders knees as they sat in the saddle, but fabrics that stretched in all four directions made such excess material unnecessary and the form-fitting and much thinner modern breeches and jodhpurs became normal.
Fencing breeches Fencing breeches are worn in the sport of
fencing to permit fencers to extend their legs more than they could wearing normal jogging trousers or tracksuit bottoms. Fencing breeches are also used as
protective clothing for the legs. ==See also==