Men’s Clothing for the Lower Orders

Shirt

A man’s basic undergarment was his shirt. The peasant shirt was made of linen, thigh length, and was, like the woman’s smock, cut in rectangular pieces.It pulled on over the head and had a mid chest opening with a neckband, with or without a collar which tied or buttoned, and long, fairly full sleeves with cuffs.

do not close the front opening with lacing: that’s a Hollywood invention.

Colored shirts are seen, but unbleached white is most likely to have been worn.

Breeches, or nether hose. were the trousers of the peasant class. They were most often knee length, gathered or pleated into a waistband, and tapered to gather or pleat into legbands which tied or buttoned. They could have a plain fly front, but many still retained a triangular flap opening called a codpiece, which fastened with buttons or ties.

While the style is rarely seen at modern reenactments, some netherhose were much shorter, to the upper thigh, and often worn under a long jerkin so that they barely showed.

the peasant jerkin was a loose, unstructured vest, often made of leather. It was usually thigh length, and could have either a high round or a deeper V neck. It laced. tied, or buttoned up the front, or was simply held closed by a belt. Jerkins were often made of leather.

Sleeves were separate garments, that fastened to the jerkin with ties. They were worn in cool weather.

Cloaks were made of wool. They were probably not full length, but more likely mid calf or knee length, Full length cloaks worn in wet, muddy weather are not practical.

Shoes, hats, and other accessories will be discussed in the accessories section.