In 1881, a group of high society women gathered in London to form a new organization. They named their group the
Rational Dress Society
, intending to reform Victorian women’s dress. The group came up with
criteria for the perfect dress
. It included:
- Freedom of Movement
- Absence of pressure over any part of the body
- No more weight than is necessary for warmth, and both weight and warmth evenly distributed.
- Grace and beauty combined with comfort and convenience
- Not departing too conspicuously from the ordinary dress of the time
Their ideas were revolutionary and controversial. Typical
Victorian dress styles
incorporated heavy fabrics, tight corsets, bustles, hoop skirts, and extravagant ornamentation. The women argued that dress reform would allow them to participate in activities like cycling. Bicycles had become a symbol of freedom for many women who found the sport liberating and emancipating.
Lady Harberton
A founding member of the society was Viscountess Florence Wallace Pomeroy, also known as Lady Harberton. Lady Harberton, the daughter of wealthy landowners,
married James S. Pomeroy
. He later became the
6
th
Viscount Harberton
. In 1880, Lady Harberton took up the cause of dress reform. She loved to cycle, but heavy, long skirts prevented her from enjoying the activity. She
championed the reformed dress
, which consisted of baggy pantaloons worn underneath a
knee-length skirt
. She also invented the
divided skirt
, which initially
evoked jeers
on
both sides of the pond
. Some feared that trifling with a traditional women’s dress was a step down a path to loosening moral values.
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20211105024931im_/https://blog.newspapers.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Screen-Shot-2021-09-15-at-12.50.11-PM-1024x905.png)
In 1883, the Rational Dress Society
sponsored an exhibition
held in London. The exhibit included shorter dresses, divided skirts, “costumes for climbing for lady mountaineers, and a costume for walking.” One man reported to
The Times
that the women in his family
discarded their corsets
and found new freedom in dancing, walking, tricycling, lawn tennis, and other open-air exercises. They vowed never to return to corsets and heavy skirts. Attitudes for many women
(and men)
were undergoing a
seismic shift
. The “
woman of the future
” wanted freedom in her clothing ? and freedom within other aspects of her life.
The struggle for rational dress came to a head after an incident in 1898. Lady Harberton went cycling in Surrey. She stopped for lunch at the Hautboy Hotel but was
turned away
for
improper dress
. Lady Harberton
sued the hotel
but lost the case because the hotel had offered alternative seating in the bar. Nevertheless, the case brought attention to rational dress and a victory for women who advocated for it. Lady Harberton spent decades promoting clothing that would make life easier for women. Later in her life, she also became an advocate for the
women’s suffrage movement
. Lady Harberton
died in 1911
.
The Guardian
eulogized her as an “enthusiastic and undaunted advocate” for
dress reform
.
If you would like to learn more about Lady Harberton, or the Rational Dress Society, search
Newspapers.com
™ today!