When I decided to join the SCA I decided to use it as a means of exploring in a tangable way, the past history of a city close to my heart: Nijmegen.
Nijmegen is situated only a few kilometers from the current German border and is within a very short trip from Cleves (Kleve) and the same distance again to Cologne (Koeln.) It was once I realised that the cities were so close that I began to plan for a wardrobe based on the regional styles. Meanwhile I did explore others, and these can be seen from the index page to this site.
Prachtgewänder:
Perhaps the most familiar style is the wide sleeved, distinctly Dutch, style most commonly painted by B. Bruyn the Elder. There are several features it shares with Dutch dress: sombre colours, trumpet sleeves and wire framed headdress. Yet the flared and decorative headdress is a "German" element also seen in a few Saxon portraits. There are many portraits which show this style in the most formalised There is a subtle but perceptible evolution of the style of dress which developed it's own flavour from the end of the Gothic period of the late 15thC to the end of the 16thC, and most likely beyond.
Burgersfraukleid:
This is essentially the everyday dress of the above style but less formalised and less likely to be made from such fine materials and jewelery. It is seen in the costume books (Trachtenbucher) of the 1570s by Jost Amman, Hans Weigel but most recognisably Abraham de Bruyn. It is worn both with and without the large full sleeves that make the dress of the region so recognisable. In fact the sleeves are listed separately in the inventory of a burger woman of the late 16thC of Cologne which suggested they are indeed pinned on.I have both a summer and winter version of this style.
Doublet Bodice and skirt:
There is also a doublet bodied style worn with an open robe, this tends to be worn very late in the century. It seems to be the acceptance of Spanish fashion after many years of resistance. Usually the enemble consists of a doublet body, matching skirt and open surcoat over the top. The surcoat has no sleeves usually but small tabs or slashed rolls at the shoulders. It is also worn with the Stickelchen, the iconic headdress of the region.
Mädchenkleid:
Girls often wear very different dress to their adult contemporaries, some styles are essentially smaller versions worn (usually later) by adult women, yet other wear robes with shorter gathered sleeves. Later there appears a style worn by girls here but adult women in neighbouring regions.
There is one particular robe style gown that I have decided to create.
Many thanks to Katherine Barich who has been a tremendous help. Without her I would have based my understandings solely on visual evidence with no textual to support any theories I had brewing.