Figure 1.-- The snapshot shows a lad of about 11-12 years of age wearing a modern commercially made Strapsleibchen in 1940 with black long stockings. You can see the front fastener on his right leg and (just barely) the side fastener on the same leg. Notice how smoothly the stockings encase his legs and how firmly they are held in place without wrinkling.

The most prominent country where long stockings were worn was Germany. Long stockings were worn in Germany in the late 19th century much as they were in many other European countries. In Germany during the first half of the 20th century long stockings for both boys and girls continued to be extremely common. They were worn promarily for warmth, but they were also seen as appropriate for formal occassions. The usual means of support was a Leibchen or bodice with long garters attached. These bodices were like sleeveless jackets, usually made of knit or other sturdy fabric with reinforced built-in straps over the shoulders to take the strain of button-on short trousers or skirts and additional buttons for the garter straps which tended to be strips of elastic with button-holes at regular intervals that allowed for length adjustment. There were some short comings with the basic Leibchen. During the 1930s German manufacturers improved the design of Leibchen for long stockings in several ways. They replaced the somewhat flimsy button-hole garter straps with better quality commerical hose supporters. These straps were typically made of wider elastic webbing, equipped with buckles for length adjustment, sewn permanently onto the bottom of the Liebchen, and featured sturdy metal loop and rubber-button clasps for attachment to the stocking tops of the same kind that women wore on their corsets. The metal clasps had the advantage of being stronger than sewn-on buttons and didn't come undone as easily under the pressures of sports or other physical activity.

Long Stockings

The most prominent country where long stockings were worn was Germany. Long stockings were worn in Germany in the late 19th century much as they were in many other European countries. Most boys wearing keepants wore them. We have, however, limited information on German boys' clothes during the 19th century. We have more informtion in the 20th century. There were, however, great geographical, cultural and social differences concerning the wearing o long stockings.After World War II, long stockings became less cinnon for older bioys, but children in primary schools still commonly wore them--especially during the cooler weather. In this respect, Germany diuffered from trends in Western Europoe. Trends in Eastern Eurpoe and Scandinavia were similar to Germany. A major factor was of course Germany's northern location and resulting cold climate. This was also in part because German boys mostly wore short pants all year round. In Germany during the first half of the 20th century long stockings for both boys and girls continued to be extremely common. They were worn promarily for warmth, but they were also seen as appropriate for formal occassions.

Primary Support Device: The Leibchen

The usual means of support was a Leibchen or bodice with long garters attached. These bodices were like sleeveless jackets, usually made of knit or other sturdy fabric with reinforced built-in straps over the shoulders to take the strain of button-on short trousers or skirts and additional buttons for the garter straps which tended to be strips of elastic with button-holes at regular intervals that allowed for length adjustment. Buttons were sewn onto the stocking tops by mothers so that the garters could be buttoned onto stocking tops at the proper length, depending on the height of the child. These garter strips were generally made of fairly cheap material so that the elasticity wore out on a regular basis and had to be replaced frequently. The button-holes allowed them to be fastened at both ends by buttons--at the top to the Leibchen and at the bottom to the stockngs. Younger children usually wore back-buttoning Leibchen that required mother's help to get dressed. Older children wore front-buttoning Leibchen that they could open and close without assistance. Some Leibchen had two garter strips for each leg, but a great many had only one at each side so that the stockings were hitched up tautly on the outside of the leg but left unsupported on the inner thighs, and many children complained of the discomfort of having the upper parts of their inner legs exposed to cold. Girls and boys in Germany often continued to wear long stockings until about age 15 or 16 so the sizes of Leibchen and long stockings had to cover a considerable range of ages. HBC has personal experience accounts of boys who had to deal with the nuisance of buttons on stocking tops that came loose during strenuous activity and had to be replaced in a make-shift way by coins.

Category: Garterwaist

The German Leibchen is certainly the equivalent of an American underwaist. When four hose supporters were attached to it (usually by buttons but sometimes sewn on) the Leibchen became a Strapsleibchen (i.e., a garter waist). When the garters were attached to the Leibchen by buttons the attachment to the stockings was usually by means of a button sewn onto the stocking top. By the later 1930s and early 1940s German mothers bought commercially made Leibchen which already had hose supporters sewn onto it. The clasps were the usual rubber button and wire loop fasteners that always were used on modern American hose supporters in brands such as Hickory and Velvet Grip.

Improved Design: The Strapsleibchen

During the 1930s German manufacturers improved the design of Leibchen for long stockings in several ways. They replaced the somewhat flimsy button-hole garter straps with better quality commerical hose supporters. These straps were typically made of wider elastic webbing, equipped with buckles for length adjustment, sewn permanently onto the bottom of the Liebchen, and featured sturdy metal loop and rubber-button clasps for attachment to the stocking tops of the same kind that women wore on their corsets. The metal clasps had the advantage of being stronger than sewn-on buttons and didn't come undone as easily under the pressures of sports or other physical activity. There were also four rather than two garters, so that the stockings didn't sag on the inner thign and were held up neatly and smoothly on the leg from both front and back. One pair of supporter straps were usually placed in front on each side with a second pair on the sides but toward the back. This arrangement not only produced more uniform support of stockings and a smoother appearance but was also much more comfortable to wear and lasted longer. These improved Leibchen usually buttoned in front and dispensed with the extra buttons for trousers or skirts. They were worn only for the support of long stockings. The name that manufacturers gave to these garments was often Strapsleibchen. The term of course only means a Liebchen with permanent garter straps attached, but it became the generally used term in ordinary parlance. Strapsleibchen became the standard means of supporting long stockings, especially for older boys and girls, although some older boys abandoned Strapsleibchen altogether and in their teenage years were given male garter belts similar to the hockey garter belts worn today by male hockey players. Some boys considered these belts more masculine.

Vintage Strapsleibchen

This vintage Strapsleibchen (from the 1950s) shows how the four garter straps were attached. The straps attach with a buckle that allows the child or mother to adjust the length of the supporters to the appropriate height. This design permitted the the stockings to smoothly encase the leg firmly and held in place without wrinkling.

German Films

The German film, "Aimee and Jaguar", set in Berlin in the late 1940s, offers another illustration of the modern Strapsleibchen. See figure 2, which shows a Strapsleibchen hanging over a boy's bed while he is asleep.