Figure 1.--The young German princes, no matter what they were doing, seemed always to be outfitted in matching outfit. Here Frederich Wilhelm is scating with his little brother, Louis Ferdinand. These are the older children of the Crown Prince Frederich Wilhelm

Princes Cecile, the children's mother, clearly liked to dress them all in identical outfits, despite the differences in their age. Princes Cecilie was a glamerous royal with aflare for fashion. She appears to have liked dressing her sons identically. Many photographs show the boys wearing identical outfits even when their was considerable differences in the ages of the boys. This contrasts with the practices in England where gradual small distinctions were made in the outfits worn by the princes to mark differences in ages. The German royals certainly wore identical outfits for their play and every day clothes. They were most commonly photographed in tunic suits with square collars which were worn as play outfits. We are less sure how the boys were dressed for formal state occasions. Here age seems to have been an important factor.

Conventions

Princes Cecile, the children's mother, clearly liked to dress them all in identical outfits, despite the differences in their age. Princes Cecilie was a glamerous royal with aflare for fashion. She appears to have liked dressing her sons identically. Many photographs show the boys wearing identical outfits even when their was considerable differences in the ages of the boys. This contrasts with the practices in England where gradual small distinctions were made in the outfits worn by the princes to mark differences in ages. The German royals certainly wore identical outfits for their play and every day clothes. This seems to have been a basic coinvention until Prince Wilhelm was about 10 years of age. The relatively close age of the boys was a factor in making identical outfits a popular choice for the boys.

Specific Garments

Headwear

The boys wore a variety of headwear.We notice the boys most commonly wearing sailor headwear, especially sailor caps. We notice quite a few photograohs of the boys wearing soft white caps. The white caps seem the nost common. We note the boys wearing sailor headwear both with sailor suits as well as other outfits. We also notice the boys wearing matching stocking caps in the winter. They look to be brightly colored, probably red.

Play Wear

The boys were most commonly photographed in tunic suits with square collars which were worn as play outfits. We notice numerous portraits of the boys wearing these outfits. I'm not sure what the material was, but some seem to have been silk. The tunics were detailed with both embroidery and color.

Sailor Suits

We notice many photographs of the boys wearing identical sailor suits.

Uniforms

We are less sure how the boys were dressed for formal state occasions. Here age seems to have been an important factor.

Winter Wear

We notice the boys wearing stocking caps and heavy pullovers with what look like turtle-neck sweaters for outdoor winter wear. Here the boys are skating.

Hosiery

Footwear

Created: June 20, 2001
Last updated: 2:25 AM 7/30/2008