Medieval Russian fashion

[lilian567321]

Hello,

I'm writing a fantasy book set in medieval times, around the 14th century. One of the characters has a thick, winter coat from what would roughly be Russia. It's a coat with a woolen exterior, it's lined with cotton quilted fabric and has fur linings on the edges of the coat and on the hood of the coat.

My question is how realistic would this coat be in around 14th century Russia and why or why not, provided we say real-world Russia is the exact same as the one in my fantasy world, i.e. same climate, landscape, surrounding countries and political relations etc.

Thank you in advance,

Lillian K.

Comments

[lilacsigil]

It's the cotton that's unrealistic in Russia at that time. I can imagine some cotton finding its way along the Silk Road into Russia into the hands of someone wealthy, but then they wouldn't use it as a lining, it would be on display as an exotic fabric. Also it would be far cheaper and far warmer to use wool or fur!

[lilian567321]

Thank you for the help!! That brought some clarity to the topic!

[full_metal_ox]

I see your account is freshly created; welcome to Dreamwidth!

What social class are we talking about (and does the character in question live in Fantasy Russia?)

[lilian567321]

Thank you for the welcome!!

The character does not live in Fantasy Russia, it's more accurate to say he inherited the coat from someone who did live there. In terms of social class, let's just assume the character's societal class is very high, but not quite ruling class

[texasdreamer01]

Agreed with lilacsigil that the cotton would be unrealistic, and adding on top of that statement that cotton is a very poor insulator compared to wool, as when it gets wet it cools the body off. Linen is a more popular liner for this reason, and an enduring one as a base layer rather than something specifically stitched into an outerwear garment like a coat - lots and lots of layers were preferred, because of ease of repairing garments, layering according to season and weather, and availability of various materials.

Additionally, coats by themselves are a bit wiggly of a preferred garment around the 1300s, particularly because they often first debuted as part of a military uniform and militaries themselves fluctuated based on need. Would your setting have a draft, or would it be primarily nobility with some enlisted footsoldiers, or some sort of mix of the two? This would inform who has access to a garment like that.

Fur would be a fairly traditional - and practical - liner, not least because of its warmth but also for the ease of hunting smaller game and stitching pelts together for a whole lining. Cloaks would also be hugely popular around the 1300s (and before, and also in some iteration afterward, now somewhat coming back into fashion in the modern day), because they're easy to make, easy to size (add belt!), and create a very warm bubble of air around you that coats with their sleeves are sometimes unable to mimic.

[full_metal_ox]

Fur would be a fairly traditional - and practical - liner, not least because of its warmth but also for the ease of hunting smaller game and stitching pelts together for a whole lining. Cloaks would also be hugely popular around the 1300s (and before, and also in some iteration afterward, now somewhat coming back into fashion in the modern day), because they're easy to make, easy to size (add belt!), and create a very warm bubble of air around you that coats with their sleeves are sometimes unable to mimic.

You may recall the black sheepskin cloaks worn by the Night’s Watch in Game of Thrones. (Which—Fun Fact—were made from IKEA sheepskin rugs, spurring a run on that item in that color. They’re still out.)

[texasdreamer01]

I remember seeing a post about that XD Cloaks look pretty comfy, for all their difficulties to wiggle one's arms around due to a lack of sleeves (but, then again, it also became popular to cut some slits into the cloaks for just such a reason).

[lilian567321]

Thank you for commenting!

I was unaware of the fact that coats had debuted as military garment, and while my setting would have a military composed of primarily aristocrats, I think I may tend towards a cloak instead of a coat.

[full_metal_ox]

…my setting would have a military composed of primarily aristocrats…

Those would be the officers, since I’m hazarding a guess that you’re envisioning dashing fancy uniforms; where do the rank and file come from? If you conscript commoners on a war-by-war basis, you need to wait until harvest season is over. If you have the food surplus to maintain a standing army, where do they come from? Is there a draft? Volunteers? Domestic or foreign mercenaries (which can be risky?)

(You cited Fantasy Russia as the source of your character’s outerwear; what kind of culture(s) and terrain(s) will he be living and adventuring in?)

[texasdreamer01]

Yeah no problem!

If I'm remembering correctly, the evolution of coats more or less corresponds with the evolution of firearms? Historical paintings would be to your advantage here, despite the subjects usually being aristocracy - unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a lot of that from Russia, but Balkan clothing has a significant amount of overlap among the different ethnicities in that era. One thing that would stand out, and help others recognize where your character(s) are from, would be embroidery on the coat/cloak. Usually at the bottom corners or around the edges, but sometimes also on any hoods (which may be their own garment, if it's not a character wearing a scarf, instead).

[armiphlage]

Adding to what texasdreamer01 said, linsey-woolsey is a fabric which uses both flax and wool threads, with the advantages (and disadvantages) of both.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linsey-woolsey

If a character wore a coat made with with linsey-woolsey, they'd probably not be a member of the Russian Jewish community, but would be more likely to have traditional Slavic religious practices or follow the relatively-new Russian Orthodox church. This could be part of the plot, particularly in a fantasy work where spells or supernatural creatures might work differently on different communities.

[sporky_rat]

If you're looking for Medieval Russia, go here http://sofyalarus.info/Russia/Garb/KMC4.html

Sofya has ALL the clothing information.

[drawnecromancy]

I may not be the original asker, but I'm definitely bookmarking that webpage, thank you for sharing it !

[texasdreamer01]

Definitely bookmarking that, as well, thanks for the link!

[azurelunatic]

One of the very good furs for the ruff around the hood (don't know the appropriate terms for your setting) is wolf, if you need to specify. It's very good at shedding moisture. The cuffs might have a different fur because it doesn't need to contend with nearby exhalations.

(Source: my mother's research when making winter clothes for my sister and me; she took inspiration from Alaskan indigenous clothing technology, because she figured they were the experts on surviving/thriving through the local winters.)

I'm pretty sure that wolves were still common in Russia at that time.