Ties 101 - History of Ties!
Ever curious who in the heck invented the necktie or where it came from? Who cast the spell of neckties to the business professional’s attire?
It appears that the necktie originated in 210 B.C. when the first ever Chinese Emperor decided to make life-like replicas of all the soldiers in his army - that’s literally thousands of terracotta replicas of his army - and each one had a cloth around its neck.
There were other instances of soldiers having a cloth wrapped around their neck but the most influential event in necktie history was in 1635. A group of Croatian mercenaries came to Paris to support King Louis XIV. The exciting part about that was all the Croatians were wearing very interesting scarves tied around their necks. The materials of the scarves varied by the degree of rank from rough materials to fine cotton and silk. When the French saw this new idea of clothing they couldn’t wait to get their own neck scarves.
Eventually the neck scarf was called “la cravate”, a French word that still exists today. Everyone wanted to get their hands on la cravate. Soldiers, officers, even common poor people wanted to wear one.
The neck scarf/tie continued to grow in popularity in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, using lace, silk and other fine fabrics to make them more sophisticated. And by the 19th century, the business suit was starting to make its presence in Europe.
On the plantations in America was where we saw the first American necktie. While too hot to wear lace cravats like the French, people tied thick ribbons around their necks instead. From then on, neckties were booming. In the 1920’s Paris started presenting designer ties and while uncomfortable, they have become a staple to a snazzy suit or everyday business attire all over the world!
Who knew that ties had such a rich history?
