Early Medieval European Dress - Female Dress

Female Dress

The basic female clothing for all classes over the period was a simple sleeved tunic dress, with a vertical slit, usually laced, at the bodice, at least for women of an age to breast-feed. The borders and hems might be decorated with embroidery, very richly so for the upper classes. Hose were apparently often worn underneath, their length presumably depending on the weather, as the dress came near to the ankle throughout the period. An under-tunic might also be worn, and cloaks and mantles for winter or outside wear. With the coming of Christianity, married women were expected to cover their hair, at least in public, with a loose shoulder cape, mantle or kerchief. It appears that fur was mostly worn out of sight, as a lining, or perhaps like the fur waistcoats (probably worn lining outermost) known from the later Middle Ages.