Sleeveless surcoats and tunics were fashionable in the Middle Ages, but the fitted garment worn over the shirt that we term a ‘waistcoat’ evolved when the male three-piece suit first developed in the 1670s. This new ensemble comprising a coat, waistcoat (or ‘vest’) and breeches formed the basis of modern menswear, the waistcoat remaining a significant component until around the mid-20th century.

Initially waistcoats could be made with or without sleeves, depending on the season and/or occasion. While co-ordinating with the coat and breeches, it didn’t always match their colour or fabric, but its style always followed the changing line of the suit. Early waistcoats were capacious knee-length garments and while heavy, sumptuous Baroque and, later, more frivolous Rococo tastes prevailed, suits were often accessorised with a bold contrasting waistcoat embellished with coloured silk and metallic threads. The progressive trend throughout the Georgian era was for garments to reduce in size, becoming shorter and narrower; accordingly, by the mid-1700s the waistcoat was thigh length, rising further until by the 1780s/1790s it was slender, cut straight across at the waist and often double-breasted with wide lapels. Ornamental waistcoats were still de rigeur for formal and court wear, but quieter dress was now favoured for daywear and striped or plain-coloured waistcoats were usual by 1800.

During The Era of refined Regency tailoring, a discreet buff-coloured waistcoat was in vogue, although during the second quarter of the 19th century, reflecting picturesque Romantic taste, a colourful patterned waistcoat both enlivened an outfit and revealed a man’s personal style. Charles Dickens wore several flamboyant waistcoats on his American tour in 1842, these described in the American press as “somewhat in the flash order”. Surviving early/mid-Victorian waistcoats include fashionable Paisley-patterned styles and white or ivory silk wedding waistcoats embroidered or brocaded with sentimental emblems. However, more restrained styles were deemed more appropriate with the sober off-the-peg or made-to-measure business suits of the later 1800s, Oscar Wilde complaining in 1894 that: “…I find an ever-growing difficulty in expressing my originality through my choice of waistcoats and cravats”.

With time-keeping increasingly important, many waistcoats also now featured a neat watch pocket. Smart three-piece suits remained the norm in the early 20th century and it was not considered decent for a man to forgo his tailored waistcoat until the 1930s, when men’s dress began to relax. Then, a weekend suit might be worn without any waistcoat, while a more comfortable alternative was the knitted sleeveless pullover.