Rites of Passage by Judith Flanders review – a brilliant account of Victorian Britain in mourning | History books
Whenever you find yourself thinking you’ve nothing to wear, and that to have some kind of uniform would be quite nice, it may be helpful to consider the plight of the Victorian widow. She had a uniform: it was black. But there, the simplicity ended. Mourning garb was traditionally made of crepe, a fabric whose chief virtue (like that of bombazine and parramatta, both later popular for the same purpose) was that it was non-reflective, any hint of shininess being thought far too cheerful for the grieving. It was highly…