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Question: Around what time did women wear corsets!?
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Since the rennaissance era and possibly before (in europe, that is)!. There are several different types of corsets

Renaissance- (1500's-early 1600's)
Boroque- (1600's-early1700s)
Georgian (late 1700's)
REgency (early 1800's)
Victorian (mid 1800's)
Edwardian (late 1800's-early 1900's)
Then there are the Flapper 20's corsets
and the 1950's

also, they have contemperary corset that are still being made todayWww@QuestionHome@Com

Women seem always to have worn corsets and some men also, but the definition of a corset has changed over the centuries!. It should be said that corsets were very social-specific!. Working women, mothers in middle class and poorer families, most women in the North of Europe and Britain did not wear corsets as a regular garment!. For weddings and formal functions, women might buy and wear a corset but it would not affect their figures very much; only provide a base for their finer cloithing if they had any!.

In ancient times, women and men wore very tight garments of leather or stiff cloth, to shape the figure and to overcome corpulence!. Some corsets in Egypt, Greece and Rome were worn to support the spine during heavy work or among the military!. We would probably now call all those garments "corselettes" or "corslets" but they had the same function as later corsets!.

In the European Middle Ages (say AD 900 - 1600), women wore corsets to produce a fashionable shape over which their top clothes could fit nicely!. That shape was mostly conical from under the armpits to the waist, with no pressure below the waist!. Portraits of Queen Elizabeth First show this style at about 1580!. There was no real intention to alter the anatomy by "training" the bones of the wearer or organs to adopt different positions in the torso!.

The fashionable shape changed a little during the 1600s and 1700s in Europe but the conical ideal was always presented in portraits!. In the early 1800s, things changed!. Under the flowing clothes of the Empire line, women started to wear very tight short corsets that did just one things - restrict and train the waist!. From an early age, girls were fitted for these short corsets and the intention was to maintain into adult life the same waist measurement that she had at about 16 years of age!. These would be the corsets worn by Jane Austen and her heroines!.

Shortly after the end of the Napoleonic era, corsetry suddenly became more restrictive and heavier in style and in construction!. The styles of the 1830s and 1840s were often referred to as the "cuirasse", because they looked like and felt like the steel breastplates of mounted soldiers!. During this time, the fashion for seriously reducing the waist became more common, and books were written for mothers on how to train their daughters figures by the use of very stiff, boned and laced corsets!.

By the 1870s, tightlacing was in fashion among some social classes: very high class ladies of fashion (Royals, aristos, politicians' wives and daughters) and among the demi-monde (actresses, courtesans, artists' models)!. The intention was to train the female figure rigorously for nearly every minute of the day and night, by the use of rigid corsets of whalebone (to about 1875) and later steel bones, mostly laced at the back!. This training process occupied many women for years as they grew up, until they possessed the true hourglass figure!. Typical waist measurements at that time were around 22 inches for an adult woman inside her corset!. This often represented a 4-6 inch reduction on her natural waist!. Remember that women (and men) were of smaller stature in that period; shorter in height, lighter in weight and slighter in build, so the effect of the corseting may not have been so dramatic as we think now!.

The extremity of tightlacing came in the period 1885-1905!. Corsets by then were items of engineering construciton and could be relied upon to produce on the female figure any contour, silhouette or reduction that was required!. Extreme figures of 36-18-38 inches were recorded but these were exceptional and most corset continued to be made with waists of 22-24 inches!. The production records of corsetmakers in London, Paris, Milan and New York are available to verify such statistics!.

In the period leading to WW1, corsetry became looser and less hourglass in its outline!. In fact, during the period 1910-1930, everyday shop-bought corsetry was almost always parallel in its design, with no intention to produce a defined waistline!. Specialist corset makers continued to make bespoke corsetry for the devotee of tightlacing and that trade has never stopped!.

During the period 1930-1960, the word "corset" was not in common use!. Retailers and manufacturers adopted the words "girdle" and "corselette" to describe their wares, but the intention was the same: to produce a controlled body shape and a foundation for top clothes!.

Since the 1960s, corsetry has been out of fashion except for such leaders of style as Madonna, Kylie Minogue and a few others!. What remains now are "bodies", "shapers" and "magic pants" and these seem to bear no relation to the corsets of previous generations!. However, their purpose is the same as Trinny and Suzanna make clear!. They confine the body, give it a better shape, control excesses of flesh and fat, and make a woman feel more feminine!. They just don't seem so effective as former styles and materials!.

That said, there are still specialist corset makers producing garments of extreme intricacy and ingenuity, which will create a very defined figure with small waist and smooth hips!. See the links below!.

I suppose the answer to the question is, "At all times to the present day!."Www@QuestionHome@Com

The idea of the corset is to cinch the waist and that idea has been around since 1500 B!.C!.E at least!. Style and Trends of Fashion recycle themselves every couple of decades!. The thing about corsets is that women want that 'Hourglass figure'!. The corsets and stays reigned supreme from the 1500's until the early 1900's!. They are still going strong today!.

These will tell you all you need to know if you want specifics:
http://www!.fathom!.com/course/21701726/in!.!.!.
http://commons!.wikimedia!.org/wiki/Histor!.!.!.
http://en!.wikibooks!.org/wiki/Corset/Hist!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Corsets as we know them were invented in the nineteenth century and worn in various styles until roll-ons (elastic girdles) became available - about 1950-60!. They are still obtainable from catalogues and some older people still wear them!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

They wore corsets from about the 16th century to the 18th century!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

They still wear them,and corset manufacturers still exist!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

some still wear them nowadays!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Around the time the Tudors were in power!?Www@QuestionHome@Com

do you still not wear them!? oh!. i feel silly now!.Www@QuestionHome@Com