The English Gentleman at Apsley House - Behind the Scenes - January 2015.

In the year commemorating the bicentenary of the Battle of Waterloo, the Woolmark Company, the tailors of Savile Row and the shirt and shoemakers of St James’s hosted the fourth LC:M presentation at the former home of the 1st Duke of Wellington, who led Britain to victory in the famous battle.
The origins of British menswear lie in the tailors, shirtmakers and bootmakers who made the military uniforms for our forces. Hence, the military tradition on Savile Row dates back to its earliest days, and as part of that tradition there is a strong connection with the uniforms of the cavalry and equestrianism in general.
At Apsley house, the residence of the Duke of Wellington, during the bicentenary year of the Battle of Waterloo, The English Gentleman project took over the space, much of it designed by Robert Adam, one of the 18th century’s leading architects.
As well as some real soldiers wearing their real dress uniforms, we showed a variety of outfits inspired by the sartorial traditions of the British military, and particularly, in honour of Wellington’s charger, Copenhagen, which he rode at Waterloo, by those of the British cavalry. Some items, like the woollen greatcoat, have now made a complete transition to ‘Civvy Street’, while others such as high-buttoning tunic-jackets still evoke the spirit of the barracks. And though the cavalry twill trousers on show in the Striped Room (matched with white riding shirts and riding boots by the Queen’s bootmaker) may not immediately suggest military service, they do bring to mind saddles and stables.