19th Century Underclothing: 1800 – 1810

Welcome to a new series! This time I thought I would tackle the question of undergarments! Because who talks about undergarments? Not many people, and yet we all still find the subject of corsets fascinating – don’t deny it.

Okay, but fair warning – the exact styles may overlaps with the 1790s and the 1810s because it turns out it is pretty hard to find information exact to 1800-1810, since it is moving into the regency era and it turns out a lot of sites and books simply lump all the underclothes together for the first thirty years. but I’ll do my best to be as accurate as possible, and if you notice a mistake, please let me know!

Quick Overview

Women’s Detail

• There seems to be a bit of discrepancy on whether they wore more stays or corsets during this decade, probably because it bleeds into the other decades, but my best guess is that they wore both. Either way, they were long stays/corsets vs short ones (though short came very soon after, so there may have been some overlap), covering the hips and pushing up the breasts, usually straight across (though sometimes the breasts were cupped), and laced up the back.
• For the first time, women started wearing drawers, which was considered a little scandalous because only men wore them previously. They were generally buttoned just below the knees.
• Chemises: used to be called shifts, but that terms was now considered vulgar (according to at least one source). My 1910 fashion book mentions that the chemises might be trimmed in lace. They were generally made of cotton or linen, fell to the knees, and had no form.
• Petticoats! Well, one petticoat, considering the slim profile of the dress. Could be cotton, cambric, linen, sometimes flannel.
• Pantaloons. This term was shortly changed to Pantalettes to sound more feminine. These might be worn instead of drawers, buttoning below the calf and might have a few rows of lace or ruffles in anticipation of being seen.
• If the neckline of the dress being worn was low, a chemisette or tucker might fill it in.
• More than one source mentioned the Spanish Lamb’s all-in-one undergarment, which supposedly included petticoats, drawers, and waistcoats: ““The lamb’s wool underwear, like the union suits so universally worn in our day [1910], were invented for warmth, and yet were so close-fitting in shape that they did not interfere with the slim effect of the scanty gowns of sheer muslin and transparent gauze or silk tissue then in vogue.” (McClellan 1910, 77)
• “‘Mrs. John Villiers was lately walking about Brighton in a muslin gown over a pair of grey pantaloons tied at the ankle with a black twist, like those you may have seen William have,’ Lady Stanley wrote in disgust in 1801.” (Cunnington and Cunnington 1951, 108)

Men’s Detail

• Cunnington lists shirts as part of men’s underclothing – likely because the shirt was mostly covered with waistcoats and neckcloths.
• Drawers, generally worn short under breeches and long under pantaloons and trousers.
• Braces: Generally made of leather, “A ‘brace’ tightens a grip and his braces served not merely to suspend but also to tighten the buckskin breeches as much as possible.” (Cunnington and Cunnington 1951, 106)
• Corsets! Nope, they weren’t just for women. Men’s tight-fitting clothes also often called for the use of a corset!

British Museum, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Resources

• Cunnington, C. Willett, and Phillis Emily Cunnington. 1951. The History of Underclothes.
• “Fashion in Underwear : Ewing, Elizabeth : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive.” 1971. Internet Archive. 1971. https://archive.org/details/fashioninunderwe0000ewin.
• Franklin, Harper. n.d. “1800-1809 | Fashion History Timeline.” Fashion History Timeline. Accessed January 16, 2026. https://fashionhistory.fitnyc.edu/1800-1809/.
• “History of Corsets 1780-1912.” n.d. Accessed January 16, 2026. https://silhouettescostumes.com/the-eras-we-build/history-of-corsets-1780-1912/.
• McClellan, Elisabeth. 1910. Historic Dress in America: 1800-1870.
• Sarahmurden. 2019. “Lambswool Invisible Petticoats – All Things Georgian.” All Things Georgian. March 28, 2019. https://georgianera.wordpress.com/tag/lambswool-invisible-petticoats/.
• Van Brunt, Nancye Knowles. n.d. “A Concise History of Underwear From Ancient Times to 1918.” Scholarworks @ Morehead State. Accessed January 16, 2026. https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/msu_theses_dissertations/567/.