Sunday 2 January 2011

On the fashion for Turquerie....



The Basilea Phannae in Turquerie dress  (that is, she wears the trousers...)

One of the tricker tightropes that New Byzantium has to navigate is that of Fashion. The Court is determined to be as attractive to "Western" powers (including Russia) as possible, while also not annoying the Porte too much (the Trebezondine emigres' wish to name the border forts in the Georgian fashion nothwithstanding).


New Byzantium has thus enthusiastically become a leading spot for dedicated followers of Turquerie, the fashion sensation of the age - blending European, Balkan and Turkish fashions. So much so, in fact, that there has been an emergence of major fashion houses in Byzantion, with designers such as Dyor and Xanel exporting their fashions even to London and Paris.

Nonetheless, the regular military and court has been ordered to wear Western dress as far as possible (clearly the Western superiority over Turkish arms is driven by the cut of one's cloth) - with the exception, of couse, of the Turkish national units in the service, like the Gianizaroi - zo suave, as zey say.....

(Although it must be noted with interest that the West is enthusiastically adopting the dress of the Balkan huszars, the mainstay of the New Byzantine light cavalry, and Marshal de Saxe dressed his lancers in a way very reminiscent of the Sipahoi lancer cavalry).

Somewhat surprisingly, we find that 28mm figurine manufacturers do not quite share the enthusiasm for Turquerie, thus the need for Green Stuff in New Byzantion modelling.

1 comment:

  1. Turqueries were indeed fashionable in Western Europe _ I believe the 'great coat' introduced under Louis XIV and which became later the justaucorps was copied on a Persian piece of dress- though most Western Europeans mixed up Turkish, Persian and even Indian costumes as merrily as some Hollywood costume designers!

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