Fashion history of Britain

Published: July 28, 2026 · Updated: July 28, 2026

British dress runs from prehistoric wool and leather, through Roman, Norman and continental layers, to the woollen cloth and tailoring that made Britain a menswear centre — and, in the 20th century, a world engine of youth-driven street style.

Fashion history of Britain — Author: Thomas Gainsborough Public domain Source

Overview

The thread through it all is imported fashion — Roman, Norman, later French and Italian — reworked around the island’s staple, wool, which was the source of medieval England’s wealth.

The story of dress

From the 18th century Britain’s distinctive contribution was men’s tailoring: the sober, well-cut suit and, later, Savile Row. The Industrial Revolution made cloth cheap, and 20th-century London became a home of youth and subculture fashion, from mod and punk to today’s designers.

Periods

Fashion in Prehistoric Britain c. 3000 BC–AD 43
Fashion in Roman Britain 43–410
Fashion in Anglo-Saxon England 410–1066
Fashion in Medieval England 1066–1485
Fashion in Tudor England 1485–1603
Fashion in the Stuart era 1603–1714
Fashion in Georgian Britain 1714–1837
Fashion in Victorian Britain 1837–1901
Fashion in early 20th-century Britain 1901–1945
Fashion in postwar Britain 1945–present