Men's suits
Matching coat, waistcoat, and breeches: Johann Christian Fischer by Thomas Gainsborough, c. 1780.
The suit is the traditional form of male formal attire in the Western world. The modern suit did not appear until the early-to-mid nineteenth century, but the origins of its coat can be traced back to the revolution in men's dress set by Charles II, king of Great Britain in the 1660s. A particular style of this was adapted and popularized by British dandy Beau Brummell by the early 1800s.
In the 1660s, restored English king Charles, following the example of the court of Louis XIV at Versailles decreed in 1666 that at court, men were to wear a long coat or jacket, a waistcoat (originally called a petticoat, a term which later became applied solely to women's dress), a cravat (ancestor of the modern necktie), a wig, and breeches or trousers gathered at the knee, as well as a hat for outdoor wear.
By the early 1800s, Britisher Brummel's style trend led men in Europe to wear understated, beautifully cut, perfectly tailored versions, adorned with elaborately knotted neckwear. Brummell's stylistic influence is credited with introducing and bringing to fashion the move for a pared-down modern man's suit worn with necktie. He additionally popularized regular bathing for males which went with his versions of the suit. (Johnson, Birth of the Modern)
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Women's suits
Women's walking suits, 1894, from the Butterick pattern company's Delineator
Women's Tailored Suits, 1937
The earliest women's suits were riding habits, which consisted of a tailored coat or jacket and matching skirt from the 1660s. Practical and sturdy, riding habits were worn not only on horseback, but also for travel and other daytime pursuits. Suits not intended for riding appeared in the later nineteenth century. Both riding habits and walking suits reflected the skirt and sleeve styles of the day.
In the first half of the twentieth century, the skirted suit became the common daytime city costume for women, in the workplace and out; dressmaker suits featured softer fabrics and "feminine" details, and cocktail suits were worn for semiformal occasions in mid-century.
Under the influence of Dress for Success, a working woman's uniform of skirted suit, tailored shirt, and floppy tie evolved in the 1970s and 1980s. Pantsuits (women's suits with trousers) were introduced by designer André Courrèges in 1964 but were only gradually accepted as formal business attire.
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