Boy in Dress in Victorian Times

Though the system of patriarchy was the norm in Victorian times and also during the previous centuries and Gender roles were extremely polarized. However, young children were left out of the equation.

According to most accounts and photos from the time, until the age of seven, gender was apparently not something that parents paid much attention to. The clothes worn by boys and girls were almost identical, indistinguishable from each other.

It is very likely that you have accidentally stumbled across the image of a Victorian-era boy wearing a dress, and you may have mistaken him for a girl. Even some of the most famous people of the 20th century, including Ernest Hemingway and Franklin D. Roosevelt, had their photo taken wearing white skirts, which were considered gender-neutral for decades.

Many people would find this practice peculiar today and perceive it as feminine, but the explanation behind why it was done this way was very simple and is due to pragmatic reasons.

Imagine being a mother or father (most first) in a time when zippers and snaps were not yet in use, and the pants that were available were too complicated and too heavily accessorized, making it almost impossible for a little boy to he put them on himself. What would you do? One option would be to dress the one, a task that would take up a lot of time. But Victorian parents had another method, and frankly, it was much more effective.

Dressing toddlers in dresses made the potty routine much easier and more flexible as well. Parents could change the child's diapers without the need to undress them. Lifting their skirts would be enough.

Our team of journalists located and selected images of the time, which were restored and in which the boys can be clearly seen wearing beautiful dresses

We have chosen a series of photos of boys wearing beautiful dresses in the Victorian era