Men's fashion clothing trends really started in the seventeen hundreds - in eighteenth-century France, during the reign of Louis XIV, men were referred to as the 'peacocks of fashion'. They wore very decorative Rhinegrave breeches covered in lace and bows made of the finest silks and satins; impeccably clean white linen shirts with lavish cravats; and overcoats called justaucorps adorned with lavish buttons and gold braid that stretched from chin to knee.
This form of conspicuous consumption was considered the epitome of good taste. After the French Revolution (1789), however, the canons of tasteful dress changed dramatically. Simplicity, starkness and refinement became the order of the day with long trousers, vests, frock coats and top hats defining the role of the gentleman in society.