What is it, and how do I wear it?

**figheadair** · 25th November 19, 11:58 PM

Originally Posted by D.A. Guertin

Greatest appreciation for the help thus far. :-) Here's a photo of what appears to be a very heavy lining, if that helps with anything...

Best,

Darryl

Lining.jpg

I would expect a maker's label somewhere, perhaps inside an internal pocket.

**Nomad** · 26th November 19, 12:42 AM

Personally I don't think it's designed to be worn with a belt as there is limited distance between the bottom of the kilt and the buttons, but give it a try if you want. If the length is correct it should look good with a kilt.

**OC Richard** · 26th November 19, 05:21 AM

As a side note, jackets that ended at the waist became very popular during WWII, the style influence being the British M37 Battle Dress jacket which was widely copied by foreign militaries (the US "Ike jacket" and the German M44 blouse).

In the post-WWII period jackets that ended at the waist became extremely popular with police forces, civilian pipe bands, civilian uniforms of all sorts (truck drivers, delivery men, etc) and in civilian fashion in general.

Here's an article about the M37 jacket's fashion impact in the USA, from October 1944

http://www.oldmagazinearticles.com/a...y#.Xd0fWW5FzIU

The development of a Prince Charlie type jacket that ended at the waist for civilian Highland Dress, given this context, is hardly surprising.

**Blaidd** · 26th November 19, 07:48 AM

It looks like the 'top half' of a gentleman's Regency period coat sans tails. The lining might also support that. That said, such lining is classic military Mess Jacket styling.

I agree with Nomad though regarding the belt. Similarly, if it looks good, why not wear it!

**kingandrew** · 26th November 19, 09:35 AM

This is a sharp-looking jacket for sure. I like the combination of the peak lapels with the neat waist line and double-breasted front. The short length does recall the Spencer and Eton style jackets, which are usually worn with trousers but are a good length for kilt wear.

It will be interesting to see how it looks on you.

Andrew

**OC Richard** · 27th November 19, 08:17 AM

The reasons I believe it was intended to be worn with a belt are 1) images of people wearing this exact form of jacket show them wearing belts (cf the Alexander Brothers) and 2) if it were not intended to be worn with a belt I would expect there to be another pair of silver buttons at or near the waistline.

I'm guessing there's some other sort of fastening at or near the waistline which the belt would cover, either plain black buttons or some sort of hook & eye or press-button closure.

In any case we know it's not a one-off, but something in production, however limited. The Alexander Brothers regularly wore this style both in black and in claret.

Here they are wearing their black ones

Here they are wearing their claret ones

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsvZR2Hp1qY

I would love to come across this style in a vintage catalogue! Sans that, I would have to guess that this style was created around the end of WWII and probably had a brief popularity in the 1950s.

Apropos of my mentioning the impact of the WWII British Battle Dress jacket on civilian attire, both Saxon and Highland, here are the Alexander Brothers in jackets quite obviously inspired by the M49

**Dr Bee** · 2nd December 19, 06:29 AM

My first thoughts on seeing this post were that the little jacket was made for a show-business performer of some kind - and sure enough the Alexander Brothers picture posted by OC seemed to confirm this. However, I was looking through the website of a Glasgow firm called St Kilda Store who market their jackets under the name 'Gaelic Themes' (my Regulation Doublet is Gaelic Themes but from another retailer) and under the section headed 'Fully made-to-measure jackets' there is a listing for 'Double-Breasted Prince Charlie.' This jacket is not identical in that it has a different arrangement of cuff-buttons, however it is certainly in the same style - near enough.

**OC Richard** · 5th December 19, 05:56 PM

Good find!

So St Kilda has it in production

https://stkildastore.com/Double-Brea...ade-to-Measure

I would quibble with calling it a Prince Charlie, however. What we call the Prince Charlie was originally called "the Coatee" and later "the Prince Charlie Coatee".

And the Prince Charlie is indeed a proper coatee, due to having the tails of a coatee.

This St Kilda jacket, like the ones the Alexander Brothers wore, is not a coatee as it lacks tails.

I would, rather, call it a Montrose with open lapels. (The Montrose ended at the waist all round.)

Here is the British military coatee worn c1800-1855, which the Prince Charlie Coatee was clearly copied from.