The men’s suit as we know it today did not appear out of nowhere. It is the result of a historical process that stretched across two centuries, marked by gradual yet remarkable advances in masculine elegance, taste and refinement.

1. Where do the words “costum” and “suit” come from?

The Romanian word costum comes from the French costume, meaning “garment, custom of dress”. French also lent English another word, from the family of suivre (“to follow, to succeed”), which became suit. The idea was that the cloth of a suit jacket “follows” the cloth of the trousers, and vice versa.

2. Who laid the foundations of modern men’s style?

The modern history of the suit begins with the dandy Beau Brummell, who gave men’s dress a new look by simplifying certain details of French court dress, which recalled the French Revolution and the Ancien Régime of feudal France. The film Beau Brummell: This Charming Man is well worth watching on the subject.

3. What was the frock coat, and why did it disappear?

In the Victorian era (1837 to 1901), the garment that dominated men’s style was the so-called frock coat (from which came the French frac and, in turn, the Romanian frac), which resembled today’s overcoat. It later developed in two different directions: the morning coat (which kept the tails) and the lounge suit (which lost them).

4. How did the lounge suit emerge, and what defined it?

While the morning coat is worn today only at the weddings of the British aristocracy, the lounge suit, which originated in Scotland, developed steadily from the 1850s onwards as a relaxed alternative to the morning coat. The word lounge itself, meaning a sitting room or a sofa, reveals the very purpose behind it: comfort and ease. On the cusp of the 20th century, in the Edwardian era, the lounge suit grew more popular. The frock coat and the morning coat were still worn by older, more conservative men, but gradually lost ground. The lounge suit, later known simply as the suit, was cut from heavy cloth and worn with a waistcoat to keep its wearer warm.

5. How did war change the cut of the suit?

In the 1920s, the war left its military mark on the suit. It began to be cut narrow, close to the wearer’s body. Trousers were shortened and narrowed too, and gained turn-ups. It was the first sign of the slim-fit trend.

6. Why are the 1930s the golden age of men’s style?

The jazz scene of 1930s America brought more pattern and colour to suit cloth. Accessories followed too, such as the pocket square, the bias-cut tie and the pinned collar. All of them appear in The Great Gatsby. America was also where the drape suit came into fashion, with a jacket broader in the shoulders (to make the torso look wider) and high-waisted trousers (to make the legs look longer). The drape suit was the first choice in America, as well as in Britain and Austria. It was also the era when the back vent of the jacket was dropped in favour of a cleaner line. Heavy, full-bodied cloths gave the suit its drape, as North by Northwest, starring Cary Grant, makes clear. To this day, the 1930s are remembered as the golden age of men’s style.

The story continues here, in part two, which follows the transformations of the men’s suit through the second half of the 20th century.