But the Victorian influence on fashion didn’t stop there, and her influence was also felt across the Atlantic. Queen Victoria had one of the longest reigns in British history, spanning 64 years, and during that time fashion changed constantly. In the 1840s, style was more subdued and English, whereas in the 1850s people were inspired by Empress Eugenie of France so more pastels and flower patterns came into vogue.

During the time of the American Civil War (1861-1865), which occurred in the middle of the Victorian era, textile production became faster and easier than ever before. Decades before, in 1801, the French inventor Joseph Marie Jacquard had created a device that increased the speed with which woven designs could be set up on a loom. This made it possible to create complex patterns that the classical draw loom could not accommodate. When factory power was added to this process, patterns that might have taken days if not months to weave could suddenly be produced in hours using minimal labour. As a result, beautiful patterns like paisley, complex florals, and bold plaid became more widely available. Alkaline or synthetic dyes were, however, only just coming into use, so the colours of the fabrics remained more muted, with dusty indigos, cornflower blues, rusty oranges, and brick reds.

In the 1870s frills and large crinolines became popular and the first bustle appeared. Then, in the 1890s the bustle was lost altogether, replaced by huge puffed or ‘mutton-sleeved’ tops. Many of these tenets lasted through the Edwardian period from 1901 to 1910 but ended completely post World War One.

By the 1920s, all remnants of the Victorian era had disappeared from fashion, as women started sporting sleeveless dresses with scandalously short hemlines and not a corset in sight. Then in the 1930s, designer Elsa Schiaparelli began making beautiful Victoriana-inspired pieces with puffed shoulders, intricate brocade, and long hemlines. Her aesthetics were at odds with the ultra-modernism of Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel, and the two designers became fierce rivals and vocal critics of one another. In the end, Chanel’s modernism won the day.

Hippy chic

For decades, interest in Victoriana lay dormant — skirts got shorter, colours got bolder, and cuts more fitted. That all changed in the late 1960s when hippy women, who disagreed with the shallow consumerism of high fashion, began favouring looser clothing with longer hemlines. Brands like Gunne Sax began producing Victorian-style ‘prairie dresses’ adapted for the modern era. Gone were the corsets and crinolines, but the high necklines, puffed sleeves, and flounced skirts stayed. Founded during the Summer of Love in 1967, Gunne Sax was a departure from the tie-dye and psychedelic neons of the era, with its more neutral Civil War-era tones that would go on to dominate the 1970s.