What is Crinoline, the Victorian fashion trend that killed many women?

The Crinoline skirt was one of the most iconic fashion fads during the Victorian Era. The skirt emerged in the 1850s as a fashion replacement for the heavy petticoats. The airy skirt gave women freedom of movement, but at the same time had a deadly design flaw. Crinolines were made of highly combustible material and were full of air pockets that could quickly catch on fire. Historians state that roughly 3,000 women lost their lives in crinoline fires in the 19th century.

Why Crinoline became so popular

It was a petticoat made up of hoops of steel and clothed in fabric. The dress helped women wear fashionable wide dresses without having several layers of underclothing. This type of dress was light, comfortable, and easier to wear. So, it was favoured by women of all social classes.

In fact, some were as wide as 18 feet across. As women favoured this fashion trend, Victorian cartoonists frequently ridiculed the excessive width of this skirt. Cartoons depicted women knocking over furniture, crushing men while dancing, and occupying whole rooms.

Why the fashion turned deadly

The same qualities that made these garments fashionable also made them hazardous. The fabric was highly flammable. The hooped skirt would capture air to allow the flames to spread rapidly.

As the skirts were very large in size, ladies would brush against candles, fireplaces, stoves, gaslighting, and even lights on theatrical stages without being aware of it. When the fabric caught fire, it would engulf the whole dress within seconds.

The tragic deaths that shocked the Victorian era

One of the most famous of these cases involved Fanny Longfellow, who was married to the famous poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. She had her clothes catch on fire in 1861 while sealing letters for her children with wax.

Oscar Wilde's half-sisters, Mary and Emily Wilde, perished during Halloween celebrations in 1871 due to an incident. One of them brushed against a lighted candle, and the other set herself on fire trying to help her. Other incidents involved ballerina Clara Webster, whose costume was set alight near gas lamps on stage in 1844.

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It was during this period that fabric producers started making more fire-resistant materials. Despite having become extinct long ago, crinoline will always be regarded as one of the most dangerous fashion styles in Victorian history because of its lethal nature.

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