Croquet, Art and The Crinoline

Croquet Art and the Crinoline

John Leech 1817-1864 a Croquet Match

Croquet arrived in Britain from Ireland in the late 1850s. The games manufacturers Jacques capitalised on the sport making equipment and formalising the rules. It quickly took off as a game which could be played within a garden. It was a social activity, and many country houses adapted their lawns for croquet matches. It also became a popular game in seaside and other resorts. It could be played by both sexes across the ages.

Participation grew in the 1860s at the height of the fashion for the crinoline. Although the fashion was cumbersome, the development of steel hoops meant it was lighter than the layers of petticoats previously needed to spread out the skirt.  As women became more active, the crinoline was adapted by using a suspender that lifted the skirt. The lifting allowed for the exposure of the shoe. Which was considered slightly risqué but also showed off the fashion for tightly laced boots and shoes. By 1864, one player advised, "the dress should be looped up, or not only will it spoil many a good stroke, but with its sweeping train will probably disturb the position of some of the balls".

It is not surprising that given the popularity of the sport that croquet began to be depicted in art and illustrations. As croquet offered the opportunity of playing equally across the sexes It offered the Victorian satirist the opportunity to gently ridicule the craze for the sport and the cumbersome dresses of the day.


A nice game for two or more. John Leech.
Fixing her eyes on his and placing her pretty little foot on the ball. She said, ‘I am going to croquet you’ and he was completely. (From Rose to Emily).

The caricature though exaggerating the size of the crinoline shows the fashion for the red Garibaldi Jacket and the tightly laced shoe

Croquet Dress Manchester Art Gallery

The dress in the satire closely mirrors the croquet dress in Manchester Art Galleries collection and the1860s fashion plate.

The skirt at Manchester Art Gallery also includes tabs to loop the skirt up for play. However, it was often hard to differentiate between day dresses and dresses used for other activities sometimes the intended use would be reflected in the accessories on the dress as in the case of the dress at Killerton dress owned by the National Trust which has Mallets hoops and balls on the buttons.







Croquet Dress Killerton (National Trust)

Croquet also was subject for mainstream artists.Both Edouard Manet and the George Elgar Hicks depicted family and friends enjoying a friendly social event. They also show how it was an opportunity to have dalliance with the opposite sex.

Edouard Manet Croquet at Boulogue 1871
Manet hints at a flirtatious relationship between his stepson, Léon Leenhoff, in brown trousers, and a young artist, Jeanne Gonzalès, who stands close by in fashionable yellow and blue attire.
The craze died down in fashionable society especially. As a serious sport it continued to develop but was overshadowed and replaced in fashionable circles by the popularity of tennis  
 

George Elgar Hicks; The Croquet Match.