Fishtail Back Trousers: Where It All Began

A common maxim in the world of tailored fashion is that it does not take very long for what was once old to become new again, and this appears to have become the case with both suspenders and the fishtail back trousers that are necessary to create the most effective silhouette with the help of custom tailoring.

Braces have always gone through cycles of popularity, given that many tailored suit trousers are designed to be worn with a belt instead, but usually they come with a twist, a caveat or what would historically have been a faux pas.

The return of fishtail back trousers is a return to the origins of a particularly interesting type of tailoring known as morning dress, which all but requires fishtail back formal trousers and bracers to work.

The Unseen Force

Morning dress, also known by the slightly more descriptive term formal day dress, is the dress

code primarily used for formal festive functions, such as certain weddings, church services, gentlemen’s clubs, horse races, and meetings with members of royalty, government or municipal leadership.

The term morning dress did not ever refer to when it should be worn, which is for events scheduled to start before 6 PM (as opposed to white tie or evening dress), but instead hints at the reason for its origin.

Gentlemen in the 19th century who chose to ride a horse in the morning would find wearing a full-length frock coat impractical, but could not unbutton it because it would potentially reveal the waistcoat, waistband of the trousers and braces, the latter of which was treated as a form of underwear at the time.

Instead, it was replaced with a morning tailcoat, which could keep the braces’ buttons and straps concealed.

By the early 20th century, it had become the standard full dress form, having gradually gained acceptance throughout the 19th century.

The trousers are also more high waisted in general and have a particularly high back, which is where the fishtail name comes from.

It was popular in the Edwardian era but faded somewhat in popularity due to the first world war. Military uniforms invariably had belts for practical reasons and therefore people got used to wearing them instead.

They made a comeback in the 1930s, sticking around until the 1950s when a lot of sartorial trends changed due to the influence of more American styles.

Unlike in the UK, where braces and therefore fishtail trousers remained popular throughout the Second World War, by the late 1930s belts had taken over almost completely.

They made a rather unusual comeback in mainstream fashion in the 1970s and 1980s, thanks to being associated with certain parts of the punk subculture, as well as styles of dress seen in films such as Wall Street.

In the early 2000s, the style returned again, and in the 2020s it appears that fishtail trousers have come full circle in formal fashion settings.

However, it’s not just formality that these trousers are well suited for and the style translates well with tweed sporting suits (which include breeks and plus fours), and stand trousers made from corduroy, moleskin and other fabrics… so you’ve got a lot of options if the fishtail back look is the one for you.