Great Rebellion, 1645-1660.
The gloves are in perfect condition, and are in the collection of
the Author.
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PLATE \'I
GLOVES AND SHOES
PLATE VI
STEEL MITTEN GAUNTLET
SIXTEENTH CENTURY
A elegant mitten locking gauntlet of steel, engraved on the
back of the hand and on the gauntlet, which is finished
off by a roped edging, a good example of the fashion of
ornamentation of gloves of both the military and civilians of the
period.
From a drawing by the Author. In the Tower of London.
14 GLOVES AND SHOES
PLATE VII
No. 1
HENRY VIII. GAUNTLET
KGHT-HAND locking gauntlet of polished steel, slightly in-
laid with gold and engraved. The views represent the mitten
closed and open respectively. When closed, the weapon,
held in the hand, could not be displaced, as the mitten part of the
glove was fastened securely by a projecting rivet and hook. The
ornamentation, by means of engraving and inlaying, is of a similar
character to the embroidery to be found on the gloves of civilians.
This gauntlet belongs to a suit of armour worn by Henry VIII.,
and is in the Tower of London.
1
No. 2
STEEL MITTENS
SIXTEENTH CENTURY
fine mitten gauntlets of the sixteenth century.
From drawings by the Author.
In the Tower of London.
<n
PLATE I' IU
-V
GLOVES AND SHOES 15
PLATE VIII
SIR ANTHONY DENNY'S GLOVE
ONE of a pair of leather gloves with white satin-covered
gauntlets cut into panels and embroidered with blue and red
silk in feather stitch , with applique raised padded work, en-
riched with seed pearls and gold thread, gimp and spangles, and
further ornamented with gold and silver lace.
On the panels of the gauntlet appear the Crown over the Tudor
Rose, alternated with the Thistle ; while between the panels and the
wrist are a lion, snails, and sheep.
These gloves were given by King Henry VIII. to Sir Anthony
Denny, Knight, Privy Councillor and friend, and later on an
executor of the King. They are fine specimens of English work ;
their total length is i 5 inches. Sir Edward Denny, Bart., presented
them to the nation, and they are now in the Victoria and Albert
Museum, South Kensington.
16 GLOVES AND SHOES
GLOVES OF HENRY VIII
See Frontispiece
ONE of the most beautiful pair of gloves probably in exist-
ence, and fortunately in a fine state of preservation. They
are made of thin buff leather, light in colour, and measure
12! inches in length.
The gauntlets are divided into eight panels, four in front and
four at back, the material being white satin embroidered with flowers
and foliage in esthetic-coloured silk, the stems of which are of gold
thread. Each panel is edged with spangled gold lace and lined with
rose-coloured silk ; a gusset is inserted between each panel to give
strength to the upper part ; a rucking of rose-coloured silk, edged
with gold lace, divides the glove from the gauntlet at the wrist.
The gloves are reputed to have belonged to Henry VIII., and
are of so rich a character as to justify the statement.
They are the property of Alfred de la Fontaine, Esqr.
P; rfc r.
1
Hudson P.,
66
GLOVES AND SHOES
PLATE IX
HAWKING GLOVE OF HENRY VIII
FROM A DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR
A interesting and authenticated hawking glove of Henry VIII.
It is made of stout buff leather, with a short gauntlet
curiously ornamented with circular discs worked in dull red
and greenish blue thread, intermixed with silver wire ; a smaller
disc, of the same colours, is placed at the lower part of the little
finger ; while a singular pattern is traced with thread on the palm
of the hand. The cuff is lined some 2\ inches up with a fine
canvas, which is turned over and outwards to form an edging, the
glove itself being lined with stout white kid ; the back of the hand
is quite plain ; the entire length of the glove is 1 1| inches, and
measures 5 inches across the wrist. The labels on the palm refer to
the number and description in the original catalogue of the "John
Tradescant Collection, 1656," in which are grouped these items :
Henry the 8 his
' Stirrups
Hawkes-hoods
I Gloves "
The glove is treasured in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.
is GLOVES AND SHOES
PLATE X
WHITE GLOVES
SIXTEENTH CENTURY
A PAIR of gloves similar to those attributed to Henry VIII.
(Coloured Plate), having beautifully embroidered gauntlets
cut into panels, which are edged with bespangled lace.
The designs on the panels consist of flowers and birds ; at the wrist
of the left-hand glove is a richly laced rucking; unfortunately this
has disappeared from the right-hand glove. They are attributed
to the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and were at one time in the
Isham Collection.
Victoria and Albert Museum, South Kensington.
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GLOVES AND SHOES 19
PLATE XI
A LADY'S GLOVE
SIXTEENTH CENTURY
A LADY'S right-hand glove of light buff kid leather. The
total length from the tip of the middle finger to the bottom
of the gauntlet is 17 inches, the middle finger measures
3 inches ; the seams are herringbone stitched with pale salmon-
coloured silk, the narrow fringe at the side and bottom of the
gauntlet being of the same material and colour.
On the back of the hand is embroidered, in silver wire, a dragon
with legs and beak of green silk; the monster has originally been
supported by a floral design, of which the greater part has dis-
appeared. Three small tufts of salmon-coloured silk are ranged
across the knuckles, a fourth being placed, quite alone, at the lower
corner of the gauntlet. [A similar glove was exhibited at the Stuart
Collection in 1889 (No. 453 in the Catalogue), and was described
as having belonged to Charles I.]
The owner of this lady's glove states that it belonged to his great-
aunt, who died some twenty-four years ago at the age of 86, that it
came to her through a friend who had it as a gift from a knight
of Windsor, and that it had always been regarded as having belonged
to Queen Elizabeth.
The property of John Hallam, Esqr.
20 GLOVES AND SHOES
PLATE XII
LADY SHERINGTON'S GLOVES
LATE SIXTEENTH CENTURY
A PAIR of white leather gloves, the gauntlets embroidered
with silver and silk of esthetic colouring ; the fringe is of
silver, and the lining is a pale pink silk. Total length
from tip of middle finger to point of the fringe n\ inches. These
gloves are reputed to have belonged to Lady Sherington, of Laycock
Abbey, in Wiltshire. Sir William Sherington purchased the Abbey
in 1544, and in 1574 his brother Sir Henry, who had succeeded to
the estate, entertained Queen Elizabeth here. There are monuments
to the family in Laycock Church. Date of gloves, late sixteenth
century.
The property of Mrs. B. Morrell.
PLATE .\!1
1'LAfK XI 1 1
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66 LCROY ;
GLOVES AND SHOES 21
PLATE XIII
MITTENS
SIXTEENTH CENTURY
A PAIR of mittens, or fingerless gloves, of crimson velvet,
embroidered on the backs, and in a lesser degree on the
palms, with a conventional design in gold thread. The
hands and thumbs are edged with gold-thread cord. The gauntlets,
covered with white satin, are cut into panels at the bottom and
embroidered with flowers in various coloured silks together with
conventional leaves, and pendent semicircular designs in gold and
silver thread and spangles, and tiny beads are sprinkled about the
ground.
The length of the gloves is 16 inches, and their date late six-
teenth century. They were given by Queen Elizabeth to her maid
of honour, Margaret Edgcumbe, wife of Sir Edward Denny, Kt.,
Baronet.
Presented by Sir Edward Denny, Bart., to the South Kensington
Museum.
22 GLOVES AND SHOES
PLATE XIV
QUEEN ELIZABETH'S GLOVES AT OXFORD
A exceptionally beautiful pair of white kid gloves, with long
gauntlets richly embroidered with gold gimp wire and
terminated with a gold fringe two inches deep ; the em-
broidery is continued round the base of the thumbs, but the stitching
of the finger-seams is quite plain. The total length of the gloves,
including the fringe, is 16^ inches.
These gloves are excellent examples of the period, and are in
almost perfect preservation. They were presented to Queen Elizabeth
when she visited the University, and were left by Her Majesty at
Oxford.
Till recently they were treasured in the Bodleian Library, but are
now among the relics in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford,
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PL i ri: xr
GLOVES AND SHOES 23
PLATE XV
AN ELIZABETHAN GLOVE
FROM A DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR
AONG the interesting relics exhibited at the New Gallery,
London, in the early part of 1902, was a pair of gloves of
rich brown-coloured leather, measuring in length some
12 inches, which were described as having belonged to Queen
Elizabeth.
A singular kind of ornamentation is obtained by cutting out
parts of the leather and inserting under the holes so made a grey-
coloured silk backing, the edges of the pattern being finished off
with herringbone stitching in yellow silk. The confining bands,
or loops, at the openings of the gauntlets are of grey silk, the fringe
being composed of a reddish silk material.
The gloves are in rather a worn and dilapidated condition.
The property of William Henry Taylor, Esqr.
24 GLOVES AND SHOES
1
PLATE XVI
LORD DARNLEYS CUFF
FROM A DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR
cuff, or gauntlet, from a glove, said to have been worked
by Mary, Queen of Scots, and worn by Lord Darnley
in 1555. The designs are in various coloured silks and
silver thread, and the edges of the gauntlet are finished off with lace.
They were No. 349 in the Catalogue of the Exhibition of Stuart
Relics at the New Gallery, London, in 1889, and are the property
of W. Murray Threipland, Esqr.
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PLATE XI- Jl
GLOVES AND SHOES 25
PLATE XVII
GLOVE OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS
A VERY beautiful glove for the left hand, worn by the un-
fortunate Queen of Scots on the morning of her execution.
It is made of a light, cool, buff-coloured leather ; the
elaborate embroidery on the gauntlet is of silver wire gimp and silk
of various colours ; the roses are of pale and dark blue and two
shades of very pale crimson ; the foliage, or trees, is of two shades
of esthetic green ; a bird in flight, with a long tail, figures con-
spicuously in the design ; the whole of the embroidered pattern is
repeated on the other side of the gauntlet. That part of the glove
forming the cuff is lined with bright crimson satin, a narrow band
of which is turned outwards, and forms a binding on to which is
sewn the gold lace ; to the points of this are fastened groups of
small pendant silver spangles. The opening at the side of the
gauntlet is connected by two broad bands of crimson silk, now
much faded, each being decorated at the edges with silver lace.
The length of the glove is 14^ inches from the tip of the middle
finger to the extreme point of the lace and spangles.
The glove certainly belongs to the period to which it is assigned,
and it has been treasured through many generations by the Dayrell
family, as the veritable glove of Mary Stuart.
The following letter proves conclusively that Marmaduke Dayrell,
or Darell, was present at the execution.
The Dayrell Family of Hinxton, Cambs. Copy of the original
letter found among His Majesty's Records in the Tower of London
26 GLOVES AND SHOES
(A.D. 1806), and received by Mr. Dayrell from Mr. Lysons, and
now in the Saffron Walden Museum, with a glove said to have
been given to Marmaduke Dayrell by the Queen at the time of
her execution :
" The convenience of this messenger, with the newes wch. this place dothe
presentlye yelde : occasioneth me to trouble you wth theis few lynes. I double
not but wth you aswell as in the contries hereaboutes, there hathe beene of late
sondrye rumors bruted concerninge the Sco : Queene prisoner here ; wch all, as
they have bene hitherto untrewe ; so now yt is most true, that she hathe endured
that fatall stroke this daie that will excuse her from beinge accessarye to any like
matters that may happen henceforthe.
" Betweene X and XI of the clocke this present Thursdaie she was beheaded
in the Hall of this Castle ; there beinge present at yt as Commissioners, only the
Earle of Shrewsburge and the Earle of Kent, fower other Earles we joyned wth
them in the Commission but came not ; The Sherive of this Shire Sr Rich :
Knightlye, Sr Edwarde Montague, wth dwrs other Gentlemen of good accompte,
wer also here at the Execution. Touchinge the manner of yt all due order was
most carefully observed in yt she herself endured yt as wee must all truely saie
that were eye wittnesses with great courage, and shewe of magnanimitye, albeit
in some other respects she ended not so well as yt to be wished. The order for
her funerall, yt not yet determined uppon ; but wilbe very shortlye, as also for
her people, who (wee thinke) shal be safelye conducted to their native countries.
"Thus have you brieflie, that wch wilbe no double very shortlie reported
unto you more at large. In the meane tyme I beseeche you accepte in good pte
this small shewe of my duetifull remembraunce of you. And so wth my
humble comendacons I leave you to the mercifull ptection of the Almightie.
"ffrom ffatheringaie Castle viij th of ffebruarye, 1586.
" Yor poore kinsman to commaunde
" Mar : Darell
To the right woorshipple Mr. Willm Darell Esquire hat his house at Littlecott."
For and against the probability of the glove having actually
formed a part of the Queen's dress on the fatal morning we have the
statement made in Froude's History of England, p. 332, vol. xii.,
that the Queen wore " a robe of black satin : her jacket was of
black satin also looped and slashed and trimmed with velvet. After
GLOVES AND SHOES 27
her prayers were finished, she rose and prepared." The two
executioners offered to assist her, but were refused with " c Truly,
my Lords,' turning with a smile to the Earls standing near, < I never
had such grooms waiting on me before ! ' " The black robe was
next removed, below it was a petticoat of crimson velvet. The black
jacket followed, and under the jacket was a body of crimson satin.
One of her ladies handed her a pair of crimson sleeves, with which
she hastily covered her arms ; and thus she stood on the black
scaffold, with the black figures all around her, blood-red from head
to foot." May it not be assumed that the Queen was clad entirely
in black on entering the hall ? And if such were the case, would
she be wearing light leather gloves, embroidered with gay colours
and silver lace ? Again, Froude says : " Orders had been given
that everything which she had worn should be immediately destroyed,
that no relic should be carried off to work imaginary miracles "
" beads, Paternoster, handkerchief each article of dress which the
blood had touched, with the cloth on the block and on the scaffold,
was burnt in the hall fire in the presence of the crowd." If this
glove was worn on the morning of the execution, it may have
escaped with other matters, which were probably removed before she
knelt at the block, and therefore would be untouched by the blood.
It is a curious fact that the lining of the gauntlet is of crimson satin^
the same " blood-red " colour mentioned by Froude ! Possibly one,
if not both, of the executioners may have been gentlemen of
position, and if so, why not a Dayrell ? And if this were the case,
what more likely than that in place of the usual money fee, which
would have been given to a common executioner, the Queen may
have given her glove as a last present or fee, being aware that it was
a gentleman of position who was acting as her executioner.
The drawing from which the photograph is taken was made
from the relic by the author, and an outline drawing, together
28 GLOVES AND SHOES
with the description of the execution, was contributed by him to
The Reliquary in 1882.
Since the drawing was made the glove has been reversed in its
case in the museum, and now displays the back of the hand.
In Fairholt's Costume in England a small illustration of this
glove is given (p. 511), but it is inaccurate in nearly every detail.
The glove was lent by the late Colonel Francis Dayrell, of
Camps, in Cambridgeshire, and is still in the Saffron Walden
Museum.
Pi A : i -V/Y//
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1
GLOVES AND SHOES 29
PLATE XVIII
SHAKESPEARE'S GLOVES
A PAIR of grey buckskin gloves with gold thread embroidery ;
the gauntlets have a gold fringe sewn on to an edging of
pale pink silk. The gloves measure a total length of
14 inches, the bottom of the gauntlets being 7 inches across, while
at the wrists they are 43 inches.
These precious relics are the property of Dr. Horace Furness, of
Wallingford, Pennsylvania, who gives the following very interesting
letters relating to their history :
(From John Ward to David Garrick.)
" LEOMINSTER,
"May 3U/, 1769.
" DEAR SIR, On reading the newspapers, I find you are preparing a Grand
Jubilee, to be kept at Stratford-upon-Avon, to the memory of the immortal
Shakespeare. I have sent you a pair of gloves which have often covered his
hands ; they were made me a present by a descendant of the family, when
myself and Company went over there from Warwick, in the year 1746, to per-
form the play of Othello, and a benefit, for repairing his monument in the Great
Church, which we did gratis, the whole of the receipts being expended on that
alone. The Person who gave them to me, William Shakespeare by name,
assured me his father had often declared to him, they were the identical gloves
of our great poet ; and when he delivered them to me, said, * Sir, these are the
only property that remains to our famous relation ; my father possessed, and sold,
the estate he left behind him, and these are all the recompense I can make you
for this night's performance.' The donor was a glazier by trade, very old and, to
the best of my memory, lived in the street leading from the Town Hall down to
the river. On my coming to play in Stratford about three years after, he was
dead. The father of him and our poet were brother's children. The veneration
I bear to the memory of our great author and player, makes me wish to have
30 GLOVES AND SHOES
these relics preserved to his immortal memory ; and I am led to think that
I cannot deposit them, for that purpose, in the hands of any person so proper as
our modern Roscius. ,, , .
" 1 am, Sir,
" Your most humble servant,
" (To) Mr. David Garrick." " J OHN WARD '
On the death of Garrick the gloves passed to his widow, who
died in 1822, whose will contained the following bequest : " I give
to Mrs. Siddons a pair of gloves which were Shakespeare's, and were
presented by one of his family to my late dear husband, during the
Jubilee at Stratford-upon-Avon." (Mrs. Garrick has evidently for-
gotten that John Ward gave them to her husband.)
Mrs. Siddons bequeathed them to her daughter, Mrs. George
Combe, by whom they were given to Mrs. Kemble, and by this ever
dear and gracious lady to their present possessor.
(F. A. Kemble to Dr. Horace Furness.)
"17 January, 1874.
" MY DEAR HORACE (in spite of your literary labours and honours you must
be such to me), The worship of Relics is not the most exalted form of human
devotion, but the meanest garment that ever has but clipped one whom we love
and revere becomes in some measure dear and venerable to us for his sake, and so
we may be permitted to keep Shakespeare's gloves with affectionate regard. As
these were in Garrick's Collection, and given by Mrs. Garrick to my Aunt, they
may be genuine, and I offer them to you as a token of the great pleasure it has
given me to see your name upon the American Variorum Edition of Shakespeare.
Among my books and papers I think I have a few ' remains ' of John Kemble
and Mrs. Siddons which I shall feel happy in placing in your hands. You will
value them for your own sake and perhaps a little for that of your old friend.
" F. A. KEMBLE.
" P.S. The gloves are in the box in which Mrs. George Combe (Cecilia
Siddons) gave them to me."
The gloves are now in America, in the possession of Dr. Horace
Howard Furness.
PLATE XIX
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GLOVES AND SHOES si
PLATE XIX
GLOVES OF KING JAMES I
1
"^HESE gloves, attributed to James I., are of a darkish brown
leather, measuring from the tip of the middle finger to the
edge of the lace on the gauntlet \2\ inches ; the gauntlets
are open at the side some 3^ inches, and are edged with fine gold
twisted lace, which is continued entirely round the gauntlet ; the
embroidery is of silk and gold and silver thread, a conspicuous
emblem being the Scottish thistle, in partly natural colours, the
colouring generally being what may be described as esthetic.
The insides of the gauntlets are lined with red silk. From the
beautiful embroidered work, and from the whole character of the
gloves, they may certainly be supposed to have belonged to a royal
personage.
They are in excellent preservation, and are carefully treasured by
their owner, Alfred de la Fontaine, Esqr.
32 GLOVES AND SHOES
PLATE XX
EARLY SEVENTEENTH -CENTURY GLOVES
A" unusual and singular pair of gloves of leather, the back
seams of the ringers being stitched with gold thread ; the
gauntlets are very deep and are covered with alternate
bands of red satin and gold-thread ribbon-lace, with an edging of
silver tinsel, and fringed with spangled gold thread.
The total length of the gloves is 17 inches. King James I.
gave these gauntleted gloves to Sir Edward Denny, Kt. (afterwards
Earl of Norwich), who, as Sheriff of Hertfordshire, received the
King during his progress from Scotland to London.
Presented by Sir Edward Denny, Bart., to the South Kensington
Museum.
f^'c
I'LA II \ \
-
: ,
GLOVES AND SHOES 33
PLATE XXI
GLOVES OF KING CHARLES I
THE frequent visits of King Charles to the mansion of
Sir Thomas Mil ward (whom His Majesty knighted on one
of these occasions) at Eaton Dovedale, near Uttoxeter,
justifies the assertion that the two pairs of gloves, given on this
and the following plate, belonged to King Charles, and that they
were left by him at Eaton Dovedale on one or other of his visits.
They are of buff leather, lined with white kid, the gauntlets being
embroidered in a simple manner with gold braid and having a rather
deep edging of spangled gold lace, the spangles themselves being
also of gold, which is very unusual. The confining loops at the
openings at the sides of the gauntlet are of ribbed silk, the colour
being royal purple ; the same coloured silk forms the lining for
about 2\ inches inside the gauntlets, and turning outwards and over
gives the foundation on which is sewn the gold lace edging ; the
seams of the fingers and thumbs are also outlined with gold braid.
The total length of the gloves is 14 inches. There is a Van Dyck-ish
look about these gloves, which assists the belief that they belonged
to the martyr King. Treasured with the gloves the Milwards have
preserved an old water-colour drawing of the family mansion, on
the back of which is written, in a bold hand, the following : " The
ruins of Eton Dovedale near Uttoxeter in the County of Derby
the residence of Sir Thomas Milward who there entertained King
Charles ... in the year. . . . His eldest son married Sarah
Daughter of Levinge Esqr., of Sheepey in the Coy of Leicester,
34 GLOVES AND SHOES
by whom he had one only son, The Revnd. Thos. Milward,
educated at Eton. He disinherited his son and to his eternal
disgrace left this fine estate to his brother Wm. Milward, an
Attorney in Uttoxeter, who sold it for an old song and cheated the
Lawful Heir of it." The watermark date on the paper on which
this is written is 1794. These interesting gloves have quite recently
passed out of the keeping of the Milward family into the collection
of the Author.
77~
.
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PLATE XX 11
-
.
:r
GLOVES AND SHOES 35
PLATE XXII
GLOVES OF KING CHARLES I
I
plate gives the second pair of gloves left by Charles I.
at Eton Dovedale, which have also been till lately preserved
by the descendants of Sir Thomas Mil ward. This pair of
gloves are of buff leather, rather more elaborately embroidered with
gold and silver braid on the gauntlet, back and front, while the
fingers are plainly stitched. The confining loops at the side are