Fashioning Empire

Provides new perspectives on empire through material culture, emphasizing the persistence, survival, and creativity of subaltern peoples.

This innovative study of material culture demonstrates how, through fabrics and fashion, empire was brought into homes, plantations, and institutions across the British imperial world. Beverly Lemire brings this global history to life through the stories of diverse subaltern populations who have left a vibrant legacy of creativity and resistance.This innovative study of material culture demonstrates how, through objects, fabrics and fashion, empire was brought into homes, plantations, and institutions across the British Atlantic world in the period from 1660 to 1820. Beverly Lemire illuminates how the British empire was defined by new material norms, from the soapy world of endless whitewashing to the Black servants who became travelling fashion-makers as they journeyed along imperial networks. A trouser-wearing vogue transformed genteel male attire, sparked by glorification of navy sailors, and dressing up for masquerade balls became a powerful form of hierarchical imperial propaganda. Through this largely bottom-up study, Lemire explores practices from Britain to northern North America, the Caribbean to India, foregrounding the importance this unsettling heritage. Breaking down geographical boundaries, she brings this global history to life through the stories of diverse subaltern populations who have left a vibrant legacy of creativity and resistance.