From pictures, historical films, illustrations to books, we know that in the Middle Ages there were men's shoes with sharp and very long toes. Quite ridiculous shoes, which we associate with the element of the court jester's costume. But in reality, the fashion for them lasted for about four centuries, and were worn by representatives of the nobility and even kings.
Beak-shaped and very soft men's shoes were called bullets. Most of them were made of leather, and the soles were made soft.
1. How long-nosed men's shoes appeared in Europe
Europeans have worn these strange, ridiculous shoes for nearly four centuries. They appeared in 1099, after the crusaders returned from their first campaign. It was they who brought the national footwear of the East - embossed morocco grandmothers. These boots had sharp, elongated toes.
Orderic Vitaly, a famous monk who lived in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, wrote in his chronicle that in Europe these shoes became fashionable with the light hand of Fulk IV Le Reshen, a French count.
He had quite scandalous addictions. Upon reaching a certain age, quite respectable, the aristocrat developed bursitis and, on top of that, nails began to grow on his toes. Due to the presence of flaws and pain in movement, the count gave his personal shoemaker an assignment make special shoes that compensate for the shortcomings of the physical plane, and allow painless move. The shoemaker took oriental grandmothers as the basis, but he made the sock longer. If necessary, the socks were lifted up and the count could walk comfortably. The aristocrat himself was simply delighted with the shoemaker's decision and practically never parted with his shoes all his life.
In the same chronicles, the monk described another person whom he named Robert. This high-ranking person specially filled his long-nosed bullets with linen, and then bent their ends up in the form of a ram's horn.
2. XIV century - fashion in Europe for Polish pulleins
Gradually, boots with long socks came into fashion. Representatives of the wealthy strata of the population first wore them exclusively on holidays. Gradually, the noses lengthened more and more. And in the fourteenth century, the Poles invented very narrow shoes with a toe, the length of which was 60 centimeters longer than the foot. Naturally, it was impossible to move fully in them. He helped fashionistas with moss, with which they stuffed the ends of their shoes in order to somehow fix them.
3. What made the stronger sex wear these strange shoes
Surely it is difficult to find a reason explaining such an unusual addiction of men. Among a number of historians there is an assumption that one of the possible reasons may be the so-called Phallic cult widespread in Europe during the Middle Ages.
Often, young males were punished for indecent behavior - standing on the corner streets, they obscenely rocked their long bullet socks, thereby hinting clearly not at the chaste behavior.
As for the church, here they were shocked by what was happening. Indeed, often the shape of the shoes made it difficult even to pray. Many church leaders, as well as the rulers of Europe, considered such a fashion a shame. In some cases, she was called "devil's shoes." In 1347 a terrible epidemic of the Black Plague swept through Europe, the origin of which remained a mystery to the clergy. In this regard, they preached that illness is God's punishment for wearing the "Devil's shoes."
During his reign (1327-1377), Edward III, under pressure from the clergy, issued a special law. According to him, the length of the sock for people with an annual income of 40 pounds was limited. So, princes, as well as counts, had the opportunity to walk in bullets, the length of which was 76 centimeters (2.5 feet), knights could wear shoes 45 centimeters (one and a half feet) long, while farmers and commoners could wear 15 centimeters (0.5 feet).
The most truthful version of the popularity of pulleins is the desire of promising men to demonstrate their origin and prosperity, because working in the field or near livestock in such boots was impossible.
Most of the material for sewing these shoes was leather. But the Europeans also actively used fabrics. In high society, long-nosed shoes made of silk and velvet were fashionable.
But this is not the funniest thing either. Even the armor of the knights began to be made with an eye to fashion trends. Sabatons, plate boots attached to the greaves, began to be made, too, with elongated socks of the type of bullet. For the time being, of course. In 1396 after the defeat of the crusaders by the Ottomans in the battle of Nikopol, the French had to hastily cut off their socks from their boots in order to quickly retreat.
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4. Law prohibiting the wearing of bullets
In connection with the ridicule with which the public accompanied this fashion, the king of England in 1463 a law was passed that stated that any shoe with socks longer than 2 inches (five centimeters) was prohibited.
But the most aggressive attitude towards bullets was demonstrated by Paris. In 1368 here an absolute ban was imposed on their wearing. Around 1457 such shoes in many European countries have ceased to be massively worn. In a number of states, they were banned for ordinary people and were allowed only to royal jesters. Shoes in Europe acquired a civilized look already during the reign of Henry VIII.
It will be no less interesting to know for which blind holes are made on men's shoes.
A source: https://novate.ru/blogs/200421/58677/
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