Style's sporting legacy

Britain’s heritage brands, whether supplying estate tweed or creating Best guns, define modern luxury while continuing to lead innovation

- DR HANNAH CLARK

For “superior sporting ware”, enthused American society equestrienne and huntress Lida Fleitmann in 1921, “we must of necessity turn to the English, who for centuries have excelled in this line”. From origins in the Georgian and Victorian periods to their continuing popularity today, Britain’s heritage luxury brands are international bywords for quality, craftsmanship, innovation and impeccable service, and their sporting history provides a fascinating background to their success.

Who knew, for instance, that alongside providing liveries for the Royal household and creating the first tuxedo jacket, Henry Poole & Co supplied fine jockey silks (including to jockey Jem Mason, the rider of Lottery, the first-ever Grand National winner in 1839)? They also clothed the celebrated 19th-century foxhunting courtesan ‘Skittles’ (Catherine Walters), mistress of Emperor Napoleon III, who famously wore her skin-tight riding habits without underclothes, scandalising polite society.