Graduation Attire PhD/Doctoral Tudor Bonnet

Product Information

For men, the most common dress consisted of trousers made of wool in addition to a tunic which reached to the knees. It is worn as traditional clothing with gowns most especially Livery and burgess guilds officers as suitable headwear. In fact, the heavy application of makeup synonymous with Elizabeth I was not a trend throughout the reign of the first Tudors. For example, during Henry VIII’s time in power, it was more likely that noblewomen would go for a far more natural look. It was only when Elizabeth I came into power and also expanded trade to the Middle East and further abroad that face and eye makeup became widely used throughout the court. There were clear differences between Tudor clothes for poor people and the rich people. The most common types of Tudor clothes for poor people were simple-fitting clothes made from wool and worn without any ornamentation.

On the Friday afternoon, I had a pleasure of being part of the procession as a Civic Marshal (I thoroughly enjoyed wearing my Doctoral robes again!) and whilst I was sat on the stage admiring everyone in their academic attire it dawned on me that although I was wearing the renowned floppy hat, I didn’t know anything about its origins…so, I did some investigating! Interestingly, in noble households children were usually dressed as adults straight away. In fact, until about 9 years of age, young boys were also dressed as girls too. When they were old enough, these young boys would be ‘breeched’ which means put into trousers and other garments. It is believed that the main reason behind dressing boys in dresses and gowns was due to toilet training and when they were able to be more independent they would be dressed in boys clothes. The Tudor bonnet (also referred to as a doctor's bonnet or round cap) is a traditional soft-crowned, round-brimmed cap, with a tassel hanging from a cord encircling the hat. As the name suggests, the Tudor bonnet was popularly worn in England and elsewhere during Tudor times. Today the cap is strongly associated with academic tradition. It is typically worn as part of academic dress by the holder of a research or professional doctoral degree. The State dress uniforms of Yeomen Warders are almost identical to those of the Yeomen of the Guard, but the Yeomen of the Guard can be distinguished by their cross belts worn from the left shoulder.The ceremony has taken place over the same piece of ground, in war as well as peace, for about 700 years. The Cap, or 'square cap,' may have had its origin in the almuce. For the almuce was originally used to cover the head, and when it ceased to fulfil that function the cap seems to have been introduced. It has gone through several modifications: once of the comely shape that we see in the portraits of Bishop Fox and others, it developed in the seventeenth century into the form sometimes called the Canterbury cap (of limp material, with a tuft on the top), and then into the still beautiful college-cap in England, and abroad into the positively ugly biretta. There is no conceivable reason for English churchmen to discard their own shape in favour of a foreign one, except that the biretta offends an immense number of excellent lay folk, and thus makes the recovery of the Church more difficult. [4] A Tudor bonnet is a velvet round academic cap with a long honour tassel hanging from a cord which is circled around the cap. It is also known as a round doctoral bonnet or PhD cap. Portray your academic or doctorate status with our range of Tudor Bonnets and American Tams made from only the highest quality velvet.

Ruffs were a typical accessory for Tudor men and as time went on they continued to become larger and more pronounced. In fact, they were so fashionable that in many noble households, including the royal court, a specialist laundress was usually employed to clean these ruffs daily. The cap is worn as traditional clothing with gowns and represents suitable headgear especially for livery and burgess guild officers. He allows him to pass after recognising the Chief Warder as the bearer of Queen Elizabeth's keys by saying 'Pass, Queen Elizabeth's keys, and all's well'.It is mostly worn as part of academic dress by a person who holds a doctorate degree, mainly by those holding a research or professional doctoral degree. It is also often worn by those holding an honourary or full higher doctorate, and, at certain educational establishments, by University Officers, such as the Esquire Bedell, University Marshal, the president of the students’ union, and members of the university council.

Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII’s first wife, was the first Tudor royal to introduce the ‘Spanish farthingale’ into the royal court. The farthingale was a conical shaped undergarment that gave a different shape to dresses and exaggerated the silhouette. According to tradition, this type of graduation ceremony cap is worn by Bachelors and Masters graduates, but it’s not uncommon for students of all ages to wear them at graduation. While this may be obvious to those who have previously measured their head for other hats, it may be a new experience for others. So, here’s how to measure your head for a graduation cap. The first thing you’ll need is a tape measure, not a DIY metallic one, as that’ll prove to be a nightmare. The Canterbury cap differs from the present-day biretta, as a Canterbury cap has four ridges, compared to the biretta's three. In addition, the biretta is (sometimes) rigid, or rigid but folding, while the Canterbury cap is always soft and easily folds when not in use. [1] [ failed verification] In the Catholic Church, its use is identical to that of the modern biretta, into which, on the continent, the cap evolved into throughout the centuries.

Frequently Asked Questions

Throughout Henry VIII’s rule, flat caps were also popularised. In fact, in many of his most famous paintings, King Henry can often be seen wearing a fur-trimmed flat cap heavily embellished with jewels and pearls. We’ll cover how to measure your head for a graduation cap below, but we also have elasticated mortarboard caps available for a simpler solution. The only thing to note is that our elasticated hats are 100% polyester with no felt option. Tudor Bonnet

The Chief Warder concludes the ceremony by raising his Tudor bonnet and proclaiming 'God preserve Queen Elizabeth', to which all present reply 'Amen'. Women’s dress, on the other hand, mainly consisted of a long gown of wool which went down to the ground. A few educational establishments have a custom to wear a mortarboard instead of a Tudor Bonnet. Furthermore, Livery and burgess guild's officers wear this cap as part of their traditional attire (with gowns). Additionally, women also used an apron over the skirt and a cloth bonnet on the heads. During the late Tudor period, hats also became an important ingredient of Tudor clothes for the poor. For many graduates, a traditional cap and gown are somewhat of a novel, eccentric outfit you wear for graduation, but the attire is a tradition with a long history. Essentially, it represents the history of graduating from higher education and wearing a cap during the ceremony is a rite of passage.Most of the universities in UK founded from the early nineteenth century onwards opted to put all doctors when wearing the full-dress robes in a round bonnet or some variant like a John Knox soft cap. The first PhD in the UK was introduced in 1917. Some universities distinguish PhDs and the newer professional doctors from higher doctors by putting them in a mortar-board or giving them a bonnet in cloth rather than velvet or in other ways.” The keys are then carried by the Chief Yeoman Warder to safekeeping, whilst the Last Post is sounded. Square cloth hat used by Anglican clergy An Anglican priest delivers a homily, dressed in choir habit with Canterbury cap The Canterbury cap is a square cloth hat with sharp corners. It originated in the Middle Ages, and is commonly found in the Anglican Communion, as well as in the Catholic Church where it is used by Anglican Ordinariate clergy. It is also soft and foldable, "Constructed to fold flat when not in use..." [1] The Canterbury cap is the medieval biretta, descended from the ancient pileus headcovering. It is sometimes called the "catercap". [ citation needed]