Coexistence of Chinese and Western style Clothes

After the 1920s China was like a clothing exposition - all kinds of clothes were worn, including clothes of the Qing Dynasty (which ended in 1912), clothes of the Republic of China (which was founded in 1912), and European, American, and Japanese clothes.

In terms of men's clothes, many people were accustomed to wearing long gowns, which were the everyday clothes of the Qing Dynasty. Other Qing items of clothing included: the traditional jacket with five buttons down the front and narrow sleeves; the traditional long gown or long robe, which usually had buttons to the right, a hem six to seven centimeters above the ankle, small slits about 30 centimeters long on both sides of the hem, and sleeves level with the traditional jacket. People also wore one-layer or interlayered long robes, cotton long gowns inside sleeveless garments, Chinese-style waist trousers, hats of various styles, long scarves and ridge shoes (with two ridges on the front and at the middle part). These were the typical clothes of middle- and upper-class men in the early period of the Republic of China, mostly worn while attending chambers of commerce or engaging in ceremonial activities left over from the Qing Dynasty. Men had cut their plaits by this time, so apart from straw hats worn on hot days and fur hats worn on cold days, skullcaps, called "hat thorns," were worn most often. Ordinary people wore long gowns made of hand-woven cloth (mostly blue and grey), short traditional jackets made of hand-woven cloth, well-fitting lined short gowns, lined cotton vests, trousers with big crotches and hand-knitted cloth shoes.

We know about the fashions of the late Qing Dynasty thanks to the lyrics of ballads such as "Ten Busy People" and "Fallen Lotus Flowers." These songs mention people wearing straw hats with embroidered Japanese satin edges and imitation silk lining, pale blue long gowns made of thin foreign silk, with hidden peony patterns, and verdant crepe trousers with inner flower patterns and pink borders. The words "Japanese" and "foreign" appear many times in these songs, showing that materials were either from Japan or the West.

As Western clothes, lifestyles and values came to China, more and more people began to adapt the Qing styles of dress, and to adopt entirely new modes of dress. In the 1920s, wearing Western-style clothes and leather shoes became fashionable for men. When attending activities with foreigners or working for foreign firms, most men wore hats, shiny leather shoes, Western-style shirts, neckties or cravats, and suits with a carefully folded handkerchief placed in the suit jacket pocket (dark Western-style clothes were always matched with white handkerchiefs). Decorative tie-clasps, sleeveless overcoats and braces were also worn. The gold chain of a man's gold-shell pocket watch was decorated with small peaches and pomegranates carved from precious stones or white gingko nuts, and muskmelons carved from jade. Men wore rings made of various stones or plain gold, and usually wore white gloves and carried sticks, called "civilization sticks," when out and about. Civilization sticks had little practical use - instead they acted as a signifier of the upper classes. Though long gowns and traditional jackets still existed, complete Western suits were allowed. Wearing Western-style clothes and leather shoes from head to foot was regarded as a very bold and trendy new style.

In the early period of the Republic of China, many young men went to Japan to study and they brought back Japanese school uniforms. These uniforms were similar to Western-style clothes, with a three-piece design and separately tailored sleeves. Tunic suits usually had a narrow and low unbent collar instead of an overturned collar, and were worn without a necktie or cravat. There was a hidden pocket on both sides of the front, and an outer pocket on the left side of the chest. Chinese tunic suits are derived from Japanese school uniform design.

The uniqueness of tunic suit design lies in its collar and pockets. The medium-height stand-up collar looks like the hard collar of a Western shirt of the time; four outside pockets are sewn on the front of the upper garment, and two lower outside pockets are folded in the style of "music pouches" so more objects can be put into them, complete with pocket flaps. The matching trousers have a slit in the front, hidden buttons, big hidden pockets with slanted openings on both sides, a small hidden pocket (used as a watch pocket) in front of the waist, and a hidden pocket with a soft flap at the right buttock. This style of clothing was first worn by Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925),

the founder of the Republic of China, and was more practical than Western-style clothes, and consistent with Chinese aesthetics and lifestyles. Western tailoring methods, materials and colors were adopted but they featured Chinese symmetry and restraint. Chinese tunic suits quickly became the uniform of intellectuals.

Some people believe that Chinese tunic suits originated with Sun Yat-sen's combination of the Qing Dynasty official robe (with an overturned collar) with Japanese-style school uniforms. In 1929, the Kuomintang amended the Constitution and required all civil officials to be specially appointed according to simple procedures and recommendations. These officials had to wear tunic suits when they were sworn in to demonstrate their loyalty to the new republic. The state advocated four moral standards (propriety, justice, honesty and honor), and it was decided that there should be four pockets on the front of the suit to represent these standards. The Kuomintang separated the state into five powers (administration, legislation, justice, examination and supervision) and these powers were represented by the five buttons on the front of the tunic suit jacket. Three Principles of the People (nationalism, democracy and the livelihood of the people), dictated the three buttons on each cuff. Later, Chinese tunic suits moved from being fashionable to being part of ceremonial wear.

In the 1920s, the most peculiar Chinese men's clothing combined Chinese and Western characteristics. During the 4th May Movement of 1919, revolutionary youths wore long gowns and wool scarves. People also wore Western-style hats, trousers and leather shoes - with these outfits they were thought to be both scholarly and modern. This style of men's clothing received worldwide exposure via films of the 1920s, and has left an enduring image.

Meanwhile, spectacles were very popular. Gold-rimmed spectacles were worn by men and women with money and/or knowledge. Qing poet Yang Jingting wrote in Miscellany Verses on Beijing, "People wearing novel square shoes swagger and pose on the street frequently. They wear glasses, pretending to be shortsighted to let others know they are intellectuals."

Because of the Qing Dynasty's closed-door policy, Chinese people had very little knowledge of foreign countries. After the Qing Dynasty was overthrown, any and all new fashions were called "civilized" - for example, a marriage not arranged by matchmakers (with no bowing to heaven and earth) was called a "civilized marriage," and new styles of wedding clothes accompanied these changes. The groom still wore a long gown, traditional jacket and hat and even had red silk draped over his shoulders and a big red flower pinned on his chest, but the bride wore a Western-style wedding gown. Wedding ceremonies, wedding clothes, and the clothes of officials and soldiers changed to form new styles. People were unwilling to completely leave Chinese clothing styles behind but they also wanted to incorporate foreign ideas and new, novel items of clothing. This was the state of Chinese clothing between the Opium War of 1840 and the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.