Date: c. 1880-90s

Origin: Great Britain

Fabric: Cotton lawn, Valenciennes lace

Brand: Unknown

 

This chemise belonged to Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, who reigned from 1837 to 1901. It is the first layer of underwear she would have put on and served to protect her clothing from body oils as well as to be a layer between her skin and corset for comfort.

This type of construction, with a main body, rectangular short sleeves, and no underarm gusset, dates to the 1880s-90s; earlier constructions relied on gussets for ease of movement and often had longer sleeves.

It is made of fine cotton lawn with Valenciennes lace trim at the neckline and sleeves. The neckline has a channel and drawstrings, allowing the neckline to be cinched to fit. It is embroidered with a royal crown motif and the royal cipher at the right underarm, with the letters VR (“Victoria Regina,” Latin for Queen Victoria) and the number 47, probably indicating its place in the royal wardrobe (chemise number 47).

As a royal, Queen Victoria had many sets of clothing made per year, and therefore frequently gave away old and little-used items to her ladies-in-waiting and attendants. As souvenirs of her life, these items have spread around the world and now live in museum collections like ours.

 

From the collection of The Underpinnings Museum.

Many thanks to Kenna Libes for the object description.

Museum number: UM-2025-006