Why Did British Men Wear Wigs in the 1700s?

History Unplugged Podcast

History Unplugged

Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 21 September 2017

⏱️ 9 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

You’ve seen the look in historical dramas. You laughed at the foppish dandies that appear on Masterpiece Theater. In grade school you sneered at pictures of King George with his powdered wig, adjusting it ever so slightly while drinking a cup of tea with his pinky finger extended, wondering how he further extort colonists with new taxes. You didn’t know that we call important people “bigwig” due to the aristocracy tradition of fancy wigs. But where does the powdered wig come from? Why was such a peculiar look the sign of nobility in England during the 1500s-1700s? It all has to do with syphilis, head lice, the shame of male-pattern baldness, and the fashion tastes of Louis XIV. TO HELP OUT THE SHOW Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help and I read each one. Subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher

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0:00.0	War has played a key role in the history of the United States, from the nation's founding right down to the present.
0:06.2	Wars made the United States independent, kept it together, increased its size, and established it as a global superpower.
0:13.2	Hi, I'm James Early, host of the Key Battles of American History podcast.
0:17.6	In each episode I discuss American history through the lens of the most important battles of America's Wars.
0:23.2	To start listening now, go to pathanonpodcast.com or search Key Battles of American History on your favorite podcast and platform.
0:36.1	The history of North America podcast is a sweeping historical saga of the United States, Canada, and Mexico, from their deep origins to our present epoch.
0:46.0	Join me, Mark Vinet, on this exciting, fascinating epic journey through time,
0:51.1	focusing on the compelling, wonderful, and tragic stories of North America's inhabitants, heroes, villains, leaders, environment, and geography.
1:01.4	I invite you to come along for the ride.
1:06.5	Welcome to the History Unplugged Podcast, the unscripted show that celebrates unsung heroes,
1:13.1	Mythbust's historical lies, and rediscoveres the forgotten stories that changed our world.
1:19.6	I'm your host, Scott Rank.
1:27.6	Hi everyone. Today's question is about powdered wigs that British
1:31.9	gentlemen wore in the 1700s. Why?
1:35.2	The idea for this episode came from a British series called Pull Dark, which my wife and I have been watching.
1:40.8	It's a super entertaining show about a gentleman who is trying to navigate class politics in England in the 1780s.
1:48.7	We noticed a lot of men wearing wigs. My wife asked me, why did they wear those?
1:53.0	Well, I wasn't sure, so I went out and researched the answer.
1:56.6	That's how I come up with a lot of these episodes topics. I'm curious about something, and then I just go and research it.
2:02.4	Well, here's why men wore wigs.
2:05.4	Believe it or not, the story starts in the 1500s with syphilis.
2:11.2	Syphilis is believed to be a venereal disease that came from the New World.
	...

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