By his clothes you shall know him
The style of your Meltonian Fox-hunter,” wrote the hunting writer Nimrod in the 1830s, “has long distinguished him above his brethren of what he calls the provincial chase. When turned out at the hands of his valet, he presents the very beau-ideal of his caste. The exact Stultze-like fit of his coat – his superlatively well-cleaned leather breeches and boots and the generally apparent high breeding of the man can seldom be matched elsewhere.”
Others agreed: Henry Alken’s print series How to qualify for a Meltonian: addressed to all would-be Meltonians, 1821, outlined the Meltonian’s superior elegance; and TJ Rawlins’ image, The Meltonian: or, the pleasures of the chase developed, 1833, championed the sartorial prowess of the resplendently attired ‘Real Meltonian’ fox-hunter over his pictorial neighbours, ‘The Old English foxhunter’ and ‘The Common Rate Sportsman’. Clearly, the Dandy Meltonian foxhunter’s dress was a mark of distinction but, interestingly, he was also the catalyst for much of the distinctive hunting costume we associate with the sport today.
PHYSICALLY IMPROVING
British foxhunting dress and equipage have become synonymous with the image of fox-hunting, providing an instantly recognisable signifier of
