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Posted by Scott Bubar on April 14, 19101 at 21:51:33:
In Reply to: The Three Cornered hat posted by James Sympson on April 06, 19101 at 22:40:38:
Hi James.
I'm by no means an expert of eighteenth century fashion, but it's my impression that the tricorne was the result of an evolutionary development in headgear that occurred during the last decade of the seventeenth century and the first decade of the eighteenth.
Broad-brimmed felt hats were worn with the brim turned up on both sides, much like some cowboys wear them.
The "gap" at the front was narrower than the gap at the back, and eventually came to form a corner, leaving a very broad "gap" at the back. At this point, the brim left low at the back was also turned up, forming three corners.
You can see some of the development at this site:
http://www.kipar.org/galleries.html
Select "Baroque Engravings" for the periods 1690 and 1700.
The image that I've posted come from the site I've linked below. If you go the page linked, and select "Danish Cavalry Uniforms", you'll see troopers from just after 1700 wearing broad-brimmed hats shortly before the tricorne was adopted.
What I haven't been able to find is whether there were any major public personages of the period championing the tricorne.
Personally, I've always found the style a bit silly, as it negates the advantages of a brimmed hat--protection from the sun and precipitation.
It was by no means the only way hats were worn in America at the time of the Revolution, but it was still in fashion.
Yankee Doodle Dandy.
Please let us know if you discover further information.
And thanks for the interesting question.