Let’s Gossip About History
If you’ve been here long enough, you know I have a lot of - I don’t want to call it useless - let’s call it uniquely specific, information stored in my head. 😅
Unfortunately for you, you’re already here, and these stories were just too juicy for me to keep to myself. So, buckle up. Let’s dive into some historical tea; flask is out.
High Heels: From Battlefields to Red Carpets
Did you know that high heels were once primarily worn by men? I stumbled upon this little nugget of history while reading something completely random (and, no, I didn’t do extensive research, so don’t quote me on this).
But, back in the 16th and 17th centuries, heels were all the rage among kings, nobles, and wealthy men, long before they ever graced women’s feet. Heels were initially very practical. Men wore them for war. They helped secure their feet in stirrups while riding horses and provided stability for shooting arrows.
But wait, there’s more. Heels also served other practical purposes:
In some countries, they kept men’s feet elevated to avoid stepping in sewage and filth (gross, but genius).
In the Ottoman Empire, they were worn in hamams (bathhouses) because the floors were too hot.
Only in the 12th century in India, Egypt, and some other communities, everyone essentially wore them purely to be baddies. They started off with heels for cuteness, height, and making their feet look thin.
And then there’s King Louis XIV, the most famous heel-wearer in history. Under his rule, the higher and redder the heel, the more powerful the wearer. It was a flex, showing you were rich enough not to dirty your shoes. Basically, he launched red-bottoms v1.
So, from the 16th to the 18th century, heels were mostly for men, for practical reasons and, eventually, to show power and wealth. But somehow, by the 19th century, they became a symbol of power dressing for women, and men just… stopped wearing them. Wild, right?
Powdered Wigs: From Hiding Disease and Infestation to Status Symbols
Now, let’s talk about those powdered wigs that lawyers and judges still wear today. You know the ones, ashy, and probably on the wrong side of history.
Here’s the tea: those wigs were popularized by kings for fashion. But the real reasons behind their rise are even juicier:
Back in the day, syphilis was rampant, and one of its advanced symptoms was sores and balding. Wigs were worn to cover that up; obviously, no one wanted to be known for this.
The age-old struggle, hiding male pattern baldness, you’ll be happy to know this wasn’t started in Turkey. Wigs were used to hide baldness, way before technology started doing implants.
Lice were everywhere, in those days, and wigs helped control the spread. Apparently, it was preferred because the wig could come off and be laundered to remove the lice. Honestly, maybe we should bring this back for school kids. I lie awake often just thinking how hard it would be to comb lice out of my son’s locs. A wig doesn’t sound so bad now, does it? It sounds like an under-reaction, if you asked me. 😂
Eventually, King Louis XIII of France started the “fashion” trend to cover his premature balding, and his royal court quickly followed suit. When King Charles II of England adopted the look, wigs became a symbol of wealth, status, and authority among the European elite. The term “bigwig” was even coined to describe important people, because, well, their wigs were massive.
All this was so mind-blowing to me.
All This to Say…
What’s fascinating to me is how the culture around these two things, heels and wigs, evolved so dramatically. They started as practical solutions to specific problems and morphed into symbols of power, status, and fashion.
This shows the astounding human capacity for creativity, evolution, problem-solving, and adaptability. If heels can go from being functional to fashionable, and wigs can go from covering disease and infestation to symbolizing authority and now beauty, then surely…
We can recognize that the history of VC and the previous holders of capital and innovation has changed significantly. Innovation doesn’t solely sit in the same hands; we are all wearing “heels and wigs” now. Therefore, we can stretch our minds and
WE CAN ALL FIGURE OUT HOW TO INVEST MORE IN WOMEN.
You didn’t see that coming, huh?
Okay, bye. 👋