How Croatia Invented The Necktie

The necktie is arguably the most famous invention ever to come out of Croatia. How did this modern marvel of fashion come to be, and what does it have to do with 17th-century France and the Thirty Years War? This is the story of Croatia and the cravat.
Croatia has given the world many things. The fountain pen, the parachute and the mechanical pencil are just three, but no Croatian invention is as internationally renowned as the simple necktie. To learn about the cravat, we must travel all the way back to more brutal times, to the 17th century and a continent-wide conflict.

Impressing the French

The history of the necktie can be traced back to Paris in 1630. King Louis XIII was inspecting a line-up of Croatian mercenaries in traditional costume when his eye was taken by strange pieces of fabric that the soldiers seemed to be wearing around their necks. The materials on show ranged from tatty cloths for the soldiers to fine silks for the officers, but the stylishness was ubiquitous.
King Louis was impressed by this ingenious piece of modern fashion. He recommended it be adopted by the people of France, and soon enough, the cravat became the hottest fashion accessory on the streets of Paris and other towns. The Croats had well and truly made their mark on 17th-century clothing conventions.
Why “cravat”? The name comes from a peculiar amalgamation of etymology and pronunciation. The Croatian word for Croats is hrvati, while the French referred to them as the international Croats. Mix the two together and what do you get? Cravat. It isn’t quite a portmanteau, but it is delightful nonetheless.

Many small necktie souvenirs in a shop in Croatia

A not entirely accurate origin

The changing of the guards of the Kravat regiment, Zagreb, Croatia

The perfect model and military sadness

The honour of inventing the necktie remains at the door of the Croats, and a portrait of Ivan Gundulić, dated to 1622, is thought to be the oldest example of the fashionable item portrayed in art. What better individual to model it than the great Gundulić? Born in Dubrovnik in the late 16th century, he was the most prominent Croatian Baroque poet of his time and was one of the most beloved creative minds speaking out in favour of the Counter-Reformation. He is an apt poster boy for the 17th-century Catholic clothing creation.
The necktie is Croatia’s great present to the fashion world, but the question remains — why did the soldiers wear the things in the first place? The reasoning behind the tie is as logical as it is tragic, as clear as it is confusing. The wives of the men would often watch their husbands go into battle, but once the fighting began, the battlefield tended to become one big free-for-all and individuals were impossible to make out.
To combat this, the Croat men began wearing colourful pieces of cloth around their necks so that their wives and loved ones could make them out in battle. The question remains as to why someone would want to watch their beloved in a fight to the death, but fashion seems to have trumped convention once again.

The honorary Cravat Regiment in Zagreb, Croatia

landscape with balloons floating in the air

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