The fashionable man would be likely to use hair powder made with scented powdered starch and pomades made with mashed apples and animal fat.
William Pitt the Younger became prime minister of Britain in 1783 at the tender age of 24. The term “Younger” distinguished him from his father, William Pitt the Elder, who had also served as prime minister. During the younger Pitt’s tenure, Britain was embroiled in a war with Napoleon that placed a heavy burden on the treasury. To raise money, Pitt introduced a number of taxes, including The Duty on Hair Powder Act of 1795. Anyone wishing to purchase hair powder had to first acquire a certificate from a post office upon payment of an annual fee. Since hair powder was a popular commodity among the fashionable nobility, the tax brought in significant funds.
The story of the appeal of hair powder starts in the 16th century, when many nobles were plagued with syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease that can result in open sores and hair loss. Long hair was in style at the time and hair loss was often a giveaway of having contracted syphilis. Wigs masked the situation, but introduced another problem. They were usually made of the hair of goats or horses that attracted lice and also had a smell. Finely powdered starch, or “hair powder,” was found to deter lice, because its slippery nature prevented the bugs from climbing the hair shaft to get to their food supply, namely, the scalp. Often, the starch was scented with orange, jasmine or lavender essence to mask any unpleasant smells.
Wigs as a fashion statement started with Louis XIV, the Sun King, who was also a king of fashion. He introduced red shoes as well as long hair that courtiers took to imitating with wigs. The wearing of wigs was not novel. Much earlier the ancient Egyptians had fabricated wigs from human hair, wool or flax fibres, and the Romans used the blond hair of northern captives. Roman ladies of the night were recognizable by the blond wigs they sported. Louis’s flowing locks had defined his appearance, and when he started to lose his hair, he began to resort to elaborate wigs. At one point the king had 40 wigmakers and owned some 1,000 wigs made from human hair!
The towering audacious wig hairdos required a great deal of maintenance. Heated clay rollers produced the required curls and a “pomade” kept them in shape. That term derives from the Latin “pomum” for apple. Historically, mashed apples were combined with animal fat to make pomades. The sugar present in the apples enhanced the stickiness that was welcome not only to maintain the shape of the locks, but also to help bind the wig powder to the hair. The powder was sometimes coloured with minerals, but pure white from finely macerated flour was the most popular. The pomade and the powder added significant weight to the wig and the bewigged had to learn how to balance the elaborate beehives as they walked.
Wigs made it across the English Channel when Charles II returned to England from France after having been exiled by Oliver Cromwell. He had taken a shine to Louis’s wigs, and when he was restored as king, the English nobility followed in his footsteps. By the end of Charles’s reign in 1685, wigs had become part of barristers’ and judges’ wardrobe in the court, a tradition maintained to this day. Wigs made from the hair of white horses were the most prized, but as they tended to yellow with age, required the use of white powder.
Gentlemen who did not favour wigs, George Washington for example, had their own hair “pomaded” and powdered to look as if they were wearing a wig. The president’s white, pomaded locks can be readily seen in Gilbert Stuart’s famous 1796 portrait, painted just a year after the Hair Powder Act had been introduced in Britain. Of course, since the United States had broken from Britain, the act did not apply. It is hard to know just how much revenue the act contributed to the British coffers, but Prime Minister William Pitt apparently did his part. A portrait shows his hair coiffed with white powder.
Wigs as a style statement for men have disappeared except in British courts and some former colonies, where they are still worn by lawyers and judges. The argument is that they provide a certain anonymity resulting in the court’s attention being focussed not on the person, but the law. Designs of the wigs are different for lawyers and judges, with judges’ wigs being more ornate and longer. Made from white horsehair, such wigs can cost thousands of dollars. I don’t know whether lawyers or judges still powder their wigs, but wig powders still exist, although they are usually called “setting powders.” And there is no extra duty on them.
Joe Schwarcz is director of McGill University’s Office for Science & Society (mcgill.ca/oss). He hosts The Dr. Joe Show on CJAD Radio 800 AM every Sunday from 3 to 4 p.m.
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