Posts with tag Thomas Burberry

Like the Chanel suit and the Birkin bag, the Burberry trench coat is one of fashion's most iconic pieces. The coat was created in 1901 when Burberry founder Thomas Burberry proposed the garment as the official raincoat for British Army officers. Once World War I rolled around, Burberry altered the jacket slightly to include a few new design features, such as epaulettes, d-rings and straps. Because the jacket was primarily worn by soldiers fighting in the trenches, the rain coat was eventually dubbed the 'trench coat.' Eventually, the trench coat made its way into the uniforms of enlisted soldiers in the UK and in America during the Second World War.

Following the war, the style became wildly popular with public, due in part to the appearance of the coat in an number of classic Hollywood films -- Peter Sellers in the Pink Panther films, Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca, Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's.