Why are there so many useless buttons on the sleeves of men's jackets?

On the sleeves of men's jackets, several buttons are almost always sewn in a row. They are both on clothes of expensive brands, and on the cheapest. These buttons do not carry any practical load, and many people have a question - why are they needed? It turns out that this part has an interesting history dating back several centuries.

There are many hypotheses about how buttons appeared on the sleeves. One of them says that they began to be sewn onto military uniforms in the 18th century so that soldiers would not wipe sweat with their sleeves. The origin of this version cannot be traced. Various sources attribute this know-how to various historical figures - Horatio Nelson, Napoleon Bonaparte, Frederick the Great and even Peter I.

In fact, this is nothing more than a bike, because it is easy to make sure that the buttons do not interfere with the use of the sleeve as a napkin or handkerchief. But there is some truth in this hypothesis. The fashion for sleeve buttons actually came from the army and has been around for centuries.

There is such an element of clothing as a cuff. The word is German and in the original looks like "Aufschlag". This is a cuff or lapel on the sleeve. Now it is a decorative element, but earlier the cuff served to protect the fabric from abrasion in a place that is constantly exposed to various influences. Double-folded fabric resisted wear much better.

Once the cuff was an integral part of the military uniform. This is easy to verify by looking at the frock coats and camisoles of soldiers and officers of the 18-19th century. By the way, on the uniforms of the era of Peter I, such lapels were the largest. It is not easy to fix the sleeve in the tucked position, and even if the person is actively moving. That's what the row of buttons was for. And it's just beautiful! Buttons could be located both in a row and along the edge of the cuff.

But in modern men's jackets there are no cuffs, but there are buttons. It should be clarified that modern men's suits are the heirs of the 19th century suits. And those, in turn, descended from men's dresses of the 18th century. It is no secret that military style was in fashion at that time. And this means that button cuffs were used everywhere.

Huge cuffs have been in fashion for no more than a century. By the end of the 18th century, they began to decrease. The buttons holding the rolled-up sleeve also became smaller. The utility of this element gradually faded into the background and gradually the cuffs became just a decoration. Over time, they completely disappeared from men's clothing, and buttons turned into just a decorative element. There are other details of modern clothing, the origin of which is no less interesting.