The Englishman’s Suit is both a history and a guide to the most important part of an Englishman’s wardrobe. In certain quarters an Englishman is still likely to be judged by his apparel as by anything else; his suit in particular can reveal the wearer as unequivocally as his tongue.

 This classic text – published in 1994, reissued in 2009 to celebrate Sir Hardy’s centenary and reprinted, in 2013, ten years after his death – gives the reader a charming and entertaining account of the suit’s development from the seventeenth century to the end of the twentieth. Today, twenty years after its first publication, the narrative reveals a fascinating motley of curious and frequently amusing facts; from the arcane mysteries of button replacement to the remarkable influence of princes and kings.

Sir Hardy Amies’s enchanting book still delights, and will be of help to any would-be gentleman.