The Real Reason Why Victorian Women Wore Crotch-less Panties

Modesty ruled the day except when it came to their lady parts

Crotches weren’t covered until the early 20th century; image source.

When I think of women in the Victorian era, I think of suffocatingly tight corsets (to match their political repression), and endless layers of dresses, skirts, and blouses buttoned high up the neck and designed to reveal as little flesh as possible.

In an era where flashing a bit of ankle was considered scandalous, it’s ironic that a woman’s most delicate and private parts were, well, not private.

That’s right. Victorian women rocked crotch-less panties long before they became a popular bachelorette gag gift. (Now it makes sense why everyone loved the high-kicking can-can dancers in late 19th century Paris!)

But why did they wear such saucy knickers when the rest of their outfit was so conservative? To answer that question, let’s travel back to the 19th century.

Can-can dancer at the Moulin Rouge; image source.

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