ZAGREB (dpa) – Probably no invention in their history makes Croats so proud as that decoration worn by millions of men around the world and which Croats first started to use more than three centuries ago – the cravat.
It is widely believed that the cravat, the modern tie’s ancestor, originated during the Thirty Years War (1618-1648). It all began when King Louis XIII of France enlisted a regiment of Croatian cavalry to fight in his campaign against the Habsburg empire
Those 17th century Croatian mercenaries wore knotted neckcloths, and their new style was soon adopted by the French soldiers fighting alongside them.
The old legend says that a 17th century Croatian soldier got a scarf from his fiancee before going to war as a promise that she would remain faithful and await his return. His fellow soldiers saw it and started to wear one as well.
The word “cravat” reportedly comes from the French “a la Croatte” or “the way the Croats used to tie it”. The expression soon became the root of a new French word “cravat”.
Unlike the ruff collars in use at the time which had to be laundered, starched and pressed, the cravat required little maintenance and allowed freedom of movement.
The fashion was soon brought home to France where it was adopted by dandies and members of the court.
The cravat came to England with the restoration of the monarchy – when Charles II returned to England to reclaim his throne after nine years in exile at the French court of Louis XIV he brought the cravat with him. Within a decade it had become a familiar style both in England and in its American colony.
By the end of the 17th century, the cravat had become firmly established as a vital fashion accessory throughout Europe and America and its use soon spread to the rest of the world.
Yet most Croats were unfamiliar with the cravat’s origins until 1990, when their country broke away from Yugoslavia to became an independent state.
“In the former Yugoslavia, there was not enough courage to promote the cravat as something genuinely Croatian, because authorities figured that might encourage Croatian self-consciousness and in the end ambitions of independence,” Dino Bedrina, a consultant at the Croatian “Potomac” tie manufacturing company, told Deutsche Presse- Agentur dpa.
“Potomac” is considered to be Croatia’s best tie manufacturer, and exports its products to 15 countries around the world. “We produce genuine Croatian high-quality cravats,” said Zlatko Penavic, the chairman of the company board.
There are several ways how to tie the cravat, but the most famous knots are Oriental, Windsor, Half-Windsor, Four in hand, Kelvin, Cavendish, Victoria and Hanover.
“The cravat is a way to express somebody’s uniqueness, style, self-confidence, to show that a man is different from others,” Bedrina said.
“We are of course proud that we gave the cravat to the world, but it was improved and enriched by many nations who accepted it, primarily the French and English,” he said.
“Potomac” cravats are worn by many politicians around the world, including former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and both the former and current German foreign ministers Klaus Kinkel and Joschka Fischer.
Also, during the European Union Balkans summit held in the Croatian capital Zagreb in November 2000, all E.U. heads of states were given a cravat as a souvenir.
