Sumptuary Laws

Sumptuary Laws are the laws passed in various lands and ages to restrict excess in dress, food, and luxuries generally. Those are to be found in the codes of Solon, Julius Cæsar, and other ancient rulers. Charles VI of France restricted dinners to one soup and two other dishes. It appeared at various times in English statutes down to the 16th century against the use of "costly meats," furs, silks, &c., by those unable to afford them. These were also issued by the Scottish Parliament against the extravagance of ladies in the matter of dress to relieve "the puir gentlemen their husbands and fathers". These were repealed in England in the reign of James I. However, it should be noted that at no time in history those laws were carefully observed.

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