Poulaines

A long pointed shoe style from the 14th century. For more information on the Poulaines please click here:

Poulaines are a style of shoe where the toe terminates to an exceptionally long and narrow point. There is no set standard for the length of poultaine points and during the height of their popularity some had to be reinforced with whalebone or even a string that ran from the tip of the points to the kneecap in order to prevent the point from tripping the wearer as it flopped forward under its own weight.

Poulaines began gaining popularity in the late 14th century and continued to be in fashion for approximately 100 years where there were worn by both men and women. The main differentiation between mens and womens Poulaines is that the mens version often had much longer toe points that drew more attention.