Fashion always takes its cues from history, and it’s nothing if not cyclical. Every couple of years we see the resurgence of trends and motifs from past eras inspiring the trends of today. The last few years alone have felt like a trip through the decades. We have had ‘70s boho chic, thanks largely to Chemena Kamali at Chloé, who brought back clogs and sheer, ruffled blouses. Then came ‘80s power dressing, signalling a return to maximalism, while simultaneously trending with ‘90s minimalism after everyone became obsessed with Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy’s style. And let’s not forget the recent takeover of the Y2K trend.
Fashion’s obsession with the past is nothing unusual, but what is surprising is the much more historical eras that are influencing current fashion trends. Just a quick look at the runways for fall-winter 2026 and spring-summer 2027 will show an increasing sway towards eras as far back as the 18th century. From Rococo-inspired silhouettes at Dior and Schiaparelli to Napoleonic jackets at Khaite. Chanel’s latest collections are packed with 1920s influences, and the Victorian Goth aesthetic is taking over at Dila Findikoglu, Erdem, and Simone Rocha.
Below, I have broken down four historical eras that are currently shaping 2026 fashion trends.
Victorian Goth
Courtesy of Simone Rocha, Erdem, Dilara Findikoglu, McQueen, Saint Laurent
We have been seeing a lot of dark, romantic influences in fashion for some time now, particularly with nods to the Victorian era. In the 19th century, fashion was inspired by a growing fascination with the supernatural, death, and medieval architecture. The mourning all-black dress, usually worn with a lace veil, was popularized by Queen Victoria in 1861 and set the tone for the remaining 40 years of her life, during which she would only wear dark shades as a sign of her grief after the death of her husband, Prince Albert. It was also reflected in the macabre and dramatic literature of the time, with stories like Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights.
In recent years, the Victorian Gothic trend has been gaining in popularity in fashion again, largely thanks to TV and film with adaptations of Frankenstein and Nosferatu that each channel this dark yet romantic aesthetic. Margot Robbie’s press tour looks for Wuthering Heights earlier this year was enough to make anyone want to step into this era. Designers such as Alexander McQueen, Dila Findikoglu, Simone Rocha and Erdem regularly reinterpret the Victorian aesthetic through lace gowns, structured corsets, high-neck ruffled collars and theatrical silhouettes.
Rococo
Courtesy of Alaïa, Schiaparelli, Dior, Erdem, McQueen
If you ever needed further proof that maximalism is back, just look at the increasing Rococo era references filling our runways. The Rococo era occurred in France in the 18th century. It was a time of excess and frivolity made popular by influential figures of the time, including Madame de Pompadour and Marie Antoinette. The fashions of the time were characterised by extravagant silhouettes, pannier skirts, extreme ornamentation, pastel colours, ruffles, ribbons, bows, and theatrical hair.
Over the years, Vivienne Westwood and John Galliano have championed the aesthetic through motifs and silhouettes. And today, French houses including Dior, Schiaparelli and Alaïa still give this same sense of decadence. Dior’s Couture collection for Spring 2025 showed exaggerated pannier skirts, and for Fall 2026 ready-to-wear, hyper-feminine tulle skirts with lace and feather hemlines. Schiaparrelli consistently shows intricate embroideries worthy of any Rococo Royal, while Alaïa brings these 18th-century references into the modern day through delicate pastel hues.
Napoleonic
Courtesy of Dior, Ann Demeulemeester, Khaite, Jean Paul Gaultier
If there is one winter jacket trend you’ll likely have seen everywhere over the past few months, it’s the military jacket. Featuring decorative braided fastenings and cropped cuts, military jackets were popularized in the ‘80s as a sign of theatrical rebellion from rock icons including Michael Jackson and Freddie Mercury, before reappearing in the 2000s thanks to Kate Moss and the Indie Sleaze era. But historically, the jacket actually dates back to the 19th-century French military and is named after Napoleon Bonaparte. Alexander McQueen and Ann Demeulemeester have been designing military, or Napoleon, jackets for decades, but over the last several seasons they have been cropping up more and more in the collections of Dior, Khaite, and Sinead Gorey.
The ‘piratecore’ trend is also deeply linked to maritime and napoleonic fashion, yet where Napoleonic is structured and pristine, piratecore elements inject distressed and fluid layers. For Jean Paul Gaultier’s Spring 2025 Couture, guest couturier Ludovic de Saint Sernin created a collection that explored an imagined shipwreck with structured, lace-up corsets, tattered dresses, and crocodile-print tailoring. And Dior unexpectedly showed tricorn hats for Spring 2026.
1920s
Courtesy of Victoria Beckham, Chanel, Alberta Ferretti, Erdem
If you ever wished to dress as though you were a character in The Great Gatsby, then now is your chance, as according to runway trends, the roaring 20s are back. The 1920s marked a period of significant social and cultural shifts driven by post-war freedom and women’s suffrage. The ‘flapper’ look featured loose silhouettes and dropped waists that allowed women to move freely while also looking incredibly glamorous. Coco Chanel introduced the little black dress, which revolutionised women’s eveningwear, and the T-bar was the shoe of choice. It was joyful, dopamine dressing at its finest that bloomed after a period of global trauma.
Now, almost seven years after the Covid pandemic, the 2020s have seen the same appetite for socialising, celebrating and dressing up. More and more we yearn for structured yet comfortable clothes and over the past few seasons, fashion powerhouses are delivering. Matthieu Blazy at Chanel continues to take influences from Coco’s pioneering efforts a century ago through elongated, tubular dresses and delicate Art Deco beading. Erdem, Dior, Alberta Ferretti, and Victoria Beckham have also been heavily influenced by the 1920s, seen in beaded fringe, T-bar court shoes, and wide shift dresses à la Daisy Buchanan.