CRAVAT POSTAGE STAMP
The
First Tie of the Croatian Soldier, 1630
The
Tie of the English Dandy, 1810
The
Tie of a Businessman, 1995
Block
- number issued 100,000
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At
the beginning of the 7th century we can note the setting of the Croats, one of
the oldest European peoples, on the present day ethnic and historic
territory, Although small in number,
their contribution to the European culture is, nevertheless, remarkable. A tie is the Croatian contribution to the
general development of clothing and fashion.
The
etymology of the word, as the majority of the dictionaries and encyclopedias
will note it, indicates to its Croatian origin.
In the mid-17th century, the French introduced the word
"Cravate" into their language to describe a piece of cloth worn round
the neck. It was, probably under the
influence of the word "Krawate" from a German dialect (the German
literary standard language word was Krote - Croatian).
One
of the popular background information to why a cravat got its name after the
Croats is as follows: In the 17th
century, during the thirty years of war (1618 - 1648) in which France and
Sweden had united forces against the German Empire the Croatian soldiers served
as mercenaries in the light cavalries of both armies.
One
of the 24 cavalry regiments that were formed in France in 1643 was the Croatian
regiment "Royal-Cravattes". It
was an elitist regiment which fought many battles for the kings Louis XIII and
Louis XIV. Its soldiers differed from
other French troops in their warring strategies, arms and uniforms. A peculiar detail of their uniform was a
kerchief knotted around the neck. Not
only did the French soldiers adopt the fashion of wearing the neck kerchief,
but it soon grew very popular among the civilians.
THE
CROATS CAN ONLY THINK OF THE MILLIONS OF MEN WORLDWIDE-WHO EVERY MORNING TIE A
KNOT UNDER THEIR SHIRT COLLARS WITHOUT EVEN BEING AWARE ITS ORIGIN IS CROATIAN.
Stamps
were printed in sheet of 20 stamps, and in block and first day sheet (with set
of stamps and block)
Source
of this article: Hrvaska Posta