On April 22nd, 1912, the steamer Cable Ship (C.S.) Mackey-Bennet was the first of four ships chartered by the White Star Line to search for bodies in the aftermath of the sinking of the infamous Titanic a week earlier. The press hailed RMS Titanic as “unsinkable,” a new vessel for White Star Line that not only innovated with new-ground technology and luxury but also sold a media society-circus on who in the upper echelons of society would be passengers.
In 1898, John Jacob Astor IV, the heir to the renowned Astor family of New York and a multi-hyphenate in his own right, exuded a discreet dose of flair in his immaculately dressed appearance. He served as a Lieutenant Colonel of the United States volunteer battalion that he financed for the American war effort against the Spanish in Cuba, also providing his own yacht, Nourmahal to be used by the US Government forces.
In 1895, before the American intervention, the conflict was termed the Cuban War of Independence, and a then young 21-year-old officer in the 4th Hussars named Winston Churchill came under gunfire. Despite leaving the most peerless legacy of any British statesman, including an unparalleled array of military uniforms worn throughout his life, the decision to see action in the battlefield of Cuba without a uniform is unthinkable for Churchill – but back to his unique affiliation to a uniform later.
On that fateful night in 1912, the Titanic, approximately 400 miles southeast of Newfoundland, Canada, struck the iceberg. RMS Carpathia, a little Cunard liner that had just begun a routine transatlantic voyage from New York bound for Fiume, now known as Rijeka, Croatia, received distress signals from one of the Titanic’s wireless operators. Arthur Rostron, the captain, who was wearing a navy brass-buttoned Bridge coat with a four gold stripes insignia on the sleeves, immediately ordered the ship to divert to the Titanic with unrestricted speed.
Within 4 hours of arriving first at the scene of the disaster, with lifeboats already slung out, the Carpathia’s rescue mission would go down in history as the source of the most vivid moments of relief and morbid despair aboard a grand ocean liner. Onboard the Titanic, as this emergency was unfolding, The New York Times would later report that Astor was last seen smoking a cigarette on the deck. He was wearing a dinner suit and holding a personalised pocket watch. Astor was crossing the Atlantic with his second wife, Madeleine, née Talmage Force, who was 18 years old to his 47, and they were aboard after an extensive Egyptian tour for their honeymoon.
Astor knew that his wife was five months pregnant when he helped her climb through a window to board the lifeboat and, by various accounts, he was already bracing himself for his likely fate. Known as the “Titanic Baby” and bearing his father’s name, the unborn child joined the ranks of the 705 survivors. It’s impossible to imagine what it would be like to experience such cruel parental beginnings as John Jacob Astor VI. However, as he grew older, he became aware that his father’s body was found by steamer Cable Ship (C.S.) Mackey-Bennet and identified by the initials sewn on the lapel of his jacket. His clothing included a blue serge suit, a blue handkerchief embroidered with “A.V.”, a belt with a gold buckle, brown boots with red rubber soles, a brown flannel shirt with “J.J.A.” on the back of the collar and his 14-carat gold Waltham pocket watch, which incidentally this year sold for a record-breaking £1.175m at Henry Aldridge & Son auction house in Wiltshire.
The following month, Captain Rostron and officers of RMS Carpathia were pictured posing behind a silver cup, which was awarded to them; apart from one member in a pea coat, they were all sporting a Bridge coat. Rostron, who later received the title of Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire, customarily paired his Bridge coat with a high Clifton starched collar, and even in modern times few people wear the Bridge coat with the same honour and panache as Captain Rostron.
Now, if you’re simply summarising the difference between a peacoat and a Bridge coat before all of the sartorial iterations that have been designed since, a Bridge coat is approximately 2 inches longer (usually falling below the knee) and is the uniform of only navy officers and chiefs, as opposed to enlisted men who would wear a peacoat. The Bridge coat historically featured epaulette straps for attaching regalia, button-up vent and a half gold-brass buttoned back belt. Crafted from coarse woolen cloth, the bridge coat tremendously obstructed movement and was certainly not idolized for comfortability.
Unless you’re James Dean and replace the gold brass buttons with classic black buttons on your Bridge coat to diffuse formality, the coat always benefits from gold brass buttons. And if you’re in the camp of personalised versions, without a doubt turn to TYLER & TYLER, run by two brothers, Richard and Jonathan, since 1969; they represent Birmingham’s true design heritage with their enviable creations. Established in 1812, the Waterbury Button Company, based in Connecticut, USA, is another sublime choice for handcrafted brass buttons.
In June of 1912, two months after the marine tragedy, Mr Astor’s widow invited Captain Rostron to her opulent home on Fifth Avenue, New York, for luncheon. Marian Thayer and Eleanor Widener, two extremely well-to-do widows from the Titanic sinking, were in her company. They presented Captain Rostron with a gold timepiece, engraved with the words, ‘Presented to Captain Rostron with the heartfelt gratitude and appreciation of three survivors of the Titanic, April 15th, 1912′. Mrs John B. Thayer, Mrs John Jacob Astor, and Mrs George D. Widener’.
Despite the fact that many of today’s coat coordinates begin with the U.S. Navy, the Bridge coat is largely unrecognised by the public. However, during this century there has been a small handful of rebellious sartorial menswear designers who have reawakened the maven of high-quality menswear craftsmanship to include Bridge coats in their wardrobes. Alexander Kraft Monte Carlo proudly presents a timeless collection from the recently opened flagship store in Monaco, featuring two outstanding Bridge coats. These coats, of course, boast a touch of Kraft individuality, thanks to their AK MC embossed solid brass buttons, crafted by TYLER & TYLER. These buttons also adorn the rakish half-belt at the back, adding a subtle touch of sophistication.
Returning to Sir Winston Churchill, he sat alongside Franklin D. Roosevelt and Joseph Stalin at the Yalta Conference in 1945, smoking his trademark Romeo y Julieta cigar and donning a lamb fur Astrakhan hat. He wore a camel-hued Bridge coat, which featured broad lapels and ample room for a suit underneath. Encompassing a looser construction isn’t always a pass toward comfort or sophistication. AK MC crafts the new Bridge coat from a sumptuous soft lambswool, elevating comfortability. It features a contrasting red silk lining, a luxurious red felt undercollar, turn-back cuffs, and a rakish half-belt at the back, gracefully refining into a more tailored form. Yet it maintains its casual balance, perfect for pairing with a suit or jacket. Its slimmer fit also enables it to pair well with a cashmere roll neck and the Perfect jeans.
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