2000 BC The Corset can be traced back to about 2000 BC. It was open at the front to the waist, leaving the breasts uncovered. Small strips of leather round the waist were used to curve round the outline of the breasts.

2500 B.C. - Warrior Minoan women start wearing a bra-like garment. Women on the island of Crete begin using bra-like garments to lift their bare breasts out of their clothing.

450BC – 285AD: Roman and Greek women preferred to play down their chests, using a band strapped around their breasts to reduce their bust size

1550’s AD: Catherine de Médicis, wife of King Henri II of France enforces a ban on "thick waists" at court functions through the introduction of the steel corset. The corset becomes the main undergarment of support and restraint for women. Renaissance - Women stuff their undergarments with silk pouches and hankies to create a bustline.

1820s A "corset mecanique" was actually invented in the 1820s which allowed women to squeeze into their corsets with the help of pulleys, without having to use the servants. Corsets at the time were made of whalebone, steel or buckram.

1850s US patents registered for first known bra-like devices.
Corsets fall out of style for about 10 years.

1860s Corsets come back in fashion with a vengeance. Severe corset "training" is common which reduces waists to such unhealthy levels that ribs and internal organs become deformed. Controversy over corseting health risks ensues.

1860’s: Corsets return to fashion. Corset "training" becomes the norm - reducing waists to such unhealthy levels that ribs and internal organs become deformed. This sparks controversy over the health risk of corseting.

1863- Luman Chapman patents a breast supporter.

1867 The "Thompson Patent Glove-Fitting Corset" of 1867 had a spring latch and snaps at the front, as well as the traditional hooks. The corset was designed to prevent it opening accidentally! The latter years of the 19th Century began to see challenges to the traditional views of the ideal woman, and the painful and unhealthy undergarments that they were expected to wear

1875 In 1875, manufacturers George Frost and George Phelps patented an undergarment called the "Union Under-Flannel". Unlike a corset, it had no bones, eyelets or laces and required no pulleys and was made from wool fabrics. Susan Taylor Convese made improvements to this design.

1877 Combinations, consisting of a chemise and pantaloons were invented about 1877. These were often made in red flannels and were crotch-less for convenience.

1889 Corset-maker Herminie Cadolle invents a bra-like garment called "Bien-être" ('Well-Being'.) Resembling a "Victorian bikini", its main differentiating feature from regular corsets is that the breasts are supported by the shoulders rather than squeezed up from below with traditional corset designs. Although marketed as a health aid beginning in 1889 in a Paris department store ad, the item does not gain widespread notice. The garment supports the breasts by the shoulders rather than squeezing them up from below like a traditional corset.

1875: Designer Susan Taylor Converse creates a garment called the “Union Under-Flannel” from woollen fabric. The garment is different to previous items as it has no-bones, eyelets, laces or pulleys. The garment is patented by manufacturers George Frost and George Phelps.

1893 - Marie Tucek patents the first modern bra with pouches for the breasts to sit in. the "Breast Supporter". This garment is similar to modern-day bras in that it features a separate pocket for each breast, shoulder straps, and hook-and-eye closures.

1904 - First sports bra is introduced.

1907: The ever-hip Vogue magazine first uses the term "brassiere" in its haloed pages. The term comes from the old French word for 'upper arm'. Prior to this, bra-like devices were known by the French term "soutien-gorge", which means "throat support" or "breast support".

1912: The term "brassiere" first appears in the Oxford English Dictionary.

1912: Garment maker Otto Titzling is said to have develop a bra for buxom singer Swanhilda Olafsen. Swanhilda lived in the same New York boarding house as Otto, and needed a supporting garment. She was the inspiration for Otto's breakthrough design, but Otto neglected to patent his creation, and therefore lost his chance to be the inventor of the bra.

1913: The first modern bra to be patented was a silk hanky and pink ribbon affair created by New York socialite Mary Phelps Jacob. Mary had bought a sheer evening dress to wear to an event, and at the time, the only undergarment available to her was a corset made with whaleback bones. Mary found that the bones showed through the sheer fabric and created her DIY alternative - It is made from two handkerchiefs, ribbon and cord.

1914: After a year of sharing her creation with friends, Mary Phelps Jacob applies for a patent (under the business name "Caresse Crosby") on November 3 for her "Backless Brassiere" design. Mary’s "brassiere" was very lightweight, soft, and separated the breasts naturally. Unlike Marie Tucek's 1893 design, Jacob's garment did not have cups to support the breasts, but flattened them instead. Jacob markets the "Backless Brassiere" garment until she tires of the business and sells the patent to Warner Brothers Corset Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut, for $1,500. Warner's reportedly made over $15 million over the next 30 years from the patent.

1914-1918: The outbreak of World War I forces women into the work-force. Many women begin working in factories and wearing uniforms, making the use of daily corset wear a problem.
1917: The U.S. War Industries Board requests women to stop buying corsets to reduce the consumption of metal. Sources say up to 28,000 tons of metal was conserved through this effort - "enough to build two battleships."

1918: Corset-makers began making bras designed to flatten rather than enhance the breasts.

1920's - The Maidenform bra company introduces cup sizes for bras.

1920’s: Warner introduces a tight, chest-flattening bra, in keeping with the Flapper styles of the day.

1928: Ida Rosenthal, a Russian immigrant, and her husband William found Maidenform. Ida is responsible for the creation of bust size categories (cup sizes) and developed bras for every stage of life - puberty to maturity.

1930’s: The shortened form of the word "brassiere" - the "bra" becomes popular.
1930’s: Warner produces the first popular all-elastic bra, which shows off a woman's curves.

1935: Warner's creates the modern cup sizing system (A to D), which is soon adopted by all bra manufacturers.

1940: Padding was added to bra cups.

1941-1945: Common fabric materials (cotton, rubber, silk and steel) are in short supply, so manufacturers turn to synthetic fabrics.

1943 - Howard Hughes uses his aeronautical engineering expertise to turn Jane Russell into a star thanks to a cantilevered bra designed to enhance her figure.

1946: The first bikini hits the catwalk introduced in Paris.

1948 - Fredericks of Hollywood introduce the first push-up bra, named the 'Rising Sun'.

1950s: Strapless bras were introduced allowing women to wear off-the-shoulder dresses and still use a bra.

1959 : Warners and Du Pont produced Lycra which is now used in most bras.

1964 - The Wonderbra is created by Louise Poirier.

1968: The infamous “bra-burning” occurred, but it didn’t quite involve busty feminists stripping off their bras to “free” themselves in a male dominated society. A group of women were protesting the 1968 Miss America pageant and threw bras, girdles, high heels, make up and hairspray into a rubbish bin as a symbol of their anger. They were protesting for the liberation of women in a male dominated society, and saw these objects as restrictive to their cause. The rubbish bin was set alight – hence the “bra-burning” reference.

1960s and 70s - Feminists burn their bras.

1969 - The Invisible Bra is introduced, ideal for the flat-chested Twiggies.

1973: The first no-bounce sports bra was introduced.

1990s - Madonna sports Jean Paul Gaultier's 3-D 'pointy' bra.

This is a compilation of various research on the history of the bra. If you think we've missed something out then please get in touch!