This is a continuation of sumptuary laws (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumptuary_law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumptuary_law), which were laws regulating w

This is a continuation of sumptuary laws (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumptuary_law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumptuary_law), which were laws regulating what you could wear depending on your social class. The supposed logic behind these laws was always to stop stupid poor people from buying expensive clothes they couldn't afford, but the real reason was always to preserve existing signals of wealth and class.