Medievalism refers to a fascination with reimagining the medieval period, often expressed through popular culture, film and fashion. The trend draws on medieval European castles, princesses, knights and chainmail. In the past 50 or 60 years, there have been a few different medieval revivals, starting with the ’70s and going all the way to modern day. Each iteration of the medieval revival brings a new medieval look or focuses on a certain aspect of medieval fashion.
But it’s not only about the aesthetics of it. There is a reason behind the medieval revival and why it keeps coming back. The trend of the medieval revival often happens in times of social unrest and ideological tension. In these times of unrest and tension, people often seek escape from life, whether that be through books, music, media, or in this case, fashion.
There is a sense of escapism in the romanticized past that medievalism provides. Escapism from the political collapse in the ’70s, the cultural shift and anxiety of the ’90s or the ever-increasing influence of technology in the 2020s.
’60s and ’70s
Although this revival technically started in the ’60s, it didn’t really hit the mainstream until the 1970s. After the frivolousness and Mod Space Age fashion of the ’60s, and the Vietnam War and capitalism started to set in, people started to become more interested in communes, the hippie lifestyle and psychedelic rock.
With this, we started to see Medieval influences in music with The Beatles, The Sun Forest and Donovan with his famous “Sunshine Superman” album. In terms of media, there were movies such as 1967’s “Camelot” and “Romeo and Juliet” the following year.
Additionally, there were the high fantasy books “The Lord of the Rings” by J.R.R. Tolkien, which were written decades before but exploded in popularity in the ’60s amongst countercultural movements, especially on college campuses across America.
This medieval influence in music and media led to the ’70s medieval revival in fashion, which blended contemporary aesthetics such as short hemlines, earthy tones and loose-fitting designs with medievalesque velvet fabrics, jewel tones and exaggerated bell sleeves. There were lots of velvets and beautiful, vibrant color palettes. There were trumpet sleeves, long free-flowing hems, hoods and capes, tapestry print corset style bodices, chain mail and chokers.
There were also some Renaissance and even Edwardian styles mixed in with the medieval revival, with Edwardian styles having their own kind of revival with more of a cottage core or “Little House on the Prairie” look. While the ’70s medieval revival wasn’t a decade-defining era, it would continue to linger decades after it first came about, especially in fashion.
’90s and 2000s
Fashion is cyclical, and as the 20-year rule dictates, fashion trends that are popular will become popular again in twenty years. However, unlike most trends, medieval revivals reinvent themselves every time they come back, with each iteration taking on its own unique form.
With shows and movies such as “Charmed,” “The Craft” and “Practical Magic” gaining immense popularity, the ’90s medieval revival took inspiration from witches and witchcraft, which became known as witch goth or whimsigoth.
Whimsigoth happened during the ’90s cultural disillusionment, which led to a darker look embracing gothic, witchy silhouettes that nodded to fantasy folklore and TV shows like “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” Famously documented in John Paul Gautier and Anna collections, the gothic style was a scene of the ’90s.
Witch Goth took elements of the ’80s and ’90s countercultural goth movement and infused it with a kind of fantastical witchiness. Although the whimsigoth aesthetic is considered to have begun in the late ’80s, one of its biggest influences is musician Stevie Nicks. Another inspiration for the aesthetic is singer Kate Bush, whose music videos often included fashion such as low-waisted dresses, hosiery, girdlesque belts and velvet.
In the late ’90s and early 2000s, the medieval revival started to die down in terms of fashion, but continued to thrive in media, with the popularity of modern Shakespeare retellings such as “Romeo and Juliet,” “10 Things I Hate About You,” “She’s the Man” and “Get Over It.” This then turned into what many refer to as Medieval Y2K, a look that is defined as the 2000s take on the ’70s medieval revival, and was epitomized by films such as “Ella Enchanted,” “Shrek,” “A Knight’s Tale” and “Ever After.”
Medieval Y2K has a distinct style of blending 2000s aesthetics with medieval styles and settings. Think bright colors and peasant or milkmaid tops mixed with chainmail and town criers. In the 2000s, we also got films such as “Harry Potter” and “The Lord of the Rings,” which further popularized the medieval revival and took it in a more fantastical way. By blending time periods, instead of trying to recreate medieval style, Medieval Y2K became its own revival, entirely separate from both the ’70s medieval revival and the Whimsigoth look from just a decade earlier.
modern day revival
Medieval fashion continued to linger in the 2010s, but was kept exclusively to TV shows like “Game of Thrones” and “The Witcher,” and to runways, with Elie Saab for fall/winter 2017, Chanel for fall/winter 2013 and Alexander McQueen for fall/winter 2013 and spring/summer 2017. There was also the Met Gala in 2018, with the theme for that year being Heavenly Bodies, which was heavily based on medieval art and figures. However, it wasn’t until just recently that it resurged into a full revival.
In the beginning of 2025, Pinterest predicted that the trend, renamed to Castlecore, would be one of the top trends of 2025, with the term Medieval Core having a 110% increase in searches. The Paco Rabanne fall/winter 2020/2021 show showed a collection of outfits that featured a lot of lacy white night gowns, priestly uniforms, chain mail hoods and chain mail dresses. Additionally, a huge moment that helped kick off this new revival was when Chappell Roan dressed as Joan of Arc for her VMAs performance, as well as her medieval-inspired look on the red carpet of that same awards show.
There’s been some recent fashion trends that really encapsulate this vibe and are again like pointing to this medieval Renaissance revival, like Juliet caps, chainmail accessories, dramatic but romantic puff sleeve silhouettes and just a lot of volume in general within clothing.
Chokers and layering lots of necklaces have also become very popular. Additionally, the trend of wearing undergarments as outerwear has become very popular, like wearing bloomers in place of shorts, as well as corsets and corset tops.
This past summer, we saw the rise of bubble skirts and bloomers, which drew inspiration from the short trousers worn during the Middle Ages and in the Renaissance. Additionally, pointy shoes, often associated with witches or jokers, have also made a comeback. People have been sporting more metal adornments, mixing them with casual, everyday clothing.
There are chain mail headpieces, hair cuffs, studded wristbands, jointed rings and stacked belts, which mimic a suit of armor. Overall, there has been a return to a more accurate, but also very romanticized, take on medieval style, as well as a huge emphasis on knights, with armor and chainmail being one of the defining aspects of the modern revival.
It’s interesting to see this trend go full circle from its inception in the ’70s, to Whimsigoth in the ’90s and Medieval Y2K in the 2000s, to now in the 2020s with the most recent revival. Each iteration has its own look and inspiration, and every single iteration is entirely different from any other.
We must not forget the reason why people are drawn to the past. Beneath the fabrics and style of clothing, there is an opportunity to rebel and uplift each other in times that may seem otherwise hopeless. The medieval revivals look upon the past as a rebirth of simpler times and envision an escape to a fantasy world where community and enlightenment reign.