17:47 - 2.07.2018

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Shoes with high heels were not designed for women at first. The ancient Egyptians were the first to use the heels provided for the convenience of walking on a dirty road.

And in Greece, actors who played roles in the play came to the stage in high-heeled shoes for the first time to increase visually their height. They used to wear those shoes when they performed roles of famous characters. High shoes in Greece were called the buskins, and the height of heels of such shoes often exceeded 10 cm.

Word "heel" started appearing in the Russian sources only in 1509. In Ancient Russia heels were used by riders: with their help they easily sat down in a saddle. During the Baroque period the high-heeled shoes became popular and made the main element of the male wardrobe. And in Russia, the use of heels as a male shoe attribute was first introduced by a French officer.

For the first time in Turkey, concubines were forced to wear high-heeled shoes on the feet, so they could not escape from the harem.

In Japan, geta sandals were popular. These sandals appeared in the second half of the 8th century, but despite that, they have been used to date. Geta served to protect Japanese kimono clothes from staining. Their height varied depending on the season.

The footwear heels were used after 1533 in order to increase visually the height, and for the first time Catherine de Medici appeared in high-heeled shoes at her wedding. After that, the heels have spread among other court women.

Not only women but also men wore high-heeled footwear with the purpose of visual increase of their height. For example, the height of shoe heels of French king Louis XV was no less than 10 cm.

Before appearance of high-heeled shoes, the shoe pads on the left and right footwear were made the same. Generally footwear pads was paired for right and left feet for the first time in the 17th century.

In some periods of history, the height of heels differed depending on the class. Representatives of the upper class could wear shoes with the highest heels.

In the middle of the XVII century the English Parliament accused of women wearing heels of witchcraft and ordered to execute them.

Only after the XVIII century men refused from high heels which became the attribute of women's wardrobe.