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What’s This About
Gieves & Hawkes names the Duke of Wellington, Lord Nelson and several kings and princes among the clients of its founding firms and the combined house.
This guide covers the clients the company and dated records name, claims that belong elsewhere, and how to wear the look, such as:
Military and naval uniforms from the 18th century onwards
Royal clients from George V to Prince William
Michael Jackson’s tailcoat for the Bad World Tour
Alexander McQueen’s time as a pattern cutter
A structured navy blazer and a double-breasted overcoat
and many more!
Names from online lists without a source are not repeated here.
Key Points
01According to the company, Hawkes dates from 1771 and Gieves from 1785; Gieves acquired Hawkes in 1974.
02The Gieves & Hawkes name dates from 1974, so Nelson and Wellington were clients of the earlier firms.
03Sean Connery’s Bond suits came from Anthony Sinclair, and Churchill’s siren suits from Turnbull & Asser and Austin Reed.
04A high price does not prove quality; judge cloth, construction and fit.
Gieves & Hawkes is a tailor at No. 1 Savile Row in London, formed from two older firms with long military and naval histories.
According to the company, Hawkes was founded in 1771 and Gieves in 1785, and Gieves acquired Hawkes in 1974, when the business took its present name.
Hawkes bought No. 1 Savile Row in the early 1910s; the company gives 1913, while a reference history dates the purchase to 23 December 1912.
The company says it has held royal warrants since George III in 1789.
This guide looks at the clients the company and dated records name, corrects claims that belong to other tailors, and shows how to wear the house look.
A Note on Celebrity Client Lists
Lists of famous Gieves & Hawkes clients are widely repeated online, often without a source.
On this page we name only clients the company names or a dated reference records.
Many other names appear in online lists without a source, so we do not repeat them here.
Military and Naval Tailoring
The company names the Duke of Wellington and Lord Nelson among the customers of its founding firms, which made uniforms for army and naval officers.
Because the Gieves & Hawkes name dates from 1974, these were clients of the earlier Hawkes and Gieves businesses rather than of the combined firm.
A reference history says Hawkes bought No. 1 Savile Row partly because the firm had dressed so many explorers.
The company says it has dressed officers from the Battle of Trafalgar to the First World War and beyond, and that in 1953 it made Queen Elizabeth II’s boat cloak.
A structured jacket in the spirit of military tailoring is the simplest way to borrow this background.
Wear: a navy wool blazer with a structured shoulder, a white shirt, a striped repp tie, grey flannel trousers and black Oxford shoes.
Royal Clients
The company says it has dressed King George V, King George VI, King Charles III, Prince William and Prince Harry, as well as members of other European royal families.
It held a Royal Warrant from King Charles III when he was Prince of Wales.
For classic suits in the same spirit, a navy or grey double-breasted suit is a useful starting point; see our double-breasted suit styling guide.
Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson wore a tailcoat made by Gieves & Hawkes during his Bad World Tour of 1987 to 1989, according to a reference history of the firm.
It shows how formal tailoring can be adapted for the stage.
Alexander McQueen
After his coat-making apprenticeship at Anderson & Sheppard, Alexander McQueen worked at Gieves & Hawkes as a pattern cutter before starting his own label.
Claims That Belong to Other Tailors
Several stories often attached to Gieves & Hawkes are recorded differently elsewhere.
Sean Connery’s James Bond suits: the director Terence Young introduced Connery to his own tailor, Anthony Sinclair, whose firm says Connery wore Anthony Sinclair suits in all his Eon Bond films, from Dr. No (1962) to Diamonds Are Forever (1971).
Winston Churchill’s siren suits: reference sources name Turnbull & Asser, which made a bottle-green velvet one, and Austin Reed as makers.
Nelson’s uniform at Trafalgar: it could not have been a Gieves & Hawkes uniform, because the firm took that name in 1974; the company’s own claim is that Nelson was a customer of its founding firms.
Colin Firth’s 2011 Oscars outfit: we found no record in our research linking it to Gieves & Hawkes.
The Duke of Wellington’s boots: we found no record in our research that Gieves or Hawkes designed them.
How to Wear the Gieves & Hawkes Look
You can borrow the house look with ready-made or tailored clothes from any maker.
Choose a clean, structured jacket: a defined shoulder and a smooth chest give the neat outline of military tailoring.
Keep to navy, grey and black: these colours suit the look and combine easily.
Add a heavy overcoat: a navy or charcoal double-breasted wool coat, in the manner of a naval greatcoat, covers a suit in winter.
Pay attention to finishing: pressed trousers, polished shoes and a straight tie keep the outfit sharp.
The look also overlaps with the old money style label, which describes a contemporary way of dressing in classic clothes, not anyone’s background.
A famous label alone does not make an outfit, as our guide to how logo-heavy luxury designs come across discusses, and buying fewer, well-fitting clothes is one alternative to fast fashion.
A high price does not prove higher quality, so judge any jacket by its cloth, construction and fit.
Wear: a charcoal double-breasted wool overcoat over a navy suit, a white shirt, a dark navy tie, black leather gloves and black cap-toe Oxford shoes.
To compare the house with its neighbours, see our guides to the Savile Row tailors, Anderson & Sheppard’s documented clients and Huntsman’s documented clients.
Styling Beyond Gieves & Hawkes
Knowing how a tailor cuts is a useful start, but your own wardrobe works best when it suits your build, your colouring and your plans.
Our guide to styling by occasion, location, season and time of day explains how to adapt outfits to each setting.
Further reading: dressing for your body shape, seasonal colour palettes, garments, accessories and our list of luxury fashion brands.
1. Check Your Body Shape
Start with our body shape quiz for men.
2. Find Your Seasonal Colours
Then take our seasonal colour quiz for men.
3. Take the Fashion Style Quiz
Then take our fashion style quiz for men, and read more about personal fashion style.
Personal Help From The VOU
After the three quizzes, if you would like personal help, you can book one of our paid consultations with The VOU’s image consultants and stylists.
To ask a question first, contact us.
Mandy Meyer’s focus at The VOU is men’s body-shape styling, garment fit and outfit proportions. Her coverage addresses the practical questions behind a wardrobe choice: how a jacket sits across the shoulders, how trousers fall and how different cuts change the silhouette a wearer wants to create.
Her subject areas include the triangle, inverted triangle, rectangle, oval, trapezoid, hourglass and diamond labels used in body-shape styling. These provide starting references for comparing visible proportions; they do not capture every body or prescribe one correct way to dress. The focus connects those observations with garment shape, construction, length and the relationship between the upper and lower parts of an outfit.
Mandy’s editorial coverage combines visual comparisons with fit checks for comfort and movement. Readers can consider whether a cut gives them the room they need, where clothing pulls or gathers and which changes might support their preferred look. The aim is to make menswear choices more understandable while keeping personal preferences and the wearer’s own styling goals central.