Robe de cour

The Robe de cour, also known as robe de corpse, grand habit and grand habit de cour, was a women's fashion of 18th-century Europe. It was the most formal dress model worn after 1700, when the mantua dress had replaced it in all but the most formal occasions, and continued to be worn as court dress during the entire century.

Court dress, the grand habit de cour or "stiff-bodied" gown, retained the styles of the 1670s after it had been replaced by the mantua dress in all other but the most formal occasions in the end of the 17th-century. It featured a low, oval neckline that bared the shoulders, and the heavily boned bodice laced closed in back, unlike the front-opening robe. The elbow-length sleeves were covered with tiers of lace flounces, echoing the full-sleeved chemise worn with the original style.^[1]