frfashion1-6, Exercise 3: The Battle of Versailles as a source problem

Model answer (check the details):

Claims usually made:
1. The show was a contest in which the Americans beat the French. Made by American journalists and later books and films, and by American designers; the French accounts are more reserved.
2. The French show was grand but stiff, and the American show was modern, fast and diverse. Made by the same sources; it is partly a judgement of taste.
3. It was a turning point that put American sportswear on the world stage, and gave Black models a new visibility. Made by later writers and documentaries.
4. It was a charity gala for the restoration of the palace. Made by the organisers; this is the plain description, which the "battle" story hides.

Evidence to test them:
- Contemporary press reports from the French and American papers, and the programme and guest lists.
- Photographs and film of both shows.
- The accounts of participants, treated as interested parties and compared with each other.
- Figures for American and French sales in the following years, to test the claim of a turning point.

Conclusion: the show happened and was significant, but "battle" and "won" were added by later retellings, and the effect on sales and reputation should be judged from other evidence.

Care: a good story is not evidence of its own truth. Find the earliest reports.