Umbrellas were originally created in Ancient China in around 21 CE. They were made to keep the sun off you, rather than the rain. The word umbrella itself comes from the Latin ‘Umbros’ which means shade or shadow. Please have a look at our range of beach umbrellas and follow this ancient tradition, while staying cool.
These ancient umbrellas were made of the finest of silks, so it wasn’t long that this new collapsible shade covering found its way along the silk road through Asia and all the way to rulers in the Roman Empire. If you want the comfort and style of a modern day Roman Emperor, take a look at our Alpha Ray Umbrella.
Umbrellas Were Not For Everyone
From their creation back in ancient China, all the way up until the mid-18th century, to carry an umbrella was a sign of wealth, and femineity almost like wearing Louboutins in today’s culture. The change in thought came about when Englishman John Hanaway started using his umbrella to protect himself from the rain that it started to catch on eventually. This change was not as fast as often John was pelted with rubbish and met with violence from the public, to which he responded by using his umbrella to “give the man a good thrashing.”
Luckily John’s persistence meant that the use of umbrellas started coming into vogue as umbrellas were no longer seen as a gendered item, but a way to keep both the sun and rain off you when you needed to get from place to place.
Promotional Umbrellas in the Modern Day
The original design of the umbrella has not changed that much since their creation in ancient China, but since the rise into everyday use in the 1800’s, but some innovation has occurred nonetheless. In 1928 Hans Haupt had the idea to create the cane style umbrella which allowed him to walk more freely after his injuries during the war. This design moved into the more well known collapsible folding umbrellas that are still one of the most popular designs of umbrellas so far.
Taking a leaf out of John Hanaway’s book, some umbrellas started even being used as an offensive and defensive weapon, as the shaft of the umbrella can easily conceal a blade. In 1978, Bulgarian president Georgi Markov was hit with a dart from a modified umbrella by KGB agents. This dart was tipped with one of the world’s most deadly poisons called Ricin, and Mr Markov lost his life due to it. Even in the modern day, ex-president of France Nicolas Sarkozy was known to carry a Kevlar coated umbrella to protect himself from bullets if the need called for it.
Personalise Your Piece of History
The history of umbrellas is a strange and fascinating one, and the use of umbrellas for a symbol of status is still as relevant today as it was back in ancient China. Use this to your advantage and advertise your brand with our wide range of promotional custom printed umbrellas with the knowledge that you are taking part in the everchanging wild and weird history of the humble umbrella.