A duffle coat is a hooded, toggle-fastened coat cut from thick wool, with a loose fit made for layering and deep patch pockets at the front. The design was standardised by the British Royal Navy, which issued it as cold-weather kit, and brought to the civilian market by Gloverall in 1951. Its name comes from Duffel, the Belgian town where the heavy wool cloth used in the earliest versions was woven.
That short definition contains a long history — one that runs from a weaving town in Belgium to the Arctic convoys of the Second World War, from surplus stock on the streets of post-war London to one of the most enduring coat silhouettes in British fashion. Gloverall has been making duffle coats since 1951, and the story of how that came about is inseparable from the history of the coat itself.
Where does the name 'duffle coat' come from?
The name comes from Duffel, a town in the Belgian province of Antwerp, where a thick, coarse wool cloth was produced from as early as the 17th century. Dense, rough, and resistant to wind and moisture, this cloth was traded widely across Northern Europe and became the standard material for the heavy coats worn by sailors, labourers, and soldiers. The coat that came to bear its name — hooded, loose-cut, fastened with toggles and rope loops — was built from it.
By the 19th century, the term 'duffle coat' referred specifically to this hooded, toggle-fastened design regardless of where the wool was woven. Whether spelled duffle or duffel, both versions refer to the same garment and the same Belgian origin. The toggle-and-loop fastening — the detail most associated with the coat today — was a practical solution for cold-weather use at sea: thick rope loops and wooden or horn toggles can be managed with gloved hands in ways that buttons cannot.
The duffle coat and the British Royal Navy
The duffle coat's most consequential moment came during the Second World War, when the British Royal Navy issued it as standard cold-weather outerwear for sailors on the Arctic and North Atlantic convoys. The conditions on these routes were extreme: temperatures well below freezing, driving ice and spray, and extended periods on deck in winds that made conventional outerwear inadequate. The duffle coat addressed all of it — the thick wool provided warmth even when damp; the toggle-and-loop fastening worked with gloved hands; the deep hood and high collar covered the neck and face.
There was a levelling quality to it, too. The same coat was worn across the ranks, on the same decks, in the same weather — practical kit first, uniform second. But it took one wearer in particular to turn standard issue into a national icon.
The Montgomery duffle coat: why it's called the 'Monty'
Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery — 'Monty' — became the duffle coat's most famous wartime wearer, and gave it the nickname it still carries. Photographs of Montgomery in his duffle coat and beret during the North Africa campaign were among the most widely published images of the British war effort, and they established the coat in the public imagination as something beyond standard-issue kit: the outerwear of a particular kind of capable, unsentimental British authority.
The association stuck hard enough that the garment itself picked up his name — to a generation of Britons, the duffle was simply the 'Monty coat'. Gloverall made the connection permanent: the Original Monty is named after Field Marshal Montgomery directly, and it remains the heart of the range today, in both men's and women's versions — hooded, toggle-fastened, and cut to the generous proportions the naval coat demanded.
From military surplus to Gloverall, 1951
After the war, enormous quantities of military duffle coats entered surplus stock. Harold and Freda Morris — who ran a London wholesale business dealing in gloves and overalls — took on the distribution of this surplus. The coats sold quickly. By 1951, with surplus stock depleted and demand still high, the Morrises founded Gloverall — the name a contraction of their original trade, gloves and overalls — and commissioned new duffle coats, made in London to the same military construction but from new cloth. By 1962, demand justified a dedicated Gloverall factory in Northamptonshire — the coat's first purpose-built home. The full brand story, from gloves and overalls to today, is on our Heritage page; what matters for the history of the garment is what Harold Morris did to the pattern.
Harold was the son of a Savile Row master tailor, and his refinements to the military pattern were considered ones: leather straps replaced the thick jute rope of the original fastening; buffalo horn toggles replaced wooden ones; a check-back Italian lining was introduced. The silhouette was trimmed. The result was a coat that retained the military coat's warmth, proportions, and toggle-and-loop character, but read as a civilian garment rather than surplus kit. Those refinements set the template Gloverall duffle coats follow to this day.
The duffle coat in British cultural life
Through the 1950s and into the 1960s, the duffle coat became a staple of British street fashion — worn by students, musicians, and anyone who wanted outerwear that was warm, practical, and cost considerably less than a tailored overcoat. Its adoption by student culture was total: by the early 1960s it had become the default coat of British university life, associated with folk clubs, CND marches, and the anti-establishment politics of the decade. The same coat worn by naval officers on Arctic convoys was now the coat of choice for protesters on Aldermaston marches. When Michael Bond needed an instantly recognisable coat for Paddington Bear in 1958, he chose a duffle coat — by then the most familiar piece of cold-weather outerwear in British childhood.
In the 1990s, the coat returned emphatically as part of the Britpop and heritage fashion moment: in 1995, the Morris Duffle Coat appeared on the cover of the Oasis single 'Roll With It', confirming the duffle's place in British popular culture as something beyond periodic fashion revival. The coat has resurfaced in each decade since without ever fully leaving — most recently on screen in 2025, when the Mid-Length Monty appeared in Doctor Who.
The Gloverall duffle coat today
The Gloverall Original Monty remains as close to the original 1951 pattern as any duffle coat in production. Every duffle coat in the Heritage Collection is made in England at our factory outside London, cut from boiled and Melton wools, with the wide hood, deep patch pockets and toggle-and-loop fastening that made the naval coat functional in Arctic conditions. The coat has not been significantly redesigned, because the original proportions and construction are the reason it has endured for more than 70 years.
Alongside the Men's and Women's Original Monty Duffle Coat, the Heritage Collection includes the Men's Mid-Length Monty Duffle Coat and the Women's Freda Duffle Coat in three cuts — regular, long slim fit and short slim fit — each a variation on the same foundational design, using the same toggle-and-loop fastening that has defined the coat since it came ashore with the Royal Navy. You can browse the full ranges in our men's duffle coats and women's duffle coats collections. In 2026, Gloverall turns 75. The coat is unchanged in all the ways that matter.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a duffle coat?
A duffle coat is a hooded, toggle-fastened wool coat with origins in naval outerwear. The design was adopted by the British Royal Navy as standard cold-weather kit during the Second World War and brought to the civilian market by Gloverall from 1951. Its defining features are the loop-and-toggle fastening, wide hood, and deep front patch pockets. The name derives from Duffel, a Belgian town where the thick wool cloth used in early versions of the coat was produced.
Where does the duffle coat come from?
The duffle coat's origins lie in the heavy wool outerwear worn by naval and military personnel across Northern Europe from the 17th century, taking its name from Duffel in Belgium. The modern coat design — hooded, toggle-fastened, loose-cut — was standardised by the British Royal Navy in the Second World War. It was brought to the civilian market by Gloverall, founded in London in 1951 by Harold and Freda Morris.
Why is it called a duffle coat?
The name comes from Duffel, a town in Belgium where a thick, coarse wool cloth was produced from the 17th century and used in the construction of the original heavy coats worn by sailors and soldiers. The cloth gave the coat its name; the coat eventually became more famous than the cloth. (The spelling varies — for the duffle vs duffel question, see our FAQs.)
Why do duffle coats have toggles?
The toggle-and-loop fastening was designed for cold-weather use at sea. Rope or leather loops paired with wooden or horn toggles can be fastened and unfastened with gloved or cold-stiffened hands in ways that buttons cannot, and the fastening holds a thick, layered coat closed in high winds. What began as a practical naval solution became the duffle coat's most recognisable feature, and Gloverall has kept it on every duffle coat since 1951.
When did Gloverall start making duffle coats?
1951 — the year the company was founded. Once the surplus Royal Navy stock the Morrises had been distributing ran out, they commissioned new coats made in London to the same military construction — with refinements by Harold, the son of a Savile Row master tailor — and Gloverall has made duffle coats in England ever since. The founders' own story is told on our Heritage page.
