You went outside and after a while it started to rain. What is this? Rain clouds… You got caught in the rain that started pouring down. Oops, you don't have an umbrella with you! So, "Who invented the umbrella, when?" Did you think?
Come, let's satisfy your curiosity and learn the details about the history of the umbrella.
It is not known exactly where, when and by whom the umbrella was first used for the first time, which dates back thousands of years. But archaeologists and historians think that simple umbrellas were invented in Ancient Egypt. Umbrellas, which are available to everyone today and mostly used for protection from the rain, were used by elite statesmen and clergy to protect themselves from the sun. These umbrellas, made of palm leaves and papyrus attached to a stick, were held by servants and seen as a symbol of authority for rulers.
It is possible to come across umbrellas in ancient works of art that have survived from ancient civilizations such as Ancient Egypt, Assyria and China.
Umbrellas, which were used by a group of people for many years, were introduced in Europe in the 1500s and soon became fashionable among women. Until the 1700s, women saw the umbrella as an accessory tool and used small, elegant and colorful umbrellas to protect their faces from the sun. There were even fashion shows in Paris where the latest umbrella models were exhibited.
English traveler and writer Jonas Hanway began wandering the streets of London in the 1750s with an umbrella, which was seen as a women's accessory. Although it was ridiculed by the people at the beginning, Hanway did not give up on this idea and made the umbrella popular among men. So much so that umbrellas were referred to as “Hanway” for a while.
The Chinese were the first to use umbrellas to protect themselves from the rain. The Chinese covered the umbrella's roof made of oiled paper with a waterproof layer of wax. In order to be more durable, umbrellas were produced with the roof parts of leather, the laths of whalebone and the handles of wood, but these umbrellas were quite heavy.
Wanting to solve this problem, the Englishman Samuel Fox invented a much lighter and more useful umbrella with a steel frame in 1852. In 1928, German Hans Haupt developed Fox's design and designed the first portable umbrella that could be folded and carried in a bag.
Most of the umbrellas in different colors and designs used today are made of waterproof nylon.
For detailed reading:
https://hedgehogumbrella.com/blogs/feed/who-invented-the-rain-umbrella