A doublet is a man's snug-fitting jacket that is shaped and fitted to a man's body. The garment was worn in Spain, and spread to the rest of Western Europe, from the late Middle Ages up to the 17th century. Until the end of the 15th century, the doublet was usually worn under another layer of clothing such as a gown, mantle, or houppelande when in public. In the 16th century it was covered by the jerkin. Women started wearing doublets in the 16th century, and these garments later evolved as the corset and stay. The doublet was thigh length, hip length or waist length and worn over the shirt or drawers.
The unidentified tailor in Giovanni Battista Moroni's famous portrait of c. 1570 is in doublet and lined and stuffed ("bombasted") hose.
Doublet c.1412, worn underneath chain mail
Doublet, 1635–1640 V&A Museum no. 177-1900
Edward VI in an elaborately trimmed and pinked, long-skirted late Tudor doublet under a crimson gown with hanging sleeves.
A jacket is a garment for the upper body, usually extending below the hips. A jacket typically has sleeves and fastens in the front or slightly on the side. A jacket is generally lighter, tighter-fitting, and less insulating than a coat, which is outerwear. Some jackets are fashionable, while others serve as protective clothing. Jackets without sleeves are vests.
A man wearing a sports jacket.
British jacket, ca. 1600–1625, linen, silk, wool. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Nylon bomber jacket, also in leather
A mess jacket