It’s hard to believe, but the first high heels were actually a form of ... To keep that loop in place, a heel on the shoe was imperative. Jane Austen’s pantaloon wearing Mr Darcy, for instance ...

The class teaches women how to defend themselves — both in and with high heels ... driving your heel into the attacker. Turn the shoe into an improvised weapon. Grab the the body of the shoe ...

It’s hard to pin down when in the 20th century the slinky stiletto heel was invented ... chopines were a type of platformed shoe that could reach as high as a teetering 50cm (20 inches).