The Church influenced shaving as well as cleanliness
The saints of the early Church, as well as those of the modern, were almost always depicted as being bearded. Even Jesus of Nazareth was depicted as wearing a beard, though usually well-trimmed and shaped. By the 16th century, most priests of the Church were shaven. Full beards became stereotypes of Jews, as well as Muslims and Protestants. Beards were considered unclean, as they provided comfortable homes for fleas and lice. The art of shaving oneself became more widely practiced with the availability of razors, as well as the looking-glass. The well-to-do did not shave themselves. They had trusted servants or barbers shave them. A clean-shaven appearance thus reflected a certain affluence, since it indicated a man who could afford to be well-served. The removal of the beard was a highly visible sign of wealth. Women’s shaving was less-visible, though many did.
Women too removed unwanted body hair, and some used razors, including those copper razors developed in Ancient Egypt, adopted by the Greeks and the Romans. The trimming of eyebrows (usually plucked) was common in the Ancient World. So was the removal of unwanted hair from other regions, and the use of various means besides sharpened metal became favored for more tender areas of the body. Techniques similar to modern waxing gained favor. The sap of various trees was applied, allowed to dry, and then removed, in what surely must have been an uncomfortable evolution. Queen Elizabeth’s lack of hair, a result of illness, made high foreheads a symbol of fashion in her realms, and women preferred plucking to shaving. The latter left a stubble, the former a smooth, clean scalp enhancing their feminine appeal.