There have been reports of women being saved from rape because of having on a girdle. There was, also, a story that four or five years ago, a crazy man was walking around Manhattan in New York blowing metal darts at the backsides of certain women. According to a story in the New York Times back then, the ladies began wearing girdles to deflect the darts until the man was apprehended. Girdles, also, make it more difficult for the guys to pinch a young lady. At one time, American ladies traveling to Italy were advised to wear a strong girdle when they strolled through Rome.
Girdles can offer protection from other hazards, as well.
Take the case of a woman who fell off a boat in New York's Great South Bay during the 1970s. She was almost swept away by the current, but her husband was able to maneuver close enough to her to get her back into the boat. By reaching down and grabbing her by the girdle. I don't recall anyone having been saved by a girdle, but I do remember a wedding that was almost canceled because of a girdle. One of the bridesmaids, a rather Rubenesque-type lady, was struggling to pull on a girdle when the groom mistakenly walked into the room.