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History of the Scottish Kilt 07 March 2023

Highland mercenaries in the service of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden during the 30 years war.

“The garb is certainly very loose and fits men inured to it to go through great marches, to bear out against the inclemency of the weather, to wade through rivers, to shelter in huts, woods and rocks on occasions...”

From the language one can guess that we’re not talking about our ambassadorial Tartan Army on its way to a European football fixture but of earlier times - 1747 to be exact and the comments refer to that quintessential forerunner of today’s kilt - the Féileadh mór . . . the philamhor . . .the great kilt . .. the Scottish garment seen in drawings and portraits of chiefs and clansmen, of statesmen and soldiers over a period of at least a couple of centuries.

Made of up to 11 metres (12 yards) of single width cloth, cut in half and then sewn down the long edge, the ubiquitous great plaid was worn with - and then replaced - the traditional saffron robes of the 15th and 16th centuries - the wealthier inhabitants of the Highlands being the first to convert to tartan. Single width cloth (70cm / 27.5 inches) was the norm at that time and reflected the limits of the hand-weaver’s reach when throwing the shuttle from side to side.

Over the decades many thousands of tourists have applauded the demonstrations of just how the Highlander donned his philamhor: first laying his broad leather belt on the ground and then covering it with his plaid and carefully pleating the lower end of it. Then lying face upwards on it so that the bottom edge reached between the middle of his thighs and his knees. Then he would pull the flat bits of the plaid around his waist forming a kind of skirt and fasten the belt to hold it all in place. When he stood up, the bottom part of the plaid would look almost like today's kilt and the spare material would hang from his waist down to the ground. Then he would gather up the spare material, bunch it around his waist and hang the surplus over his shoulder. To keep it in place he would fix it to his shirt or jacket with a large silver bodkin ( a kind of pin) or a round brooch often decorated with precious stones.

As a piece of heritage theatre this goes down very well but as a slice of historical fact, it leaves more than a little to be desired! Finding such floor space in a tiny croft (one end of which was often inhabited by animals) would be nigh impossible, as would popping outside to lay on the ground amongst the mud, chicken droppings and other domestic detritus. If circumstances dictated a hasty exit (approaching redcoats or rent-seeking landlord) then any such dressing routine would have been unthinkable.

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History of the Scottish Kilt Page 2 07 March 2023

Highlander wearing the Philamhor belted plaid.

Only in the last few years has written evidence come to light to prove what historians suspected had to be the case, and that is that loops were sewn into the philamhor through which the belt (or if they were on the inside, a cord) would be threaded and the philamhor hung on a peg for the night. Donning the garment was then no problem and the lack of precisely folded pleats would not have bothered the Highlander one jot. Were he higher up the social scale then evidence suggests that his pleats would have been permanently sewn into the plaid.

Out in his natural environment of hill and moor, the Highlander’s philamhor was the Johnnie a’thing of outdoor clothing. Just by folding and tucking he could engineer pockets galore that would hold game birds or rabbits, tools or weapons and any other essential items. In hot weather the top could hang down off the shoulders and be tucked into the belt; in inclement weather the spare fabric formed the forerunner of today’s ‘hoodie’ and sheltered the wearer from wind, rain and snow.

The Highlanders were the hardiest of individuals and sleeping outdoors in all weathers and seasons was frequently the norm. Cocooned in his trusty philamhor, the Highlander could be as cosy as if wrapped up in a modern 15 tog duvet. Unlike a duvet user, if there was an icy wind blowing or snow in the air or on the ground, the Highlander would immerse his philamhor in a stream or lochan, whereupon the wool fibres would swell and form a near impenetrable barrier to the elements. It’s also reported that in sub zero conditions he would do the same which would result in the formation of a protective skin of ice on the outside of the philamhor whilst he, with his warm, moist breath, would remain snug inside.

Colonel Stewart of Garth in his zippily titled 1822 work Sketches of the Character, Manners and Present State of the Highlanders of Scotland tells that in the historical novel Memoirs of a Cavalier, Daniel Defoe (of Robinson Crusoe fame) wrote of the Scots army in 1640:

"I observed that these parties had always some foot with them, and yet if the horses galloped or pushed on ever so forward, the foot were as forward as they, which was, an extraordinary advantage. These were those they call Highlanders; they would run on foot with all their arms and all their accoutrements, and kept very good order too, and kept pace with the horses, let them go at what rate they would."

Garth then went on to say: “This almost incredible swiftness with which these people moved, in consequence of their light dress, and unshackled limbs, formed the military advantage of the garb, but, in the opinion of the Lord President Forbes, it possessed others, which he stated in a letter, objecting to its abolition (in 1747), and addressed to the Laird of Brodie, at that time Lord Lyon for Scotland.

‘And it is to be considered, that, as the Highlanders are circumstanced at present, it is, at least it seems to me to be, an utter impossibility, without the advantage of this dress, for the inhabitants to tend their cattle, and go through the other parts of their business, without which they could not subsist, not to speak of paying rents to their landlords.’"

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History of Scottish Kilt Page 3 07 March 2023

Reports abound of Highlanders in battle throwing off their philamhors prior to a Highland charge and presenting the enemy with a truly frightening spectacle — a horde of semi-naked ‘savages’ roaring and screaming like banshees with studded shields to the fore and broadswords held aloft. A sight and sound that would chill all but the bravest of adversaries.

Plotting a timeline for the philamhor transmutating into the philabeg (the little kilt) is a difficult task since it was not such a momentous happening that warranted any wealth of specific documentation. It’s a little like seeking the eureka moment when some bright innovator thought of cutting the legs off a pair of trousers and inventing the shorts!

Vague throwaway references can be found in literature of the 18th century mentioning the little kilt as the preferred form of ‘undress’ for the military who would wear it when in barracks — an eminently sensible habit when considering that the bulk of the traditional philamhor was totally unsuited to casual wear indoors. History tells us that those ‘little kilts’ were frequently the remains of cut-down well worn philamhors rather than specifically tailored garments.

However, there is one widely quoted explanation of the appearance of the little kilt that has been seized upon by many observers seeking to prick the bubble of overblown Scottish patriotism. It’s a fascinating report if taken at face value but the problem has arisen when the bubble-pricking observers have used it as a cudgel to denigrate and devalue other areas of quite legitimate Scottish pride in the country’s heritage

A perfect example is the late Hugh Trevor Roper’s posthumously published book in 2008 entitled The Invention of Scotland: Myth and History, a critique written in the mid-1970s of what Trevor-Roper regarded as the myths of Scottish nationalism. There were many grains of truth in Trevor-Roper’s work but his apparent need to live up to his reputation for “pitiless sarcasm and devastating mockery” overshadowed much of the work. His authentication of the fictitious Hitler Diaries in 1983 severely dented his academic credibility but the ‘kilt invented by an Englishman’ genie was well and truly out of the bottle.

What of that 18th century report? In the Edinburgh Magazine of 1785 there was a letter - written 17 years earlier - by an Ivan Baillie of Aberiachan - who claimed that the new form of kilt had been invented in 1725 by an English businessman Thomas Rawlinson who had established an ironworks at Invergarry near Fort William. Charcoal was part of the smelting process and Rawlinson observed how cumbersome and inconvenient the philamhor was for his tree-felling workmen - especially in wet weather - and decided to ‘abridge’ it. A local tailor separated the upper and lower portions and thus was ‘born’ the little kilt. Rawlinson’s business partner was Ian MacDonnell, the Glengarry Chief who was so taken with the innovation that he actively promoted it far and wide.

MacIan print of Highlanders wearing kilts and plaids separately.

On the surface there’s no reason to question this story although a cynic could query why a 1725 ‘invention’ wasn’t documented until 43 years later and then wasn’t published until 17 years after that. One could also view with some suspicion, Rawlinson’s Highlanders agreeing to having their valuable philamhors sliced in half, rendering them useless for conventional wear. Perhaps they were rich enough to have two!

Common sense and historical evidence tells us however that the small kilt was an uneventful and natural evolution of the philamhor in many parts of the Highlands and the Glengarry episode - as the only documented explanation to have been discovered - has assumed an importance far beyond its real significance.

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History of Scottish Kilts Page 4 07 March 2023

The preservation of the kilt - and indeed the tartans from which it is fashioned - can be laid at the door of a series of lucky happenstances: historical coincidences that have preserved, promoted and embellished a way of life and a mode of dress that caught - and still catches - the imagination of the world. Even during the 1747 - 1782 ban on the wearing of ‘Highland garb’ - which only applied to the Highlands of Scotland and not to whole country - tartan was being produced in the lowlands and government established Highland regiments were proudly wearing it and endorsing and strengthening the traditional reputation of the Highlanders as one of the most formidable fighting forces in the world.

That vital military element paved the way for the rehabilitation of tartan into polite society and the corridors of power in the London. Sir Walter Scott’s classic romantic novels on Scotland had attracted an eminent royal fan - none other than George IV himself. Scott - together with Stewart of Garth - was given the task of organising and setting the scene for George IV’s 1822 visit to Edinburgh which unleashed a brilliant tartan extravaganza that was greeted with enthusiastic - and it is reported - tearful, royal approval.

That in turn created a climate of mild tartan hysteria which smoothed the path of the Sobiseki Stuarts (alleged grandsons of Bonnie Prince Charlie) and their largely fictitious, but avidly embraced, Vestiarium Scoticum. A brilliantly inventive work which offered a tranche of predominantly bogus designs to a host of tartan-hungry families, eager to join the privileged social ranks of their fellow countrymen in the Highlands.

The savage Highlander of only a century before who, for fear of the ‘law’, would often travel no further south than the border town of Crieff, had miraculously been transformed into an heroic and noble patriot. The public love of him and his mountains, glens and lochs was the catalyst for Victoria and Albert’s love affair with her northern dominion that lasted a lifetime and was bequeathed to her present-day descendants.

Lonach Highlanders marching through Strathdon, Aberdeenshire.

But how does this explain the enduring popularity of Scotland around the world? One possible explanation is to look at the great romantic warriors of history - Vikings, Cossacks, Zulus, Samurai, North American Indians, Scottish Highlanders. Who out of those is still with us in instantly recognisable form? Who can we see walking down Edinburgh’s Princess Street or round the tents at major Highland games in a dozen countries around the globe? The modern equivalent of the Scottish Highlander of course and the essential ingredient of that identikit icon is none other than . . . the kilt!

The modern love of the kilt and of all things Scottish is very much more complex than a liking for a picturesque Highland outfit. In addition to the estimated 40 million-strong Scottish Diaspora, there are very many more millions of global citizens who wish to be associated with Scotland. In an increasingly homogenised and dangerous world where national boundaries disappear and linguistic and ancient legacies are diluted, following
the historical pop-star that is Scotland provides comfort and excitement. Fans can bask in the warmth of the many attributes rumoured to belong to we egalitarian Scots — hardworking, tenacious, brave, moral, adventurous, romantic, nonconformist . . . and just that little bit dangerous. . . which brings us back to the kilt and what the modern Scot or wannabe Scot, wears or does not wear underneath its tantalising folds. That discussion is for another time and place, but ever since the kilted Scot has ventured abroad, there has been a frisson of excitement amongst the ladies of the land that shows no sign of abating in the 21st century.

Kilts need not even be of tartan nowadays since the celebration of one's roots is not necessary to acquire and wear one. Devotees can be followers of fashion with tweed, Paisley pattern, corduroy, PVC, leather or in the workaday world, denim or canvas with loops and pockets and Velcro or stud fastenings. Calling such mutations ‘kilts’ is being kind since there is nothing that can actually take the place of the hang, the swing, the pride and the cultural significance of a real, eight yard traditionally built kilt.

Tartan is the only fabric design in the world which allows us to express our individuality, to wear our heart on our sleeve, to show the world that we belong to this clan or come from that country, this province or state; that we attended that school or university, we worship at this church, we served in that military organisation, we support this football team, we ride a Harley Davidson, we work for this company, we attended that conference...the list goes on and on.

Having found a tartan with which we can identify, there’s only way to wear it - as a kilt.

Here’s tae it...wha’s like it!

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The Story of Tartan 05 March 2023

F SCOTLAND'S MANY ICONS, tartan is the most instantly recognisable. From the Highland Games circuits of North America and Europe to the fashion catwalks of Milan, its provenance is unmistakable. It is Scotland's very own international brand identity, and what makes this all the more remarkable is that no other country lays claim to it.

In the course of excavations at Qizilchoqa, a city that existed two millennia ago in the Taklimakan Desert, near Hami in North West China, three tombs were unearthed containing the mummified remains of four Caucasian men and two women. All were red headed and dressed in a tartan patterned cloth. Who were they? It's suggested that they belonged to a Celtic tribe who migrated along the silk road rather than taking the westward route favoured by most Celts, across Europe from the plains of Hungary, to colonise Spain, northern France, Ireland and parts of west coast Britain between the 1st and 6th centuries.

Similar ancient weaves attributed to the same Celtic provenance were discovered at Ancient Troy in Turkey, and are today in the collection of the Pushkin Museum in Moscow. But does this provide incontrovertible proof that it was our ancient Celtic ancestors who invented tartan? Probably not, but it surely confirms that they were weaving and wearing it long before they set foot in Scotland.

Falkirk Tartan Textile Fragment

In 1933, during an archaeological dig at Falkirk, an earthenware pot containing Roman coins and two scraps of two-toned woolen fabric was unearthed. The coins dated from between 83BC and 230AD, so it was considered safe to assume that the cloth was from the 3rd century when Falkirk was under Roman occupation. But once again the questions arise. Was tartan design imported into Scotland by the Romans? Or was it already in use by the time they arrived?

Tradition has it that the Scots, a settled Celtic ethnic grouping from Northern Ireland, created Dál Riata (otherwise known as Dalriada) on the western seaboard of Scotland, a hundred years or more after the Romans departed. However, the time-span of their arrival in Kintyre, Lorn, and Cowal, is often disputed, and since Ulster is only a few sea miles distance across the North Channel, it seems only logical that there must have been constant earlier comings and goings through the centuries.

Pictish carvings, such as those found on bone at Burray (Fossil & Vintage Centre) on Orkney, the sculptured stones of fighting warriors at Glamis, or the fearsome Rhynie Man, depict male figures in tunics but none of these images suggest that their clothes were patterned.

From the earliest documentation, Scotland’s Highlanders were described as “savages”, referring to the bareness of their legs and general nakedness. However, it is patently evident that their everyday attire, or lack of it, was employed for practical use, hunting and fighting, not for show. It was not until the 16th century that the existence of patterned cloth in Scotland was confirmed by an entry in the Treasurer's Accounts of 1538 which tells us that King James V had ordered an outfit of “Hieland tartane”.

And ten years later, the French historian Jean de Beaugue observes that Highlander soldiers taking part in the Siege of Haddington were attired in “a light covering of wool of many colours.” Then in 1703, an account of how the ancient the garb of the Gael was created is given by Martin Martin, Macleod of Macleod's Skye-born factor. In Description of the Western Isles of Scotland, he observes that: “The plaid worn only be men is of fine wool, the thread as fine as can be made of that kind, it consists of diverse colours and there is a great deal of ingenuity required in sorting out the colours, so as to be agreeable to the nicest fancy. For this reason, the women are at great pains, first to give an exact pattern to the plaid upon a piece of wood, having the number of every thread of the stripe upon it.”

Portrait of Alastair Mhor Grant, Champion of the Clan Grant, c. 1714, Richard Waitt

It is the ingenuity of the thread count that gives a tartan its individuality, not so much the colours employed, and what makes this especially remarkable is that such a mathematically ingenious formula was being manufactured in remote communities which were largely dismissed as primitive by the more populous regions of the South. It furthermore indicates that a sophisticated tribal society was emerging and it would soon be possible to identify districts from the colour patterns manufactured from the plant dyes available locally.

And it was in this way, almost unintentionally, that clan tartans evolved. The majority of Highlanders would have made use of the material that was available to them locally, but others, especially those who travelled around the country, might easily have seen it as a fashion statement in much the same way that someone today selects a tweed. Look no further than the group of portraits commissioned by Sir James Grant of Grant from the artist Richard Waitt between 1713 and 1726. Each clansman is shown wearing a different tartan. Next Page>>

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The Story of Tartan Page 2 04 March 2023

Portion from 'An Incident in the Rebellion of 1745', David Morier, 1746

During the Highland Uprisings of 1715 and 1745, clansmen fighting on both sides were identified not by their tartan, but by their cap badges - the white cockade of a Jacobite supporter or the red or yellow crosses of ribbon worn by their opponents. The most recognisable tartans from this era were therefore military, worn by the Government regiments formed from 1725 onwards to police the clans, and which later evolved into the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot, becoming better known a century later as The Black Watch.

But it was also inevitable that certain of the more established and affluent clans should set out to create a uniform of sorts. In his seminal work on tartan, Sir Thomas Innes of Learney, who served as Lord Lyon King of Arms from 1945 until 1969, makes reference to a letter written by Sir Robert Gordon of Gordonstoun, Tutor to the Earl of Sutherland, to Murray of Pulrossie in 1618 in which Sir Robert instructs Pulrossie to remove the red and white lines from the plaids of his men so as to bring their dress into harmony with that of the other Sutherland septs.

Sir Thomas points out that the Murrays and Sutherlands were of a similar origin, and if they were both wearing a dark-based tartan with red and white over-check, then the parent check could in all probability have dated back to either the 12th or 13th centuries and been rather more synonymous with territory than tribal allegiance.

Portrait of Flora Macdonald, Jacobite Heroine, 1747, Richard Wilson

The Highland way of life reached its zenith with the Jacobite Uprising of 1745 and climaxed the following year with the British Government’s destruction of Prince Charles Edward Stuart's army at Culloden Moor. Afterwards, the wearing of tartan was universally banned along with a whole portfolio of trappings which a nervous legislature associated with rebellion, namely bagpipes, hose, swords and guns. Highlanders were coerced into wearing plain trousers.

The Act of Proscription of 1746 made it illegal for any man or boy “within that part of Great Britain called Scotland, other than such as shall be employed as Officers and Soldiers in His Majesty's Forces, to put on Highland Clothes, the Plaid, Philabeg, or little Kilt, Trowse, Shoulder, Belts, or any part whatsoever of what peculiarly belongs to the Highland Garb.” Anyone dressed in “tartan, or partly-coloured Plaid or Stuff” ran the risk of being arrested and transported to “any of His Majesty's Plantations beyond the Seas, there to remain for the space of Seven Years.”

Demoralised and impoverished, the majority of Highlanders acquiesced and, as is confirmed by estate papers such as the Gordon Castle Muniments, which can be seen in the Scottish Record Office, handed over what they had. Extant is an entire list of plaids and tartan given in by the tenants of the parishes of Rhynie, Kinoir, Cairnie, Ruthven, Gairtly, Dunbennan, and in Raws of Huntly, a particularly poignant capitulation given that the Gordons fought on both sides during the uprisings.

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The Story of Tartan Page 3 03 March 2023

Over the subsequent thirty six years only a few minor infringements of the rule occurred. The Highlands were exhausted; the Chiefs who had been “out in the '45” were in exile. All that the inhabitants of the far flung glens really wanted was a return to peaceful normality, even if it meant being in denial of their cultural identity.

Or perhaps they knew that common sense would ultimately prevail. By 1782, the Act of Proscription was seen for what it was, absurd and unenforceable, and, that same year, the Marquis of Graham (who in 1790 became 3rd Duke of Montrose), backed up by members of the Highland Society of London which had been founded four years earlier, successfully petitioned to have the legislation repealed.

Meanwhile, Lowland Scotland was at the peak of the period known as The Enlightenment and, despite its leanings towards ground-breaking innovation and science, was undergoing a wave of nostalgia. Ossian, a collection of allegedly ancient Gaelic ballads translated by James Macpherson, himself a Scottish poet, captured the popular imagination with echoes of a noble and romantic past. Around 1805, Walter Scott, an Edinburgh-based lawyer, began publishing a series of epic poems and novels, notably The Lady of the Lake (1810), the Lord of the Isles (1815), and Rob Roy (1817), all of which unashamedly plundered Scotland's rich seam of folk lore and legend.

George IV in Tartan Kilt and Doublet, 1829, Sir David Wilkie

In 1822, two years after he had ascended the British throne, His Majesty King George IV was persuaded to pay an official visit to his northern Capital. In so doing, he became the first reigning British monarch to set foot on Scottish soil for 170 years.

And needless to say, all of Scotland rose to the occasion, harnessing the talents of the recently knighted Sir Walter and his close friend, Lieutenant Colonel David Stewart of Garth, to put on a show the like of which had never been seen before or since.

Anyone who considered themselves to be anyone in Scotland's hierarchy rallied to see and be seen, the King's visit culminating with a grand levée at the Palace of Holyroodhouse , described by Sir Walter's biographer son-in-law John Gibson Lockhart, with just the tiniest touch of cynicism, as “Celtic hallucination.” To tap into the mode, Highland chiefs and landowners had for months prior to the event been kitting themselves out in tartan attire; even Lowland families, who would have never previously contemplated such a thing, succumbed to tartan designs supplied by their tailors and dressmakers. As a result, Lowland families emerged as “Lowland Clans.”

Colonel Alastair Ranaldson Macdonell of Glengarry, Sir Henry Raeburn, exhibited Royal Academy in London, 1812

Genuine Highland Clan Chiefs, such as The Macnab and Colonel Alastair MacDonell of Glengarry, went so far as to have themselves immortalised in life size tartan oil paintings by Sir Henry Raeburn. When it came to the portly King himself, he was persuaded to envelop himself in a voluminous kilt of the Royal Stewart tartan worn over flesh coloured tights. So as not to be upstaged, a diplomatically slimmed down depiction of His Majesty has been passed down to us by the court painter Sir David Wilkie.

In an age of masked balls and Regency pleasure palaces, it was little more than pure and joyful fancy dress, but the fact remains that Scottish society would never be the same again. With the Royal Visit widely hailed as a success of epic proportions, it was inevitable that somebody would sooner or later attempt to reinvent the tartan card. When this occurred, however, it took everyone by surprise.

In 1829, two brothers calling themselves Sobieski Stuart Hay, tenants of the 14th Lord Lovat on an island on the Beauly River near Inverness, publicly announced that they had in their possession the Cromarty Manuscript, a book of tartan designs published in 1721, which had previously belonged to the Scots College at Douai in France.

So who exactly were these Sobieski Stuart Hay brothers? In the telling, their story turns out to be as bizarre as their eccentricities. Their father, they asserted, was the legitimate son of Prince Charles Edward Stuart by his wife Princess Louisa of Stolberg, who, in order to protect him from being kidnapped by followers of the House of Hanover, was secretly adopted by Admiral John Carter Allen, RN. Although no verifiable evidence existed to support such a pretentious claim, it has to be noted that both brothers were readily accepted into the upper echelons of both Highland and Lowland society.

In 1842, John and Charles Sobieski Stuart published Vestiarium Scoticum which carried a quantity of colour illustrations said to be based on the original and authentic designs for the clan tartans of Scottish families. Widely denounced as a forgery at the time, most of the designs featured in this volume continue to be accepted as official Clan Tartans.

Queen Victoria, wearing tartan sash at Balmoral, lithograph c. 1850

And that same year, the young Queen Victoria, accompanied by her husband, visited Scotland for the first time. At Blair Atholl, they witnessed a display of Scottish Country Dancing and tasted whisky. As guests of the Marquis of Breadalbane, they were welcomed at Taymouth Castle in Perthshire by hundreds of bonfires blazing on the surrounding hillsides. They were utterly entranced by what they saw and, five years later, purchased the 10,000 acre estate of Balmoral, later adding on the further 14,000 acres of Abergeldie.

Victoria and her husband enthusiastically embraced everything with even the remotest resonance of Scotland's past, and, before long, Prince Albert had personally designed a Balmoral tartan for exclusive family use. For her part, the Queen commissioned kilted portraits of several of her Highland retainers. Today, the British Royal Family has a choice of nineteen of their own exclusive tartans to choose from.

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The Story of Tartan Page 4 02 March 2023

Sinclair Clanswoman, Robert Ronald McIan, 1845

Over the 19th century, the wearing of Highland dress on both formal and informal occasions, accelerated. With the British Royal Family annually in residence in Aberdeenshire, Scottish Highland dress acquired an unexpected sophistication. Consider, for example, R.R. McIan's fanciful series of the costumes of the clans drawn for the Highland Society in 1845. Tartan can make any plumage look dowdy while Scottish Highland dress is uniformly dignified and impressive and adapts to every occasion.

And by the early 20th century, great Scottish entertainers such as Sir Harry Lauder had carried the traditions overseas, connecting with the thousands of expatriate Scots who were, by then, established in the New World. The wearing of the kilt and its accessories, albeit occasionally caricatured and made comical, rapidly became an international symbol of Scotland's pride. Nowhere is this more impressive than in the Kirkin o' the Tartan traditions of North America.

Nova Scotia Tartan

In the third millennium, Scottish clans and families worldwide have a wide and colourful choice of patterns and colours to choose from, but not everyone needs to belong to a clan to be eligible to wear a tartan. Australia has its very own plaid, as does Canada, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Quebec, Ohio, Texas, Washington and New York. Even Scotch whisky companies, fashion designers, membership organisations, airlines, and countless manufacturing and commercial interests have registered exclusive thread counts.

Pipe Bands, Gordon Street, Huntly, Aberdeenshire

In 1991, responding to action which had already been initiated by the Clans & Scottish Societies of Canada, the Ontario Legislature passed a resolution to create the 6th April, the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Arbroath in 1320, National Tartan Day. America followed this example in 1998, when Senate Resolution 155 for a National Tartan Day, proposed by the US Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, was passed unanimously.

Tartan Day is therefore celebrated annually across Canada and the United States of America. However, in New Zealand and Australia, Tartan Day falls on 1st July, commemorating the date of the repeal of the Act of Prescription in 1782.

In 2008, the Scottish Register of Tartan Act received Royal Assent, and, in February 2009, the Scottish Register of Tartans was launched by the National Archives of Scotland (NAS). The Register is maintained by the NAS to provide an official focal point for tartan design and production, as well as for genealogical research. Data from the two private registers already in existence, the Scottish Tartan Authority and the Scottish Tartans World Register, has been amalgamated in the new Register. The Keeper of the Records of Scotland is now also the Keeper of the Scottish Register of Tartans, and the Court of the Lord Lyon King of Arms retains a supporting role.

The Scottish Register of Tartans Act 2008 specifies the criteria which new tartans are required to meet and the official vetting processes have been introduced to promote and protect the status of registered tartans.

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Balmoral and Glengarry Hat Measurement Guide 05 October 2022

How to measure for a Balmoral Bonnet or Glengarry Cap

Place a cloth measuring tape just above your eyebrows and loosely measure round the circumference of your head. To ensure that the measurement is absolutely correct carefully repeat this procedure two or three times. If your measurement falls between sizes, select the next largest size.

Refer to the guide below for measurements in centimetres and inches with corresponding UK & US hat sizes.

Cms	UK Hat size	USA Hat size	Inches	UK Hat size	USA Hat size
48	6	6.1/8	18.7/8	6	6.1/8
49	6.1/8	6.1/4	19.1/4	6.1/8	6.1/4
50	6.1/4	6.3/8	19.5/8	6.1/4	6.3/8
51	6.3/8	6.1/2	20	6.3/8	6.1/2
52	6.1/2	6.5/8	20.1/2	6.1/2	6.5/8
53	6.5/8	6.3/4	20.7/8	6.5/8	6.3/4
54	6.3/4	6.7/8	21.1/4	6.3/4	6.7/8
55	6.7/8	7	21.5/8	6.7/8	7
56	7	7.1/8	22	7	7.1/8
57	7.1/8	7.1/4	22.3/8	7.1/8	7.1/4
58	7.1/4	7.3/8	22.3/4	7.1/4	7.3/8
59	7.3/8	7.1/2	23.1/4	7.3/8	7.1/2
60	7.1/2	7.5/8	23.5/8	7.1/2	7.5/8
61	7.5/8	7.3/4	24	7.5/8	7.3/4
62	7.3/4	7.7/8	24.3/8	7.3/4	7.7/8
63	7.7/8	8	24.7/8	7.7/8	8
64	8	8.1/8	25.1/4	8	8.1/8

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Scotch Whisky Page 1 02 June 2022

Scotch Whisky - Scots Connection

OF all the products associated with Scotland, Scotch Whisky reigns supreme. To anyone, anywhere in the world, Scotch can only mean one thing –Scotch whisky. The romance associated with its origins combined with its pleasurable reputation and acknowledged health-giving properties have given it a worldwide and iconic status.

Strathisla Distillery

And seemingly it all began when early Christian missionaries - followers of St. Columba - came to Scotland some fifteen hundred years ago, although the earliest actual reference to the spirit being distilled in Scotland is to be found more recently in the Exchequer Rolls of 1494 when Friar John Cor of Lindores Abbey in Fife ordered “eight bolls of malt wherein to mak aqua vitae.'

Ever since, scholars and authors, when writing of Scotland, have born testimony to the remarkable qualities of Scotland's national alcoholic beverage. Indeed, for the majority of those living in the Highlands, it was and remains a staple for survival. Writing of the Isle of Lewis in 1695, Martin Martin, the Macleod of Macleod's factor, commented that 'the air is temperately cold and moist, and for the corrective, the natives use a dose of trestarig or uisgebeatha.'

In his masterly work on Scotch whisky, Professor David Daiches writes that by the seventeenth century, Scotch whisky was already established as the characteristic Highlands of Scotland spirit; that in the eighteenth century, in spite of the continuous troubles with the excise after the failure of the 1745 Jacobite Rising, the art of whisky distillation was flourishing in the Highlands and soon spread to the Lowlands.

As early as 1597, it had become so widespread that the Scottish Parliament passed and act to restrict the practice. Needless to say, this had little effect on the remote crofters, artisans, farmers and weavers for whom the production of whisky was an immensely lucrative sideline. Excise Duty was introduced by the Scottish Parliament in 1644, fixed at 2s 8d per Scots pint (approximately one third of a gallon) of aqua Vitae or other strong liquor, but made little impact.

The introduction of this tax simply added to the long and colourful tradition of smuggling, and the practice of home-distilling continued regardless with small stills producing smooth malt whiskies which could be sold to passing cattle drovers, and the large scale producers making spirit for the London markets. No doubt Coinneach Odhar, the Brahan Seer, must have had this in mind in the mid-seventeenth century when he prophesied that:”The time will come when dram shops will be so plentiful that one may be seen at the head of every plough furrow.”

In 1707, the terms of the Treaty of Union between Scotland and England trod carefully when it came to legislation, and while a tax on malt was introduced in England, Scotland was exempted. This point of difference was regarded as having such importance that the Articles of Union actually highlighted the provision that malt should not be taxed in Scotland.

In 1713, when the British Government did decide to extend the English tax to Scotland, it was met with immediate and massive resistance and failed to be implemented. When the British Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole finally forced it through in 1725, there was an uproar culminating in what came to be known as the Malt Tax Riots.

And the result was simply a widespread outbreak of whisky smuggling, which was actually encouraged by the majority of Scottish landowners. Whisky smugglers were not considered to be in any way criminal and were invariably held in high esteem and protected by the local populations. Of the excisemen employed to curtail such activities, even that archetypal Englishman Dr Samuel Johnson was moved to comment that they were “wretches, hired by those to whom excise is paid.”

By 1777, Edinburgh had eight licensed stills and, according to excise officers of the day, four hundred illicit stills. However, the consumption of whisky was by then very much the indulgence of the lower orders. Toddy – the combination of whisky, sugar and hot water – was a common drink, whereas the great houses served claret and hock, possibly brandy, rum and port, in their cellars.

In 1816, the Small Stills Act which licensed stills with a maximum capacity of 40 gallons, was marginally successful in reducing the smuggling trade, but in 1822, according to an Inland Revenue report, “Illicit distilling is so widespread that half the spirits actually consumed are supplied by smugglers.”

Up until this time, so rumour had it, virtually every household in the Highlands had its own still. The Statistical Account for Scotland of 1798 had observed that for the majority of people working on the land, distilling was almost the only way in which they could convert victual into cash for the payment of rent and servants.

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Scotch Whisky Page 2 01 June 2022

In 1823, a more liberal act was passed and within a few years the number of licensed distilleries had grown from a dozen to over three hundred. It should be noted, however, that most of these were located on the edge of the Highlands or in the Lowlands where they were easily accessed. By law, a distiller with stills of over 500 gallons capacity could apply for a licence on payment of £10, but stills with a capacity of under forty gallons were made illegal. To add insult to injury, licensed distilleries were obliged to house a resident exciseman, a debatable asset under any circumstances.

Glendronach Stills

With the Industrial Revolution came engineering and the railways. Legitimate distilleries, which had for the most part begun as small scale operations, were streamlined but were still largely owned and controlled by the families who had founded them. At the same time, a speculative boom was being created among the Victorian investors of the 1890s – distilleries were showing a good return on capital and, in keeping with this, a large number of new brand names started to appear.

But it was all too good to be true, and within ten years the market became flooded, causing a large number of distilleries to change ownership. Some survived and prospered; others simply disappeared without a trace. Overall, ownership of the Scotch Whisky Industry in Scotland was to change dramatically after 1887, the year in which Alfred Bernard compiled his authoritative and invaluable book The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom.

And there was another factor to contend with. In the second half of the nineteenth century, the production of grain whisky, entirely different from that of malt whisky in its distillation process and taste, was to lead to the revolutionary discovery of blending.

It began around 1827, when Robert Stein, by then the most prominent distiller in Scotland, took out patents for a still which was heated internally by steam, instead of by an external furnace. This apparatus had the advantage of distilling whisky in one continuous operation, unlike the traditional pot-still which had to be filled, emptied and filled again. Stein carried out some trials at his Kirkliston Distillery, at the same time encouraging his cousin John Haig to do likewise at Cameron Bridge Distillery. It changed everything.

But it was Aeneas Coffey, a Dublin-based exciseman, who, in 1830, was shrewd enough to further adapt, patent and market the idea. With 'Coffey's Continuous Patent' stills, it suddenly became possible to produce a light, palatable whisky, both fast and economically.

Up until then the strong consistency of a single malt whisky had been limited in its wider appeal, and in consideration of this, the manufacture of grain spirit from a mixture of barley and other cereals was revolutionary. Dramatically different from malt whisky, not only in its distillation but in its taste, grain whisky nowadays represents on average around 60 per cent of the contents of most bottles of blended whisky.

With the advent of blended whiskies, therefore, an entirely new dimension was added to the product's consumer appeal. Today, there are seven massive grain distilleries operational in Scotland, with 95 per cent of their production going into Scotch blends. Throughout the twentieth century, entrepreneurial Whisky Barons such as Tommy Dewar, James Buchanan and the Walker, Mackie and Teacher families took their brands to far corners of the globe.

However, it was the advent of a “whisky lake” and the re-emergence of single malts during the 1980s, which unexpectedly brought about the greatest escalation in the industry's most recent fortunes.

No longer were Scotland's distilleries allowed to be largely inaccessible to the general public. As the industry increasingly threw open its doors to visitors, no more were the magical malts of Scotland a connoisseur's secret. The pioneers were William Grant Sons with their imaginative facilities at the Glenfiddich Distillery on Speyside, and they were rapidly followed up by a flood of other charismatic brand names. Nowadays, the general public is actively encouraged to visit distilleries throughout Scotland, to experiment and to understand the difference between a blended whisky and a single malt, and to appreciate the regional variations.

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