SCOTLAND
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The recorded history of Scotland begins with the
arrival of the Roman Empire in the 1st century, the Roman province
of Britannia reached as far north as the Antonine Wall, which once ran from
the Clyde to the Forth. To the north lay the territory of Caledonia, whose
people were described as "Picti" in Latin, meaning ‘painted ones’.
Due to constant incursions from these Picti the Roman legions would be forced
back to Hadrian's Wall within 20 years of its construction, and forced to
abandon the territory by the beginning of the 3rd century. Historical
records of Pictish kings began in the mid 6th century, and by the end of that
century the conversion of the Pictish kingdom to Christianity had begun. The
cultural influence of the Church was considerable for it brought Pictland
into the mainstream of European art and civilisation. The emergence of the
kingdom of the Picts mirrored the social developments taking place elsewhere
in Britain but without the political instability created by the arrival of
the land-hungry Angles and Saxons from North Germany. There were inter-tribal problems among the
Picts from time to time, as well as political and territorial struggles with
their neighbours, particularly the Scots to the west and the Angles to the southeast. The
independent kingdom of the Picts came to an end in the 9th century; their
distinctive culture was gradually replaced in the far north by Scandinavian
ideas and elsewhere Pictland became Scotland.
According to 9th- and 10th-century literature, the
Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata was founded on the west coast of Scotland in the
6th century. In the following century, Irish missionary Columba founded a
monastery on Iona and introduced the previously pagan Scoti, and with less success the Picti, to Celtic
Christianity. King Nechtan of Pictland later chose to expel the Columban
church in favour of the Roman, principally to restrict the influence of the
Scoti on his kingdom and to avoid a war with Northumbria. In the same period
Angles had conquered the previously Brythonic territory south of the Clyde
and Forth, initially creating the Anglo Saxon kingdom of Bernicia, later becoming a part of the Kingdom
of Northumbria. Towards the end of the 8th century all three kingdoms were
raided, settled and to some extent came under Viking control. Successive
defeats by the Norse forced the Picti and Scoti to cease their historic
hostility to each other and unite in the 9th century, to form the Kingdom of
Scotland. The Kingdom of Scotland was united under the
descendants of Kenneth MacAlpin, first king of a united Scotland. His
descendants, known to modern historians as the House of Alpin, fought among
each other during frequent disputed successions. The last Alpin king, Malcolm
II, died without issue in the early 11th century and the kingdom passed
through his daughter's son, Duncan I, who started a new line of kings known
to modern historians as the House of Dunkeld or Canmore. The last Dunkeld
king, Alexander III, died in 1286 leaving only a single infant granddaughter
as heir; four years later, Margaret, Maid of Norway herself died in a tragic
shipwreck en route to Scotland. England, under Edward I, would take
advantage of the questioned succession in Scotland to launch a series of
conquests into Scotland. The resulting Wars of Scottish Independence were
fought in the late 13th and early 14th centuries as Scotland passed back and
forth between the House of Balliol and the House of Bruce. Scotland's
ultimate victory in the Wars of Independence under David II confirmed
Scotland as a fully independent and sovereign kingdom. When David II died
without issue, his nephew Robert II
established the House of Stewart (the spelling would be changed to Stuart in
the 16th century), which would rule Scotland uncontested for the next three
centuries. James VI, Stuart king of Scotland, also inherited the throne of
England in 1603, and the Stuart kings and queens ruled both independent
kingdoms until the Act of Union in 1707 merged the two kingdoms into a new
state, the Kingdom of Great Britain. Queen Anne was the last Stuart monarch,
ruling until 1714. Since 1714, the succession of the British monarchs of the
houses of Hanover and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Windsor) has been due to their
descent from James VI and I of the House of Stuart. [1] Government
in Medieval Scotland |
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Early Emblems Early emblems of the scottish nation are on so-called Pictish Stones from the early christian era in Scottish history between the conversion of the Picts in the 6th century until the subordination of the Scottish church to the Roman Catholic church in the 12th century. On the Pictish Stones (which, by the way, are not all pictish) there are representations of the repertory of socio-political symbols which we also know from many other societies. The Pictish stones are a very archaic way of representing socio-political symbols. Examples of such stones, called kudurrus are known from the Mesopotamian Kassite Dynasty (1729-1155 BC), showing cosmic symbols and symbols of urban societies together with representations of rulers and their officials holding their regalia. |
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The cosmic symbols represented are:
A sickle-shaped figure, open side down, on which
two hands of a clock make an angle of 80°. This could be a representation of the
universe, heaven or the sky. The meaning of the arrow must remain an enigma. In christian times this
symbol was replaced by an orb surmounted with a latin cross, symbolizing the
Christian universe. Initially, from the rule of Alexander
I (1107-’24), this orb was held in hand by the ruler. It disappeared from
there in the 13th century, probably because of the
loss of sovereignty. At the end of the 15th century
it reappeared on top of the crown.
Orb on top
of the Scottish crown, 1540 |
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Another cosmic symbol represented is a disc symbolizing
the sun. |
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Sun on the
Eassie Stone |
Composed
sun on Shandwick stone |
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Generally a sun symbolizes the realm and in many cases the sun-disc on the stones is unmistakably meant to symbolize the sun. Early european representations of the sun are usually coloured gold. Some excavated ancient bronze shields may actually have been sun-symbols. A sun chariot from about 1350 BC was found in Denmark. It shows a golden disc decorated with little concentric circles, reminding the much later Pictish sun discs. In ancient Egypt and the far east the sun was colored red. A peculiarity
poses the Stone from Hilton of Cadbol on which are two suns. This would mean that the stone represents a union of
two realms for which Dalraida and Pictavia, which were united in 842, are candidates. |
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The Stone
from Hilton of Cadbol Showing a thunderbolt, two suns and the ruler and
his attendants |
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Hilton of Cadbol stone The stone once stood in Hilton of Cadboll, a seaboard village on the
east coast of the Tarbat Peninsula in northeastern Scotland. Originally
carved on the seaward side with an early Christian cross and on the landward
side with traditional Pictish symbols like the crescent and double disc and
secular themes like a hunting scene, the stone was knocked down in the 17th
century, possibly by a storm in 1674. After its fall, it was lying face down
with the Christian side One Alexander Duf had the early Christian Pictish
cross on the reverse side chipped away and replaced with his own coat of
arms. He also left an inscription identifying himself as: “He that believes
well does well sayeth Solomon the wyse. Heir lyes Alexander Duf and his three
wyves 1676.” |
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The idea is confirmed by the first two-sided seals
of the Scottish kings on which the king is seated between two suns, properly represented
as rayonnant. |
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1107-1124 |
St.
David I |
1124-1153 |
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Seal:
Obv.: Enthroned crowned ruler with sword and orb, between two suns
radiant. L.: X ALEXANDER DEO RECTORE REX SCOTTORUM (Alexander guided by God King of the Scots). |
Seal:
Obv.: Enthroned crowned ruler with sword and orb, between two suns
radiant. L.: X DAVID DEO RECTORE REX SCOTTORUM |
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Malcolm IV |
1153-1165 |
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Seal: Obv.:
Enthroned crowned ruler with sword
and orb, between two suns radiant. L.: X MALCOLVM
DEO RECTORE REX SCOTTORUM. When
William the Lion (1165-1214) had become a vassal of Henry II of England in
1174 the suns disappeared from the royal seal never to return. |
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William the Lion |
1165-1214 |
Alexander II |
1214-1249 |
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Seal:
Obv.: The king seated with sword and orb. L.: X WILLELMVS
DEO RECTORE REX SCOTTORVM |
Seal:
Obv.: Uncrowned king seated with sword and orb. L.: X ALEXANDER
DEO RECTORE REX SCOTTORVM |
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Alexander III |
1249-1286 |
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Second Seal Seal:
Obv.: Enthroned crowned ruler with lily-scepter. His throne
decorated with fleurs de lis. L.: X ALEXANDER DEO RECTORE REX SCOTTORUM. After
Alexander III apparently an emblem symbolizing the realm was abandoned.
Instead, the coat of arms slowly developed into a kind of emblem of the realm
of Scotland. This happened when the arms were crowned or crested and a third
uncrowned version existed at the same time. These versions then were the
emblems of the supreme administrator, the supreme commander (both called the
royal arms) and the realm of Scotland tout-court
called “of Scotland”. In fact,
the arms with the lion and the tressure became the arms of Scotland when they
were used by an other institution than the kings from the House of Dunkeld.
This occurred for the first time during the interregnum of 1290-’92 when the
deputies from the kingdom charged their seal with the arms with the lion and
the tressure.
Great Seal
appointed for the Government of the Realm 1290-‘92 Rev.:
Arms: Lion
within a double tressure flory counterflory. L.: SIGILLVM
SCOCIE DEPVTATVM REGIMINI REGNI. [2] |
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Goldcoin
of Robert III 1390 |
Goldcoin of
James V 1513 |
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The arms with the lion and the tressure remained the
arms of the realm in the next few centuries. In
1471 there was a curious attempt of the Scottish Parliament to displace the
tressure. An Act was passed in that year, for some hitherto unexplained
reason, by which it was ordained “that
in tyme to cum thar suld be na double tresor about his armys, but that he
suld ber hale armys of the lyoun without ony mair.” [-] Like many aother
Acts, however, it never seems to have been carried into effect; [-] [3] At first
it was represented in alliance with the arms of the Houses of Balliol and
Bruce and, from the reign of Queen Mary Stuart in arms quarterly of Scotland
and other realms belonging to the king or queen of Scotland. As the royal
arms of Queen Mary were of a quarterly, the crowned arms with the lion and the tressure became at the same
time the arms of the Kingdom of Scotland. Her son James VI, who could not
quarter his arms with other blasons bore the crowned arms of Scotland for a
short time, these arms being the arms of the Kingdom at the same time. This
changed again when he was also crowned king of England in 1603. The
situation changed in the time of the Commonwealth and Protectorate when
Oliver Cromwell preferred a coat of arms of the realm consisting of the
saltire of St Andrew, being the symbol of the Scottish congregation of St
Andrews and symbolizing the Res Publica
or the realm of the people of
Scotland. |
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Arms of
Scotland, 1659-‘60 Immediately
after the restoration of the kingdom in 1660 the crowned arms with the lion
and the tressure were also restored. |
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1662 |
1693 |
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1705 At the Act of Union of 1707 the kingdom of
Scotland ceased to exist and the realm became an integral part of Great
Britain. The arms of this Great Britain showed an
impaled of the arms of the former kingdoms of England and Scotland. The situation did not
change with the next two unions when Great Britain was united wit Ireland in
1801(lost it in 1922) and united with Northern Ireland. A kingdom of Scotland
was never restored but the arms of Great Britain of
1707 was split up in its composing parts for Great Britain and Ireland. As a
result the (crowned) arms of the kingdom of Scotland, now just symbolizing
Scotland, were restored. |
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1820 |
1840 |
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Above the
entrance of Edinburg Castle |
On shillings
1953-‘70 |
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1994 |
Uncrowned
arms of Scotland |
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The realm consists of the people and its
territory. |
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The symbol of the Scottish territory is a thistle, usually
referred to as the national flower. As a floral emblem it is standing in a
long tradition of floral emblems symbolizing a territory. Best known is a
tree, known from the Middle East and for example of the Phoenicians. Also well known is a lotus in Indian
culture and a sprig of olive in Athens.
“The reason of the assumption of the thistle as the
national badge of Scotland remains largely a matter of mystery, though it is
of nothing like so ancient an origin. Of course one knows the time-honoured and
wholly impossible legend that its adoption as a national symbol dates from
the battle of Largs
(1263), when one of the Danish invaders gave away an attempted surprise by
his cry of agony caused by stepping barefooted upon a thistle. The fact, however, remains that its earliest
appearance is on a silver coinage of
1474, in the reign of James III., but during that reign there can be no doubt
that it was accepted either as a national badge or else as the personal badge
of the sovereign. [4] The period in question was that in which badges were so largely used,
and it is not unlikely that desiring to vie with his brother of England, and
fired by the example of the broom badge and the rose badge, the Scottish
king, remembering the ancient legend, chose the thistle as his badge. In 1540, when the thistle had become recognised as
one of the national emblems of the kingdom, the foundation of the Order of
the Thistle stereotyped the fact for all future time. The conventional
heraldic representation of the thisle is as it appears upon the star of that
Order, that is, the flowered head upon
a short stalk with a leaf on either side. Though sometimes represented of
gold, it is nearly alwasy proper. It has frequently been granted as an
augmentation, though in such meaning it will usually be found crowned.” [5] Which species
of thistle is referred to in the original legend is disputed. Popular modern
usage favours Cotton Thistle Onopordum acanthium. Royal Thistle Badge on Coins |
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1530 |
1602 |
1679 |
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The Thistle Badge
before 1707 Å Throne du Roi The thistle-badge was on the baldachin of the throne in the House of
Parliament. On the back of the throne was the Scottish achievement. Under the baldachin is an official called Le Grand Commissaire. È Porte du Parlement The thistle was also on the door giving access to the House of
Parliament. Above the gate was an allegory of the armed forces in the form of
a representation of Mars in full
armory armed with a sword and shield showing the arms of Scotland. He was
surrounded by a trophy of banners and cuirasses. Mars and thistle together symbolize the defence of the Scottish
territory. Visible also on this detail are the heralds in their tabards of the
arms of Scotland. [6] |
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Thistle Badge, 20th cent. |
Royal Thistle Badge, 20th
cent. |
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í The thistle
can also be interpreted as a so-called impresa,
a personal emblem symbolizing a quality or motto. Such impresas, invented in Italy, became the fashion in the 15th
century and the Scottish thistle is closely following this fashion. A
difference is that it developed from a personal- into a national emblem. The
fact that it was a personal emblem does not rule out that it was also a
symbol of a territory. |
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The Cross Saltire |
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The cross saltire
as an emblem of the Scottish people is derived from the cross saltire of the
abbots of Cellrígmonaid. This
developed into the emblem of the diocese of St. Andrews in the second half of
the 13th century. As an emblem of
the Scots, or of the congregation of St. Andrews, the cross saltire appeared
in 1385, when parliament decreed that Scottish soldiers should wear it as a
distinguishing mark. A few years later it appeared on some coins of
Robert III and his successors.
Demi Lion/
9 shillings of Robert III (1390-1406) Courtesy Heritage Auctions Cross saltire
between fleurs de lis and emblems symbolizing the Holy Trinity. Legend. On
the obverse the uncrowned arms of Scotland |
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Gold demi of
9 shillings of james I, 1406-‘37 Obv.: Crowned arms of Scotland in lozenge. L.: IACOBVS DEI GRACIA REX
S. Rev.: Cross saltire between two fleurs de lis. L.: X SALVVM FAC POPVLUM TVVM DN
Lion crest
with saltire pennon 1500 ca On a panel in St. Andrews Castle During the
fifteenth century there is evidence of its use on flags, but the first
example of a flag consisting solely of the Saltire dates from 1503. It
depicts a white cross on a red field. The blue
flag we know today is not attested until 1540, by
which time there existed a legend that King Angus of the Picts had been
inspired to victory over the English army by a vision of a St. Andrew's Cross
against a blue sky. Since that time, the saltire has been the national flag
of Scotland. Its use went into a decline after the Union of 1707, but
as Scottish national feeling rose again in the nineteenth and twentieth
centuries, it came into prominence again, and is now seen flying all over Scotland. |
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In James’
IV Book of Hours, 1503ca |
As a part
of the achievement, 1540-present |
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On
later coinage the arms of Scotland are often represented between two
saltires. By
Oliver Cromwell the white saltire on blue was adopted as the emblem of
Scotland on his arms for Scotland of 1656 and on his arms for the
Commonwealth of 1658. After the restoration of the kingdom in 1660 it became
the Scottish National Flag and Arms, so defined by
Act of Parliament. [7] They are Azure, a saltire Argent, and this is
recorded in Lyon Register, pursuant to 1672, cap. 47, as the ‘Armes or Badge’ proper and peculiar to the
Kingdom of Scotland’. [8] This national badge, ‘the Silver Cross to Scotland dear’, is
traditionally said to have been instituted by Achaius, King of the Picts
(really Angus II (820-834), who is said to have introduced the veneration of
St. Andrew).
Scottish Red
Ensign until 1707 On a Dutch flag chart, 1700 ca. After the Union of 1707 the Scottish saltire flag
became obsolete and was replaced by the Union flag. It was reintroduced in
the Royal Achievement for Scotland in the 19th century and can be seen
nowadays as a National Flag for Scotland. The Cross of St. Andrew is the flag now which any
Scotsman is entitled to fly, or wear as a badge, as evidence of his national
identity or patriotism. [9] This is also the proper flag to fly on Scottish churches, and
corresponds to St. George’s cross in England, the Red Dragon in Wales, and
St. Patrick’s Cross in Ireland. [10] Today a gonfanon with the white saltire on blue is a part of the emblem of the Scottish Parliament. |
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The Scottish Parliament, like other such institutions, evolved
during the middle ages from the king’s council of bishops
and earls. It is perhaps first identifiable as a parliament in 1235,
described as a ‘colloquium’ and already with a political and
judicial role. By the early fourteenth century the attendance of knights and
freeholders had become important, and from 1326
burgh commissioners attended. Consisting of the ‘three estates’ of clerics,
lay tenants-in-chief and burgh commissioners sitting
in a single chamber, the Scottish Parliament acquired significant powers over
particular issues. Most obviously it was needed for consent for taxation
(although taxation was only raised irregularly in Scotland), but it also had
a strong influence over justice, foreign policy, war, and all
manner of other legislation, whether political, ecclesiastical, social or
economic. Parliamentary business was also carried out by ‘sister’
institutions, before c.1500 by ‘General Council’ and thereafter by the
‘Convention of Estates’. These could carry out much
business also dealt with by parliament - taxation, legislation and
policy-making - but lacked the ultimate authority of a full parliament. The Scottish
Parliament agreed the Treaty of Union with England
on 16 January 1707. The Parliament adjourned on 25 March and was dissolved on
28 April only to be reestablished after 291 years. By Scotland Act of
1998 Art. 1 section 1 it was provided that: There shall be a Scottish Parliament The first session of the new Parliament was held
on 12 May 1999. It has the Scottish saltire for emblem. |
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The Royal Saltire Badge
By James
V the crowned saltire was introduced on the banner of the High Constables of
Holyroodhouse, so qualifying them as a royal guard. Somewhat later the badge
was also on coinage.
James V, third coinage (1538-‘42) Obv.: crowned thistle between I 5, L.: IACOBVS • D • G • R • SCOTORVM. Rev: Saltire between two fleurs-de-lis and charged with a crown. L.: OPPIDVM
• EDINBVRGH |
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Scottish Arms
and Tartans |
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A quite unique source of information about early
heraldry in Scotland are the so-called Pictish stones. Symbol stones are the single most important source of information about the Picts. The
earliest are stones bearing incised designs, most of which were unique to the
Picts and which appear to have acted as a means of communication. The symbols
were used throughout Pictland from the Firth of Forth nort to Shetland and
west to the Outer Hebrides, and their message must have been widely
understood, but their decipherment is now a matter of informed guesswork.
They are likely to have functioned as memorial stones, perhaps also marking
territorial boundaries. Scholars have given descriptive names to these symbols for convenience, such as ‘crescent and
V-rod’, but the names by which the Picts knew them are lost.
The
stones are engraved with several kinds of symbols. The eagles, bulls and
lions are also known from the international repertory of symbols of military
rank but they are very scarce. The other
animal symbols may be classified as totemistic symbols and may have been
badges for use on banners and standarts of warriors or fighting units of
certain clans or tribes. Scottish Clans The
origins of Scotland’s clans and of their distinctive dress are wrapped in
controversy. Yet their story can be traced back with certainty to the middle
of the 5th century, and to Ireland where the Scots then lived. Here the
earliest historical High King was known as Niall Noigiallach (of the Nine
Hostages), whose descendants of the O’Neill dynasty expanded northwards into
Ulster. As a result Fergus Mór of the little kingdom of Dalraida moved his
seat of government from northern Ireland, and crossed the sea to found a new
Dalraida for his Scots in the land that now bears their name. In 563 a prince
of the house of O’Neill called Colum Cille (Dove of the Church) joined them
there, and is remembered today as Saint Columba. A century later the Scots
were organised in three principal kindreds from Ardnamurchan in the north to
Kintayre in the south: the kindreds of Lorne, Angus and Gabrán. In the
course of time these kindreds, and the dynasties of the Celtic church,
proliferated into the clans of mediaeval record. To the north and west of
them lived the Picts, to the west and south the Britons, while their first
serious encounter with Germanic peoples occurred early in the 9th century
when the Viking long-ships appeared. The Scots held their own against all
these peoples. Their Gaelic tongue replaced Pictish throughout the Highlands;
it replaced the Welsh tongue in large areas of south-western Scotland; it
drove the Norse language from every island in the Hebrides. And when the
Gaels were in the death throes of their final struggle against another
Germanic people, the English-speakers of the south, they gained their last
and most spectacular victory. After every attempt had been made to destroy their ancient clan
organisation and their distinctive dress these were adopted as the proper
emblems of all Scots throughout the world. Pictish Costume |
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The
Pictish garment is called in Gaelic léine.
It was a form of long shirt with wide sleeves and low neckline which men wore
also in battle. Probably it was generally made of linen, and although the
earliest references describe it simply as light coloured, it was probably of
the yellow shade which led to the English description of it as a saffron shirt. An early
picture of such a léine is on a
pictish stone.
Pictish warriors on the Brough of Birsay stone
(7th-8th cent.?) |
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The léine was the common garment for
centuries and it was also worn by a 10th century king of Scotland.
The dress
of Irish and Scottish Gaels. Both figures are wearing a Léine, the long shirt like tunic that was the common element in Gaelic clothing Códice De Trajes, Biblioteca Nacional de España
c.1529 There are
ample descriptions of this garment throughout the 16th century, of which that
of a French visitor in 1556 is typical: ‘They wear no clothes except their
dyed shirts and light woollen coverings of several colours, ‘certaines couvertures légères faites de
laine de plusieurs couleurs.’ Scottish Costume |
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The most
distinctive garment which the Scots brought with them from Ireland, and which
had probably been worn in the reign of Niall (400
ca), consisted of a short skirt ending a little above the knee. Such
garments can be seen on the 12th century St. Manchan’s Shrine. This garment
came to be known as a kilt.
St. Machan’s Shrine (Boher Catholic Church, Co.
Offaly, Ireland). Six figures out of
originally 50, wearing decorated kilts |
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A very early representation of the Scottish garment
is on the 8th century St. Andrews Sarcophagus, showing a short skirted
man with spear and shield
Scottish hunter on St. Andrews Sarcophagus (2nd half
8th cent.) Wearing a kilt |
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There is
no evidence that the Scottish Gaels continued the Irish practice of marking léine with stripes to indicate the
rank of the wearer. A (Irish-) High King wore seven stripes, one of them
purple. The Ollamh (chief man of
learning) wore six, a striking reminder of the importance attached to
scholarship. Scottish soldiers at the invasion of Edward III,
1335 By Froissart Much later the Scottish dress was continued by the
Higland dress but, probably due to extreme poverty, there is a wide gap of
four hundred years in its documentation to fill. Its decoration however is
described in the 16th century by the Scottish historian George Buchanan (1506-’82) which
makes the gap somewhat smaller: ‘They (the Highlanders) delight in variegated garments, especially
stripes, and their favourite colours are purple and blue. Their ancestors
wore plaids of many colours, and numbers still retain this custom but the
majority now in their dress prefer a dark brown.” |
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Alterius Viri
Pictis Vicini (Another Pictish
Neighbour) By Theodor de Bry in: Admiranda Narratio
1590 By the
end of the 16th century most of the clans had assumed their final
identifications and alignments. In 1594, indeed, Lughaidh O’Clery
distinguished Hebrideans even from their nearest kinsmen the Irish, by their
dress. ‘They were recognised among the Irish soldiers by the distinction of
their arms and clothing, their habits and language, for their exterior dress
was mottled cloaks of many colours.’ |
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In the
Thirty Years War the Scottish mercenaries of Mackay’s Regiment of Foote
(1626-’34) wore uniforms of checked cloth, by then already called by its name
in french tartaine, which was
developed in Scotland. In this they followed a Swedish military development: “It was with the appearance of
Gustavus Adolphus [....] in 1632 that [....] the Swedes served as models for
all belligenrents for their “Blue”, “Yellow” and “Green” regiments (so called
from the colour of their clothing) represented the first real step towards
uniformity in dress in the field. At the same time the design of weapons was
standardized, which led naturally to increased efficiency.” This development is thought to have been the origin of the
modern armed forces uniform.
Four Scottish
Mercenaries in their Uniforms, 1631 On their dressings a
preference is seen for checkered patterns. These may have been the
predecessors of the tartan but such a preference seems to be very old taking
into account the checkered pattern of the cloak of the man on a leaf in the
7th century Book of Durrow. |
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The new
martial fashion introduced in the Thirty Years War may have been the impetus
for the development of the tartans of patterns specific for each clan because
Scottish troops were organized clan-wise. A particular pattern had become
common to a particular locality first and was only associated with a clan
because different clans predominated in each district.
Lord Mungo
Murray wearing a kilt of his colours By John Michael Wright, 1660 In 1703
it is reported (by Martin Martin) that ‘Every island differs from each other
in their fancy of making Plaids, as
to the stripes in breadth and colours. This humour is as different through
the mainland of the Highlands in so far that they who have seen those places
is able, at the first view of a man’s Plaid,
to guess the place of his residence.’ Shortly afterwards, before 1715, Sir
Ludovic Grant of Grant ordered that all his tenants should provide themselves
with Highland dress made of red and green tartan ‘set broad-springed’. This
attempt to introduce a livery for his tenants however apparently did not
succeed.
Grant Tartan |
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Nevertheless
the tartan had not yet become a form of military identification in Scotland
by the time of the last and decisive clan conflict, the battle of Culloden
(1746). The Scottish rebels wore
their tartans but no uniforms and the only badge by which they could be recognized
was a white cockade in the form of a saltire.
Bonnie Prnce Charlie wearing the White Cockade [11] The Scottish Irregulars, serving under British command wore a black cockade in the form of a bow. The tartan as a
form of military identification came about when Independent Highland Companies were raised as a
militia in 1725 by General George Wade. Six
Independent Highland Companies were recruited from local clans, with one company coming from Clan Munro, one from Clan
Fraser, one from Clan Grant and three from Clan Campbell. These companies, officially
called the 43rd Regiment, were commonly known as Am Freiceadan Dubh, or the Black
Watch. This name may well have been due to the black cockade
they wore on their bonnets. It was officially adopted in 1881. |
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Å Soldier of the 43rd Regiment with
black cockade Engraving of Samuel MacPherson of the 43rd Regiment of Foot, 1740 ca. National Army Museum,
London ÈTartan of
the 43rd Regiment, the later Black Watch
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í The original uniform of the 43rd Regiment was a twelve yard long plaid of the dark tartan which is now so well known as The Black Watch tartan. This was fastened around the body with a leather belt. The jacket and waistcoat were scarlet with buff facings and white lace and a blue bonnet was worn. The men were armed with a musket and bayonet, a broadsword and generally also a pistol and dirk (long dagger). In 1825, Stewart of Garth wrote that "The uniform was a scarlet jacket and waistcoat, with buff facings and white lace, tartan plaid of twelve yards plaited round the middle of the body, the upper part being fixed on the left shoulder, ready to be thrown loose and wrapped over both shoulders and firelock in rainy weather. At night, the plaid served the purpose of a blanket, and was a sufficient covering for the Highlander Four more companies
were added in 1739 to make a total of ten Independent Highland Companies. In September 1745, Duncan Forbes, Lord Culloden, was given a
commission to raise twenty new Independent Highland Companies to oppose the Jacobite rising
of 1745. He succeeded in raising a total of eighteen
Independent Highland Companies. The men were drawn from the respective clans
of their commanders. These were the Clan
Munro, Clan
Sutherland Clan Mackay Clan MacLeod, Clan MacLeod of Assynt, Clan Mackenzie, Clan Macdonald of Sleat and Clan Ross. After the Battle of Culloden, the wearing of tartan (by civilians) was forbidden by Act of Proscription of 1747 for 36 years. The section about the tartan reads: Para 16. And be it
further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That from and after the first day
of August, one thousand seven hundred and forty seven, no man or boy, within
that part of Great Briton called Scotland, other than shall be employed as
officers and soldiers in his Majesty's forces, shall on any pretence
whatsoever, wear or put on the clothes commonly called Highland Clothes (that
is to say) the plaid, philibeg, or little kilt, trowse, shoulder belts, or
any part whatsoever of what peculiarly belongs to the highland garb; and that
no TARTAN, or partly-coloured plaid or stuff shall be used for great coats,
or for upper coats; and if any such person shall presume, after the said
first day of August, to wear or put on the aforesaid garments or any part of
them, every such person so offending, being convicted thereof by the oath of
one or more credible witness or witnesses before any court of justiciary, or
any one or more justices of the peace for the shire or stewartry, or judge
ordinary of the place where such offence shall be committed, shall suffer
imprisonment, without bail, during the space of six months, and no longer;
and being convicted for a second offence before a court of justiciary or at
the circuits, shall be liable to be transported to any of his Majesty's
plantations beyond the seas, there to remain for a space of seven years. After the parliamentary act was repealed by Repeal of the Act of Proscription of the
Highland Garb. .....That ſo much of the Acts above-mentioned, or any other Act or Acts of Parliament, as reſrtains the Uſe of the Highland Dreſs, be, and the fame are hereby repealed. the custom was slowly restored. In 1822 King George IV was even portrayed wearing a tartan when visiting Edinburgh. Finally the tartan and the kilt developed into a
kind of national costume which is still worn by some Scots at special
occasions. In most countries of Europe such national costumes were abandoned
after WWII.. |
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The Ruler |
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© Hubert de Vries 2015-01-26