by The Laird o’Thistle
Apr 18 2004

Well, I have missed getting my column done in time for Tartan Day, April 6, but I shan’t just let it go. Tartan Day, for those who don’t know, is a newly minted American observance of things Scottish, which has been plunked on the anniversary of Scotland’s “Declaration of Independence” at Arbroath Abbey in 1320. Sean Connery is the patron saint of the observance, at least in New York. Though that role may be somewhat compromised after Sir Sean’s reported rudeness to a Scottish TV reporter at one of this year’s events.

The words “royal” and “tartan” in the same sentence usually raise the specter of the legendary carpets at Balmoral. Add the word “kilt” and the somewhat bizarre portrait of George IV bekilted (over skin-colored tights) comes to mind. The history of the Hanoverians and Windsors in relation to Scotland is mixed at best. The traumas of Culloden and the ensuing destruction of the clan system; the outlawing of the tartan, kilt, and bagpipes; and the cold-hearted displacements of the Highland clearances still rankle deep in the Scottish soul. But then in the 1820s Geordie IV came north and his brother Clarence (William IV) married off a couple of his “natural” daughters to Scottish aristocrats. Soon thereafter Victoria discovered the Highlands… and eventually John Brown.

The current royal Scottish connection was sealed by the late Queen Mum, and not just through her genealogical charts. The Bowes-Lyon brothers served and died, in the Black Watch. Glamis was where Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon matured into womanhood while helping to nurse the wounded of WWI. And it was in Caithness that she restored her soul after her husband’s early death. Through her, the current Queen is more the Queen of Scots than anyone since Mary Stewart. That shows up in significant bits like the return of the Stone of Scone to Scotland in 1996, and the deep affection with which she spoke as “Queen of Scots” at the inauguration of the Scottish Parliament in 1999. Luckily that affection extends down the generations to her son, the Great Steward of Scotland and Lord of the Isles, and to her grandson at St. Andrews, and to her daughter as well.

I would hasten to add here that the Scottish connection is potentially much more than just a nostalgia trip. It also helps provide a point of reference for the emerging monarchy of the 21st Century. Unlike the feudal basis of the monarchy in England, the Scots have ever looked further back to their tribal past, to the royals’ ancestor Fergus mac Erc who led the Scots from Ulster into Argyll in the fifth century of the Common Era. Their kings and queens were ever “of Scots” and not of “Scotland.” The people were the focus. The ancient High Kings were those who drew together the various clans and families. A King or Queen of Scots was, and is, the “Chief of Chiefs” and the “Head of the Families of Scotland.” It would seem to me that such a tradition offers a better model for the monarchy in multicultural Britain than the feudalism of the southern tradition. It offers the template for creating a more organic and relational monarchy. (It also helps to internationalize the Queen and her family to every land where those of Scottish descent have settled.)

In closing for this time, I must admit that I do find it sad that Prince William has yet to embrace the ultimate male garment. On my bookshelf, as I write is, the one known picture of Prince William in a kilt, aged about 6, with the Queen, Prince Philip (kilted), Harry (also kilted), Peter (not kilted) and Zara Philips. It is a formal photo taken in the library at Balmoral. I bought it, as a postcard, at Holyroodhouse in 1988. Granted, his dad may be a bit obsessed with the kilt, donning one at every opportunity, but I hope that hasn’t put Wills off altogether. Kilts are both elegant and great fun. There is, after all, nothing quite like the swing of all those pleats when dancing. He could even try out some of the newly trendy styles…. black leather, khaki, Chinese silk, and the Red Lyon Standard are some examples I have seen in various publications. Kilts even look great with combat boots. I would even be somewhat placated if William would just try out some tartan trews (trousers) such as those his uncle Edward has occasionally sported on formal occasions.

And so, a belated happy Tartan Day to ane’ and a’!

– Ken Cuthbertson