Can anyone wear this tartan ?

[freddie]

Here's one for all you experts, and the dreaded 'right to wear issue' rears it's ugly head once again. Royal Stewart is regarded as a 'universal' tartan because, as all clansmen can wear the tartan of their chief, subjects of the British Crown can wear the tartan of their sovereign (the Queen/ King is designated 'Ard Righ' (Chief of Chiefs) Apparently King George V proclaimed that "My tartan can be worn by all my family" - taken to mean all his subjects. Now I have an old kilt in the tartan called 'Stuart Prince Charles Edward' which is a variant of Royal Stewart, and I just wondered, is this considered the same as Royal Stewart and therefore a 'universal' tartan or not ? I can't see it being regarded as a Stewart/Stuart clan tartan as it commemerates Bonnie Prince Charlie, and nearly all the clans followed him regardless of wether they were Stewarts or not (in fact my name is Hume, and the Hume's of Argathy were very closely involved with the Stewarts, eventually becoming the family 'Hume Stewart' and emigrating to North Carolina in the aftermath of Culloden. I feel that as a variant of Royal Stewart it is a universal tartan, so there's no issue with me, a non Stuart, wearing it but I'd like to know what you think.

[motorman4life]

I think you have established a very good case for the Hume's to wear any Stewart tartan. That said, I believe it is common knowledge that all of the Stewart tartans are Universal and fashion tartans and not particularly claimed by any one clan or sept, but in widespread and general use. I know there are some that disagree, but these hard and fast "rules" were not followed 500 years ago and were merely concocted by English weavers and fashion mavens in the 19th century. History has shown that the Lowland clans despised the kilt as a dreadful symbol of Highland barbarism, until after the English Revolution. It was the really the English aristocrats and fashionistas that popularized the Scotish kilt and clan tartans in the 1800’s. In the process, they created faux traditions in the form of lore that was more a marketing tool than true history.

I saw a cartoon once that spoofed this. It showed a little guy with colored pencils under the sales desk in a kilt shop drawing up "official" tartans in a book, as they were being ordered.

[ckelly327]

I'm of Irish descent and the Kelly's use the MacDonald tartan so that is what my tank is made from. Then I also wear a Black Stewart and Black Watch. I don't get any complaints and I don't see any problems with wearing something that you like. If you feel an attachment to a certain tartan then that is all the better. Just feel comfortable with answering questions from starngers about your decision.

[HeathBar]

You are good to go for wearing Stewart tartans. They are pretty much universal. And if your clan/family has a connection to the Stewart clan, that makes it even better

Here's one for all you experts, and the dreaded 'right to wear issue' rears it's ugly head once again. Royal Stewart is regarded as a 'universal' tartan because, as all clansmen can wear the tartan of their chief, subjects of the British Crown can wear the tartan of their sovereign (the Queen/ King is designated 'Ard Righ' (Chief of Chiefs) Apparently King George V proclaimed that "My tartan can be worn by all my family" - taken to mean all his subjects.

Actually George V was not a Stewart. He was a Sax-Coburg-Gotha and then changed the family's name to Windsor During WWI. This is according to
http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page128.asp

Now, I don't know if the Royal Family today uses Stewart tartan as their tartan of choice or not, (kinda doubt it) I'll let one of the historians here verify that.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I need to correct something in this thread here, and that is that not all Stewart tartans are universal.

This is an important point.

Some are. But most are not.

The Hunting Stewart has always been, ever since it was developed in the 1830s, intended to be used as a universal tartan.

The Royal Stewart, according to most people, is also a universal tartan. There are some out there that beleive that this tartan should properly only be worn by the Royal Family, but if that were the case you wouldn't see it being used so widely in kilt-hire shops, on shortbread tins, men's shirts, pajamas and wrapping paper (think how carefully restricted the royal Balmoral tartan is, by comparison).

Then you have various tartans based on the Royal Stewart that one could argue, by extention, are universal. Black Stewart, Dress Stewart, Blue Stewart, Grey Stewart, Camel Stewart, et al.

But not all Stewart tartans are universal! The Old Stewart tartan is definitely a Stewart Clan tartan. Also, the various branch tartans belong distinctly to the Stewart clan; Stewart of Atholl, Stewart of Appin, Stewart of Galloway, Stuart of Bute, Stewart of Fingask, just to name a few. These are all clan tartans and cannot be regarded as universal.

Now, does that mean you have to have an established pedigree to wear these? Of course not. You can wear any tartan you like. But when you wear one of these latter tartans, you will be wearing a Stewart clan tartan, not a universal one.

To address the specific question of the Prince Charles Edward Stuart tartan, you are as free to wear that one as any other tartan. If you choose to honor Prince Charlie for whatever reason, please feel free to wear it. There are certainly no restrictions placed upon it. It would be considered a commemorative tartan for that individual (though because he was a Stewart you find it being used mostly by that clan, just as the Rob Roy tartan is used mostly by the MacGregors, and the Sir Walter Scott tartan is used mostly by the Scotts, etc.)

[An t-Ileach]

...Actually George V was not a Stewart. He was a Sax-Coburg-Gotha and then changed the family's name to Windsor During WWI...

The House of Windsor's claim to the British crown is a Stuart one (just as the Stuarts' claim was a Tudor one) - it may be a bit (or even extremely) tenuous but it comes through Elizabeth Stuart (sister of K. Charles I) who married Frederick V the Kurfuerst (Elector) of the Pfalz (Palatine), and their daughter Sophia (who married Ernest Augustus Elector of Hannover) was the mother of K. George I - the nearest Protestant claimant to the British crown after the death of Q. Anne ("the last Stuart monarch"). Incidentally his son, K. George II, was the last British ruler to lead his troops in battle (at Dettingen).

Q. Victoria was K. George II's great-granddaughter, and K. George V was her grandson.

[macwilkin]

Actually George V was not a Stewart. He was a Sax-Coburg-Gotha and then changed the family's name to Windsor During WWI. This is according to
http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page128.asp

Now, I don't know if the Royal Family today uses Stewart tartan as their tartan of choice or not, (kinda doubt it) I'll let one of the historians here verify that.

Not quite. George V had Stewart Blood, as did his grandmother, Victoria.

Matt has already responded about the Stewart tartan issue, so I won't echo him, although I think it should be pointed out that it was Scots who were responsible for the creation of the modern clan tartan system, not the English-- specifcially Wilson's of Bannockburn, The Highland Society of London, etc. And not to mention Sir Walter Scott, who was one of the organisers of George IV's visit to Scotland in 1822.

As for the Charles Edward Stuart tartan, I remember reading somewhere that the old Royal Ulster Constabulary's pipe band used it for their tartan, which was somewhat ironic, given the whole Jacobite-Williamite Wars!

Cheers,

Todd

[Frank McGrath]

I chose the Stewart Hunting because I read on someone's website thet my family McGrath....were doctors and clergy to the Stewart royalty and were held in some favor by the clan. Well then a, after buying a Stewart hunting kilt, I then read that the McGrath clan was a part of the MacRae Clan. So wwhich way do I go. If you wear tartan, be able to explain the family. Or just tell people that you look damn good in it. ( as I do).

[Sir Robert]

Keep in mind that the highlanders are decended from Picts who were matralinial, we inheirit from Mom too so you can pick from a whole buncha tartans.

[Livingston]

Keep in mind that the highlanders are decended from Picts who were matralinial, we inheirit from Mom too so you can pick from a whole buncha tartans.

OK, so since the Livingstons are a sept of the McDougalls and the Walkers are a sept of the McDougalls hmmm...that's just 3 tartans . Oh yeah, Livingstons were also a sept of Stewart of Appin. Of course there are some US tartans too..