pipers plaid

[OC Richard]

Can anyone wear a Fly Plaid or is it reserved for just Pipers and Military?

Well that gets us into sticky terminology problems... because "fly plaid" is used for two rather different garments.

What we might nowadays call a "fly plaid" is simply a square of tartan, fringed all round, put throught the epaulette and pinned with a brooch, the rest simply hanging down behind.

As far as I can tell, this is a recent invention and was never, and is not today, worn by the Scottish regiments.

What was, and is, worn by the Scottish regiments, is the garment which was always called in the old days the "belted plaid". (Not to be confused with the "great kilt" or feileadh-mor or breacan-an-feileadh.) But sometimes it was referred to as a "fly plaid".

This is an elaborate garment. It is a square of tartan, with long rolled fringe on three sides. The fourth side is gathered and "let" into a narrow belt of the same tartan, which fastens around the waist with a buckle. On the side opposite the belt, a triangle of tartan is attached. It has matching long rolled fringe on two sides, the third side being gathered and sewn onto the body of the plaid. This tab of fringed tartan is put through the epaulette and pinned with a brooch.

Here is one with the basting stitches still intact so you don't see its full width, nor can you see the entire cloth belt which goes round the waist.



From the period which the feileadh-mor was discontinued in the Highland regiments (around 1800) this "belted plaid" was worn by all ranks in Full Dress to simulate the appearance the feileadh-mor. It continued to be worn by officers, and sometimes sergeants, and sometimes other ranks in Full Dress up to today.

It is often called a "drummers' plaid" today, probably because drummers in military pipe bands have long worn them. Likewise the long plaid is often called a "pipers' plaid" though it was also worn by officers and certain sergeants in several Scottish regiments.

The "belted plaid" was rarely worn by pipers, but I did come across a vintage photo of a piper of the Cameron Highlanders wearing one. (As opposed to hundreds of photos of pipers of the Cameron Highlanders wearing long plaids.)



Here's the belted plaid's more usual role, worn by officers in Full Dress and Levee Dress



Back to the long plaids, here's civilians wearing them with the front end fully showing





Now here's a photo where the end in front is very short, but still visible



In the old days the long plaid was just a rectangle of cloth, without formalised pleats, even in the Army



This photo is interesting because it shows at even an early date less fabric being used for the long plaid. Originally it was a length of full-width kilting tartan. Here you can see a half-width plaid, which is the standard today. (The exception being the Scots Guards.)



And lastly the typical mix of belted and long plaids in the same regiment, here the long plaids worn by pipers and a bandsman, short plaid by a sergeant (but not by the drummer)

[Pleater]

In bad weather and when drumming for the Border Morris I wear a long plaid, very useful as I wear the drum on my right hip - something to do with being left handed.

By accident I made it a bit long, so I have enough fabric to put folds under the drum to keep the metal bits from hurting me.

I wear it in the civillian rather than military style, so the ends fall front and back. Rather than use a broach - which would interfere with the shoulder strap I use to help support the drum, I use a loop of cord to hold the two layers of folded fabric and then wrap it under my right arm and tie it close to the left shoulder. That stops the plaid sliding off the shoulder and is essential when walking in a procession.

Spreading both parts of the plaid across the body and opening out the pleats keeps off wind and rain and helps maintain body temperature - so much so that water vapour condenses over me as I dry off.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[Thomas H]

Ok that was was awsome ! But is it OK for me to wear a Small Fly Plaid?
With my Ferguson Kilt to the Highland games?

[piperdbh]

Ok that was was awsome ! But is it OK for me to wear a Small Fly Plaid?
With my Ferguson Kilt to the Highland games?

Yes, if you want to, but fly plaids are usually thought of as more of a formal sort of thing to wear, and the breeze will blow it around, usually where you don't want it to be. If you'd like something a bit more versatile, which you can use to wrap up in when the weather is chilly (like Stone Mountain was two years ago), you might think about one of these.

[Tobus]

Ok that was was awsome ! But is it OK for me to wear a Small Fly Plaid?
With my Ferguson Kilt to the Highland games?

Sure, it's OK, in the sense that nobody is going to arrest you. They may chuckle behind your back, though. Some may even comment on it. Fly plaids usually aren't used for casual affairs like a Highland Games. As Jock would say, "It just isn't done, old boy."

But again, it is your decision. Wear it if you like, and ignore the critics.

[OC Richard]

The traditional "belted plaid" (which I describe in full above) was, and is, worn with civilian Evening Dress.

Here it is, called a "belted plaid", in a 1930 catalogue



and in an old photo



The modern "fly plaid" is a cheaper, simpler version.

It wasn't worn with Day Dress.

With Day Dress, in the old days, was often worn the long plaid, which was also worn with Evening Dress at that time.

Here are vintage photos and paintings showing the long plaid worn with Day Dress









In the 20th century it's the "Laird's plaid" or a tartan blanket placed over the shoulder.

[Thomas H]

These pictures are Very nice!!!

[londonpiper]

................ we took the left-shoulder shell off our doublet, and twisted that short end of the plaid and formed it more or less to the shape of the missing shell, tucking it in somewhere (I forget just where). The old guy in the band had served with the Cameron Highlanders in WWII and presumably had got this method there.

This is the correct method for a piper as I have also been taught by many ex-army pipers

[OC Richard]

This is the correct method for a piper as I have also been taught by many ex-army pipers

Well I would hesitate to call it the correct method, because of many images of military men, many of them the very Pipe Majors and Drum Majors who would be teaching the pipers of the regiment how to put their plaids on.

Above I posted photos of Scots Guards pipers and a Gordon Highlander piper, all with the left-shoulder shell visible.

Here are more:













and I could post dozens more.

BUT what about these? Here is Pipe Major Evan MacRae of the QOCH (during the period they wore Royal Stewart) and it's quite possible that he's using that method (removing the left-shoulder shell). He was one of my teachers at piping school in the early 80s, a lovely man. What's interesting is the postcard above showing a piper of the same regiment at around the same time with that shell showing.



And what about these Argylls? They might be using that method too.



And here's an Argyll PM of over 100 years ago (93rd Highlanders actually), perhaps doing likewise

[Mike_Oettle]

Many thanks, DBH, for the link to Matthew’s article.
I don’t see myself wearing any kind of plaid in the near future, but if I ever get one, I think it would be the kind Matt describes.
Regards,
Mike