The History of The Clans.

As we now know, the Celts were instrumental in the development of Tartan. Tartan, in it's very many variations, was at the beginning, worn mainly by those who inhabited the Highlands of Scotland. These were violent times with Scotland being invaded frequently; Viking invasions greatly affected the Highlands, forcing the inhabitants to find some way of defending themselves and their families and so the Clan structure was formed.

Each different Clan had a Clan Chief and it was towards him that the members of his Clan looked to for protection. This was a far better plan than small family groups being left to fend for themselves.

As time progressed the King would grant land in return for loyal service and this in turn, though initially helping the Clans, in later years caused problems, as they did not always want to do as the King wanted.

Castles were built to house the Clans and Scotland still retains that part of history shown by the vast amounts of Castles that are spread over Scotland. Well over 250 of them in various states of repair or disrepair.
Within a 20-mile radius of my home there are around 15 castles.

Clans were of various sizes, some were large and would provide enough men to fight battles, anything from 300 to 3000, other were small and perhaps consisted of only 4 or 5 generations.
The simplest was known as the Derbfhine, which was 4 generations linked to a common great grandfather.

The Clan Chiefs were powerful men, able to call on their "extended family" to help fight when needed, the Clan members would swear loyalty to their chief and in return were given privileges such as the right to hunt on the lads belonging to the chief.

Each Clan had it's own tartan, often more than one design, as can be seen by the way Clan tartans are displayed today. An everyday wear tartan known as the Hunting tartan and a different one to wear when attending more formal events, the dress tartan.

Each Clan also has it's own Clan badge with the motto on it, written in Latin, the heraldic meanings can be defined by looking at the structure of the rest of the badge.

Clans as described above did not survive to the present day, the vast changes that occured in the Highlands of Scotland, caused the destruction of the true Clan system.
The Clan names, badges and tartans did survive and it is now considered a matter of great importance to be able to legitimately wear a Clan Tartan.

As I progress through my history project, the reasons for the break up of the Clans will be discussed more fully, it is a sad part of Scotland's history and as such deserves to be told in it's own section.

For now, please choose your next destination from the side menu.

Jeaney