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THE BURNS TARTANS
©2007 Matthew A. C. Newsome, FSA Scot., GTS
published in the Scottish Banner, January
2008
For
many Scotophiles throughout the world January is the month to honor Scotland’s
national poet, Robert Burns. One way to do this is with a tartan. We wear
tartans to honor our ancestral clans, and the traditional places that our
families occupied. Why should we not also wear tartans to honor those people
whom we admire?
Indeed,
almost from the beginning there have been tartans named for individuals of
prominence. Influential tartan mill Wilsons of Bannockburn wove tartans in
the mid-nineteenth century named for people such as Prince Albert and Sir
Walter Scott, alongside the more familiar clan tartans such as MacDonald or
MacGregor, and district tartans such as Dundee and Aberdeen.
Perhaps
no Scottish figure is more famous worldwide than eighteenth century poet
Robert Burns. Born in Ayrshire in 1759, he died just 37 short years later.
Yet he was so beloved in his life that some 10,000 people are reported to have
paid respects at his burial. His popularity has only grown since, with school
children in every English speaking nation learning “My Love is Like a Red, Red
Rose” in their literature classes, and people across the globe singing “Auld
Lang Syne” to usher in the New Year.
It only
seems natural then that such an important son of Scotland should be honored
with his own tartan. The very first Burns tartan was created in 1959, to
honor the 200th anniversary of the bard’s birth. It was designed
by Baron Marchand of Messrs. George Harrison & Co. of Edinburgh, at the
request of The Scotsman newspaper. It was modeled on the so-called
“shepherd’s check,” which was a very appropriate choice to honor a man from
Scotland’s lowland region.
Tartan,
by and large, is rightly thought of as a Highland thing (despite the fact that
many lowland families today have their own tartans). However, there was a
distinct tradition of wearing tartan patterns in the lowlands of Scotland,
mostly of a black and white design. The simplest of these was the shepherd’s
check, which consists of alternating stripes of white and black in equal
proportion. (This same design has been adopted as the district tartan of
Northumberland). Other lowland families, such as Hannay, have chosen to adopt
a tartan of black and white design in keeping with that tradition.
When
the Robert Burns tartan was first being considered, it was suggested that it
be based upon the Campbell tartan, the Burns name being reckoned a sept
(associated family) of the Campbell clan. Ultimately, it was decided that a
tartan based on the common black and white check of the lowlands would be more
reflective of the place Burns was from. For a time it was even suggested that
the new tartan be named “Ayr” but that idea was discarded in favor of naming
it after the bard himself.
To the
basic shepherd’s check was added a width of brown in honor of the “hodden
grey” cloth mentioned in “A Man’s A Man,” and green to reflect the surrounding
hillside. The result is the distinctive “Burns Check” that many are so
familiar with today. This tartan is produced by many major woolen mills in
Scotland, and is worn by those of any heritage wishing to honor the works and
achievement of this great poet.
Many
people surnamed Burns readily adopt this tartan as a “family tartan” because
it bears their name. In reality, however, it was never intended to be a
tartan for the Burns family – though I am certain no one would object to a
Burns wishing to wear this in honor of their famous kinsman!
In
actuality, there is a Burns family tartan, quite different from the Robert
Burns commemorative tartan. It is a red and green design (with a bit of blue
and yellow), much more in line with what we might consider a typical tartan
design than the distinctive Burns check. It is not as common as the
commemorative tartan, being commercially produced by only one woolen mill at
present, the House of Edgar, as part of their “Old and Rare” line. Despite
the name of that particular tartan range, the Burns family tartan is not of
great age, dating perhaps as early as the 1930’s. It is rather rare, however,
which is perhaps why many bearing the Burns name elect to wear either the
Robert Burns check or the tartan of the Campbell clan.
There
have been other Burns tartans designed in the recent past. The Scottish
Tartans Authority records a “Burns Heritage Check” designed by Sunningdale
Marketing Management “for the trustees of the Burns Monument” in 1991. It is
nearly identical to the common Burns check except that the black lines closest
to the brown have been changed to green.
This
tartan was soon superceded by a new “Burns Heritage Tartan” designed by Peter
MacArthur & Co., in 2002. This design incorporated elements from different
tartans said to be “connected to Burns’ legacy.” Apparently the design did
not prove to be as popular as hoped. The Burns Heritage Park web site no
longer lists this tartan for sale (www.burnsheritagepark.com),
and in fact, all tartan items being sold are in the original Burns check from
1959.
It
would seem that the distinctive and, by now, well-recognized Burns check is
hard to beat! The fact that it was designed for use not just by this family
or that, but by any who want to honor the legacy of Scotland’s great poetical
genius, has contributed greatly to this tartan’s popularity. As long as the
poems and songs of Robert Burns remain a part of Scottish tradition, his
memory will be honored with Scotland’s traditional cloth.
