Scotland. A clan is a family, and theoretically the chief is the father of
it, although not every clansman can be a direct descendant of the founder.
Many people in Scotland today will be surprised to learn that those who
founded the present clans were not themselves always Highlanders, but
included Normans (Gordon, Eraser), Bretons (Stuart), Flemings (Murrey,
Sutherland). Irish (MacNeil), and Norsemen (MacLeod), Mac meaning "son of".
Concerning that early period of their settlement, which was between the
eleventh and fourteenth centuries, we must not be dogmatic on the subject
of nationality; the important point is that all these were "incomers" to
the Highlands.
When the incomers acquired their land they virtually took over a good
many people who were living on it, and who, perhaps, were already formed
into a family or clan unit. Gradually the old clan came to acknowledge the
protection of their new leader, and at last built up a nominal kinship with
him. In course of time intermarriage made it difficult to determine how
far this kinship was nominal and how far real.
Under the patriarchal system of clanship, which reached its peak in the
sixteenth century, order of precedence was strictly observed. First, after
the chief himself, came members of his immediate family, his younger sons
and grandsons, and then the clansmen. All of them, whether connected by
blood or not, owned a common heritage of loyalty as clansmen. In return for
the help and support of his clansmen, the chief was their leader in war and
their arbiter in peace. Even in the early days the king was, in theory at
least, the "chief of chiefs", and as the royal power spread through the
Highlands the chiefs were made responsible for the good conduct of their
clansmen. Among the most famous clans were: Campbell, Fraser, Munro,
Cameron, Stewart, Murray, MacDonald, Maclean and Mackenzie.
The great period of the clans declined by the beginning of the
eighteenth century and the failure of the Jacobite Risings in 1715 and 1745
completed the destruction. But today clan societies flourish in Scotland
and, perhaps more ' bravely, elsewhere in the world. These societies are
acquiring land and property in their respective clan countries, financing
magazines, establishing museums to preserve the relics, founding
educational trusts, and - perhaps above all - keeping alive the family
spirit.
The Tartan
Tartan is and has for centuries been the distinguishing mark of the
Highlander. It has a long history. Evidence can be brought to show that as
long as the thirteenth century, and probably earlier, Highlanders wore
brightly coloured striped or checked tartan plaids, which they called
"breacan". There is some controversy about clan tartans as such.
Traditionalists state the Highlanders wore tartan as a badge so that they
could recognize each other and distinguish friend from foe in battle. Like
many theories, this looks well on paper, but in practice it seems to break
down. Even though the old tartans were simpler than the modern ones, they
could not easily be recognized at a distance.
On the other hand, various descriptions can be quoted to show that, in
the Highlands, the patterns of the tartans were considered important. A
district tartan is a very natural development in a country divided into
small communities. By the sixteenth century the particular patterns of
tartan worn in a district were connected with the predominant local clan.
But the study of the portraits shows that there was no uniformity of tartan
even in the early eighteenth century. Members of the same family are found
wearing very different tartan and, what is more surprising, many of the men
are seen to wear the kilt of one tartan and a Jacket of another. The
history of development of tartan was sharply broken in 1747, when wearing
of Highland dress was forbidden by law after the failure of 1745.
In the early years of the nineteenth century efforts were made to
collect authentic patterns of each clan tartan, but this does not seem to
have been very successful. The fashion for tartan was fostered by the
amazing spectacle of a kilted King George IV at holyrood in 1822, and
demands for clan tartan poured into the manufactures. The wave of
enthusiasm for tartan outstripped the traditional knowledge of the
Highlanders, and it was at this time and in response to popular demand that
a great many of familiar present-day tartans became associated with their
respective clans. Some of the patterns had previously been identified by
numbers only, while some were invented on the spot, as variations of the
old traditional patterns.
The term "Highland dress'' has not always meant the same thing. In the
seventeenth century the ki1t was not worn. Clansmen wrapped themselves in a
generous length of tartan cloth some sixteen feet wide. The upper portion
covered the wearer's shoulders, and it was belted at the waist, the lower
portion hanging in rough folds to the knees. In the eighteenth century,
this belted plaid was superseded by the kilt. Modern Highland dress
consists of a day-time kilt of heavy material, sometimes in a darker
tartan, worn with a tweed jacket, while for the evening finer material,
possibly in a brighter "dress" tartan, can be matched with a variety of
accessories.
Food and Drink
What sort of food has Scotland to offer the stranger? Scotland produces
a number of dishes: Scots collops - a savoury dish popularly known as
"mince", small mutton pies which must be served piping hot and the immortal
haggis. And no country has a greater variety of puddings and pies, creams,
jellies, and trifles.
The excellence of Scottish soups has been attributed to the early and
long connection between Scotland and France, but there are some genuine
soups, such as Barley Broth, Powsowdie or Sheep’s Head Broth. Hotch Potch
or Harvest Broth. Baud Bree (Hare Soup) is flavoured with toasted oatmeal
and Cullen Skink is made with a smoked haddock.
Plenty of ingenuity is shown, too, in the preparation of both oatmeal
and milk. Porridge, properly made with home-milled meal and fresh spring
water, and served with thin cream or rick milk, is food for the gods.
Lastly there is the national oatcake, which is described as “a masterpiece”
by the French gastronomes.
As a nation the Scots are definitely better bakers than cooks. To beat
the best Edinburgh bakers one must go, it is said, all the way to Vienna.
There is an endless variety of bannocks and scones: soda scones, made with
buttermilk, girdle scones, potato scones, without which no Glasgow Sunday
breakfast is complete. Also the pancakes, the crumpets, the shortbread that
melts in the mouth, buns of every size and shape! They are on offer in
every bakery.
The Scottish housewife likes to buy her meat fresh and sees that she
gets it. She likes the meat off the bone and rolled, as in France, and the
Scottish butcher is an artist at his trade. Most of the cuts are different
from England and have different names. Sirloin, one would understand, but
what is Nine Holes? Steak is steak in any language, but what is Pope's
eye?
And then the puddings! The black puddings, the white puddings, the
mealy puddings. And king of puddings, the haggis! I once asked a Scot:
"What's in a haggis?" His answer was: "I know. But I know no reason why you
should. All you need to know is that it should be served with mashed
potatoes and bashed neeps (turnips), and you must drink whisky with it. You
will discover that the oatmeal in the haggis absorbs the whisky, and so you
can drink more of it. What else do you need to know?" "A recipe of
haggis", was my answer. "Hell, well, here you are", said my friend: B
ounces of sheep's liver, 4 ounces of beef suet (fat), salt and pepper, 2
onions, 1 cup of oatmeal. Boil the liver and onions in water for 40
minutes. Drain, and keep the liquid. Mince the liver finely, and chop the
onions with the suet. Lightly toast the oatmeal. Combine all the
ingredients, and moisten the mixture with the liquid in which the liver and
onions were boiled. Turn into a sheep's stomach, cover with grease-proof
paper and steam for 2 hours.
Although the Scots are not a nation of beer-drinkers in the sense that
the English are, some of the best beers in the world are brewed in the
Lowlands of Scotland. But however good Scots beer and ale are, it is
universally known that the glory of the country is whisky. Scotch whisky
was a by-product of traditional Scottish thrift. Frugal Scots farmers,
rather than waste their surplus barley, mashed, fermented and distilled it,
producing a drink at first called uisge beatha, Gaelic for "water of life",
and now simply called whisky. No one knows when the Scots learnt the art of
distilling, though it may have been before they arrived from Ireland in the
fifth century AD, for in Irish legend St Patrick taught the art. The first
mention in Scottish records of a spirit distilled from grain does not occur
before 1494.
Today there are two kinds of Scotch whisky - the original malt whisky,
made by the centuries-old pot-still process from barley that has been
"mailed" or soaked and left to germinate; and grain whisky, made from maize
as well as matted and unmalted barley. Most of the well-known brands of
Scotch whisky are blends of many different grain and malt whiskies. The
technique of blending was pioneered in Edinburgh in the 1860s, and a taste
for the new, milder blended whiskies quickly spread to England and then to
the rest of the world.
Barley is the raw material of the malt whisky distiller. The first
process in making whisky is mailing - turning barley into malt. Mailing
begins when the distiller takes delivery of the barley, usually in
September or October, soon after it has been harvested. The barley is in
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