#disarming

Kamikaze dog

August 1st 1747 saw the Proscription Act introduced, banning the “Highland Garb” and the carrying of weapons. The penalty for a first offence was six months in jail and a second offence resulted in transportation for seven years.

To understand the act you have to first look at the previous uprisings, the 1715 saw the Disarming Act, which was ineffectual as the vast majority of the arms seized or handed in were rusted or unused, their real armouries were hidden fro the redcoats. Another short lived uprising in 1719 saw the introduction of the 1725 Disarming act “An act for the more effectual disarming the highlands in that part of Great Britain called Scotland; and for the better securing the peace and quiet of that part of the kingdom‘ This time General Wade led the movement and was more successful in seizing weapon but still there were weapons spirited away from the government’s prying eyes and not all were taken from the Highlanders, and those outwith the Highlands too, as it wasn’t just their the act was enforced.

And so to the ‘45. The act afterwards again was about disarming the clans but it went further than the previous laws, it also meant you could not wear the tartan ‘That from and after the first day of August, one thousand seven hundred and forty seven, no man or boy, within that part of Great Briton called Scotland, other than shall be employed as officers and soldiers in his Majesty’s forces, shall on any pretence whatsoever, wear or put on the clothes commonly called Highland Clothes (that is to say) the plaid, philibeg, or little kilt, trowse, shoulder belts, or any part whatsoever of what peculiarly belongs to the highland garb; and that no tartan, or partly-coloured plaid or stuff shall be used for great coats, or for upper coats’ Anyone found breaking these rules could be imprisoned for six months, and, if they were caught again, they could be sent to a plantation overseas for seven years.”

Excluded were soldiers of the realm and the gentry, oh and you may have noticed women weren’t mentioned! The act itself was more about banning the highland dress rather than the tartan, although in some cases there is no doubt over zealous lawmen would set it down by the letter of the law as it was written During the time that Proscription was in effect, rumours abounded about methods by which Highlanders tried to retain their sense of clan identity – the most well-known in modern times being the ritual of the Kirkin’ o’ the Tartan. According to the legend, Highlanders hid pieces of tartan and brought them to church to be secretly blessed at a particular point in the service. The Highlanders would touch the hidden fabric at a pre-appointed time during the benediction, thus rededicating themselves to God and their Scottish heritage. This ritual is now once again popular, especially in among the diaspora populations of North America, although of course this is no longer performed in secret and instead is seen as a proud way to publicly declare your heritage, while remembering the difficulties faced by previous generations.

The ban was eventually lifted in 1782, due to the effects of the Clearances beginning to take hold in de-populating the Highlands, and because Highland clothing and tartan was no longer seen as a threat. However, within a couple of years, Highland landowners set up Societies with aims including promotion of “the general use of the ancient Highland dress”. Walter Scott was instrumental in encouraging lowlanders to show pride, it was about this time that specific tartans for Clans came about, before this the tartans more or less covered the regions rather than a particular clan, although the two did overlap so it is not always the case.