Why, or how, did the kilt come about?

[Bud]

A kilt did not need to be tailored. Weave a long piece of cloth, and that would be it. The necessities of life took up enough time for the highlanders, and the women did not feel inclined to be sempstresses/tailors as well as weavers.

[JRB]

Would this explain why the Highlanders are so often depicted as shoeless?

Jamie :ootd:

The Irish called the Scottish mercenaries "red shanks" for their bare legs and feet. I suppose one just got used to the cold.

[HarborSpringsPiper]

The Irish called the Scottish mercenaries "red shanks" for their bare legs and feet. I suppose one just got used to the cold.

Indeed! Here is a reference from the STA site.

Highlanders were out in all sorts of weather, bare legged and frequently bare-footed and one of the names given to them was Redshankes - shanks is an old word for legs and the red legs were caused by exposure to the winds, rains and snows of the Highlands. In 1543 a Highland priest called John Elder wrote a fairly detailed letter on the subject to Henry VIII.


In 1688 the Governor of the Isle of Man wrote a description of Highlanders: "Their thighs are bare, with brawny muscles . . . a thin brogue on the foot, a short buskin of various colours on the legg, tied above the calf with a striped pair of garters. What should be concealed is hid with a large shot-pouch, on each side of which hangs a pistol and a dagger. A round target on their backs, a blew bonnet on their heads, and in one hand a broad sword and a musquet in the other."

I have always loved this one too:

Captain Burt whom we read of a little bit earlier, had something to say about the Highlander's shoes: "They are often barefoot, but some I have seen shod with a kind of pumps made out of a raw cow hide with the hair turned outward. They are not only offensive to the sight, but intolerable to the smell of those who are near them. By the way, they cut holes in their brogues though new made, to let out the water when they have far to go, and rivers to pass; thus they do to prevent their feet from galling." (becoming sore).

http://www.tartansauthority.com/Web/...land_Dress.asp

[MartinGrenoble]

...in the Highlands, there was no abundance of sheep. They are not indigenous to the Highlands and very few Highlanders kept sheep.

What could they have made their cloaks and blankets from, if there were no sheep?

Flimsy linen clothes cannot be compared with warm protective woolen goods, worn for different reasons. I cannot see how the loss of linen would increase thge use of wool. In cold climates, life without wool would have been very uncomfortable, and wool was complementary to linen.

Cloaks were probably universally worn/carried until a century or so ago.
The northern Brits were the only ones, as far as I know, that started pleating these lengths of cloth, belted them and eventually cut off the top half, producing a garment similar to the skirts (under whatever name) worn around the warmer parts of the world. Others preferred thicker woolen jackets and trousers.

Off topic : I wonder when women stated wearing skirts.

Martin

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

What could they have made their cloaks and blankets from, if there were no sheep?

I didn't say there were no sheep, just that there wasn't an abundance of sheep. Those sheep that were kept were sheared, and the fleece was spun into thread and woven into the fabric that became cloaks and blankets. One has to also remember that many a Highland bed was also covered in skins, as well as blankets, for warmth. Hide cloaks, with the hair still on, were also worn. In some respects the clothing of the Scottish Highlander was not all that dissimilar to the attire worn by other tribal peoples-- the American Indians.