Ghillie Brogues

**OC Richard** · 13th November 18, 06:18 PM

In looking over my Victorian photos I notice that Ghillie Brogues are much in the minority.

Then, as now, they're more popular with pipers than non-pipers.

Some of my vintage Highland Dress catalogues from the 1930s don't offer them. They state that black brogues (wingtip style are shown) are "correct" for Day Dress.

I have a couple photos of Massed Bands at Highland Games in the 1960s and there are no Ghillie Brogues to be seen. All the bands are wearing military-style uniforms with spats, or civilian Evening Dress with buckled brogues.

Army pipers only wear them when wearing civilian kit for competing at civilian competitions. The army brogues are black pebble-grain wingtips.

Which is all to say that there is not now, nor has there ever been, a notion that Ghillie Brogues are a "must" for Highland Dress.

It's a bit of a mystery to me how they entered Victorian Highland Dress. I think they might have been a conscious revival of the Victorians' re-imagining of ancient Highland footwear. When they first appear they're in tan roughout, striving to appear rustic.

**OC Richard** · 16th November 18, 02:33 PM

Originally Posted by EdinSteve

I have very much enjoyed reading past posts of yours, OC Richard, and it is such a pity that so many photographs don't seem to have survived.

Thanks! That was the Photobucket fiasco. It was a popular free photo hosting site which suddenly said "pay us hundreds of dollars or get out" and nearly everyone got out, including me.

I have most of those photos on Imgur now. I could have gone back and switched out the old dead links on those old XMarks threads for new live links, but this site automatically locks threads after a time.

So from time to time I've posted new versions of some of those old threads with new working photo links.

Anyhow this all got me looking over Victorian "Ghillie Brogue" photos. Some of the shoes look pretty much like today's. (Note the pointed cuffs, one of those interesting details which appear in The Highlanders Of Scotland and can also be seen in period photos.)

Back then they're just as likely to wear ankle boots in Highland Dress

BTW interesting shoes appear in The Highlanders Of Scotland which are sort of mid-way between modern Ghillie Brogues and the modern "Mary Jane" style buckled brogues. I found a photo showing them:

I mentioned the tan roughout ghillies seen in The Highlanders Of Scotland striking me as possibly being a Victorian attempt at reviving "rustic" shoes. (It was a time of revivals!)

I found this curious photo which appears to show something like that:

**Katia** · 17th November 18, 07:21 PM

Confession:

I, uh, really like ghillie brogues. I know. I can't help it. I always used to wear my band shoes when kilted... hated giving them back when I moved! And a man in a kilt with ghillie brogues... *faints*

**Allan Thomson** · 18th November 18, 04:19 AM

Originally Posted by OC Richard

In looking over my Victorian photos I notice that Ghillie Brogues are much in the minority.

Then, as now, they're more popular with pipers than non-pipers.

Some of my vintage Highland Dress catalogues from the 1930s don't offer them. They state that black brogues (wingtip style are shown) are "correct" for Day Dress.

I have a couple photos of Massed Bands at Highland Games in the 1960s and there are no Ghillie Brogues to be seen. All the bands are wearing military-style uniforms with spats, or civilian Evening Dress with buckled brogues.

Army pipers only wear them when wearing civilian kit for competing at civilian competitions. The army brogues are black pebble-grain wingtips.

Which is all to say that there is not now, nor has there ever been, a notion that Ghillie Brogues are a "must" for Highland Dress.

It's a bit of a mystery to me how they entered Victorian Highland Dress. I think they might have been a conscious revival of the Victorians' re-imagining of ancient Highland footwear. When they first appear they're in tan roughout, striving to appear rustic.

Revival? Carranes were still about at that point in common use amongst the rural poor, at least in the Isle of Man and it's reasonable to say most likely in Scotland and Ireland at that point. Of course they still had fur on the outside.

Maybe Gentrified is an apt term in a similar way that barbours have transitioned from the wear of farmers to the preferred dress of those who have rarepy set foot outside of a city and never gone off the beaten track, at least not involving any effort under their own steam???...

**Allan Thomson** · 18th November 18, 03:46 PM

Originally Posted by OC Richard

Thanks! That was the Photobucket fiasco. It was a popular free photo hosting site which suddenly said "pay us hundreds of dollars or get out" and nearly everyone got out, including me.

I have most of those photos on Imgur now. I could have gone back and switched out the old dead links on those old XMarks threads for new live links, but this site automatically locks threads after a time.

So from time to time I've posted new versions of some of those old threads with new working photo links.

Anyhow this all got me looking over Victorian "Ghillie Brogue" photos. Some of the shoes look pretty much like today's. (Note the pointed cuffs, one of those interesting details which appear in The Highlanders Of Scotland and can also be seen in period photos.)

Back then they're just as likely to wear ankle boots in Highland Dress

BTW interesting shoes appear in The Highlanders Of Scotland which are sort of mid-way between modern Ghillie Brogues and the modern "Mary Jane" style buckled brogues. I found a photo showing them:

I mentioned the tan roughout ghillies seen in The Highlanders Of Scotland striking me as possibly being a Victorian attempt at reviving "rustic" shoes. (It was a time of revivals!)

I found this curious photo which appears to show something like that:

Isn't the curious photo Kaiser Wlhelm wearing the kilt? If not it has striking parralels to the images of him and the outfit he had?...

**FossilHunter** · 18th November 18, 04:02 PM

Originally Posted by Allan Thomson

Isn't the curious photo Kaiser Wlhelm wearing the kilt? If not it has striking parralels to the images of him and the outfit he had?...

Here is Wilhelm II in a kilt. Very romanticized outfit.

From:mattsko.wordpress.com

Similar outfit. Shoes aren’t visible though.

**Bruce Scott** · 18th November 18, 04:04 PM

Deleted.

Fossil Hunter beat me to it with the Kaiser photo

**Allan Thomson** · 18th November 18, 04:40 PM

Originally Posted by FossilHunter

Here is Wilhelm II in a kilt. Very romanticized outfit.

From:mattsko.wordpress.com

Similar outfit. Shoes aren’t visible though.

There's other images with the shoes visible and the similarities are striking... It's the same outfit, even with the bizarre jerkin breastplate thinjerkinthen facially there appears differences, though it may just be the beard?

**Bruce Scott** · 18th November 18, 05:29 PM

Originally Posted by Allan Thomson

There's other images with the shoes visible and the similarities are striking... It's the same outfit, even with the bizarre jerkin breastplate thinjerkinthen facially there appears differences, though it may just be the beard?

Yes, the shoes are shown in the photo here: https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail...hoto/537164779

**FossilHunter** · 18th November 18, 09:33 PM

Originally Posted by Allan Thomson

There's other images with the shoes visible and the similarities are striking... It's the same outfit, even with the bizarre jerkin breastplate thinjerkinthen facially there appears differences, though it may just be the beard?

It looks like there are a few differences.

Wilhelm’s outfit includes gauntlets and a more fitted shirt (to my eye). His metals are also polished and his sporran has a cantle and lacks paws.

Maybe the first man saw a photo of royalty kilted and wanted to imitate it? Or maybe it was a fad style for kilted studio portraits? There’s such a bizarre similarity to the costumes that there must be something going on.