Oft having read posts about the practicality of the kilt for wear on active service, I'd suggest that those interested in this topic should read:-

'Forgotten Scottish Voices From The Great War'
By: Derek Young
Published: Tempus 2005
ISBN: 0 7524 3326 1

On the one hand it covers the benefits of the kilt under certain condition, but on the other it makes clear the very real disadvantages of the kilt when worn on active service.

An interesting sideline being the suggestion that the expression 'ladies from hell' might have arisen from the propensity of highland troops to remove their kilts and fight/work in their shirt tails, as a result of the problems caused by wearing the kilt.

A sideline of relevance to those wearing the kilt for walking, backpacking and the like; is the damage an overly long kilt can do the limbs as a result of the wet/frozen hem hitting the legs. This comes back to the fact that for practical outdoor wear in all weathers, the kilt should be clear of the knee caps-better still an inch shorter than that.

The various comments are given strength because they are sourced from the actual letters and diaries of officers and other ranks: rather than the theories of historians.

James