origins of the black watch tartan

[blackwatch70]

There is a very interesting book about of origin of Black Watch tartan: "The origin and development of military tartans : A re-appraisal" by James D. Scarlett, MBE (1920–2008).
As far as I know this is a latest research for this topic.
I found this book quite interesting and deep.

Now I will quote from https://albanach.org/the-military-or...s-f3a255f41828 :

"This thin volume (only 48 pages) is ground breaking in many ways. It represents a complete reexamination of what we know (and what we do not know) concerning the origins of the Scottish military tartans, most especially the Black Watch and those tartans derived from it.
In his prologue, Jamie begins by recounting what so many of us have heard regarding the origins of the Black Watch tartan. “The received history of military tartans, which varies somewhat with the teller, is that the Highland Independent Companies at first wore their Clan tartans and that when they were embodied into the new Highland regiment they were given a new tartan, the Black Watch, which is supposed to be an old Campbell pattern, chosen because the majority of the commanders of the Independent Companies were Campbells.”
However, as the author points out, we now know that there is no evidence at all that clans wore uniform, identifying tartan patterns prior to 1745. Therefore the “received history” as recounted above needs some rethinking. The interested reader is directed towards the book, but a summation here will suffice. Scarlett cites an order of General Wade dated 15 May 1725 as evidence that the Independent Companies at that time were wearing their own tartans, most likely of the dark blue/black/green variety differenced with some colored overcheck. These were not clan tartans.
By 1733 the Companies wore a single tartan, common to all. Scarlett writes, “There is no information on the pattern, save that is was not Black Watch.” He dates the origin of the unique (at the time) Black Watch tartan to about 1749 with the re-numbering of the Regiment.
Scarlett’s research indicates quite strongly that the distinctive pattern of the Black Watch tartan was a new one created at the time to be distinct from other Highland tartans. This would mean that other tartans that are variations of the Black Watch would have necessarily come after it, not before. This includes not only obvious Black Watch variants, such as the Gordon or MacKenzie tartans; but also other less-obvious variants, including MacLachlan, MacNab, and Hunting MacRae."