Irish wore kilts?

[macwilkin]

All I could show you is what the kiltmakers themselves say, and I would have to find it first. Nonetheless, they often do claim that their fathers or more likely grandfathers owned similar concerns that made kilts and/or bagpipes for the British.

Don't forget that not all uniform is issued, some of it is bought. There are military men on here who can tell you about having to buy uniform, and I know that in England and other places there have always been enterprising tailors that made uniforms that fit a little better and were maybe made from a little better cloth than the official issue, often for lower cost.

There really is no necessity for the British Army to have been involved, and it probably wasn't. All that would be necessary would be for the Indians (then, now Pakistanis since partition) to have made uniform items and for the British soldiers to have bought them with their own money. I would be more surprised if that had not happened, so I have no trouble believing that it did. Anyone who had to buy their own uniform and found that they could buy items locally in a low cost country would jump at the chance to save some money.

As a military historian, I am quite aware of field-expedient modficiations and private purchases by soldiers to uniform and kit. All I am asking is to see some documentation for such a claim. I can document such stories with primary sources from the Wilson's Creek Campaign in the Summer of 1861, for example -- Pvt. Eugene Ware of the 1st Iowa Infantry frequently discusses replacing his worn out volunteer's uniform with bits of civilian attire purchased along the route of march in his book The Lyon Campaign.

I'm not doubting that it didn't happen, but until I see something that proves it, I'm skeptical. It might be worth an e-mail to Diana Henderson, a noted scholar on the Highland Regiments, for her opinion.

T,