The Highlanders of Scotland

[BoldHighlander]

It's not my place to say whether these gentlemen were just wearing the very best of their best, if there was intentional romanticization by the artist, or if what we see was a specific Royal request by the commissioning monarch. I'm guessing some combination of the three in varying amounts, based on the meaning of the verb to pose. These Highlanders were certainly posing for the portraits and for the Queen!

I'll be away until later, but I have a magazine article from 2003 that might help shed a wee bit more light on the background of these paintings that I will type up & post then.

As promised

THE QUEEN'S WATERCOLOURS
Scottish Life Magazine - Winter 2003

WHEN QUEEN VICTORIA COMMISSIONED PORTRAITS OF THE HIGHLAND CLANSMEN SHE KNEW AND ADMIRED, SHE UNWITTINGLY CAPTURED A FINAL CHAPTER OF HIGHLAND HISTORY.

Queen Victoria's passion for Highlanders, their language and their dress is well known, but one of the most remarkable aspects of this enthusiasm has been largely forgotten in recent times. In the early summer of 1865, the monarch commissioned from Scottish miniaturist, Kenneth MacLeay, a number of watercolours of her family and retainers at Balmoral Castle in Deeside. After seeing these initial portraits, the Queen then decided to expand the project and have MacLeay paint representatives of the principal Highland clans.

The men in these portraits were chosen by the clan chiefs themselves and are wearing the most authentic tartans, showing in detail the historic insignia and accoutrements of their clans. When the set of 31 watercolours was exhibited in Bond Street, London in 1869, it caused a sensation, and a limited edition printing of the portraits in 1870 is now highly prized.
The relaxed, distinguished men shown by MacLeay give no impression of the difficulties under which many of them grew up -- and were still living. After the 1745 rebellion, the Highland way of life quickly changed. Chiefs became absentee landlords. Lack of work and lack of food moved some landlords to encourage Highlanders to leave their homes, while others were forcibly evicted. The great emigration to the colonies began, further emptying the land. So today, these nearly forgotten portraits, now preserved in the Royal Library at Winsdor Castle, not only provide one of the most authentic pictures of Highland dress, but also give a compelling snapshot of a moment in time -- of a people and a landscape now lost to history.

The brief article is followed by a selection of prints, with descriptions of the subjects in each print. The first, William Macdonald - the Prince of Wales' Piper, I think says it all about the majority of the subjects presented in these portraits: "The Prince of Wales' Piper, Macdonald wears the tartan of the Duke of Rothesay (one of the Prince's titles) and formal dress..."