Quote Originally Posted by Taygrd View Post
I am not aware of any kilted Confederate forces, I vaguely remember a Highland type regiment wearing on for parade. There was a story floating around about a unit wanting to go be kilted in combat and were refusing to serve till McClellan threatened to shoot them. Not sure if there is any validity to that story.
There may be a grain of truth, although it appears that kilts had nothing to do with the story. Bruce Catton tells this story about the 79th NY:

"The 79th New york was a former militia regiment; called itself the 'Highlanders,' came to Washington in the bare-kneed glory of kilts, and had a crusty Scottish colonel named Cameron. It had been at Bull Run, where its colonel had been killed; it had long since abandoned kilts for the regulation sky-blue pants, and it was fed up with military life. Also, it was brigaded under William Tecumseh Sherman, who was a hard man and who at that time seems to have had something to learn about the way to handle volunteer troops. So one morning the 79th refused to do duty and demanded an adjustment of its grievances. McClellan rounded up a battalion of regular infantry, plus a squadron of regular cavalry and a battery of regular artillery - hard-boiled Indian fighters from the plains, filled with strong disdain for volunteer soldiers - and lined them up facing the 79th, firearms loaded and ready for use; whereupon the 79th was invited to stop being mutinous and return to duty."

Catton goes on to say that the 79th (which had not intended mutiny, but only to express their grievances as free citizens) returned to duty without anyone being shot. McClellan confiscated the regiment's colors and kept them in his office, returning them a month later with the comment that the Highlanders had redeemed themselves by good conduct. Annoyingly, Catton does not cite a source for this story, although it is generally corroborated by William Todd's regimental history.