From 1746 until 1782, there were laws with severe
penalties for the wearing of Highland Dress
unless in military service in a highland regiment
or a member of the gentry loyal to the Hanovarian
cause. This period therefore saw the development
of the Military or Regimental Tartans, possibly
based on previous designs but generally derived
from the Black Watch or government tartan.
William Wilson and Sons
The main supplier of military tartan was
William Wilson and Sons, and they became the
first commercial weavers around 1770, having a
virtual monopoly. It is in their pattern books of
1819 and 1847 that many of today's tartan
patterns, in their earliest known form, came to
be recorded.
After proscription, "true" patterns
were sought amongst the surviving handloom
producers and woven samples. The naming of these
could involve a clan or district name, but was
often a customer's name, a weaver's name or other
quirky alternative.
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