Men In Kilts – Episode 7 Review
It’s time to go full Outlander in Men in Kilts Episode 7 by covering all things Tartans & Clans. Two words that immediately scream Scotland and that I’ve probably written thousands of times in the last couple of years. Battles, schemes and tragedies around both Lowland and Highland clans form the heart of many of Scotland’s stories.
We kick off Men in Kilts Episode 7 discussing what a clan is and they hit the nail on the head! A clan really is like a family with the chief at the top like a father figure. The word “clan” literally means “children” in Gaelic and for many people around the world, their clan still gives them a strong sense of belonging. It’s a great episode for viewers to learn some clan history and how old grievances never really go away.
If you missed Episode 6 then click here to go back and read that one first! All of the previous episode reviews are up and even if you aren’t watching the series, you’ll hopefully still enjoy the write ups.
Devastating Clan Feuds
They couldn’t have picked a better pair of clans to start Episode 7 with than the MacDonalds and the MacLeods. While lots of clans around Scotland had local feuds, there were few quite as bloody or widespread as this. These two sides lived on Skye and the island clearly wasn’t big enough for both of them.
Sam & Graham discuss the massacre on Eigg where the local MacDonalds hid in a cave from a group of MacLeod raiders. The MacLeods lit a fire at the entrance and the smoke killed almost every man, woman and child inside. Soon the MacDonalds retaliated, setting fire to Trumpan church with the Macleod congregation trapped inside.
That’s not to mention the War of the One-Eyed Woman. Rory MacLeod tried to orchestrate a peace by arranging a marriage between his sister Margaret and Donald Gorm Mòr MacDonald. The couple were handfast for a year and a day, but before time was up Margaret tragically lost an eye. Donald decided to send her home to Dunvegan Castle, in a particularly nasty way.
Adding insult to injury, she left on a one-eyed horse, led by a one-eyed man, accompanied by a one-eyed dog. It’s safe to say peace wasn’t an option after that.
You’ll find stories of clan feuds in almost every area of Scotland, sadly it was a constant theme throughout history. In Aberdeenshire it was the Forbes against the Gordons. The far north saw the Sinclairs face off against the Sutherlands. Argyll had the Campbells falling out with just about everybody and doing pretty well out of it in the end.
The History Of Tartan
After a leisurely bike ride, it’s time to talk about the other part of Episode 7 – Tartan. There’d be no Men in Kilts without tartan after all! I should point out that not everybody in Scotland has their own clan tartan or even their own kilt. However, putting one on does make me feel infinitely more Scottish.
Having specific clan tartans is an idea that only goes back to the 19th century. People like Walter Scott had made the short kilt popular and enterprising businesses saw their chance to cash in by creating different designs. That doesn’t mean that tartan itself is a modern invention at all. The oldest piece found in Scotland comes from the 3rd Century and you can see it here!
Clan members might not have had the exact same tartan design, but they probably had similar colours. The wool was died with things that could be found in nature and so people who lived in one area would have only had access to the same ingredients.
Our Men in Kilts see Sam’s own “Sassenach” tartan being made at Prickly Thistle in the Highlands, although not actually wearing kilts at the time. It gives an idea of the intricate process needed to weave together so many colours in a very specific order. Personally I wish they’d spent a little longer on the history of tartan, but that’s just because I’m a nerd.
There are some great kilt manufacturers around Scotland, however the real thing isn’t cheap. Be warned that the stuff you can pick up for £20 in a gift shop is far from the genuine article.
Wool Waulking Songs
The next stop for Men in Kilts Episode 7 is wool waulking, something that Outlander fans may be familiar with. It’s a traditional way of treating woven material which is loose and rough when it first came off the loom. That means it needs tightened up to become water and windproof, something very important in the Scottish Highland. The material was soaked in urine before being repeatedly battered against a table.
Groups of women would work together, singing to pass time and keep rhythm while moving the wool back and forward. The ladies of the Badenoch Waulking Group explain that the material was heavy while wet so the songs start off slow and speed up as it dries. I always think of the songs like sea shanties, repetitive and easy to remember so everybody can get involved.
You can still find plenty of them sung today in Gaelic, it’s one way the language has stayed alive. A favourite of mine is Kathleen MacInnes – Gaol Ise Gaol. Or you can even find one of the songs sung in the Episode on the Outlander Soundtrack here.
Rob Roy MacGregor
Moving firmly back to the subject of clans and one of my favourite historical characters. Men in Kilts Episode 7 would have been lacking if it didn’t mention one of the best known clan chiefs. The Highland Rogue himself – Rob Roy MacGregor.
Graham sums up Rob’s tactics perfectly, describing the origins of the term “blackmail” – mail being an old Scots word for rent. Either you paid the MacGregors to guard your herd of cattle or they would mysteriously start to go missing. Cattle reiving was a very real problem though and it’s said that Rob was ruthless in hunting down anybody who stole from his herds. It helped that he was an excellent swordsman, partly due to his incredibly long arms!
We’re taken to Rob Roy’s grave in Balquhidder to meet representatives from both Clan MacLaren and Clan MacGregor. There’s a dispute about if Rob is really buried here and the truth is we don’t really know the truth. Despite what the MacLarens claim, it’s perfectly possible and even probably that Rob lies below here.
Balquhidder may have once been a stronghold of the MacLarens, but things had changed by Rob’s time. Allegedly due to helping the MacLarens out during a fight against the Buchanans, the MacGregors had been granted the right of first entry to Balquhidder Kirk. Doesn’t seem like a lot but it makes Rob’s burial here all the more likely.
Either way, the representatives from each clan gathered to discuss the matter are never going to agree. It’s all polite and friendly on the surface, but you can really feel the tension between the pair.
A Trip to Some Clan Castles
Finally, Men in Kilts Episode 7 rounds off in the best way possible, by visiting some historic, clan castles! First it’s a trip by seaplane to Scotland’s oldest stone fortress and one I recommended people visit in 2022. This is Castle Sween in deepest Argyll and Graham is claiming it as the home of the McTavish clan.
This massive fortress was built by Sweyn the Red who founded Clan MacSween, but they didn’t live in it for very long. It was held at one point by the MacMillans, but also by the McTavish crowd. Today it’s surrounded by a caravan park at the end of a very long and winding road. Combine it with a trip to Kilmory Knap chapel to see the carved gravestones though and you won’t regret it!
Sam was obviously feeling left out since there’s no Clan Heughan, so he adopted his fictional character’s ancestry instead. The pair visit Beaufort Castle, the ancestral home of Clan Fraser of Lovat. There has been a castle here for hundreds of years, an earlier version was home to Simon Fraser the legendary Old Fox. Sadly this is no longer home to the Frasers or publicly open after being privately sold in the 1990s.
They current chief does still have extensive lands in Beauly though, so who knows what will happen in the future. Maybe Beaufort Castle will make its way back to the clan. Either way, I’m just happy that it hasn’t gone the way of other stately homes and left to ruin.
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3 Comments
Wendy S. · May 24, 2022 at 5:42 pm
What super reading !!!… the squabbling clans ???… really didn’t necessarily solve too much …and the story of ‘tartan’ – was fairly accurately shown on ‘Outlander’… the stories , the castles , and , of course , Rob Roy MacGregor …what a vast subject to cover in a few paragraphs …a joy to read – bravo Graeme !!!
Graeme · May 24, 2022 at 6:09 pm
It was a lot for them to try and pack into one episode as well! Clans alone could be a whole series with all the feuds, battles and stories! Glad you enjoyed the read.
Kimberly · December 5, 2024 at 8:54 pm
I was especially fond of this episode. We are direct descendants of Clan McGregor; my great grandfather‘s family migrated to America in the latter 1700’s. We changed our surname to Greer, like so many others. The comment that clan feuds- even if they no longer engage in weaponry- still continue is proven by a humorous story that my brother likes to share. While visiting a Highland Games Festival in Colorado, USA, he began browsing through a tartan book. The lady in the booth asked for which clan he was looking. When he said “McGregor”, she said spitefully, “You all are everywhere. Maybe he should have claimed our Clan McPherson instead. ” It also happened at the same festival, although a different year, to my stepmother. When she said that her clan was Weems, the lady in the booth immediately turned her back and wouldn’t help her. A point of our geekish history: My great, great grandmother was a McPherson who married a German man whose surname was Sherfy (Anglonized). They owned the famous peach orchard, in which the battle of Gettysburg occurred during the American Civil War. The museum has a piece of one of their daughter’s dresses, in which a bullet went through while they were running for their lives having had no idea that a battle was beginning. We have a copy of the original letter that one of the family (they had 13 children) had written to a friend about the experience. It is sad to me what civil wars followed them into their new land. We have a picture of one of their sons in his Union uniform who thankfully survived the war. Both of my family’s clans settled in the Appalachian Mountains with many of our Scottish skin.