hodden grey

[macwilkin]

BTW several years ago I got into a discussion with an American guy who knew a bit about Scottish military uniforms who claimed that Scottish Highland regiments were issued Olive Drab kilts during WWI, due to a shortage of tartan.

(American English "olive drab" is equivalent to British English "khaki". AE "khaki" is BE "light khaki". Makes discussions of uniform colours go round in circles sometimes.)

I told him I wouldn't believe it until I saw some sort of evidence.

Well he pulled out a load of photos of The London Scottish, black & white photos. I tried to explain Hodden Grey to him. I don't think he believed a word of it.

There is, however, a "khaki tartan" that one battalion of the Black Watch of Canada was issued during the First World War that is featured in Mike Chappell's book on Canadian Army uniforms. I have attempted to contact Mr. Chappell, a former RSM with the Wessex Regiment, via Osprey Publishing, to see what the source is on this particular ad hoc tartan, but I haven't had any luck.

T.

[OC Richard]

There is, however, a "khaki tartan" that one battalion of the Black Watch of Canada was issued during the First World War that is featured in Mike Chappell's book on Canadian Army uniforms. I have attempted to contact Mr. Chappell, a former RSM with the Wessex Regiment, via Osprey Publishing, to see what the source is on this particular ad hoc tartan, but I haven't had any luck.

T.

Yes I have that book, The Canadian Army At War, and that "khaki tartan" is interesting. I've not seen it elsewhere.

But the photos this guy had were all of the London Scottish in their Hodden Grey kilts.

BTW sometimes those Osprey books have real head-scratchers, for example illustrating the Pipe Major of The Black Watch wearing a red doublet. On Ebay I've come across, several times, the probable source: an old hand-tinted postcard. Old postcards with black & white photos of Highlanders, which were subsequently hand-tinted in completely wrong colours, are sadly common. You'll see members of the Argylls with their kilts painted to look like Royal Stuart etc etc and oftentimes doublets which were originally green painted red.