The Carolina tartan is the official state tartan of both

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

and

South Carolina )'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. It was designed by Peter MacDonald of Crieff,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

, who registered it with the

Scottish Tartans Society The Scottish Tartans Society (STS) was a society committed to the recording and preservation of woven tartan designs from around the world; it maintained the ''Register of All Publicly Known Tartans''. The society was first formed in 1963 and ex ...

in 1981. The design was based on an early

Royal Stewart tartan The Royal Stewart or Royal Stuart tartan is the best-known tartan retrospectively associated with the royal House of Stewart, and was also the personal tartan of Queen Elizabeth II. The sett was first published in 1831 in the book ''The Scottish ...

as part of the Royal Company of Archers uniform, believed to have been worn by King

Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after hi ...

during his nuptial vows, giving it significance since

The Carolinas The Carolinas are the U.S. states of North Carolina and South Carolina, considered collectively. They are bordered by Virginia to the north, Tennessee to the west, and Georgia to the southwest. The Atlantic Ocean is to the east. Combining Nor ...

were named for King Charles (latin, Carolus). It was made the official tartan of North Carolina in 1991 when it was passed by the North Carolina General Assembly.

followed suit, enacting legislation to make the Carolina tartan the official state tartan in 2002.2001-2002 Bill 5063: Carolina Tartan, designated official tartan of the State - www.scstatehouse.net - LPITS

Adoption as State Tartan

The St. Andrew's Society of North Carolina initiated the design and adoption of the Carolina tartan, in cooperation with the St. Andrew's Society of Charleston.

North Carolina

On April 18, 1991, North Carolina Senate Bill 173 was brought before the North Carolina General Assembly to "... Designate the Carolina Tartan as the official Scottish Tartan of the State of North Carolina." It was sponsored by Senators Raynor and Tally. It passed 83-6.

South Carolina

On April 23, 2002, 48 representatives sponsored South Carolina House Bill 5063 which was brought before the South Carolina General Assembly to adopt the Carolina tartan as the official state tartan of the State of South Carolina. The bill was signed into law by the Governor of South Carolina on June 3, 2002.

Origins

Company of Archers reproduction tartan uniform

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, vast amounts of Scottish

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, a ...

settled in

. Many societies are dedicated to Scottish heritage or the conservation of Scottish culture in

the Carolinas The Carolinas are the U.S. states of North Carolina and South Carolina, considered collectively. They are bordered by Virginia to the north, Tennessee to the west, and Georgia to the southwest. The Atlantic Ocean is to the east. Combining Nor ...

(ex. St. Andrew's Society of Carolina). Peter MacDonald, a Scottish historian and tartan-maker, partnered with the St Andrew's Societies of North Carolina and Charleston to create the Carolina tartan. The inspiration for the Carolina tartan was a parcel of cloth from the uniform of the

Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a per ...

() believed to be worn in some capacity by King Charles I during his nuptial vows. The Royal Company of Archers was founded in 1676 in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

to promote archery and the uniform that the Carolina tartan was based on was the first uniform of the company. The uniform was made of tartan, which was often worn by

Jacobites Jacobite means follower of Jacob or James. Jacobite may refer to: Religion * Jacobites, followers of Saint Jacob Baradaeus (died 578). Churches in the Jacobite tradition and sometimes called Jacobite include: ** Syriac Orthodox Church, sometime ...

, who made up a substantial portion of the company, to profess anti-unionism. This particular uniform was worn until tartan was banned in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

by the Dress Act of 1746, tartan was worn again when the act was repealed but instead of the original red sett, it was replaced by the Black Watch pattern.

References

{{reflist 1991 introductions 2002 introductions United States state tartans Scottish-American culture in North Carolina Scottish-American culture in South Carolina Symbols of North Carolina Symbols of South Carolina