A full plaid, or just a plaid, is a long piece of

tartan Tartan ( gd, breacan ) is a patterned cloth consisting of criss-crossed, horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven wool, but now they are made in other materials. Tartan is particularly associated with Sc ...

or checked fabric, most often worn as part of a

highland dress Highland dress is the traditional, regional dress of the Highlands and Isles of Scotland. It is often characterised by tartan (''plaid'' in North America). Specific designs of shirt, jacket, bodice and headwear may also be worn along with cla ...

. It usually matches the tartan of the

kilt A kilt ( gd, fèileadh ; Irish: ''féileadh'') is a garment resembling a wrap-around knee-length skirt, made of twill woven worsted wool with heavy pleats at the sides and back and traditionally a tartan pattern. Originating in the Scottish ...

. A full plaid is pleated the whole way, with half of its length sewn shut (so that the pleats cannot open). Its length is almost twice the height of the wearer (about twice the distance from the ground to the wearer's shoulder). A full plaid is typically only seen on members of

pipe bands A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common. The most common form of pipe band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland bagpipe, a ...

which elect to wear full dress (military styled) uniforms, and occasionally as formal highland dress. The full plaid is wrapped around the wearer's chest and under right arm, pulled firm to the body. The plaid is twisted on the left shoulder with one loose end falling behind the wearer's back and getting tucked into the waist belt. The leading edge of the other loose end is pulled forward and draped over the wearer's left shoulder. Properly worn, the edge of the plaid should be level with top of left spat point at the rear of the leg, with fringe, composed of several inches of

warp Warp, warped or warping may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books and comics * WaRP Graphics, an alternative comics publisher * ''Warp'' (First Comics), comic book series published by First Comics based on the play ''Warp!'' * Warp (comics), a ...

threads of tartan fabric, hanging down below this level. The lower edge of the plaid should be horizontal and parallel with the ground. The leading edge and front face of the plaid is secured by a brooch (often a cairngorm brooch) on the left shoulder. To the lay person it would appear as a long, tartan, shoulder-

cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...

Scottish military dress

The plaid first appeared as a feature of Highland military dress in the British Army with the establishment of six independent companies raised in 1725. These subsequently became the

Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regime ...

and the plaid continued as a conspicuous feature of the uniforms worn by Scottish infantry regiments. As a military garment the plaid served the practical purpose of a form of blanket and overcoat during the 18th century. It also provided protection from rain for the soldier's musket and powder. In its original form the plaid comprised about twelve yards of double-width regimental or traditional tartan which had to be laid on the ground and rolled into.R.M. Barnes and Thomas B. Beatty, page 255 "The Uniforms and History of the Scottish Regiments", Sphere Books 1972 The plaid continued to be a feature of regimental

full dress Western dress codes are a set of dress codes detailing what clothes are worn for what occasion. Conversely, since most cultures have intuitively applied some level equivalent to the more formal Western dress code traditions, these dress codes a ...

uniform throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, although by 1914 normally worn only by officers, sergeants and pipers.

Notes

{{Reflist Scottish clothing