There are a number of tartans that have a longstanding relationship with the British royal family. The Royal Stewart Tartan is one of the most recognizable Scottish tartans. It has been associated with the royal house of Stewart for centuries. It is the personal tartan of the queen Elizabeth II. Royal tartan has a distinctive pattern that looks elegant.

Now let’s take a look at the history of the world’s most recognizable tartan and how it became an integral part of the heritage of the royal family.

History of Royal Stewart Tartan:

The royal tartan has been associated with the royal house of Stewart for centuries, but how it became an integral part of the royal family. The royal house of Stewart traces its roots back to the 11th century. They are the distant ancestors of the Windsor family.

Walter Fitz Alan, with his family, moved to Scotland. It was the time when David I was crowned as the king of Scotland. Stewarts continuously held Scottish and English throne until1714. The clan Stewart came about through the marriage to Robert Bruce’s daughter and it is claimed that they are the distant ancestors of the current royal family.

Walter Fitz Alan’s title was “highland steward of Scotland,” so the tartan was named after it. The royal tartan kilt is made from the 5-yard poly-viscose acrylic wool. It is light in weight and designed to make sure that the wearer could feel comfortable and move around easily. It looks stylish as the deep pleats are sewn individually. The Royal Stewart tartan kilt has leather straps on the sides to adjust it around the waist.

Families who wear royal tartan:

A few other families also wear the royal tartan.

Variants of the royal tartan:

Scottish kilts are quite famous all around the world. The traditional Scottish kilts have different crisscrossed vertical and horizontal patterns in different colors that are called tartan.

There are hundreds of tartans, and each represents a clan. But many people have the impression that there is one to one correspondence of tartan to the clan. In simple words, many people believe that each tartan represents only one clan, and a clan cannot have more than one tartan. Well, this is not true.

Most clans have multiple tartans, and one of them is the clan, Stewart. The following are the variations of the royal tartan, and many of these variations are still worn by the royal family members on different occasions.

• Old Stewart:

Stewart old is an instantly recognizable tartan that her majesty queen mother liked to wear. It is a less-worn tartan supported by Queen and was worn on holiday at Royal Deeside.

• Hunting Stewart:

The origin of the Stewart hunting tartan is not known, but it is said that it was worn by King George VI and Queen mother. It is one of the most popular tartans and is worn by the queen in her leisure time. It is also known as off duty tartan.

• Dress Stewart:

It is a tartan that has been worn by the female members of the royal family at black tie and evening occasions. It is the dress version of the royal Stewart.

Who can wear the royal tartan?

The first thing that comes to your mind when you think about Scotland is the kilt. Kilts represent the Celtic heritage, and Scottish people wear it with pride and respect. Scottish people wear kilt that represents their clans, and it is said that they may get offended if they see someone wearing their tartan if he/she is not a member of their clan. But there are some universal tartans that can be worn by anyone no matter he is from Scotland or not.

But who can wear the royal tartan? Royal tartan is associated with the royal family members. It is the tartan of the royal house Stewart and the personal tartan of the queen. Anyone can wear this tartan as long as he/she is the subject of Queen Elizabeth II.

Why did the HRH queen choose the royal tartan?

When you see the royals, you think how lucky they are. But power comes with responsibility. They are not able to choose what they wear. They have to follow family traditions and rules while deciding what to wear. The same is the case with the royal tartan. The queen did not actively choose to wear the royal tartan. Her ancestors chose this tartan, and the queen has to wear it following the traditions of the ancestors.

How can you buy the royal tartan?

If you are a subject of HRH queen, then you can wear the royal tartan, as already discussed above. You can easily purchase it online. But make sure you know the best place to order it online. The Scottish Kilt Collection is an online store that has a huge collection of beautiful tartan kilts. They have made these kilts available at a fair price. As long as the quality is concerned, they don’t compromise on quality whatsoever. So, if you are interested in purchasing a tartan kilt, The Scottish Kilt Collection is the best place.

Summing Up:

No matter you are from Scotland or not, you can wear the highland dress. The kilts are fantastic as they provide the freedom of movement and are comfortable to wear. But the royal tartan can only be worn by the subjects of the Queen.

Sometimes people get confused with the spelling. Is it “Stewart or Stuart”? Actually, both the spellings are correct. Mary Queen of Scots used to spell her name Stuart as there is no “W” in French. But both the spellings are correct and used for the same clan. So, you don’t need to get confused.

Royal tartan is an elegant and stylish tartan indeed. So, if you are wearing it or the variations of the royal tartan, wear it with pride and respect.