Scottish Clans
Baird Tartans & Clan
One of the first recorded members of the Baird family is one Henry de Barde, who in 1178 witnessed a charter of lands in Stirling assigned to the Bishop hop of Glasgow by William the Lion.
Who Wears Baird Tartan? - Associated Names
First of all to explain why there are so many tartans, way over 2000 in fact. There are an awful lot of Scottish clans to start with and on top of this each clan can have many different tartans and names associated with it.
- Bard
- Barde
- Baard
- Beard
- Bahard
- Baiard
- Bayard
- Biaird
- Bord
- Burd
- Byrd
- MacBard
- Mackabard
Baird Tartans
2 variationsEach tartan can have multiple variations, the most common of which are Ancient, Modern, Weathered, Hunting and Dress
About tartan variations
- Ancient
- Modern
- Weathered
- Hunting
- One thing to remember if you are ordering your tartan to match an existing kilt or accessory is that although the sett and colours are the same, there can be a slight difference in colour from one mill to the next. This is purely down to yarn dying so if
Ancient Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer colours typical of the Ancient tartans, mossy greens and sky blues, a more orangey red and some would say showing off the pattern to much greater effect as as the contrasts are much brighter than the Modern tartans. The pattern or sett remains the same across all variations of a single tartan, and only the shades or tones vary.
Helpful Advice
Post 1860 chemical dyes replaced the natural animal and vegetable dyes and the Modern Tartans were born with their stronger and bolder colours. The soft greens and blues become bottle green and navy blue, reds are scarlet.
Modern Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer colours typical of the Ancient tartans. Post 1860 chemical dyes replaced the natural animal and vegetable dyes and the Modern Tartans were born with their stronger and bolder colours. The soft greens and blues become bottle green and navy blue, reds are scarlet.
Helpful Advice
The Modern tartans are often the more subtle combinations such as the classic Black Watch Modern
Weathered Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer, more earthy colours typical of the Weathered tartans, reminiscent of bolder colours subjected to wind, rain and sunshine producing beautiful faded tones, olive greens and browns, and very light blues with reds that are more pink than red.
Helpful Advice
Some mills refer to the Weathered tartans as Muted.
Hunting Tartan
The Hunting Tartans are the camouflage tartans and some clans don't have these variations because they are already predominantly green or brown and don't need amendment to blend in with nature's colours. The Black Watch or Gunn tartans are examples of these, whereas a tartan such as the Fraser is predominantly red and would not provide much cover for men out hunting.
Helpful Advice
One thing to remember if you are ordering your tartan to match an existing kilt or accessory is that although the sett and colours are the same, there can be a slight difference in colour from one mill to the next. This is purely down to yarn dying so if you need an exact match we suggest you order a swatch to double check.
One thing to remember if you are ordering your tartan to match an existing kilt or accessory is that although the sett and colours are the same, there can be a slight difference in colour from one mill to the next. This is purely down to yarn dying so if Tartan
The Dress Tartans were designed as the name suggests for celebrations and highland dance. The sett or pattern of the tartan remains the same and the main colour is changed to white, or extra white is added to the pattern to give it a brighter, more "fancy" appearance. The Scots do like to bend the rules and occasionally instead of white thread, yellow is used and this is where the rather wild MacLeod Dress Modern and Barclay Dress Modern came from.
Helpful Advice
One thing to remember if you are ordering your tartan to match an existing kilt or accessory is that although the sett and colours are the same, there can be a slight difference in colour from one mill to the next. This is purely down to yarn dying so if you need an exact match we suggest you order a swatch to double check.
From the start
Baird Clan Origins & History
Explore the history of Clan Baird
How it all started
Territories
The early Bards and Bardes held land in territories such as Ayrshire, Lanarkshire and Peeblesshire. The Bards and Baird’s were also found in the areas of Aberdeenshire, Perthshire and the Lothians. The Chiefly line of Baird began with the Andro Bard’s who held lands in Fifeshire before acquiring the estate of Auchmedden on the North coast of Aberdeenshire between Fraserburgh and Banff. Today, Baird’s can be found all over the world but the countries where the largest number of clan members can be found are Scotland, England, Australia, the United States, and New Zealand.
Clan Chief
Clan Baird is registered with the Court of the Lord Lyon but does not currently have a chief recognised by the Lyon Court. Richard Holman-Baird of Rickarton, Ury and Lochwood is however the current Commander of Clan Baird. He has been appointed by Lord Lyon for a further five-year term as Clan Commander.
Where does the name Baird come from?
The first record of the Baird, Bard and Baard name can be found in the 14th century in Scotland and Northumbria. This name can also be found around Europe in countries such as Italy, France, Belgium, and Norway. It took until the 16th century for standardisation of the differing variations of the Baird family names. In the 19th century, it became popular to claim the surname Bard was an occupational name meaning minstrel or poet, yet no record has ever been found to substantiate the claim.
Baird Clan Crest
The Baird Clan Crest depicts a gryphon’s head. The griffon had the body, tail, and legs of a lion, and the head and wings of an eagle. The wings of an eagle may have possible links to the Prophecy above. This is definitely one of the most interesting crests within Scottish clanship!
The Baird War Cry
The Baird war cry is "Baird to the vanguard!". This war cry is in honor of Lt.-Col, Sir James Baird, the 6th of Saughtonhall who served in the army.
The Clan Plant Badge
The clan plant badge for the Baird Clan is an Acer pseudoplatanus otherwise known as a Sycamore Maple. This was chosen as the plant badge as one of these stands next to the Barde of Posso stronghold in Peebles.
A live performance of "Baird of Auchmedden's March"
The Baird of Auchmeddan's recently performed "Baird of Auchmedden's March" on the highland bagpipes. This song was commissioned by Lord James Ian Baird Keith, Earl of Kintore of the Clan Baird society in 1975. This is a truly amazing listen for all piping fans!
The Baird Coat of Arms
This amazing coat of arms displays a fascinating popular tale that may have been misrepresented throughout history. This tale states that William the Lion was hunting in the south-west of Scotland when he fell behind his other hunters. William was now hunting by himself, when suddenly a wild bear appeared and quite rightly, he screamed for help. In response to this scream, a man of the name Baird ran towards the bear and had the good fortune to defeat such a beast. For this achievement, the King made a considerable addition to the lands he had given him before and assigned him for his coat-of-arms a bear passant. Over the years the myth changed from a bear to a boar but despite this, it is still truly an amazing story! (It does make more sense considering that bears have been extinct in Scotland for over 1000 years)
The Baird Castle
The castle built upon the Baird lands was constructed in the year 1539. It was built after the Earl of Buchan transferred the lands of Auchmedden in Aberdeenshire into the hands of Andrew Baird, for a small sum of money of course. These lands became the seat of Clan Baird for over 200 years, and a castle was built on the grounds known as Auchmedden Castle. Unfortunately, the castle was demolished centuries ago and the last of the remains were destroyed in the early 20th Century.
The Baird Prophecy
This story began in the 13th century when the famous Thomas the Rhymer spoke of a prophecy that, “That there should be an eagle in the crags while there was a Baird in Auchmedden.". This was well before the time of the Baird’s of Auchmedden which makes this prophecy even spookier. In 1745 William Baird, the 7th of Auchmedden joined the Jacobite Rising but by the end of this unsuccessful rising, he was forced to sell Auchmedden Castle and the surrounding estate to the Earls of Aberdeen in order to pay off his debts. So, guess what happened next? Yes, that’s correct the eagles that had nested on the rocks of Pennan for centuries, suddenly disappeared. It took over 100 years for Auchmedden to return to the Baird family, when the youngest daughter of William Baird of Newbyth married Lord Haddow, the eldest son of the Earl of Aberdeen. Although the Baird family did not officially own Auchmedden, a Baird was living on the grounds. At this time, the eagles returned to the estate, and so the prophecy was fulfilled once again. For all Scottish Historians, there is so much more to read about this amazing story!
Our favourite 5 clan Baird facts
In this video we have accumulated our favourite facts about the amazing clan Baird and put them all in one short video! In this video we talk all things Baird from the fascinating myths and tales to wonderous inventors including a section on one of our favourite Baird's John Logie Baird!
The Famous Faces of Clan Baird
You may recognise many of our notable faces of Clan Baird no other than John Logie Baird, the inventor of the television! To learn more about John Logie Baird and the other famous faces of Clan Baird please head to our TartanBlog to learn more!
The Famous Places of Clan Baird
In this blog we have a look at the many amazing locations of Clan Baird. These locations span from the location where the Baird prophecy was fulfilled to the amazing castles that the Clan have had throughout the centuries! The Baird clan being split throughout the country means the locations are great places to visit for all members and fans of Clan Baird.
Clan Baird Quiz
After reading and learning about all the great things about Clan Baird, are you ready for a challenge? We have created a quiz on all things Baird to test your skills, so let us know how you how get on through our social media!
On the Sofa on Clan Baird
This week on, on the sofa we discussed all things clan Baird going through the clans history, famous people and their tartan! So if you have any spare time I would recommend giving this a watch.
Clan Motto: Dominus Fecit (The Lord made).
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