Clan Primary Image Montgomery

Scottish Clans

Montgomery Tartans & Clan

The name of Montgomery derives from an ancient Norman family, who held the Castle of St. Foy de Montgomery near Lisieux, in France. Tradition asserts that the name can be traced back to a Roman commander called Gomericus. Today the family are represented by the Montgomerie Earls of Eglinton and Winton, who live near Cargill in Perthshire.
Clan Motto Garde bien (Watch well)

Who Wears Montgomery 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.

  • Montgomerie

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Montgomery Tartans

4 variations

Each 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.

Clan Origin Primary Image Montgomery
Clan Origin History Image Montgomery

Explore the history

How it all started

Territories

The Montgomery lands are Eglinton, Ardrossan and Kintyre

Clan Chief

The current chief is Hugh Archibald William Montgomerie, 19th Earl of Eglinton and 7th Earl of Winton

Clan Origin Location Image Montgomery

Eglinton Castle

Eglinton Castle is the historic seat of Clan Montgomery and has been in the Montgomery family since the 12th Century. The Montgomery family took their name from lands in Wales, where they originally resided before they moved to Scotland in the 12th Century. The Montgomery family were granted the lands of Eglinton in the 14th Century after a member of Clan Montgomery married an Eglinton. The original Eglinton Castle was burnt down by the Cunninghams in 1488 after a feud developed over land. The current castle was built in the early 19th and still stands today.

Clan Motto: Garde bien (Watch well)

From the start

Montgomery Clan Origins & History

What's in the name?

Montgomery is a surname which comes from Saint-Germain-de-Montgommery in Normandy.

Eglinton Castle

Eglinton Castle in Ayrshire passed by marriage from the Eglintons to the Montgomery family in the 14th century and Hugh Montgomery was made Earl of Eglinton in 1508. A long standing family feud with the Cunninghams resulted in the Castle being burnt in 1528.


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