Irish
Connacht Tartans & Clan
Connacht (also spelled Connaught) is one of four Irish Provinces. Although the four Irish provinces no longer serve political or administrative purposes they are preserved as historical and cultural entities each with their own provincial tartan.
Connacht Tartans
1 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
- Dress
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.
Dress 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
Connacht Clan Origins & History
Explore the History
How it all started
The province of Connacht covers the west coast of the Republic of Ireland and consists of county Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Roscommon and Sligo. During the 4th century ancient lines of the Connacht kings were supposedly displaced by the midland rulers whose centre was at the Hills of Tara. Turloch O'Connor and his son Rory who were situated in this region were strong enough to be recognised as kings of Ireland but the Norman invasions of the 12th century disrupted their authority and they became a vassal to Henry II. Rory's brother, Cathal Crovderg, was king of Connacht until he died in 1224 and afterwards the English Henry III granted this title to the Norman baron Richard de Burgh. His descendants held this title alongside the earldom of Ulster until they fell to the crown in 1461. The land was therefore controlled by two junior branches of the de Burghs, who became the Calnricarde and Mayo Burkes. Connacht was them divided into the existing shires in 1576.
What's in the tartan?
The Connaught tartan features a fuchsia and vivid green base, with sky blue and purple stripes throughout. The tartan was designed in 1997 by Polly Kitteridge.
The City of Galway
Galway city is the only official city in the Connacht province. it was first records in 1124 but was founded as a town in the 13th century. In 1170 the English invasion saw Richard de Burgh take the town as his own and in 1270 the city walls were built. By the late 14th century, governing powers were transferred to fourteen merchant families in Galway, known as the fourteen tribes; Athy, Blake, Browne, D'Arcy, Deane, Font, Ffrench, Joyce, Kirwan, Lynch, Martin, Morris and Skerritt. They had a huge influence across the city and held high levels of political authority and wealth until the Cromwellian conquests. Today, Galway City is a thriving, bohemian, cultural city and along with being a popular seaside destination with beautiful beaches and extensive winding promenade, it also has a buzzing cosmopolitan city centre.
The name Connaught comes from the medieval ruling dynasty, the 'Connacht', meaning 'descendants of Conn', from the mythical Irish king Conn.
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