Scottish Clans
Gordon Tartans & Clan
The Gordon family became involved in a deadly battle for power between the King and the Douglases. During this time the Douglases burned Huntly castle and devastated the Gordon lands but the Gordon's didn't give up and soon defeated their enemies. Following the fall of the Douglases, the power of Gordon clan grew as they were no longer challenged and they soon had almost regal control over their land.
Who Wears Gordon 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.
- Adam
- Adams
- Adamson
- Addie
- Adie
- Addison
- Aiken
- Aitchison
- Aitken
- Akin
- Atken
- Atkin
- Atkins
- Atkinson
- Badenoch
- Barrie
- Boyne
- Brisbane
- Connon
- Connor
- Craig
- Cromb
- Crombie
- Cullen
- Culane
- Darg
- Darge
- Dorwald
- Dorward
- Duff
- Durward
- Eadie
- Edison
- Eddie
- Edie
- Esslemont
- Garioch
- Garrick
- Garriock
- Geddes
- Gerrie
- Gardiner
- Gardner
- Huntley
- Huntly
- Jessiman
- Jopp
- Jupp
- Laing
- Lang
- Laurie
- Lawrie
- Leng
- Ling
- Lowry
- Macadam
- Mallett
- Manteach
- Mar
- Marr
- Maver
- Mavor
- Meldrum
- Mill
- Mills
- Miline
- Miline
- Milles
- Miln
- Milne
- Milner
- Milnes
- Moir
- Moore
- More
- Morrice
- Morris
- Muir
- Mylne
- Steel
- Steele
- Teal
- Teall
- Tod
- Todd
- Tough
- Troup
Associated Regiments
Over the last 300 years, tartans have been a part of official dress for some of the most famous regiments throughout the military world! Their respective regimental tartans became undisputedly tied to the very core identity of the soldiers who wear it. Explore the associated regiments below:
- Canterbury Scottish Rifle Volunteers (NZ)
- Cape Town Highlanders (SA)
- Gordon Highlanders
- Highlanders
- Wanganui Highland Rifles (NZ)
Gordon Tartans
12 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
Gordon Clan Origins & History
Explore the history of Clan Gordon
How it all started
Territories
Berwickshire in the Scottish Borders
Clan Chief
The current chief is Granville Charles Gomer Gordon, 13th Marquess of Huntly. The Gordon chief is also known as the Cock o' the North, which is also the clan march.
Where does the name Gordon come from?
The name Gordon may have come from several locations, possibly Gordon, in Berwickshire or a similarly named town in Normandy, France. The nickname given to the clan is "The Gey Gordons" with gey meaning overwhelming. The Gordon Clan Crest features a majestic stag's head and their war cry is “An Gordonach, An Gordonach” or “A Gordon, A Gordon”.
Huntly Castle
The seat of the chief of Clan Gordon for 500 years, Huntly Castle sits where the River Bogie meets the Deveron. Robert the Bruce gifted the lands of Strathbogie to a Gordon as a thank you for their support and loyalty and his son Sir Alexander Gordon was the first to be designated "of Huntly".
The Lands of Berwickshire
The story goes that the Gordons were first given their lands in Berwickshire after their progenitor slew a ferocious boar, much to the delight of the local population. You can still visit Greenknowe Tower by the village of Gordon and it now carries a "Statement of Significance" which means it is nationally important because of its cultural significance. The Tower is easily accessible off the main road and open all the year round. A great stopping off point if you are en route to one of the other lovely Border towns and many historic castles and houses in the area. The carved lintel showing the shields of the Edmonstone and Seton family who lived there, and the original tower gate still remain.
A Trip to Greenknowe Tower
So now we know that the Gordon Clan was once based in Berwickshire, only moving up to the North East of Scotland to support King Robert The Bruce in the Wars of Independence, let's delve in a little deeper. Greenknowe Tower is located in the little town of Gordon, just a short drive from ScotlandShop HQ, and the Tower is thought to be the original seat of Clan Gordon. Of course when they re-located up North, their Clan Seat was officially changed to Aboyne Castle in Aberdeenshire, but we must not forget the beginnings of this powerful Clan. Our founder, Anna, has a strong connection to both Greenknowe Tower and the town of Gordon, if you want to read her story, head to the Tartan Blog.
Clan Gordon
Quiz
How much do you think you know about Clan Gordon? Enough to get all 12 questions correct? Test your Gordon Clan Knowledge now!
Clan Gordon
Tartan Poll
There are 9 tartan variants available for the Gordon Clan, from Modern and Ancient to Dress and Weathered, with gorgeous green, blues and even red tartans, this Clan is truly spoilt for choice. But which is your favourite Gordon Clan Tartan? Vote now!
Clan Gordon
Famous Faces
Robert Jacob Gordon – An 18th century dutch explorer of Scottish ancestry who made more expeditions to South Africa than any other explorer. He is noteable in amny ways including; introducing Marino sheep to the Cape colony and discovering the remains of Bartolomeu Dias’s padrao (a stone cross erected by Portuguese explorers).
Rock Ivy
When the wearing of tartan was outlawed after the 1745 Jacobite rebellion, it became common to wear your clan plant badge as an act of defiance and identification. The Gordon Clan plant is Rock Ivy. This plant is well known for overwhelming every other plant around it and you will find it along the ground and climbing walls, trees and rocks. We have lots of it growing over the ScotlandShop HQ roof working its way underneath the slates and we really should remove it, but it does look lovely! Rock Ivy is famous for its tenacity and was a symbol of the strength and determination of the Gordons.
An Interview
The House of Gordon
William joins the tartan team and dives deep into telling us about his family ties to the House of Gordon and the significance of the Aboyne Highland Games
An Interview
The House of Gordon USA
We were delighted to be joined by Jen Mills Martin, the Membership Secretary for House of Gordon USA. We met Jen and her lovely husband David when we were out in Florida at the end of February 2020. Join us as we discuss the gregarious clan and ask Jen those all important questions.
Clan Motto: Bydand (there are a few translations: Remaining, Steadfast or Abiding) and there is a suggestion that the origin of the motto is the term Byde and Fecht which means to stand and fight. The Fecht was then taken off based on the assumption that if you were prepared to stand, you would also be prepared to fight.
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