Hebridean/Highland armor
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Tag Archives: scotland
Galloglas
Chief of MacKay
Ian Grimble’s Chief
of Mackay is the first volume of his Strathnaver Trilogy:
…. bringing into focus
and describing in tragic detail the fate of the Mackay country –
Duthaich ‘Ic Aoidh – in the far northwest of Scotland. Because of gradual
changes in the idea of chieftainship, the people underwent a
transformation from a traditional tight-knit Gaelic-speaking community
to a down-trodden helot population to be cleared away at the will of the
landowner and replaced by sheep.
The Minnesota Scottish Fair and Highland Games
This was a great event for colgaffneyis. Continue reading
Tartan Day, 2008
We did our part with colgaffneyis for Minnesota’s Tartan Day observance. IMHO, this is a rather artificial celebration, not having any historical precedent. Still, it is harmless, and there are many other such things going around, and it was a chance to do stuff with friends, so I have no problem with it.
Actually, not completely harmless. Four of us carried matchlock muskets, and we fired a couple of blank volleys as a salute at the end of the ceremony. I had a misfire on my second shot, and got a burn in my left palm for my sins And they were my sins: I don’t fire these things often, and I had not reviewed the procedures for loading and firing them any time recently. Black powder is an old explosive, but is still very dangerous, especially with an inherently hazardous device as a matchlock musket.
Scottish Mercenaries
Scottish Mercenaries of the 16th Century
On colgaffneyis Website I recently received an inquiry about reenacting Scottish mercenaries of the 16th century. In response I wrote the following: Continue reading
Scots in the Thirty Years War
From 400-year-old Scots ready to reveal their battle secrets:
“A MASS grave of soldiers, including Scots, slaughtered during Europe’s bloody Thirty Years War is yielding up valuable information on how they had lived.”
From Hilbert Space to Dilbert Space, and beyond 