A tam o' shanter (in the British military often abbreviated to ToS) or "tammie" is a name given to the traditional Scottish bonnet worn by men. The name derives from Tam o' Shanter, the eponymous hero of the 1790 Robert Burns poem.
A tam o' shanter (in the British military often abbreviated to ToS) or "tammie" is a name given to the traditional Scottish bonnet worn by men. The name derives from Tam o' Shanter, the eponymous hero of the 1790 Robert Burns poem.
The tam o' shanter is a flat bonnet, originally made of wool hand-knitted in one piece, stretched on a wooden disc to give the distinctive flat shape, and subsequently felted. [1] The earliest forms of these caps, known as a blue bonnet from their typical colour, were made by bonnet-makers in Scotland. By the year 1599 five bonnet-makers' guilds had formed in cities around the country: Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Perth, Stirling and Glasgow. [2] At the end of the 16th century, it was said that the Scottish caps were the normal fashion of men and servants, and they remained so throughout the 17th century. [2]
Similar in outline to the various types of flat bonnet common in northwestern Europe during the 16th century, the later tam o' shanter is distinguished by the woollen ball or toorie decorating the centre of the crown; the name itself did not enter common usage until the early 19th century, subsequent to the popularity of Burns' poem. [3] The term came to denote a hat, usually associated with Scottish military regiments, derived from the old bonnet, [4] along with the Glengarry and the Balmoral bonnets. The Balmoral was sometimes simply described as synonymous with the tam o' shanter. [5]
Before the introduction of inexpensive synthetic dyes in the mid-19th century, the Scottish knitted bonnet was made only in colours easily available from natural dyes, particularly woad or indigo (hence "blue bonnet"). [6] Since that time the tam o' shanter has been produced in a wider range of fabrics, such as serge, as single colours, as well as tartan. Women have also adopted a form of this hat, known as a "tammy" or "tam".
In the First World War, a khaki Balmoral bonnet was introduced in 1915 for wear in the trenches by Scottish infantry serving on the Western Front. This came to be known as the "bonnet, tam o' shanter", later abbreviated among military personnel to "ToS". It replaced the Glengarry – which was the regulation bonnet worn by Scottish troops with khaki field dress at the start of the war. Originally knitted, the military tam o' shanter subsequently came to be constructed from separate pieces of khaki serge cloth. [7]
Today, the Royal Regiment of Scotland and Scottish regiments of the Canadian Army continue to wear the ToS as undress and working headgear. The various battalions of the Royal Regiment of Scotland identify themselves by wearing distinctive coloured hackles on their bonnets. The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland wear a red hackle in their ToS, as do soldiers of The Black Watch of Canada.
Some regiments of the Canadian Army wear different coloured toories: the Royal Highland Fusiliers of Canada have traditionally worn dark green; The North Nova Scotia Highlanders wore red toories during the Second World War and continues to do as does the 48th Highlander’s of Canada; and the Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry Highlanders wore blue. Most regiments, however, wear a khaki toorie, matching the bonnet. In many Canadian regiments it is traditional for soldiers to wear a ToS, while officers (and in some cases senior non-commissioned officers) wear the balmorals instead.[ citation needed ] The tam o'shanter is generally in rough khaki wool, while the balmoral is in finer quality doe-skin of a pale tan or grey shade.
The tam o' shanter was traditionally worn by various regiments of the Australian Army which have a Scottish connection. B (Scottish) Company 5th/6th Battalion, Royal Victoria Regiment [8] wore both a khaki and blue bonnet at various stages. It appears this has now been superseded by the Glengarry. [9]
Hong Kong Police Band bagpipes section wears a black and red version.
The velvet academic tam worn with a tassel is part of the ceremonial dress used at many universities to distinguish those holding a doctoral degree (e.g. Ph.D., Ed.D.) from those holding other academic degrees. Although referred to as a "tam", the academic tam derives from the Tudor bonnet rather than the Scottish tam o' shanter, and the cap is constructed of two pieces of either six- or eight-pointed cuts of fabric attached to a headband rather than the pie segments used in a tam o' shanter. [10]
The tam, or tam cap, became a fashionable women's accessory from the early 1920s and was derived from the tam o' shanter. It followed the trends for closer fitting hats and for borrowing from men's fashion. [11] [12]
A bonnet is a variety of headgear, hat or cap.
A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head covering". Over time, the word has evolved and changed its meaning, but it still retains its association with headwear. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal settings, and are seen in sports and fashion. They are typically designed for warmth, and often incorporate a visor to block sunlight from the eyes. They come in many shapes, sizes, and are of different brands. Baseball caps are one of the most common types of cap.
A beret is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap made of hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre.
Bonnet has been used as the name for a wide variety of headgear for both sexes—more often female—from the Middle Ages to the present. As with "hat" and "cap", it is impossible to generalize as to the styles for which the word has been used, but there is for both sexes a tendency to use the word for styles in soft material and lacking a brim, or at least one all the way round, rather than just at the front. Yet the term has also been used, for example, for steel helmets. This was from Scotland, where the term has long been especially popular.
The hackle is a clipped plume or short spray of coloured feathers that is attached to a military headdress, with different colours being associated with particular regiments.
The Glengarry bonnet is a traditional Scots cap made of thick-milled woollen material, decorated with a toorie on top, frequently a rosette cockade on the left side, and ribbons hanging behind. It is normally worn as part of Scottish military or civilian Highland dress, either formal or informal, as an alternative to the Balmoral bonnet or Tam o' Shanter.
A side cap is a military cap that can be folded flat when not being worn. It is also known as a garrison cap or flight cap in the United States, wedge cap in Canada, or field service cap in the United Kingdom; or in vulgar slang as a cunt cap or piss cutter. In form the side cap is comparable to the glengarry, a folding version of the Scottish military bonnet. It has been associated with various military forces since the middle of the 19th century, as well as various civilian organizations.
Forage cap is the designation given to various types of military undress, fatigue or working headwear. These vary widely in form, according to country or period. The coloured peaked cap worn by the modern British Army for parade and other dress occasions is still officially designated as a forage cap.
Full dress uniform, also known as a ceremonial dress uniform or parade dress uniform, is the most formal type of uniforms used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for official parades, ceremonies, and receptions, including private ones such as marriages and funerals. Full dress uniforms typically include full-size orders and medals insignia. Styles tend to originate from 19th century uniforms, although the 20th century saw the adoption of mess dress-styled full-dress uniforms. Designs may depend on regiment or service branch. In Western dress codes, full dress uniform is a permitted supplementary alternative equivalent to the civilian white tie for evening wear or morning dress for day wear – sometimes collectively called full dress – although military uniforms are the same for day and evening wear. As such, full dress uniform is the most formal uniform, followed by the mess dress uniform.
The uniforms of the Canadian Armed Forces are the official dress worn by members of Canada's military while on duty.
The uniforms of the British Army currently exist in twelve categories ranging from ceremonial uniforms to combat dress. Uniforms in the British Army are specific to the regiment to which a soldier belongs. Full dress presents the most differentiation between units, and there are fewer regimental distinctions between ceremonial dress, service dress, barrack dress and combat dress, though a level of regimental distinction runs throughout.
The Royal Regiment of Scotland (SCOTS) is the senior and only current Scottish line infantry regiment of the British Army Infantry. It consists of three regular and two reserve battalions, plus an incremental company, each formerly an individual regiment. However, three regular battalions maintain their former regimental pipes and drums to carry on the traditions of their antecedent regiments.
The caubeen is an Irish beret, originally worn by 16th-century Irish men. It has been adopted as the head dress of Irish regiments of Commonwealth armies.
The Balmoral bonnet is a traditional Scottish hat that can be worn as part of formal or informal Highland dress. Developed from the earlier blue bonnet, dating to at least the 16th century, it takes the form of a knitted, soft wool cap with a flat crown. It is named after Balmoral Castle, a royal residence in Scotland. It is an alternative to the similar and related (informal) Tam o' Shanter cap and the Glengarry bonnet.
The feather bonnet is a type of military headdress used mainly by the Scottish Highland infantry regiments of the British Army from about 1763 until the outbreak of World War I. It is now mostly worn by pipers and drummers in various bands throughout the world. It is also worn in a similar fashion by regiments in various Commonwealth armies.
The Chief Makhanda Regiment is a reserve air assault infantry regiment of the South African Army.
A pom-pom – also spelled pom-pon, pompom or pompon – is a decorative ball or tuft of fibrous material.
The blue bonnet was a type of soft woollen hat that for several hundred years was the customary working wear of Scottish labourers and farmers. Although a particularly broad and flat form was associated with the Scottish Lowlands, where it was sometimes called the scone cap, the bonnet was also worn in parts of Northern England and became widely adopted in the Highlands.
A cap comforter is a form of woollen military headgear originating in the British Army.
