Scottish ''Blue Bonnet''

By Crusader1307

While it's origins were originally not Martial, The Scottish ''Blue Bonnet'' was born from a cheaply made – but popular Peasant Hat (which emulated the finer Silk versions worn by both British & Scottish Nobility). The term ''Bonnet'' has many definitions (both masculine and feminine), but in the terms of the 15th Century onward in Scotland, it had more of a masculine meaning. More predominate in The Scottish Lowlands, The Bonnet was made of wool and large. This allowed the Hat to be pulled down or ''scrugged'' down with the excess material allowed to lay over the left or right side of the temple of the head. This helped insulate the head during the often continual cold climate of The Region. The reasoning for the color blue was born more out of necessity than tradition. Most dyes used for The Hat were plant based and derived from local flowing plants commonly known as ''Bonnet Flowers'' (which were a blue hue. Nobility used a much more varied pallet of colors unavailable to a pleasant. With the start of The Jacobite and Williamite Wars of the 1680s thru 1750s, the Blue Bonnet became a piece of Military apparel favored by Scottish and Irish Rebels against the perceived usurping of Charles Stuart's claim to The Throne of England. The Blue Bonnet was often adorned with a White Rose or Cockade as a symbol of unity with ''Bonnie'' Prince Charles and The Jacobite philosophy. At one point, the wearing of The Blue Bonnet was outlawed in Scotland by England. It is still worn today and seen as a symbol of Scottish Independence and rebellion against The English Government. The Blue Bonnet would help evolve The Tam O'Shanter and later Military style Berets used by many World Armies.