Talk:Balmoral bonnet

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The term 'Balmoral' in the context of military headgear only dates from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. In the mid 18th century Highland troops wore traditional bonnets of blue wool, decorated with a black Hanoverian cockade. As the century wore (perhaps influenced by the introduction of the East European 'shako' into military fashion) the bonnet was stiffened and cocked high into a more formal cap, often decorated on the side with a strip of bear's fur, an ostrich feather or a turkey hackle. While after 1815 the cap in its dress version evolved into the extravagant confection of the Highlander soldier's 'feather bonnet', the undress cap remained much the same for the next 50 years and, as both uniform designs and manufacture were standardised, it came to be known as the 'Kilmarnock' bonnet after the town where it was manufactured.

The Glengarry bonnet, essentially a folding version of the cylindrical military cap, had also been evolving during this time and, apart from the Black Watch who wore the Kilmarnock, was favoured by Highland regiments as non-regulation undress wear. It officially replaced the Kilmarnock as regulation undress and field service headgear in 1868 and remained in use until 1915 when the so-called 'Tam o' Shanter' khaki bonnet was adopted for use in the field by all Scottish troops in Europe.JF42 19:54, 29 July 2007 (UTC)JF42