George IV's visit to Scotland in 1822 was the first visit of a reigning monarch to Scotland in nearly two centuries, the last being by Charles II for his Scottish coronation in 1651. Government minist
George IV in Highland Dress. David Wilkie's flattering portrait of the kilted King George IV, with lighting chosen to tone down the brightness of his kilt and his knees shown bare, without the pink tights he actually wore at the event.
Contemporary caricature of the kilted King George IV.
The Royal George at Leith.
Detail from a painting by Alexander Carse showing the King landing at Leith, which remains hanging in Leith Town Hall.
Dress Act 1746
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The Dress Act 1746, also known as the Disclothing Act, was part of the Act of Proscription which came into force on 1 August 1746 and made it illegal to wear "the Highland Dress" — including the kilt
Visit of George IV to Scotland
…and tartans were used for army uniforms but were no longer ordinary Highland wear, having been proscribed in the wake of the Jacobite Risings by the Dress Act. The "small" kilt as worn today was a relatively recent innovation in the Highlands, having been introduced around the 1720s and later adopted as dress…
Bagpipes at the Strawberry Festival.