Is there anything more quintessentially Scottish that a solid splash of tartan?
It appears the royals tend to think not. In fact, the Windsors have embraced the traditional pattern of the great Scots with such vehement that we want our own – and lots of it.
Whether it’s for its warmth and practicality, or for its ability to pretty much never go out of fashion (seriously, this print has graced the mags, models and everyday sidewalks since, well, forever), there’s no denying any tartan ensemble makes a sound style statement.
Meghan is giving us every reason to wear more tartan. (Image: Getty)
And here to give us all the inspiration we’ll ever need are generations of the British royals, and countless pictures that provide pure joy for the eyeballs.
To celebrate the style (and provide sound justification for the humble tartan winter school uniform staple skirt), we’ve rounded up all the best royal moments in tartan.
Grab the bagpipes and get the haggis in the oven, the Windsor’s are about to go full-blown Scotland on us.
All images: Getty
Let’s start with the original Queen of tartan herself, Princess Diana. Here, the stunning royal is pictured in September 1982 wearing the print for the Braemar Highland Games.
William approved of his mother’s love for tartan from a very young age! In August 1985, Diana and the little Prince were pictured leaving the royal yacht Britannia in Aberdeen with the Princess nailing a pink and purple palette.
And it wasn’t just Diana who dabbled in tartan during the 1980s! Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew twinned during an official visit to Scotland in 1987 and we’re here for it.
In January 1989, Di added a splash of colour to her tartan ensemble for a visit to Portsmouth.
Later that year, the Princess donned a fitting grey tartan ensemble for the 1989 Braemar Games in Scotland.
Making a statement! Diana went all out in a matching tartan skirt suit while on a walkabout in Manchester in 1991.
Like father like son! William and dad Charles are big fans of a printed shirt (not to mention Charles’ tartan kilt!) – they were pictured here in 1997 at the Balmoral Castle Estate.
Anne’s on board! We’re loving this green tartan dress on the Princess as she visited The Blue Cross’ Animal Adoption Centre in September 1999.
Couples who match together! Charles and Camilla are two peas in a pod when it comes to tartan. Their twinning moment was captured in May 2006 during a visit to the National Nature Reserve.
Tartan goes next gen! Zara Tindall was snapped in March 2011 wearing a tartan edition atop her signature blonde chop at the Cheltenham Horseracing Festival.
Twinning moment take two! This time, Charles and Camilla opted for the very appropriate Braemar Highland Gathering in Scotland for their tartan extravaganza in September 2012.
Following in her late mother-in-law’s footsteps, Duchess Catherine quickly garnered a penchant for tartan. In April 2013, she was pictured wearing a chic Princess coat in the iconic print.
You can’t deny Camilla’s love for the print – she went for shades of pink and purple in February 2017 while attending a literature festival.
In more family twinning moments, Charles and Queen Elizabeth wore tartan in all kinds of shapes and sizes as they attended the Braemar Highland Gathering in 2017.
Fittingly festive as always, Kate rocked another tartan ensemble for Christmas Day 2017.
The ultimate style muse, Meghan’s tartan coat and wide-legged pants combo on her visit to Edinburgh Castle in February 2018 was all kinds of perfection.
Prince Harry almost bitten by an adorable Shetland pony in Scotland
What’s a royal gallery without a touch of the stunning internationals? The ever chic Queen Letizia of Spain channels royal tartan fashion like no other. Here, she was pictured in October 2018 during a meeting with young filmmakers in Spain.
Kate’s Erdem grey tartan dress accessorised with a maroon belt was utter perfection as she attended the opening of the V&A Photography Centre in October 2018.
A few months later, Kate stepped out for a Christmas party in December 2018 wearing a fittingly festive ensemble.
And 2019 is off to a good start! Kate stepped out in a green Alexander McQueen tartan coat in January 2019 during a visit to Dundee. Long live the royal tartan craze!
