I love this photo from the Facebook page “I am a Scot.” In answer to a question posed in a comment: “What is underneath the kilt?” I quoted from my recently published autobiography entitled, “From Poverty to Poverty: A Scotsman Encounters Canada.” It concerns my life as a teenager in the late 40s in Campbeltown, Argyll.
“During those years I was also in the Army Cadets. It was something to do midweek, especially during the winter. There I was issued with a tartan kilt that I just loved to wear—it meant that I was truly Scottish. (Well, didn’t it? Now I wear my own kilt any time I get the chance.) Good job we didn’t wear anything under the kilt, for I didn’t have any underpants anyway! I can remember older cadets checking us to be sure we weren’t wearing anything underneath.”
MOOMOR PUBLISHING 
On first read I thought the post was incomplete. I thought what an odd fact to tell about kilts. Then I acknowledge the name of the post, and then your answer was complete. That is what I get for skimming the surface on initial read.
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Thanks for your remarks, Kendall. They say “a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.” I guess we also need to be aware that skimming doesn’t always give us the correct slant on a posting. We’ll try to keep that in mind as well.
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I understand that current kilt rental businesses in Scotland request renters to wear undergarments, or they face a hefty fee for additional cleaning. I don’t understand why regimental rule was no undergarments. Was the possibility of windy revelation likely to demoralize the enemy?
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Good point, Shawn. I think you have hit upon a likely explanation. Perhaps you have read about the Scottish regiment in World War I which the Germans called “Die Damen aus der Hoelle” or the “Ladies from Hell.” They were said to have struck fear into the enemy because of their ferocious fighting, even though they wore what the Germans called “skirts.” But who knows, maybe it was what the wind whipped up that did it!
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Based on what Diana Gabaldon has written about Scots fighting style (and I looked for it to quote her, without success) I can imagine either scenario!
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