HAPPY TARTAN DAY!

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The United Empire Loyalists who settled in parts of Canada included many who were Scots and some who had previously fought for Scottish independence. Tartan Day was first established in Nova Scotia on April 6, 1987 to coincide with the day of the signing of the Declaration of Arbroath in 1320 which is widely regarded as Scotland's declaration of independence. 

Among the more noteable Scottish Highlanders was Brigadier General Donald McDonald who fought at the Battle of Culloden in 1746 against the English and later as a Loyalist during the American Revolution.  In 1775 he was in North Carolina and appointed by the Royal Governor to lead the Loyalist troops.  At the Battle of Moore's Creek in 1776 he was captured and later exchanged. Another key figure present was Captain Alan MacDonald, husband of Flora MacDonald (saviour of Bonnie Prince Charlie aftter the Battle of Culloden).  He also fought for the Loyalists, was captured, exchanged, and later served with the 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants).

Happy Tartan Day 2026!


Several members who served with the 84th Regiment and were natives of Scotland have been proved as United Empire Loyalists by members of the United Empire Loyalists' Association.  These include:

Alexander Anderson, native of Moray, Scotland; Reverend John Bethune , born on the Isle of Skye, Scotland; and John Craig, buried in New Brunswick.

Others include John Macdonald, with monument at gravesite in Prince Edward Island. 

In Summerville, Nova Scotia there is a cemetery called Loyal Hill which is located on the former lands of Captain John Grant, a Scot and United Empire Loyalist.  He served with the 42nd Regiment, also known as the Black Watch.  

Alexander Campbell born in Argyl, Scotland served with the Loyal Rangers and settled in Prince Edward County, Ontario.

Other Loyalist regiments with Scottish members were the King's Royal Regiment of New York and Butler's Rangers.

At Fort Edward in Windsor, Nova Scotia is a plaque on the oldest blockhouse of its kind in Canada.  The plaque is for Flora MacDonald who spent a winter there as a Loyalist with her husband as I explain in the video below:





 Further Reference:

A Highlander & A Loyalist by Brian McConnell, UE, published by UELAC in 2014

Loyal Hill & Captain John Grant, UEL by Brian McConnell, UE, published by UELAC in 2015
Historian; Genealogist; Author; Member of United Empire Loyalists ' Association of Canada, Genealogical Association of Nova Scotia, Ontario Genealogical Society, Ulster Historical & Genealogical Guild (Life)

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