This weekend I have been thinking about Vampires. I was reading about the emergence of
the vampire as a character in English literature, and the surprise was that early English readers would have expected a vampire to be Scottish. This because
The Vampyre - A Tale written by John Polidori in 1816 featured Lord Ruthven as the villain (anti-hero?) of the story.
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| A Booklet from Newstead Abbey |
Although the aristocratic Lord Ruthven is usually assumed to be a thinly disguised Lord Byron, readers would associate the name with Jacobite troubles in Scotland. I did intend to show you a picture of Ruthven barracks in Scotland, a huge imposition of English military might in an invaded land, but I couldn't find the photo, so here is a piper instead:
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| A Piper on the Border |
So English readers in 1817 would expect a vampire to be illustrated in a kilt.
This made be think about kilts and tartans in general. A little tip of mine is if you want to start a fight with a Scotsman try saying clan tartans were invented by the English. That will usually do it and get you into a good old argument. Before you start though, get your argument straight by reading this book first:
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| A Good Book for an Argument |
It should equip you with all the facts you need. Happy punch-ups!
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