What is the Prince of Wales weave or Prince de Gales weave

Creation

A Prince of Wales weave or Prince de Gales or Glen plaid is a Twill weave of different colored weft and warp. It was created in the 19th century by the Newzealander countess of Seafield of the valley of Glenurquhart  for dressing the game keepers of her estate.

The fabric had been weaved with wool from the local sheep and coloring was mostly brown, cream and soft greens.

Royal Blood

The weave became initialy known due to King Edward the 5th, who adopted the weave during his hunting trips at the Seafield estate.

Its is though commonly accepted that the Prince of Wales weave was popularised by the dandy Duke of Windsor (Edward the 7th) who also introduced colored threads in the plaid, making it more daring for his time. Prince Charles has followed in the footsteps of his ancestors and has been sporting the Prince of Wales weave as well.

Naming

The naming of this plaid has been credited to the Duke of Winsdor and therefore the naming Prince of Wales or Prince de Gales. The proper name though, of this elegant waeve is Glen plaid. Glen derives from the Scotish valley of Glenurquhart in Inverness-shire, where this plaid was initialy weaved. In Greece older generations use mostly its French name, that is Prince de Gales.

Actors

Quite obviously a well dressed agent in the services of HRH the Queen of England, had to wear a Prince of Wales weave suit in his movies. James Bond introduced the suit in the movie “From Russia with Love”.  Another famous suit made of Prince of Wales weave has been that of President Ronald Reagan worn during his visit at the United Kingdom. Other well dressed actors who have sported the weave, have been Cary Grant and Steve McQueen

Read about the Madder weave in this Article .