IT would be criminal to leave the Buchanan family - you'll recall that last week we were checking out the fifteenth US President who carried that name - without making mention of some mysterious links between the clan and hats and headgear of all varieties.

First and foremost you'll remember the Battle of Bauge on March 22, 1421. You don't? Shame on you! Briefly, it was a result for the Scots and the French under John Stewart, Earl of Buchan, against the forces of England, Henry V's boys.

In the Scots ranks that day was one of our leading knights, Sir Alexander Buchanan, who in the thick of the fray cut down the illustrious Duke of Clarence. It's said that as Alex galloped off in triumph he lifted Clarence's ducal cap, on the point of his lance we guess, and ever since this piece of aristocratic headgear has figured on the Buchanan family crest.

It's thought that a land grant to a churchman as far back as 1225 resulted in the establishment of the Buchanans (son of the canon) on the fertile land to the east of Loch Lomond, where their presence is still apparent to this day.

The close identification of the family with the house of Lennox meant that they were destined to play an important role in the story of Scotland. They were by turn scholars and soldiers. For example, the clan chief died fighting the English invaders at the Battle of Pinkie in East Lothian in 1547 and George Buchanan was a sixteenth-century tutor to the royal family.

In the first half of the sixteenth century James V had a hobby. It was his custom to roam the countryside incognito, keeping in touch with his subjects by sharing a jar in a wayside inn, listening to their complaints, and even taking his research into the bed of the occasional commoner. He travelled under the name of the Guid Man o' Ballengich. There is never a gathering of the clan without the story being recalled of the surprise visit of the Guid Man to the Buchanan keep at Arnprior near the Lake of Menteith.

It was, by all accounts, a filthy night when the king arrived at the door unannounced, wrapped up against the weather, his hat pulled down around his ears. The servant was reluctant at first to allow the vaguely sinister stranger entry, but was persuaded to take a message up the turnpike stair to his master while the king cooled his heels at the front door. When the name of Ballengich was mentioned, Buchanan, who knew of the king's wanderlust, leapt to his feet and was down the stairs in a blink to greet his royal guest.

Once his cloak had been removed and his hat pegged, King James was made to feel like one of the family.

In the twentieth century the Buchanans have continued to make their mark on the world stage and various pieces of headgear appear strewn along the way.

In the 1920s whisky maker Lord Woolavington (James Buchanan), who supplied the Black & White blend as the official House of Commons snifter, was a noted dandy, whose checked bunnet was as much a trademark as his whisky. Dapper Jack Buchanan from Helensburgh starred in stage and screen musicals in the 1930s and forties - with his white tie, tails, silver-topped cane, and splendid top hat, he became an international celebrity.

And, of course, in the 1970s Ken Buchanan was world lightweight boxing champion. His head covered by a white towel in the aftermath of his battles is an image which lives on for fight fans nearly 30 years later.

Oh yes, hats and the Lake of Menteith. I once lost my bunnet overboard while crossing on the wee dinghy to Inchmahone Priory. Scary coincidence, eh? There may be more outlandish Buchanan hat-checks out there which I've overlooked. If so I'd be delighted to hear of them.