Venlaw Castle, also known as Smithfield Castle, lies north of Peebles on the Edinburgh Road in the Borders of Scotland. Since 1949, it has been operated as a hotel. It was designated in 1971 as a Category A listed building. [1]
The site was formerly occupied by a 14th-century fortification founded by the Hay family, known as Smithfield Castle, which was destroyed in the 18th century. The present house was built for Alexander Stevenson, Sheriff Deputy of Peebleshire, on the site in 1782. [2] It is an excellent example of the Scottish Baronial architecture, and is set in 4 acres (1.6 ha) of gardens. It remained in the Stevenson family until it was bought by the Grant family in 1790 and then by the Erskine family in 1798. [2] It became the home of Admiral of the Fleet Sir James Elphinstone Erskine in 1862. [2] It then passed to Richard Davidson, a retired tea planter, and then to a Miss Walton in 1946. [2]
In 1948, new owners Alexander Cumming and his wife, Jean Brownlee, intended to convert the property to a hotel but were unable to pay "development tax", levied on people turning a private house into a business. Cumming successfully fought to have the tax abolished, and his success is recorded in Hansard. [2] Venlaw Castle Hotel opened in 1949 and remained in the family until November 1997, when it was bought by the Ross Clan. Lady Marion Mattheson Ross daughter of Lord Robert Ross remain with their Family until this day. Architectural alterations were made in 2010 with the help of Historic Scotland , who now partially own the Castle.
Kildrummy Castle is a ruined castle near Kildrummy, in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Though ruined, it is one of the most extensive castles dating from the 13th century to survive in eastern Scotland, and was the seat of the Earls of Mar. It is owned today by Historic Environment Scotland and is open to the public as a scheduled ancient monument with gardens that are included in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland.
Dalhousie Castle is a castle in Cockpen, Midlothian, Scotland. Dalhousie Castle is situated near the town of Bonnyrigg, 8 miles (13 km) south of Edinburgh. The castle was the seat of the Earls of Dalhousie, the chieftains of Clan Ramsay.
Brechin Castle is a castle in Brechin, Angus, Scotland. The castle was constructed in stone during the 13th century. Most of the current building dates to the early 18th century, when extensive reconstruction was carried out by architect Alexander Edward for James Maule, 4th Earl of Panmure, between approximately 1696 and 1709. The castle is a 37,748 square feet (3,506.9 m2) Category A listed building and the grounds are included in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland.
Tweedie or Tweedy is a Scottish clan name. The Clan Tweedie does not currently have a chief recognized by the Lord Lyon King of Arms and is therefore considered an Armigerous clan. However the surname is also considered a sept of the Clan Fraser. The name is derived from the lands of Tweedie which were along the Valley of the River Tweed in Peebleshire in the Scottish Borders.
The Battle of Carbisdale took place close to the village of Culrain, Sutherland, Scotland on 27 April 1650 and was part of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It was fought by the Royalist leader James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, against the Scottish Government of the time, dominated by Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll and a grouping of radical Covenanters, known as the Kirk Party. The Covenanters decisively defeated the Royalists. The battlefield has been inventoried and protected by Historic Scotland under the Scottish Historical Environment Policy of 2009. Although Carbisdale is the name of the nearest farm to the site of the battle, Culrain is the nearest village.
Nisbet House is a 17th-century mansion in the Scottish Borders. It is located on the north side of the Blackadder Water, 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) south of Duns, in the Merse, a low-lying part of the former county of Berwickshire. It was built in about 1630 by Sir Alexander Nisbet, ancestor of the heraldic authority Alexander Nisbet (1657–1725). Architectural evidence suggests that the building incorporates, at its eastern end, a square pele tower that was the former house. The house is protected as a category A listed building.
Castle Chanonry of Ross, also known as Seaforth Castle, was located in the town of Fortrose, to the north-east of Inverness, on the peninsula known as the Black Isle, Highland, Scotland. Nothing now remains of the castle. The castle was also known as Canonry or Chanonrie of Ross, the former county.
Inverlochy Castle is a ruined, 13th-century castle near Inverlochy and Fort William, Highland, Scotland. The site of two battles, the castle remains largely unchanged since its construction. It is now in the care of Historic Environment Scotland.
Clan Mar is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Lowlands. It is also officially known as the Tribe of Mar. The chiefs of the Clan Mar were the original Earls of Mar, although this title later went via an heiress to the Douglases in the late fourteenth century, and then to the Stewarts before going to the Erskines. The current chief of Clan Mar is Margaret of Mar, Countess.
Buchanan Castle is a ruined castle in Stirlingshire, Scotland, located 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the village of Drymen. The house was commissioned by The 4th Duke of Montrose and built in 1852-1858 as a home for the Montrose family, serving as such until 1925. It was built as a replacement for Buchanan Auld House, which is located 0.5 miles (0.80 km) to the northwest but was destroyed in a fire in 1852. The old house and surrounding lands had been the property of the Clan Buchanan but passed to the Clan Graham in the late 17th century. The roof of the building was removed in 1954 and the condition of the house has since deteriorated, but it remains the seat of the Clan Graham.
Clan Swinton is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Lowlands.
Melville Castle is a three-storey Gothic castellated mansion situated less than a mile (2 km) west-south-west of Dalkeith, Midlothian, near the North Esk.
Invergarry Castle in the Scottish Highlands was the seat of the Chiefs of the Clan MacDonell of Glengarry, a powerful branch of the Clan Donald.
Eddleston is a small village and civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It lies 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Peebles and 9 miles (14 km) south of Penicuik on the A703, which passes through the centre of the village. Nearby is the Great Polish Map of Scotland, a large terrain map. The Eddleston Water runs through the village.
Cringletie is a Scottish Baronial house by the Eddleston Water, around 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) south of Eddleston in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, in the former Peeblesshire. Designed by David Bryce and built in 1861, the house is a Category B listed building. Since 1971 it has been operated as a country house hotel.
Barony Castle, also and formerly known as Black Barony, and Darnhall, is a historic house at Eddleston in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. The house is currently operated as a hotel, and is protected as a Category B listed building. Situated within the grounds lies the Great Polish Map of Scotland, a large relief model of Scotland, the largest of such in Europe.
Clan Cumming, also known as Clan Comyn, is a Scottish clan from the central Highlands that played a major role in the history of 13th-century Scotland and in the Wars of Scottish Independence. The Clan Comyn was once the most powerful family in 13th-century Scotland, until they were defeated in civil war by their rival to the Scottish throne, Robert the Bruce.
Barr Castle is a late medieval tower house. It can be seen today as a ruin on a low ridge to the south of the village of Lochwinnoch, Renfrewshire, Scotland.
Ardpatrick House is a category-B-listed 18th-century country house in Ardpatrick, South Knapdale, Argyll and Bute, Scotland.
Seton Castle is an 18th-century Georgian castle in East Lothian, Scotland. The castle was Robert Adam's final project in Scotland.