Barnbougle Castle
Encyclopedia
Barnbougle Castle is a much-altered tower house
on the south shore of the Firth of Forth
, between Cramond
and South Queensferry
. It lies within the Dalmeny Estate, and is the property of the Earl of Rosebery
. It is about 0.33 mile (0.5310822 km) north of Dalmeny House
, the main house on the estate. Although its history goes back to the 13th century, the present castle is the result of rebuilding in 1881 by the 5th Earl of Rosebery
, who served as the British Prime Minister from 1894–1895.
, or Moubray, family, a Norman
family who were also lords of Dalmeny
and Inverkeithing
. The first building was a thirteenth century tower house
, constructed by Philip Mowbray
. In 1615 the Mowbrays sold Barnbougle to Sir Thomas Hamilton
, afterwards Earl of Haddington
. It was sold again, by Sir Thomas' grandson in 1662, to Sir Archibald Primrose of Carrington
, a senior judge who became Lord Justice General of Scotland in 1676. Sir Archibald's eldest son by his second marriage, also Archibald Primrose
, was created Earl of Rosebery
in 1703, and Barnbougle became the family seat. At some point during the 17th century, the original tower house was rebuilt or replaced.
In 1774, a plan for rebuilding the castle was drawn up by the architect Robert Adam
. This proposal was for a triangular building, with the original tower at its seaward corner, but it was never executed. By the early 19th century, the castle had become dilapidated, and a wave supposedly washed into the dining room during supper. The 4th Earl of Rosebery
had Dalmeny House
constructed on the estate, and the family moved in on completion in 1817. Barnbougle was used to store explosives, and after being damaged in an accidental explosion, it was subsequently left as a ruin.
In 1881 the castle was entirely reconstructed and extended according to plans by James Maitland Wardrop, of Wardrop & Reid, in the Scots Baronial style. The older fabric of the north side was incorporated into the new building. It was primarily built to house the private library of Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery
(1847–1929), who became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
in 1894. Lord Rosebery practised his speeches here, in a purpose-built gallery. It remains a part of the Dalmeny Estate, and is the property of the Rosebery family. Barnbougle Castle is a category A listed building.
; the building is rubble, dressed with ashlar
sandstone
.
Features include crowstep gables, bartizan
s with water spouts on the two western corners, and a crenellated parapet
. A 2.4 metres (7.9 ft) high obelisk sundial
stands in the castle garden, having been moved there in 1890.
to the Holy Land
, and was killed in battle against the Moslems. His faithful hound, still at home in Barnbougle, at that moment began to howl uncontrollably. Finally it died through grief for its master. It is said that its howls can still be heard at Hound Point
, half a mile west of the castle, when the night is dark and windy. In another version of the tradition, it is said that when the death of any of the lords is about to take place, a black man with a dog appears on the point, and sounds on a bugle the baron's death-note. A ballad says:
Tower house
A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation.-History:Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountain or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strategic points with reduced forces...
on the south shore of the Firth of Forth
Firth of Forth
The Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...
, between Cramond
Cramond
Cramond is a seaside village now part of suburban Edinburgh, Scotland, located in the north-west corner of the city at the mouth of the River Almond where it enters the Firth of Forth....
and South Queensferry
South Queensferry
South Queensferry , also called Queensferry, is a former Royal Burgh in West Lothian now part of the City of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located some ten miles to the north west of the city centre, on the shore of the Firth of Forth between the Forth Bridge and the Forth Road Bridge, approximately 8...
. It lies within the Dalmeny Estate, and is the property of the Earl of Rosebery
Earl of Rosebery
Earl of Rosebery is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1703 for Archibald Primrose, 1st Viscount of Rosebery, with remainder to his issue male and female successively...
. It is about 0.33 mile (0.5310822 km) north of Dalmeny House
Dalmeny House
Dalmeny House is a Gothic revival mansion located in an estate close to Dalmeny on the Firth of Forth, to the north-west of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was designed by William Wilkins, and completed in 1817.Dalmeny House is the home of the Earl and Countess of Rosebery. The house was the first in...
, the main house on the estate. Although its history goes back to the 13th century, the present castle is the result of rebuilding in 1881 by the 5th Earl of Rosebery
Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery
Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, KG, PC was a British Liberal statesman and Prime Minister. Between the death of his father, in 1851, and the death of his grandfather, the 4th Earl, in 1868, he was known by the courtesy title of Lord Dalmeny.Rosebery was a Liberal Imperialist who...
, who served as the British Prime Minister from 1894–1895.
History
Barnbougle was owned by the MowbrayMowbray
Mowbray is an Anglo-Norman baronial house, derived from Montbrai in Normandy. From this village came Geoffrey de Montbrai who came to be Bishop of Coutances and accompanied Duke William of Normandy at the Conquest of England in 1066....
, or Moubray, family, a Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
family who were also lords of Dalmeny
Dalmeny
Dalmeny is a suburban village and civil parish in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located on the south side of the Firth of Forth, east-southeast of South Queensferry and west-northwest of central Edinburgh; it falls under the local governance of the City of Edinburgh Council.The name Dalmeny is...
and Inverkeithing
Inverkeithing
Inverkeithing is a town and a royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, located on the Firth of Forth. According to population estimates , the town has a population of 5,265. The port town was given burgh status by King David I of Scotland in the 12th century and is situated about 9 miles north from...
. The first building was a thirteenth century tower house
Tower house
A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation.-History:Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountain or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strategic points with reduced forces...
, constructed by Philip Mowbray
Philip Mowbray
Sir Philip Mowbray or Philip de Mowbray was a Scottish gentleman and Governor of Stirling Castle in the 14th century.He was the son of Sir Geoffrey Mowbray by a daughter of Red John Comyn, Justiciary of Scotland. Philip married Eve, Lady Redcastle...
. In 1615 the Mowbrays sold Barnbougle to Sir Thomas Hamilton
Thomas Hamilton, 1st Earl of Haddington
Thomas Hamilton, 1st Earl of Haddington , designated before his peerage as 'of Drumcarny, Monkland, and Binning', was a Scottish administrator, Lord Advocate, judge, and Lord Lieutenant of Haddingtonshire.-Family:...
, afterwards Earl of Haddington
Earl of Haddington
Earl of Haddington is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1627 for the noted Scottish lawyer and judge Thomas Hamilton, 1st Earl of Melrose. He was Lord President of the Court of Session from 1616 to 1625...
. It was sold again, by Sir Thomas' grandson in 1662, to Sir Archibald Primrose of Carrington
Archibald Primrose, Lord Carrington
Sir Archibald Primrose, 1st Baronet, Lord Carrington was a notable Scottish lawyer, judge, and Cavalier.The son of James Primrose Sir Archibald Primrose, 1st Baronet, Lord Carrington (May 16, 1616 – November 27, 1679) was a notable Scottish lawyer, judge, and Cavalier.The son of James Primrose Sir...
, a senior judge who became Lord Justice General of Scotland in 1676. Sir Archibald's eldest son by his second marriage, also Archibald Primrose
Archibald Primrose, 1st Earl of Rosebery
Archibald Primrose, 1st Earl of Rosebery was a Scottish politician.Son of Sir Archibald Primrose, Lord Carrington, he was a Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland for Edinburgh county from 1695....
, was created Earl of Rosebery
Earl of Rosebery
Earl of Rosebery is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1703 for Archibald Primrose, 1st Viscount of Rosebery, with remainder to his issue male and female successively...
in 1703, and Barnbougle became the family seat. At some point during the 17th century, the original tower house was rebuilt or replaced.
In 1774, a plan for rebuilding the castle was drawn up by the architect Robert Adam
Robert Adam
Robert Adam was a Scottish neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam , Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him...
. This proposal was for a triangular building, with the original tower at its seaward corner, but it was never executed. By the early 19th century, the castle had become dilapidated, and a wave supposedly washed into the dining room during supper. The 4th Earl of Rosebery
Archibald Primrose, 4th Earl of Rosebery
Sir Archibald John Primrose, 4th Earl of Rosebery KT, PC, FRS was a British Member of Parliament.Archibald Primrose was educated at Pembroke College, Cambridge, gaining his MA in 1804...
had Dalmeny House
Dalmeny House
Dalmeny House is a Gothic revival mansion located in an estate close to Dalmeny on the Firth of Forth, to the north-west of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was designed by William Wilkins, and completed in 1817.Dalmeny House is the home of the Earl and Countess of Rosebery. The house was the first in...
constructed on the estate, and the family moved in on completion in 1817. Barnbougle was used to store explosives, and after being damaged in an accidental explosion, it was subsequently left as a ruin.
In 1881 the castle was entirely reconstructed and extended according to plans by James Maitland Wardrop, of Wardrop & Reid, in the Scots Baronial style. The older fabric of the north side was incorporated into the new building. It was primarily built to house the private library of Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery
Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery
Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, KG, PC was a British Liberal statesman and Prime Minister. Between the death of his father, in 1851, and the death of his grandfather, the 4th Earl, in 1868, he was known by the courtesy title of Lord Dalmeny.Rosebery was a Liberal Imperialist who...
(1847–1929), who became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
in 1894. Lord Rosebery practised his speeches here, in a purpose-built gallery. It remains a part of the Dalmeny Estate, and is the property of the Rosebery family. Barnbougle Castle is a category A listed building.
Etymology
The etymology of the name Barnbougle has been variously suggested to be:- Barr-an-boglain, Goidelic, "point of the marsh";
- Bar-na-buai-gall, Goidelic, "the point of the victory of strangers";
- Pren Bugail, Brythonic, "herds-man's tree";
- Bar'n-Bugle, EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, "Baron-bugle", relating to the Hound Point tradition.
Description
The castle is built on a projecting rock terrace. It incorporates some of the fabric of the original castle, but is mainly a late-nineteenth century construction. There are 3 stories and an atticAttic
An attic is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building . Attic is generally the American/Canadian reference to it...
; the building is rubble, dressed with ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
.
Features include crowstep gables, bartizan
Bartizan
A bartizan or guerite is an overhanging, wall-mounted turret projecting from the walls of medieval fortifications from the early 14th century up to the 16th century. They protect a warder and enable him to see around him...
s with water spouts on the two western corners, and a crenellated parapet
Parapet
A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
. A 2.4 metres (7.9 ft) high obelisk sundial
Scottish sundial
Scottish sundials of the renaissance period are not just more numerous than in any other country, they are also stylistically unique. This is particularly notable when the size and wealth of Scotland at the time are taken into account. They are free standing stone sculptures of the 17th and 18th...
stands in the castle garden, having been moved there in 1890.
Traditions
According to tradition, Sir Roger Mowbray went as a crusaderCrusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
to the Holy Land
Holy Land
The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...
, and was killed in battle against the Moslems. His faithful hound, still at home in Barnbougle, at that moment began to howl uncontrollably. Finally it died through grief for its master. It is said that its howls can still be heard at Hound Point
Hound point
Hound Point is a marine terminal in the Firth of Forth, Scotland, just east of the Forth Bridge. First opened in 1975, it is owned and operated by BP as an oil-export terminal for North Sea oil and is the largest such facility in Scotland....
, half a mile west of the castle, when the night is dark and windy. In another version of the tradition, it is said that when the death of any of the lords is about to take place, a black man with a dog appears on the point, and sounds on a bugle the baron's death-note. A ballad says:
- And ever when Barnbougle's lords
- Are parting this scene below
- Come hound and ghost to this haunted coast
- With death notes winding slow.