Listed Building

The only legal part of the listing under the Planning (Listing Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 is the address/name of site. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing – see 'About Listed Buildings' below for more information. The further details below the 'Address/Name of Site' are provided for information purposes only.

Address/Name of Site

MEGGINCH CASTLE AND GARDEN STRUCTURESLB10963

Status: Designated

Documents

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Summary

Category
A
Date Added
05/10/1974
Local Authority
Perth And Kinross
Planning Authority
Perth And Kinross
Parish
Errol
NGR
NO 24195 24605
Coordinates
324195, 724605

Description

1575 incorporating circa 1460 tower and fortalice. Altered 1680s; SW bow fronted castellated addition R and J Adam circa 1790; work to E unfinished, completed 1820 with NE wing and N porch by W M Mackenzie, architect; porch, corridor and internal alterations 1928 by Mills & Shepherd; original condition partly re-instated 1969-70 after fire. Random, snecked and squared rubble with ashlar and concrete margins, some raised. Dividing course, mutuled eaves cornice and battlements. Corbels; chamfered arrises.

S (ENTRANCE) ELEVATION: symmetrically fenestrated 3-storey, 6-bay block with large windows to 1st floor and relief carved armorial stone dated '1820' to 2nd floor centre. Squat 2-storey circular entrance tower to outer right with broad moulded doorpiece, cornice and stepped pediment.

W (GARDEN) ELEVATION: early set-back bay to outer left with large 1st floor window and small openings above giving way to timpany gable and corbelled conically-roofed turret at left angle. Remaining bays crenellated. Broad bay to centre with variety of asymmetrically-disposed small windows, low rounded stair bay in re-entrant angle to left with door and 1st floor window. Bow fronted 1790 bay to outer right with window to each floor, that to 1st floor larger and converted to glazed door with cantilevered balcony.

N (REAR) ELEVATION: altered elevation with asymmetrical fenestration. 1928 porch with round-headed door to centre, 1820 piended wing behind with centre stack and further set-back early bays, tower with finialled crowstepped and corbelled caphouse to centre, conically-roofed corbelled turrets to outer angles.

E ELEVATION: variety of elements to altered elevation including projecting single storey bay to left, large multi-pane stair window to recessed centre and advanced wing to right with 2nd floor window to return with carved (eroded) pedimented windowhead (see Notes); further advanced lower polygonal bay with cantilevered balcony to 1st floor.

Largely small-paned glazing patterns in timber sash and case windows. Grey slates. Coped ashlar stacks, diamond-aligned to E, with cans. Ashlar-coped skews.

INTERIOR: some fine decorative schemes in place. Original moulded ashlar doorway leading to brick-vaulted, scale-and-platt staircase with guilloche moulded cornicing. Top-lit square stair hall (the armoury) with fine decorative cast-iron balusters (see Notes) to cantilevered staircase and dome. Notable drawing room with fine ceiling (replaced after 1960 fire) and white marble chimney piece, large dividing doors to library with panelled ceiling and grey and white marble chimney piece (see Notes). Dining room with 1575 linenfold panelling (imported), fine plasterwork and maroon marble chimney piece.

GARDEN STRUCTURES: designed landscape with terrace garden to W of castle with variety of stone structures including Greek 'temple' of paired fluted columns with plain frieze and cornice; diminutive statue of Baroness Strange as young child; and sundial on carved pedestal with square cope and octagonal base. Gold and green yews forming crown celebrating Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee 1887 and Golden Wedding of John and Frances Drummond in 1885; c1895 topiary yew figures. Planting includes 4 yews thought to be over 1000 years old; holly avenue (probably before 1600) leading to Chapel; 18th century oak and lime avenues; 1830 parterre altered to incorporate 2 fountains; 3 birch tress of 1921 and Wellingtonia grown with seed collected from Canada by Mr Matthew of Gourdiehill, Errol.

Statement of Special Interest

Megginch, the 'Beautiful Island', was built by the Kinninmont family and sold in 1480 to Peter Hay, who died in 1496. An eroded windowhead (to the east elevation) originally read 'Petrus Hay, oedificium extruxit, AD 1575'. Sir George Hay sold to John Drummond in 1664 and the castle remains in the same family today (2000). Among notable Drummonds, the third Baron was first member for Perthshire after the Union, he was a keen designer and made many changes with 'Mr Strachan'. His successor, Adam Drummond, planted many of the fine avenues of trees. By the 1770s the building was uninhabited and when John Drummond succeeded there were "doos in all the rooms". The stable courtyard of 1807 and bottom kitchen garden (both listed separately) were built by Captain Robert Drummond. Little change occurred during the 19th century apart from the erection of a small dairy. In 1969 a serious fire destroyed part of the S wing, including the Adam ceiling. However this was reconstituted by Cramb and the stairhall returned to its former glory. Salvaged balusters were used as templates to replace those destroyed in the fire. The principal room chimneypieces were replaced by imports from nearby Pitfour Castle and that to the dining room from the Bullock Museum. Megginch Castle estate includes Chapel, Gothic Arch, Icehouse, Kennels Cottage, Kingdom Farmhouse, North Lodges, Stables (with Dovecot), Walled Gardens, Wardheads and West Lodge all listed separately.

References

Bibliography

Information courtesy of Baroness Strange. Macgibbon & Ross CASTELLATED AND DOMESTIC ARCHITECTURE VOL II, p499. Melville ERROL (1935). Mackenzie plans at house dated 1818-9, unsigned, unaddressed but endorsed on back 'Mr Mackenzie, architect'. Groome's GAZETTEER VOL V, p18. LUC and HS INVENTORY OF DESIGNED LANDSCAPES VOL IV (1987), pp209-15.

About Listed Buildings

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Listing is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for buildings of special architectural or historic interest as set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997.

We list buildings which are found to be of special architectural or historic interest using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Listed building records provide an indication of the special architectural or historic interest of the listed building which has been identified by its statutory address. The description and additional information provided are supplementary and have no legal weight.

These records are not definitive historical accounts or a complete description of the building(s). If part of a building is not described it does not mean it is not listed. The format of the listed building record has changed over time. Earlier records may be brief and some information will not have been recorded.

The legal part of the listing is the address/name of site which is known as the statutory address. Other than the name or address of a listed building, further details are provided for information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland does not accept any liability for any loss or damage suffered as a consequence of inaccuracies in the information provided. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing. Even if a number or name is missing from a listing address it will still be listed. Listing covers both the exterior and the interior and any object or structure fixed to the building. Listing also applies to buildings or structures not physically attached but which are part of the curtilage (or land) of the listed building as long as they were erected before 1 July 1948.

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Printed: 29/03/2024 13:22