Venlaw Castle, also known as Smithfield Castle, lies north of
Peebles
Peebles ( gd, Na Pùballan) is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in June 2018 wa ...
on the Edinburgh Road in the
Borders
A border is a geographical boundary.
Border, borders, The Border or The Borders may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
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of
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
. Since 1949, it has been operated as a hotel. It was designated in 1971 as a
Category A listed building.
History
Venlaw Castle
The site was formerly occupied by a 14th-century fortification founded by the
Hay
Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticat ...
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.
It is an excellent example of the
Scottish Baronial architecture
Scottish baronial or Scots baronial is an architectural style of 19th century Gothic Revival which revived the forms and ornaments of historical architecture of Scotland in the Late Middle Ages and the Early Modern Period. Reminiscent of Sco ...
, and is set in 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.
[ It became the home of Admiral of the Fleet Sir James Elphinstone Erskine in 1862.][ It then passed to Richard Davidson, a retired tea planter, and then to a Miss Walton in 1946.][
]
Venlaw Castle Hotel
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
''Hansard'' is the traditional name of the transcripts of parliamentary debates in Britain and many Commonwealth countries. It is named after Thomas Curson Hansard (1776–1833), a London printer and publisher, who was the first official prin ...
.[ Venlaw Castle Hotel opened in 1949 and remained in the family until November 1997, when it was bought by John and Shirley Sloggie and renamed Castle Venlaw Hotel. The hotel was bought by PAG Hotels Ltd in September 2007 but PAG Hotels Ltd went into administration in July 2010. The Hotel was bought by a private couple in November 2011.]
See also
* Castles in Scotland
Scottish castles are buildings that combine fortifications and residence, built within the borders of modern Scotland. Castles arrived in Scotland with the introduction of feudalism in the twelfth century. Initially these were wooden motte-and- ...
* Clan Tweedie
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 Frase ...
*List of places in the Scottish Borders
''Map of places in the Scottish Borders compiled from this list'':See the list of places in Scotland for places in other counties.
This list of places in the Scottish Borders includes towns, villages, hamlets, castles, golf courses, historic ...
*List of places in Scotland
This list of places in Scotland is a complete collection of lists of places in Scotland.
* List of burghs in Scotland
* List of census localities in Scotland
*List of islands of Scotland
** List of Shetland islands
** List of Orkney islands
** L ...
References
External links
GEOGRAPH image of Venlaw CastleScottish Borders Council leaflet: Walks around PeeblesScottish Community Foundation: Venlaw Community Woodland, tree surgery work
{{Castles in the Scottish Borders
Castles in the Scottish Borders
Category B listed buildings in the Scottish Borders
Listed houses in Scotland
History of the Scottish Borders