Amhuinnsuidhe Castle is a large 19th-century private country house on

Harris Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle of ...

, one of the

Western Isles The Outer Hebrides () or Western Isles ( gd, Na h-Eileanan Siar or or ("islands of the strangers"); sco, Waster Isles), sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island ( gd, An t-Eilean Fada, links=no), is an island chain off the west coast ...

of Scotland. It was designated as a

Category A listed This is a list of Category A listed buildings in Scotland, which are among the listed buildings of the United Kingdom. For a fuller list, see the pages linked on List of listed buildings in Scotland. Key The organization of the lists in th ...

building in 1971 and is now operated as a hotel and shooting estate.

History

Originally named Fincastle, the house was built in the Scottish baronial style by architect

David Bryce David Bryce FRSE FRIBA RSA (3 April 1803 – 7 May 1876) was a Scottish architect. Life Bryce was born at 5 South College Street in Edinburgh, the son of David Bryce (1763–1816) a grocer with a successful side interest in buildi ...

in 1864–1867 for

Charles Murray, 7th Earl of Dunmore Charles Adolphus Murray, 7th Earl of Dunmore VD (24 March 1841 – 27 August 1907), styled Viscount Fincastle from birth until 1845, was a Scottish peer, Conservative politician, explorer, author, and artist. Family background Fincastle was th ...

(styled Viscount Fincastle until 1845), whose grandfather

George Murray, 5th Earl of Dunmore Lord George Murray, 5th Earl of Dunmore FRSE (30 April 1762 – 11 November 1836), known as Viscount of Fincastle until 1809, was a Scottish peer. Life Murray was the eldest son of John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore, and Lady Charlotte (née S ...

had purchased the island in 1834.

J M Barrie Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, (; 9 May 1860 19 June 1937) was a Scottish novelist and playwright, best remembered as the creator of Peter Pan. He was born and educated in Scotland and then moved to London, where he wrote several succe ...

found inspiration for his play ''Mary Rose'' while staying at the castle in 1912 and visiting the nearby Loch Voshimid, "where we found Mary Rose". In 2003, Amhuinnsuidhe Castle Estate purchased the castle and the fishing rights, while the North Harris Estate was transferred into community ownership. The castle is now operated as a venue for fishing, shooting parties, weddings and corporate events.

Description

The house is squeezed into a narrow level space between the ocean and the hill rising behind the house and both have to be restrained by walls in front and behind. The lack of level ground is probably why the main road skirts the front of the house, very unusual for a country house. It is built of imported freestone, stugged and snecked ashlar; rubbled masonry is used at the rear. The

castellated A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

four-storey main block has a corner turret and rounded corners. Its eastwards three-storey extension has a first-storey oriel window with flanking

bartizan A bartizan (an alteration of ''bratticing''), also called a guerite, ''garita'', or ''échauguette'', or spelled bartisan, is an overhanging, wall-mounted turret projecting from the walls of late medieval and early-modern fortifications from th ...

s. The flanking blocks are only three storeys high and the western block is recessed from the road. The eastern block is even with the main block, but it connected to the main block by a deeply recessed range, possibly to suggest a 17th-century addition to an older house.

Gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

s are crowstepped throughout.

Footnotes

External links

Amhuinnsuidhe Castle website
{{Coord, 57, 57, 44, N, 6, 59, 23, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Houses completed in 1867 Castles in the Outer Hebrides Category A listed buildings in the Outer Hebrides Country houses in the Outer Hebrides Harris, Outer Hebrides Category A listed houses in Scotland

History

Description

See also

Footnotes

External links