Newliston is a country house near

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

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 ...

. It is located south-west of

Kirkliston Kirkliston is a small town and parish to the west of Edinburgh, Scotland, historically within the county of West Lothian but now within the City of Edinburgh council limits. It lies on high ground immediately north of a northward loop of the Al ...

, and west of the city centre. The house, designed by

Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his ...

in the late 18th century, is a

category A listed building Category, plural categories, may refer to: Philosophy and general uses *Categorization, categories in cognitive science, information science and generally *Category of being * ''Categories'' (Aristotle) *Category (Kant) * Categories (Peirce) * ...

. The 18th-century gardens, inspired by the French formal style, are included in the

Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland The ''Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland'' is a listing of gardens and designed landscapes of national artistic and/or historical significance, in Scotland. The Inventory was originally compiled in 1987, although it is a cont ...

, the listing of nationally significant gardens. Newliston is within the City of Edinburgh council area and the historic county of West Lothian.

History

Newliston was originally the property of the Dundas family of nearby

Dundas Castle Dundas Castle is a 15th-century castle, with substantial 19th-century additions by William Burn, in the Dalmeny parish of West Lothian, Scotland. The home of the Dundas family since the Middle Ages, it was sold in the late 19th century and is cur ...

. Duncan Dundas, the

Lord Lyon King of Arms The Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grant ...

, acquired the property in the 15th century. His descendant, Elizabeth Dundas, 8th of Newliston, married

John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair PC (10 November 1648 – 8 January 1707) was a Scottish politician and lawyer. As Joint Secretary of State in Scotland 1691–1695, he played a key role in suppressing the 1689-1692 Jacobite Rising and was for ...

(1648–1707). Their son

John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair Field Marshal John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair (20 July 16739 May 1747) was a Scottish soldier and diplomat. He served in the Nine Years' War and the War of the Spanish Succession and, after a period as British Ambassador in Paris, became a ...

(1679–1747), served as ambassador to the French court at

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...

from 1715 to 1720. Inspired by the formal style of the

gardens of Versailles The Gardens of Versailles (french: Jardins du château de Versailles ) occupy part of what was once the ''Domaine royal de Versailles'', the royal demesne of the château of Versailles. Situated to the west of the palace, the gardens cover so ...

, Lord Stair set about planning a grand garden for Newliston. The architect William Adam drew up plans for a new mansion, as well as a layout for the gardens, in 1723–1725. William Adam's design for the house was never built, although the stables are probably his work. Much of the detail of the garden design, including canals, cascades and avenues, may have been the work of Lord Stair himself. Work on the gardens continued until 1744, employing up to 200 workmen. Lord Stair was an officer in the British Army, rising to the rank of Field Marshal at the

Battle of Dettingen The Battle of Dettingen (german: Schlacht bei Dettingen) took place on 27 June 1743 during the War of the Austrian Succession at Dettingen in the Electorate of Mainz, Holy Roman Empire (now Karlstein am Main in Bavaria). It was fought between a ...

(1743) and opposing the Jacobites during the

Rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745, also known as the Forty-five Rebellion or simply the '45 ( gd, Bliadhna Theàrlaich, , ), was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took pl ...

. Lord Stair's loyalty has led to suggestions that the '

Union Jack The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...

' patterned layout of "Hercules Wood" within the grounds is a celebration of his part in the victory at Dettingen. In 1747, following Lord Stair's death, Newliston was sold to London merchant Roger Hog. His son, Thomas Hog of Newliston, commissioned

, son of William Adam, to design the present house in 1789. The house then became the home of

James Maitland Hog James Maitland Hog of Newliston and Kellie FRSE DL (7 August 1799 – 1 August 1858) was a Scottish advocate and landowner. He owned Newliston House and its estates, an impressive mansion by Robert Adam. Early life James Maitland Hog, o ...

, Roger's grandson. The landscape designer

William Sawrey Gilpin William Sawrey Gilpin (4 October 1762 – 4 April 1843) was an English artist and drawing master, and in later life a landscape designer. Biography Gilpin was born at Scaleby Castle, Cumbria on 4 October 1762, the son of the animal painter Sa ...

worked on improvements to the grounds in the 1830s, during which time the

Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway was authorised by Act of Parliament on 4 July 1838. It was opened to passenger traffic on 21 February 1842, between its Glasgow Queen Street railway station (sometimes referred to at first as Dundas Street) and ...

was built through the south-west corner of the Newliston parks. The East Lodge, on the B800 road, was built in 1848, probably to the designs of

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 ...

. The house remains in the ownership of Roger Hog's descendants, and is open to the public during the summer. A ride-on miniature railway runs through the grounds.

References

External links

*{{commonscatinline, Newliston Category A listed buildings in Edinburgh Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes Listed houses in Scotland Robert Adam buildings Houses completed in 1789 1789 establishments in Scotland