Kinmount House is a 19th-century country house in the parish of

Cummertrees Cummertrees is a coastal village and civil parish of Annandale in the historical county of Dumfriesshire in Dumfries and Galloway. It lies about inland, on the Pow Water to the northwest of Powfoot, from Dumfries and from Annan. Etymology ...

in the historic county of

Dumfriesshire Dumfriesshire or the County of Dumfries or Shire of Dumfries (''Siorrachd Dhùn Phris'' in Gaelic) is a historic county and registration county in southern Scotland. The Dumfries lieutenancy area covers a similar area to the historic county. I ...

Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the counties of Scotland, historic counties of ...

region,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. It is located west of Annan. The house was designed by

Sir Robert Smirke Sir Robert Smirke (1 October 1780 – 18 April 1867) was an English architect, one of the leaders of Greek Revival architecture, though he also used other architectural styles. As architect to the Board of Works, he designed several major ...

for the 6th Marquess of Queensberry and completed in 1820. It is protected as a category A

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

, and the grounds are included on 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 conti ...

History

The lands of Kinmount were granted to the Carlyle family in the 13th century and acquired by William Douglas, 1st Earl of Queensberry, in 1633. The 4th Duke of Queensberry carried out extensive planting on the estate in the late 18th century. On his death in 1810, Kinmount passed to the 6th Marquess of Queensberry, who commissioned a new house from the English architect

. The

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

house was built between 1813 and 1820, with Smirke's assistant

William Burn William Burn (20 December 1789 – 15 February 1870) was a Scottish architect. He received major commissions from the age of 20 until his death at 81. He built in many styles and was a pioneer of the Scottish Baronial Revival,often referred t ...

acting as executant architect. The masonry was carved by John Park using stone brought from Cove quarry near

Kirkpatrick-Fleming Kirkpatrick-Fleming (Scottish Gaelic: Cill Phàdraig) is a village and civil parish in Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. It is located between the Kirtle Water and the A74(M) motorway, the Solway Firth, and the Cumbrian hills are visibl ...

. In 1896, The 9th Marquess of Queensberry sold Kinmount to Edward Brook, a wealthy English industrialist who had bought the adjacent

Hoddom Castle Hoddom Castle is a large tower house in Dumfries and Galloway, south Scotland. It is located by the River Annan, south-west of Ecclefechan and the same distance north-west of Brydekirk in the parish of Cummertrees. The castle is protected as a ...

estate in the 1870s. Brook commissioned alterations and extensions to the house from Dumfries architects

James Barbour James Barbour (June 10, 1775 – June 7, 1842) was an American slave owner, lawyer, politician and planter. He served as a delegate from Orange County, Virginia in the Virginia General Assembly, and as speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates. ...

and J. M. Bowie. These included the roof balustrades and urns and the service court to the northwest. The house found use as Kinmount

Auxiliary Hospital Auxiliary may refer to: * A backup site or system In language * Auxiliary language (disambiguation) * Auxiliary verb In military and law enforcement * Auxiliary police * Auxiliaries, civilians or quasi-military personnel who provide support of ...

during both the First and Second World Wars. In 1983 the house and of its ground were bought by

Ivo Pogorelić Ivo Pogorelić (also Ivo Pogorelich; born 20 October 1958) is a Yugoslav-born Croatian pianist. He is known for his sometimes unorthodox interpretations, which have brought him a sizable following and both praise and criticism from musical ...

. Between 1988 and 1998 the house was owned by

Steve Ovett Stephen Michael James Ovett, (; born 9 October 1955) is a retired British track athlete. A middle-distance runner, he was the gold medalist in the 800 metres at the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow, and set 5 world records for 1500 metres and the ...

. The house was owned by Kinmount Leisure Ltd, which rents out holiday accommodation with access to outdoor sports. The Kinmount and Hoddom estates are owned by the Brook family trust. The Brook family has begun a restoration of Kinmount and now offers wedding, and leisure accommodations. Douglas family of Kinmount Mausoleum, Cummertrees, Scotland

Douglas family of Kinmount Mausoleum, Cummertrees, Scotland

The Queensberry family burial ground is within the bounds of Kinmount House on Gooley Hill. The burial ground contains several sculptured monuments from the late-19th and early-20th centuries, a tall

Celtic cross The Celtic cross is a form of Christian cross featuring a nimbus or ring that emerged in Ireland, France and Great Britain in the Early Middle Ages. A type of ringed cross, it became widespread through its use in the stone high crosses er ...

, and is surrounded by a circular iron fence.

References

{{reflist

External links

Kinmount House
Country houses in Dumfries and Galloway Category A listed buildings in Dumfries and Galloway Listed houses in Scotland Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes