Manderston House Stables, near Duns - geograph

Manderston House, Duns,

Berwickshire Berwickshire ( gd, Siorrachd Bhearaig) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in south-eastern Scotland, on the English border. Berwickshire County Council existed from 1890 until 1975, when the area became part of th ...

, Scotland, is the home of The Rt Hon. The 4th Baron Palmer. It was completely rebuilt between 1901 and 1903 and has sumptuous interiors with a silver-plated staircase. The proprietor,

Sir James Miller, 2nd Baronet Sir James Percy Miller, 2nd Baronet, (22 October 1864 – 22 January 1906) was a British soldier, known as a racehorse owner. Over the 17 years when he had horses in training, Miller won 161 races, worth £114,005. Life Miller was the eldest su ...

(1864–1906), told the architect,

John Kinross John Kinross (3 July 1855 – 7 January 1931) was a Scottish architect. He was particularly skilled in traditional styles and was highly involved in the restoration of historic buildings, researching his subjects well before any project. Biogra ...

, that there was no budget: "It doesn't matter". The house is 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 I ...

and the surrounding area, which includes the farm complex at

Buxley Buxley is a hamlet in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. Its world famous for its "buxley blend" rat paste, ratting farms and large scale rat mince proccesing factories It is adjacent to Manderston House, east of Duns, Scottish Borders. Buxl ...

, is listed 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 ...

Origins

Manderston was an estate of the powerful

Hume Hume most commonly refers to: * David Hume (1711–1776), Scottish philosopher Hume may also refer to: People * Hume (surname) * Hume (given name) * James Hume Nisbet (1849–1923), Scottish-born novelist and artist In fiction * Hume, ...

family, and their

tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strateg ...

appears on General Roy's map of 1750. Alexander Hume, of Manderston, ''

de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legall ...

'' 5th

Earl of Dunbar The title Earl of Dunbar, also called Earl of Lothian or Earl of March, was the head of a comital lordship in south-eastern Scotland between the early 12th century and the early 15th century. The first man to use the title of Earl in this earldom ...

(1651–1720), seems to be the last member of this family who owned the estate. On 14 October 1689, King William III & II confirmed the Earldom of Dunbar to him, exemplifying the previous confirmation thereof by King Charles II. The estate was later owned for a short time by the head of the

Swinton family Clan Swinton is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Lowlands.Way, George and Squire, Romily. (1994). ''Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia''. (Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, The Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs ...

, who now resides at

Kimmerghame House Kimmerghame House is a 19th-century mansion in the Scottish Borders, located south-east of Duns by the Blackadder Water. It is the seat of the Swintons of Kimmerghame, a branch of the Lowland Clan Swinton. The house was designed in the Scotti ...

nearby, and from whom the actress

Tilda Swinton Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition t ...

is descended. The present big house at Manderston incorporates the earlier Georgian house built about 1790 for Dalhousie Watherston (1752–1803).

Buildings

The original c.1790 house underwent alterations in 1870 and was then extensively remodelled by John Kinross at the start of the 20th century. It is one of several Category A listed buildings in the estate along with the stables, a boat house and a gamekeeper's cottage; all of which were built by Kinross. Kinross was also responsible for the group of buildings at

at the north of the estate. Near to the house is a Category C listed cricket pavilion. Manderston cricket club was founded in 1899 and is one of the oldest in Scotland. The pavilion, built c.1900, was renovated in 1999 as part of the club's centenary celebrations following a successful Heritage Lottery Funding bid.

Family

Sir James Miller's father,

Sir William Miller, 1st Baronet Sir William Miller, 1st Baronet, of Manderston, Berwickshire (25 March 1809 – 10 October 1887) was a British Vice-Consul at Saint Petersburg in 1842–54, and a Member of Parliament for Leith Burghs in 1859–1868, for Berwickshire 1873/74, an ...

(1809–1887), had, with his father James, made a fortune trading in Russia, mainly in

herring Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae. Herring often move in large schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Ocean ...

and

hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a botanical class of '' Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial or medicinal use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants ...

. BBC, Antiques Roadshow, Series 28, Edition 9, from Manderston He was British Vice-Consul at St. Petersburg (1842–1854), Member of Parliament for Leith (1859–1868), and Berwickshire (1873–1874).

, had married Eveline, daughter of Alfred, 4th Baron Scarsdale, and his grand house remodelling scheme was said to be to remind his wife of the splendour of her family home, Kedleston Hall. They had no children and the estate passed to his brother John Alexander Miller, 3rd Baronet, (1867–1918). He also had no children by either of his two wives, and the estate passed to his sister Amy Elizabeth Miller, the present Lord Palmer's great-grandmother. The house contains the world's largest collection of

Huntley & Palmers Huntley & Palmers is a British company of biscuit makers originally based in Reading, Berkshire. Formed by Joseph Huntley in 1822, the company became one of the world's first global brands (chiefly led by George Palmer who joined in 1841) and r ...

biscuit tins, dating back to 1868. It is open to the public on selected days only.

Films

The house has been used in several film and television productions: * '' The House of Mirth (2000 film)'' * '' The Edwardian Country House'' (

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

, 2002; shown as ''Manor House'' on PBS in the U.S., 2003) * '' Man to Man'' * ''First Night'' (2010, Scorpio Films) * '' The Awakening'' (2011, BBC Films) * ''Secrets of the Manor House'' (2012, PBS)

References

* ''Burke's Peerage & Baronetage'', 61st edition, 1899. * ''An Ordinary of Scottish Arms'', by Sir James Balfour Paul, Edinburgh, 1903 * ''Borders and Berwick'', by Charles A Strang, Rutland Press, 1994, pps:41-2.

External links