Jacqui Cooper (Host of LoveTravelScotland & JCooperTravels) & Yvette MacDonald (Scottish Entrepreneur & Expert) are hosting travels around Scotland & visits to Castles and the Heritage Trails. In this ongoing series we are will be visiting Castles in all regions of Scotland. We will also be interviewing individuals within the local areas of the featured castles.
Balmoral Castle
Balmoral Castle (/bælˈmɒrəl/) is a large estate house in Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, owned by Queen Elizabeth II. It is near the village of Crathie, 9 miles (14 kilometres) west of Ballater and 50 miles (80 kilometres) west of Aberdeen.
Balmoral has been one of the residences of the British royal family since 1852, when the estate and its original castle were bought from the Farquharson family by Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria. Soon afterwards the house was found to be too small and the current Balmoral Castle was commissioned. The architect was William Smith of Aberdeen, and his designs were amended by Prince Albert. Balmoral remains private property of the Queen and is not part of the Crown Estate.
The castle is an example of Scottish baronial architecture, and is classified by Historic Environment Scotland as a category A listed building. The new castle was completed in 1856 and the old castle demolished shortly thereafter.
The Balmoral Estate has been added to by successive members of the royal family, and now covers an area of approximately 50,000 acres (20,000 hectares). It is a working estate, including grouse moors, forestry, and farmland, as well as managed herds of deer, Highland cattle, and ponies.
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History:
King Robert II of Scotland (1316–1390) had a hunting lodge in the area. Historical records also indicate that a house at Balmoral was built by Sir William Drummond in 1390.The estate was later tenanted by Alexander Gordon, second son of the 1st Earl of Huntly. A tower house was built on the estate by the Gordons.
In 1662, the estate passed to Charles Farquharson of Inverey, brother of John Farquharson, the "Black Colonel". The Farquharsons were Jacobite sympathisers, and James Farquharson of Balmoral was involved in both the 1715 and 1745 rebellions. He was wounded at the Battle of Falkirk in 1746. The Farquharson estates were forfeit, and passed to the Farquharsons of Auchendryne. In 1798, James Duff, 2nd Earl Fife, acquired Balmoral and leased the castle. Sir Robert Gordon, a younger brother of the 4th Earl of Aberdeen, acquired the lease in 1830. He made major alterations to the original castle at Balmoral, including baronial-style extensions that were designed by John Smith of Aberdeen.
Royal acquisition
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert first visited Scotland in 1842, five years after her accession to the throne and two years after their marriage. During this first visit they stayed at Edinburgh, and at Taymouth Castle in Perthshire, the home of the Marquess of Breadalbane.They returned in 1844 to stay at Blair Castle and, in 1847, when they rented Ardverikie by Loch Laggan. Frequent rain during the latter trip led Sir James Clark, the queen's doctor, to recommend Deeside instead, for its healthier climate.
Sir Robert Gordon died in 1847 and his lease on Balmoral reverted to Lord Aberdeen. In February 1848 an arrangement was made—that Prince Albert would acquire the remaining part of the lease on Balmoral, together with its furniture and staff—without having seen the property first.
The royal couple arrived for their first visit on 8 September 1848.Victoria found the house "small but pretty", and recorded in her diary that: "All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make one forget the world and its sad turmoils".The surrounding hilly landscape reminded them of Thuringia, Albert's homeland in Germany
Quickly, the house was confirmed to be too small and, in 1848, John and William Smith were commissioned to design new offices, cottages, and other ancillary buildings. Improvements to the woodlands, gardens, and estate buildings also were being made, with the assistance of the landscape gardener, James Beattie, and possibly by the painter, James Giles.
Major additions to the old house were considered in 1849, but by then negotiations were under way to purchase the estate from the trustees of the deceased Earl Fife. After seeing a corrugated iron cottage at the Great Exhibition of 1851, Prince Albert ordered a pre-fabricated iron building for Balmoral from E. T. Bellhouse & Co., to serve as a temporary ballroom and dining room. It was in use by 1 October 1851, and would serve as a ballroom until 1856.
The sale was completed in June 1852, the price being £32,000, and Prince Albert formally took possession that autumn. The neighbouring estate of Birkhall was bought at the same time, and the lease on Abergeldie Castle secured as well. To mark the occasion, the Purchase Cairn was erected in the hills overlooking the castle, the first of many
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The Grounds and Gardens
The formal gardens, water garden and grounds of Balmoral
The gardens, which were started under the supervision of Prince Albert, have been expanded and improved by successive members of the Royal Family.
Between 1923 and 1925 Queen Mary devised the charming garden, with a semi circular wall of rocks surrounding a fountain. The gates to this garden bear the monograms GR and MR.
The Duke of Edinburgh has extended the gardens to incorporate a large kitchen garden. The vegetable garden is harvested between August and October during the Royal Family's summer holiday.
There are eleven stone cairns on the Balmoral estate in Deeside, Scotland, and a single cairn on the adjoining Birkhall estate. The cairns commemorate members of the British royal family and events in their lives. The majority of the cairns were erected by Queen Victoria.
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