Orchardton Castle overlooks the Solway Coast. Built in the 1880s, this is a Grade B listed property formerly known as Orchardton House. Built around a Scottish Baronial-style mansion located in Auchencairn in the historical county of

Kirkcudbrightshire Kirkcudbrightshire ( ), or the County of Kirkcudbright or the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright is one of the historic counties of Scotland, covering an area in the south-west of the country. Until 1975, Kirkcudbrightshire was an administrative count ...

in Dumfries and Galloway in

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 overlooks the

Solway Firth The Solway Firth ( gd, Tràchd Romhra) is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria (including the Solway Plain) and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven ...

, with views to

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. C ...

and Hestan Island.

History

The 1761 house had been started by Sir Robert Maxwell, 7th Baronet of Orchardton, who married a MacLellan of

MacLellan's Castle MacLellan's Castle in the town of Kirkcudbright, in Galloway, Scotland, was built in the late 16th century. It stands in the centre of Kirkcudbright, on the south side of the River Dee which flows into the Solway Firth. The L-plan castle was ...

and used the roof timbers and stone from nearby

Orchardton Tower Orchardton Tower is a ruined tower house in Kirkcudbrightshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is located south of Dalbeattie, and south of Palnackie, in Buittle parish. It is remarkable as the only cylindrical tower house in Scotland. ...

to build a new house in a better location near the sea. However the work bankrupted him and in 1786 the estate came under the ownership of James Douglas, a Liverpool merchant, and eventually passed down into the hands of William Douglas Robinson-Douglas in 1878. The new owner had the small mansion removed and built the current structure in the Scottish Baronial style between 1878 and 1883. In 1944 it became a military hospital for wounded officers and into a hotel after the war. The property was advertised for sale in 1951 when it was described as comprising 1,811 acres. and sold. It remained in use as an hotel until 1960. Between 1960 and 1981, it was a school and thereafter used for residential courses and conferences and housing for artists. Sold again in 2003 to Susanda DeVere, it was renovated over the next two years, including the installation of central heating and renewal of the electric wiring. The owners fell prey to a

con artist A confidence trick is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, confidence, irresponsibility, and greed. Researchers have ...

while trying to sell the property in 2012. He is still at large in Scotland and is regularly featured in the newspapers. Its status was changed to castle in 2014, approved with Scottish heritage and government services. In late 2017, DeVere offered the property for as the grand prize in a lottery with £5 tickets. However, not enough tickets were sold and a cash prize was offered to the winners as an alternative. A complaint from someone who had not entered the competition meant that the advertising authority found against the competition. The owner appealed and also refused to accept the verdict. The Gambling Commission and the vast entrants of the competition supported her and no case was ever brought.

Description

A report in 2020 about the intended sale of the property, provided this information: "45-rooms, a cinema, library ... 20 bedrooms with more than 30 fireplaces spread out over four floors, and contains three full self-contained flats". There are also "three grand staircases, and one of them includes an original central lift". The grounds comprise five acres with "botanic gardens and woodland, a large pond and paddock, a stable block nda private beach".

Sources

*Paterson, George B L (1983). Orchardton House, Auchencairn, by Castle Douglas. University of Glasgow, Mackintosh School of Architecture: University of Glasgow.

References

{{Reflist, 30em Castles in Kirkcudbrightshire Castles in Dumfries and Galloway Listed castles in Scotland Category B listed buildings in Dumfries and Galloway