Ardblair Castle is an

L-plan castle An L-plan castle is a castle or tower house in the shape of an L, typically built from the 13th to the 17th century. This design is found quite frequently in Scotland, but is also seen in England, Ireland, Romania, Sardinia, and other location ...

(with an added wing), dating from the 16th century, around west of Blairgowrie in

Perth and Kinross Perth and Kinross (; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. It is bordered by Highland (council area), Highland and Aberdeenshire to the north, Angus, Scotland, Angus, Dundee, and F ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

.Coventry Martin (1997) ''The Castles of Scotland''. Goblinshead. p54 This castle is the subject of a green lady

ghostlore Ghostlore is an intricate web of Tradition, traditional beliefs and folklore surrounding ghosts and List of reportedly haunted locations, hauntings. Ghostlore has ingrained itself in the cultural fabric of societies worldwide. Defined by narrative ...

story.

History

In 1399 the property was acquired by the

Blair Blair is a Scots-English-language name of Scottish Gaelic origin. The surname is derived from any of the numerous places in Scotland called ''Blair'', derived from the Scottish Gaelic ''blàr'', meaning "plain", "meadow" or " field", frequently ...

s of Balthavock; this was by a grant by David II.Maurice Lindsay (1986) ''The Castles of Scotland''. Constable. p54 Patrick Blair of Ardblair was beheaded for the murder of George Drummond of Ledcrieff and his son, cousins of the

Earl of Atholl The Mormaer or Earl of Atholl was the title of the holder of a medieval comital lordship straddling the highland province of Atholl (''Ath Fodhla''), now in northern Perthshire. Atholl is a special Mormaerdom, because a King of Atholl is repor ...

, after a trial in 1554. Through marriage the property passed to the Oliphants of Gask in 1792, and the house remains the property of the Blair Oliphant family. Many Jacobite relics were brought to the property from Gask during the 20th century. Lady Nairne, the

songwriter A songwriter is a person who creates musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. ...

, was a frequent visitor to the castle.

Structure

It is thought that the original castle was built by the Blairs during the Norman period, on the site of a fort, with the tower at the north west being built on the foundation of part of the earlier castle. Ardblair Castle is one of the few castles which still has its courtyard. The original L-plan tower house had three storeys and an attic. There is a stair-turret, which is corbelled out to above the first storey, in the re-entrant angle. It is capped by a conical roof. The later additions form a courtyard, the north side being a wall with a central arched gateway, dated from 1668. In the centre of the courtyard there is a sundial bearing the date 1623 and with 25 dials. The entrance has an ornate panel space above it, though this has no inscription. The basement, which probably housed the kitchen, is vaulted. It has a wide fireplace; its massive chimney-stack it a notable feature of the main building's south side. The tower had a Hall on the first floor, which is now the panelled dining-room, dating from the 18th century. The interior mainly dates from the 18th century. The castle was once almost surrounded by a loch, which is now largely drained. It is a category A listed building.

Ghostlore

The castle, like many others, is said to be haunted by a 'green lady', who is dressed in green silk, and who searches the chambers of the castle. It is supposed that this is Lady Jean Drummond of Newton, who died of a broken heart having fallen in love with one of the Blairs, despite the feuds between the families. She drowned in a local marsh.

References

{{Authority control Castles in Perth and Kinross Category A listed buildings in Perth and Kinross Listed castles in Scotland Blairgowrie and Rattray Reportedly haunted locations in Scotland