Ballumbie is a residential area on the north-east edge of

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

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 ...

. The area was formerly an estate centred on Ballumbie Castle, a mid-16th-century fortification, which was followed by the 19th-century Ballumbie House. There is also a golf course surrounded by a medieval wall and the site of a late medieval parish church. The castle and house are located just outside the City of Dundee, in

Angus Angus may refer to: *Angus, Scotland, a council area of Scotland, and formerly a province, sheriffdom, county and district of Scotland * Angus, Canada, a community in Essa, Ontario Animals * Angus cattle, various breeds of beef cattle Media * ...

Ballumbie Castle

Ballumbie Castle was built by the Lovell family. The

Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) was an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government that was "sponsored" inanced and with oversightthrough Historic Scotland, an executive ...

record the date of construction as 1545, although

Historic Scotland Historic Scotland () was an executive agency of the Scottish Government, executive agency of the Scottish Office and later the Scottish Government from 1991 to 2015, responsible for safeguarding Scotland's built heritage and promoting its und ...

give a date of 14th–15th century. The castle comprised a rectangular enclosure, approximately on a side, with round corner towers, overlooking the Fithie Burn. In the early 17th century it passed to the Maule family, who became

Earls of Panmure Earl of Panmure was a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1646 for Sir Patrick Maule, a former Gentleman of the Bedchamber to James VI and loyal follower of Charles I. He was made Lord Brechin and Navar at the same time, also in t ...

in 1646. The castle was reported as being ruined by 1682, although the remaining east and south walls were later incorporated into the stable block of Ballumbie House. Today the castle is a ruin again, in private ownership. Access is prohibited beyond the castle's security fencing for reasons of personal safety. The lands surrounding Ballumbie Castle are known as the Ballumbie Castle Estate, and the lands of Ballumbie Castle remain the

caput A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may not ...

of this property. These are distinct from the lands of Ballumbie, which were last in the possession of Robert Williamson of Ballumbie, hence there is a

Laird Laird () is a Scottish word for minor lord (or landlord) and is a designation that applies to an owner of a large, long-established Scotland, Scottish estate. In the traditional Scottish order of precedence, a laird ranked below a Baronage of ...

of Ballumbie Castle as well as a Laird of Ballumbie.

Ballumbie House

In 1810, the Ballumbie House was constructed adjacent to the castle, for David Miller. It was a two-storey classical house, with an ice house and stable block, pond complete with flamingos which incorporated the remaining parts of Ballumbie Castle. By 1902, the house was the property of Alexander Gilroy, a merchant, who commissioned architect James Findlay to carry out alterations. The house was remodelled in an

Arts and Crafts The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the Decorative arts, decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and ...

Scottish Baronial Scottish baronial or Scots baronial is an architectural style of 19th-century Gothic Revival which revived the forms and ornaments of historical architecture of Scotland in the Late Middle Ages and the Early Modern Period. Reminiscent of Scot ...

style. It was converted for use as a hotel, operating from 1965 to 1981, after which a fire in 1982 gutted the building. After over twenty years as a roofless shell, the house was rebuilt as flats, while some 230 houses were constructed in the grounds.

Ballumbie parish church

First mentioned in 1470, the parish church of Ballumbie is last mentioned about a century later. Until recently its precise location remained unknown. Excavations carried out by SUAT Ltd in 2006 ahead of routine land-stripping for a new housing project uncovered burials associated with a stone building. The excavation revealed a simple rectangular stone building measuring , with both internal burials and an external graveyard. A

chantry A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a set of Christian liturgical celebrations for the dead (made up of the Requiem Mass and the Office of the Dead), or # a chantry chapel, a b ...

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

or ''laird's aisle'' measuring c. square was attached to the south-east side. Such chapels allowed the

laird Laird () is a Scottish word for minor lord (or landlord) and is a designation that applies to an owner of a large, long-established Scotland, Scottish estate. In the traditional Scottish order of precedence, a laird ranked below a Baronage of ...

and his family to be buried away from the commoners. In the case of Ballumbie, the lairds were probably the Lovell family at this time. This family are recorded as the

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of struc ...

owners of Ballumbie during the 12th century and they may have been the beneficiaries of a

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

-style plantation of new overlords by King

David I David I may refer to: * David I, Caucasian Albanian Catholicos c. 399 * David I of Armenia, Catholicos of Armenia (728–741) * David I Kuropalates of Georgia (died 881) * David I Anhoghin, king of Lori (ruled 989–1048) * David I of Scotland ...

. Their former castle stands about half a mile from the church, which they may have founded. Excavations also revealed a previously unknown, Christian long

cist In archeology, a cist (; also kist ; ultimately from ; cognate to ) or cist grave is a small stone-built coffin-like box or ossuary used to hold the bodies of the dead. In some ways, it is similar to the deeper shaft tomb. Examples occur ac ...

cemetery, underlying the medieval church buildings, containing the remains of several adults and children.

References

External links

Ballumbie Castle Estate Website

Ballumbie Castle Golf Course Website
{{authority control Castles in Angus, Scotland Villages in Angus, Scotland Areas of Dundee Churches in Angus, Scotland Category B listed buildings in Angus, Scotland