Stonefield Castle is a

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 ...

manor house near the village of Stonefield, north of

Tarbert Tarbert () is a place name in Scotland and Ireland. Places named Tarbert are characterised by a narrow strip of land, or isthmus. This can be where two lochs nearly meet, or a causeway out to an island. Etymology All placenames that variously s ...

Argyll & Bute Argyll and Bute (; , ) is one of 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod (14 July 2020). The administrative centre for the council area is in Lochgil ...

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 ...

. It was built on the site of an earlier building, known as Barmore, and has been in use as a hotel since 1950.

History

The original house of Barmore was constructed by the MacAlister family, who held nearby

Tarbert Castle Tarbert Castle is located on the southern shore of East Loch Tarbert, at Tarbert, Argyll, Scotland, at the north end of Kintyre. Tarbert Castle was a strategic royal stronghold during the Middle Ages and one of three castles at Tarbert. The cas ...

as tenants of the

Duke of Argyll Duke of Argyll () is a title created in the peerage of Scotland in 1701 and in the peerage of the United Kingdom in 1892. The earls, marquesses, and dukes of Argyll were for several centuries among the most powerful noble families in Scotlan ...

. They built the new house in the early 18th century, as the castle was deteriorating, though this led to a lawsuit in 1762 brought by the Duke against the MacAlister laird for neglect. Prior to this, Archibald Campbell, Sheriff of Argyll, had purchased the Barmore estate from Archibald MacAlister of Tarback in 1746. The present castle was commissioned by John Campbell (1788-1857), grandson of John Campbell, Lord Stonefield (1720–1801), and designed by

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

architect

William Henry Playfair William Henry Playfair Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, FRSE (15 July 1790 – 19 March 1857) was a prominent Scottish architect in the 19th century who designed the Eastern, or Third, New Town, Edinburgh, New Town and many of Edinb ...

. It was completed in 1837, replacing the earlier Barmore. Playfair designed a number of buildings in the grounds, including bridges and a

folly In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but suggesting through its appearance some other purpose, or of such extravagant appearance that it transcends the range of usual garden buildings. Eighteenth-cent ...

, and may have advised on the layout of the gardens. Campbell planted a number of species of Rhododendron and Magnolia, using seeds recently acquired on botanical expeditions by

Archibald Campbell Archibald Campbell may refer to: Peerage * Archibald Campbell of Lochawe (died before 1394), Scottish peer * Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll (died 1513), Lord Chancellor of Scotland * Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll (c. 1507–1558) ...

(his cousin) and

Joseph Dalton Hooker Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (30 June 1817 – 10 December 1911) was a British botanist and explorer in the 19th century. He was a founder of geographical botany and Charles Darwin's closest friend. For 20 years he served as director of the Ro ...

in 1850. The plant collections were maintained and enhanced by later generations of Campbells, who also had gardens at Achnacloich near

Connel Connel ( Gaelic: ''A' Choingheal'') is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is situated on the southern shore of Loch Etive. The Lusragan Burn flows through the village and into the loch. The most noticeable feature in the village is Conn ...

. In 1948 the Campbells sold Stonefield, and it opened as a hotel in 1950. The castle is a category B

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

. The grounds of the house are included in the

Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes 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 conti ...

, as an "important example of a 'west coast' woodland estate landscape" of national importance, with an outstanding plant collection.

References

External links

{{commons category, Stonefield Castle Castles in Argyll and Bute Clan MacAlister Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes Category B listed buildings in Argyll and Bute