Barnbougle Castle

Barnbougle Castle
©2022 Gazetteer for Scotland

Barnbougle Castle

Situated just a third of a mile (0.5 km) to the north of Dalmeny House, on the shores of the Firth of Forth, Barnbougle Castle was the original home of the Earls of Rosebery. It is a 13th Century tower house, built for the Moubrays, who were Norman knights and crusaders that had come to Britain with William the Conqueror. The Roseberys acquired the estate in 1662 but abandoned Barnbougle for the more comfortable surroundings of Dalmeny in 1817. The plan had been that Robert Adam, the celebrated architect, should extend and modernise the castle, but the family preferred a new site set back from this exposed location by the river.

However, in 1881, Archibald Primrose, the 5th Earl of Rosebery (1847 - 1929), who became British Prime Minister, rebuilt and extended the Castle as a retreat. The main function of the restored castle was to hold his extensive library; the living space was relatively modest.

Barnbougle remains a residence of the Rosebery family, lying within Dalmeny Park.


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