Located just inside Edinburgh's A720 Bypass, Dreghorn Barracks is the home of the 1st Battalion of The Royal Regiment of Scotland. Previously Dreghorn was home to the King's Own Scottish Borderers. The barracks also houses The Band of The Royal Regiment of Scotland, established in 2006 through merger of the Lowland and Highland bands of the Scottish Division. The band is part of the Corps of Army Music and takes part in all ceremonial events that involve the army in Edinburgh and the beyond, as required, including the Edinburgh Royal Military Tattoo. It is currently the only army band stationed in Scotland.
The modern barracks complex was begun 1937-42 and comprisies a series of white-harled two-storey blocks built in a Dutch-Scots style, with stone dressings. The barracks are situated on the estate of Dreghorn Castle, a 17th-century edifice, twice extended to become a grand Tudor-Gothic pile, the finest in Colinton. Built c.1658 by Sir William Murray, Master of Works to King Charles II, it passed through the hands of several notable owners before use as a private school in the early 20th century. It was acquired by the War Department which, following years of neglect and an unwillingness to maintain it, demolished the Castle in 1955. Much of the rubble still remains on the site. Only two gatehouses survive, in Dreghorn Loan and Oxgangs Road.
