Overview of Melville Castle

Melville Castle is located a mile (1.5 km) northeast of Lasswade and lies with a 20 ha (50 acre) wooded estate on the banks of the River North Esk. Described as a "three storey toy fort", it was built between 1786 and 1791 by James Playfair (1755-94) for Henry Dundas, Viscount Melville (1742 - 1811), Scotland's virtual ruler in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Visitors have included Queen Victoria and George IV. Once derelict, reduced to a shell, it has been sympathetically renovated and was re-opened as a hotel in 2003.