Traquair House is claimed to be the oldest continually inhabited house in Scotland. Whilst not strictly a castle, it is built in the style of a fortified mansion. It pre-dates the Scottish Baronial style of architecture, and may have been one of the influences on this style. The estate contains the famous Traquair Brewery.

The house is built on the site of a hunting seat used by the Scottish kings from the 12th century, though no part of the present building can be dated with certainty before the 15th century. Alexander I was the first Scottish king to stay and hunt at Traquair.

Over the next two centuries Traquair's ownership changed often, at times coming under the control of the English, and at others, the Scottish throne. Traquair remained the family seat of the Earls of Traquair from 1491 for the next four centuries.

Traquair is a 50-room house mainly dating from teh 16th-19th centuries. There is a Roman Catholic chapel built in 1829, following the Catholic emancipation. The 18th-century library contains more than 3,000 volumes. Although three lairds made alterations to the house prior to the 17th century, Traquair has changed little, architecturally, since then.

References:

Comments

Your name



Details

Founded: 15th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in United Kingdom

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.7/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Emma Barker-Sharp (4 months ago)
Traquair House was the perfect spot for our elopement. Everything about our wedding and two night stay here was perfection. It is an understatement to say it was a dream come true. Thank you so much Gillian and Angela! You made us feel so welcome and we thoroughly enjoyed the cozy room, delicious food and lovely company. I feel so lucky to have my memories of my wedding here. Thank you!
Chris Sherlock (5 months ago)
Day visit. Hard working cafe staff making fabulous food. Took two cakes for our tea. Then, I decided to buy a quiche to take away for our evening meal. It was delicious. The gardeners keep the grounds in the old walled garden well looked after and cultivated. Thanks to them, especially for looking after the dedicated rowan tree in the top far corner of the garden.
Erin Parro (5 months ago)
Unfortunately, our stay didn’t live up to expectations. While the location and gardens were great, the room lacked warmth and felt a bit worn out. We were also disappointed that guests aren’t allowed to explore the house after hours, especially since staying in a historic home was part of the appeal. Sadly, the house is showing its age—wallpaper peeling and an overall tired feel—which made it hard to justify the higher price tag. The breakfast was just okay, and the experience left us feeling more underwhelmed than expected. *As an update to my comment: I was a guest here in early October, and it was 1000% under my name - obviously, an old house will have its quirks, but you have to keep certain parts up to date for guests....
Tess Harnett (6 months ago)
If you're used to visiting houses managed by national organisations and trusts, then Traquair House will come as a very pleasant surprise. It's definitely quirky, a bit eccentric and has a wonderful warm atmosphere to it. Perhaps it's because the family still live here - Scotland's oldest inhabited house. We had wanted to visit here for some time and it didn't disappoint. It's easy to find with lots of parking and we were greeted on arrival in the car park by a very sweet dog, apparently the owner's. We had free entry as Historic House members but we did spend almost 5 hours here. At the house, we were met by Jan, one of the guides who gave us a very entertaining introductory talk and then showed us to a room playing a film giving a brief background of the house. The history and stories of the house are amazing and all credit to the guides, particularly Jan and Fraser who both have such warm enthusiasm for the house and have clearly researched extensively. I was unable to visit the upstairs as the stairs are the narrow spiral type so I visited one of the wings while my partner visited upstairs. Jan joined me and the time flew by as she talked extensively about the unusual items in the dining room plus the characters - I could have listened a lot longer, thank you, Jan! Then to the brewery shop to sample some ale (the Jacobite ale is a bit marmite!) and the usual gift shop. We then visited the cafe for lunch where, sadly, the experience was a bit of a let down. It was a warm day so all the tables outside were taken and there was little atmosphere inside. Our diet cokes were warm and my partner's toastie was barely toasted and my cullen skink was unusual, being a broth with huge undercooked pieces of potato and skinny pieces of fish. We had heard the assistant say a couple of times that they were under staffed so decided to make the best of the food but unfortunately I found a rather large bone in the soup. We did show this to the assistant who apologised. We tried some cake but it was a little stale. Service was good but we felt the bill was high for the quality of food. Back out to the gardens where we enjoyed a river walk alongside some very beautiful trees, we particularly admired the yews here. We dawdled along until we reached the house and then the walled garden where we spotted a deer munching some cake that had been dropped on the ground! All in all, we would return to visit the house and grounds but probably not the cafe.
Ali Jack (6 months ago)
We visited Traquair House for the day, the main draw card being the hedge maze - we are from Australia so don't see them much, and it was my dream to get lost in one... and we did! But we found so much more on offer there as well... So much history to absorb, beautiful grounds and outbuildings, ancient trees, super friendly and knowledgeable staff, it was an amazing day out for adults & kids alike. Have already told everyone how amazing it is, definitely recommend!
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

House of Blackheads

House of the Blackheads (Melngalvju nams) is a building situated in the old town of Riga. The original building was erected during the first third of the 14th century for the Brotherhood of Blackheads, a guild for unmarried German merchants in Riga. Major works were done in the years 1580 and 1886, adding most of the ornaments.

The structure was bombed to a ruin by the Germans June 28, 1941 and the remains demolished by the Soviets in 1948. The current reconstruction was erected from 1995 to 1999. Today the House of Blackheads serves as a museum and sometimes concert hall.