WIP · World in Pocket

Dumfries House

East Ayrshire, GB

Dumfries House

Dumfries House is a Palladian country house in Ayrshire, Scotland. It is located within a large estate, around two miles (3 km) west of Cumnock. Noted for being one of the few such houses with much of its original 18th-century furniture still present, including specially commissioned Thomas Chippend

ale pieces, the house and estate is now owned by and serves as the headquarters for The King's Foundation, a charity which maintains it as an educational centre, visitor attraction, and hospitality and wedding venue. Both the house and the gardens are listed as significant aspects of Scottish heritage. The estate and an earlier house were originally called Lefnoreis Castle, owned by a branch of the Craufurds of Loudoun. The present house was built in the 1750s for William Dalrymple, 5th Earl of Dumfries, by John and Robert Adam. Having been inherited by the 2nd Marquess of Bute in 1814, it remained in his family until 2007 when the 7th Marquess sold it. Due to its significance and the risk of the furniture collection being distributed and auctioned, in 2007 the estate and its contents were purchased by a consortium headed by Charles, Prince of Wales, including a £20m loan from the Prince...

Listen to the audio guide for Dumfries House Free on WIP — starts by itself when you arrive, even with the screen off

Nearby