LOUDOUN CASTLE

Evening Star, Issue 20140, 3 April 1929, Page 2

LOUDOUN CASTLE

ORE QF AYRSHIRE’S MAGNIFICENT HOUSES HISTORIC ASSOCIATIONS Loudoun Castle is one of the very finest houses in Scotland, and is without doubt among the largest (writes T. Hannan, ICS.A., in the ‘Weekly Scotsman’), it is almost due east of Kilmarnock, and only about six miles distant from that town. From Glasgow it is about twenty miles distant by the most direct road, the latter part of which passes through some of the attractive scenery of the uplands on the eastern side of the County of Ayr. Loudoun Hill is about six miles east of the castle, still further into the wild country. . It is an interesting feature of the district. The Romans made war in the locality, and subjugated it as far as they were able in the time during which they occupied the country. In the neighbourhood of the hill are the remains of .a camp which is acknowledged to be Roman. At a later date the hill was made famous as the scene of one of King Robert Bruce’s victories, much needed at the time, when he defeated the Karl of Pembroke in 1307. But a greater patriot than Bruce has left his memory there also, for a little earthen fort remains to commemorate one of William Wallace’s exploits in the neighbourhood, when he and his hand of warriors lay in ambush for a well-supplied convoy which was advancing from Carlisle to the aid of the English garrison at Ayr. Not far to the north-east is the scene of tho Battle of Drumclog, dear to the memory of those who regard the Covenanters as saints without reproach. Great fighters they were, and supremely intolerant in an intolerant age. They would b© difficult to deal with if they lived now; so we may be glad that their clay is gone, while we yield to them their due tribute for oh- I stinato courage, uncompromising ad- | hereuce, to their religious beliefs, and ! their stand for freedom. AN IMPRESSIVE BLOCK.

The devivatiou of “ Loudoun ” is of interest to antiquarians, but there is no agreement among them. Some iiold that it is a combination of Celtic and Suxoii—“law” and ‘‘dun,” both meaning the same thing, a hill. This is scouted by those who hold, usually rightly, that place-names are mostly derived from the old language, and that later settlers would either adopt the old name or give a completely new name from their own language. The simplest derivation is probably the best, that the name is ‘‘ Lodau,” meaning “water-logged,” or marshy—a term quite applicable to the character of the valley of the .River Irvine, which flows through the parish. The word is fctill used in Gaelic for a waterlogged, shoe. The castle is a great and impressive block, the front view being that ot a square tower Hanked by smaller but higher square towers, slightly lower wings on each side, terminated by similar square towers at the corners. And similar characteristics are found on the other fronts.

The greatest length is from east to west, ami the best idea of this length is obtained by standing on the ground which slopes down to the. south. There is a grassy avenue on this side, from a position in which wo can see the whole of the south side.

The entrance front is nut either of the long sides, but is the comparatively narrow though really wide western face. The castle, is built on a little hill, and, accordingly, as we approach it by the avenue, we sec that there is a sudden, rapid rise to the entrance porch, on reaching which we are on a terrace; and the retaining wall ot the terrace is a considcdnble height above the ground level on the west.. Below tbo entrance porch is one story, and above this level the general frontage exhibits two stories. Viewing the building from the sides, we see a general level of three storys. high square towers. A distinguishing feature of the castle is its square towers, as already noted, which give individuality, strength, and impressiveness to Iho whole building. Tlie central part of the west front, which contains the entrance porch, rises one story above the rest of that frontage. On each side of it rise high, square towers, with battlement tops on ornamental broken corbelling. The top of the doorway is a Norman arch, and on each side of the doorway is a window of almost the same height; while above tlio doorway, extending from tower to tower, is a stone balcony supported on very ornamental stone corbels-, a protecting wall supporting two atone slabs containing coats of arms in low relief. The two rows of windows above, each row consisting of three windows, have also Norman arches, the ornamentation above each row being varied from that below, (n the high towers there is one window in each story, that in the middle story being square-headed, while the others have flattened arches.

On each side of this main part is a winq, flunked by a square tower, lower than those or the centre portion, but similar in design. Each story in these wings contains three windows, those on tho lower story arched, while thos;e above are square-headed. The windows in the side towers have Gothic arches, with a square-headed ornamentation line above them. The top line of the whole castle is hattlorncnted on all sides. This gives a fairly complete description of the appearance of the entrance trout.

When wo proceed to look at the long sides, which are the north and south fronts, we find that the square towers which tlank the western frontage are duplicated, the space between them at

the sides containing one large window, with two mullions, on each story. This characteristic feature is found at each corner of tho vast building, so that there are eight square towers at the four corners, and two larger towers of the same form in front. • CASTLE WITHIN A CASTLE. But the eastern face is tho most interesting. From tho centre of that face rises a mighty tower of seven stories, on each side of which is a tower similar in shape and height to the main towers on the west front. In the interior of the great block is a part which rises higher than the general level, and this interior part—a castle within a castle—has a round lower at each corner, rising from the foundation. We have thus a building containing thirteen square towers and four round towers, all large: while this is without counting four low square towers on flanking positions of tho east face. Tho mighty tower already mentioned is the principal tower of the castle. It is surmounted by circular turrets corbelled out from the topmost story, and it carries the flagstaff. On this cast side runs a stream in a deep bed, crossed by a strong storm bridge, on the other side of which is a gateway, hattlemented and warded, with its portcullis. This part is most picturesque and striking. HANDSOME STA IB CASE. The interior of the building is as impressive as the exterior'. On entering by the west doorway we find ourselves in an extensive hall. In front is a very handsome stair, which branches to left and right and leads to the first floor. All this part is lighted by a largo circular roof window. The gallery, which is above the hall, is supported on handsome columns. As we stand facing the stairs we are looking cast . On the ground floor on each side wo see two long corridors extending from west to east.

The dining room is on our left, and the drawing room on the opposite side. Many articles of inter ost arc visible. On each side of tho stairway are suits of armour. That further to the right is said to have been the armour of an Earl of Huntingdonwho was Lord President of the North in Queen Elizabeth’s day. Ho was Henry Hastings, third Earl of Hunting don, and one of the peers who had charge of Alary Queen of Scots. A huge two-handled sword said to have been the lanious sword of Sir William W allacc, is another prized relic in the hall. The two corridors have windows on flic inner sides, looking into a court. On their outer sides arc rooms. II wc take that on the south side we shall find a very interesting room just behind the Earl of Huntingdon’s armour. It is the breakfast room, the walls of which are covered with an Indian garden paper brought from India by Hie late peer’s great-grand-mother/ Outside the window cf this room is a, celebrated yew tree. It is stated that it was to avoid removing this tree, that Ihc front of the present castle was made to lace west instead of south. The tree is supposed to be 800 years old. Family charterswere signed under it i i the reign of William the Lion, which carries ns back beyond the year 1200; and one of the copies of the Treaty of Union was signed lor the district under its branches. NOTABLE FEATURES.

There is hardly any room which is not interesting, either for itself or for some painting or historic, object which it contains. The drawing room contains a marble fireplace, above which is a vi / long panoramic painting representing the progress which tho Alarqnis of Hastings made through the Western Provinces of India as Governor-General in 181 A. The walls of this room are blue arid gold, while the ceiling of decorative plaster is white and gold. On the first floor are corridors similar to those below, and the library on this floor is remarkable for its length of 100 ft. It has pillars at either end, but there is not a supporting pillar to the ceiling except those at I lie ends. The, floor space is usually dorr, and many splendid balls have been given there; but its character of library is sustained by the walls being covered with books, and it is a, very extensive storehouse of literary works.

There is a large number of interesting paintings in tho castle, niost_ ol them portraits of historical celebrities. On the first floor, just above the stair, ns wo look east, there are three interesting paintings, that in Iba middle being the famous Marquess of Hastings who was Governor-General of India, while on the left, is a Lady ,Stanley, and on the right a Countess of Huntingdon. Under the_ Marquess hanging just where the stair divides, is a portrait of the ninth Earl of Huntingdon. 'There is a portrait of Gideon .Loudoun, an A us’dan Count, one of Maria Teresa’s most .successful marshals. ALAN RAMSAY'S VISIT. There is a painting of Alan Ramsay the poet, by his son. The poet, was a guest, of the fourth Earl of Loudoun at the castle, and at the suggestion of the Earl, ho wrote ‘ The Lass of Pafie's Mill, 1 a poem of four stanzas;—The lass o’ Patio’s Mill, Sae bonny, blithe, and gay, Ju spite of all my skill, She stole my heart away, When tending of the hay, Bareheaded on the green, Love midst her locks did play, And wanton’d in her e'en. O had I all (he wealth Hopetoun’s high mountains fill, Insured long life and health, And pleasure at my will, I’d promise and fulfil. That none but bonnie she, The lass o’ Patie's Mill, Should share the same wi’ me. These are the first ami the last stanzas, and the others are neither better nor worse. Among the famous pictures is one of Charles I. by Vandyke. When Cromwell’s soldiers occupied the eastle they slashed the canvas with their swords. 'The marks make it specially interesting. THE GROWTH OF THE CASTLE. There must have been a castle of some sort on this site since the twelfth century. 'There is a belief that “ tho old castle of Loudoun 11 was burned bv the Kennedy's six of seven centuries ago. Architects recognise in the present building a keep of the fifteenth century embodied in the present structure, with only_ a small part of the exterior visible in the court. Several carved stones of the keep are on the west side of the court. There is also a seventeenth century part, of which at least the basement remains, and this seem to have been built on the south-east part of the present site. It was built by the first Earl, who died in 1662.