Ayton Castle, Scottish Borders
Ayton Castle | |
---|---|
Part of Scottish Borders | |
Near Ayton | |
Coordinates | 55°50′44″N 2°06′53″W / 55.8456°N 2.1148°W |
Type | Castle |
Site history | |
Built | c. 15th century |
Ayton Castle is located to the east of
History
The original castle, a
The estate was subsequently purchased by William Mitchell (later Mitchell-Innes) of Parsonsgreen, Edinburgh, who had been born at
In 1851 William Mitchell-Innes commissioned
Mention must be made of the visit to the castle in 1873 by Mark Twain, who insisted upon buying the dining room fireplace mantel. It is now in the Mark Twain House & Museum in Hartford, Connecticut.[4] The present castle fireplace dates from that occurrence.
Following William Mitchell-Innes's death at the castle in January 1860, it passed to his eldest son and heir, Alexander Mitchell-Innes of Ayton and Whitehall (near
Alexander Mitchell-Innes married (1) Charlotte (1818–1848), daughter of Sir Thomas Dick Lauder of Fountainhall, 7th Bt. She died in childbirth having their sixth child. He remarried (2) Fanny Augusta (1821–1902) daughter of James Vine, in Puckaster, Isle of Wight. They had a further nine children. Inevitably there were inheritance disputes. Strangely, Alexander Harold Mitchell-Innes of Ayton & Whitehall was served heir of entail to his grandfather, Alexander Mitchell-Innes of Ayton & Whitehall, on 21 November 1892. In 1895 he sold the barony of Ayton, its castle and lands, for £90,000 to Henry Liddell-Grainger of Middleton Hall, Northumberland (1856–1905). Alexander Mitchell-Innes had apparently shared his entire estate with his very large family and they were accordingly all paid out following the sale of Ayton Castle. The family retained Millbank House and grounds, not far from the castle, as well as the now-derelict Whitehall Manor, near Chirnside.
Ayton Castle was the residence of David Liddell-Grainger (1930-2007), a Scottish politician, husband of Anne Abel Smith, a descendant of Queen Victoria, and father of Ian Liddell-Grainger, a Conservative MP (b. 1959). The family sold the castle in 2015.
The castle and most of the preexisting estate is now owned by a property developer, Richard Syred, and another.[5]
References
- ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "AYTON CASTLE INCLUDING SERVICE COURTYARD, COURTYARD WALLS AND GARDEN RAMPART WALLS (Category A Listed Building) (LB1987)". Retrieved 5 March 2019.
- ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "AYTON CASTLE (GDL00033)". Retrieved 5 March 2019.
- ^ "Ayton Castle". CANMORE. Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- ^ https://journals.ku.edu/index.php/amerstud/article/viewFile/2119/2078 Pearson, Norman, "The Mark Twain Memorial in Hartford, Connecticut," American Studies, Vol. 1, No. 2: Fall 1960. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
- ^ "Outer House allows proof before answer in Berwickshire castle sale dispute".