Killiechassie is a country estate and house near Weem, about one mile (two kilometres) northeast of Aberfeldy,[3] in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. The estate lies on the banks of the River Tay[4] in some 12 acres (5 hectares), about 74 miles (119 kilometres) north of Edinburgh. It was owned by the Douglas family in the latter part of the 19th century, and a new house was erected in 1865. A dovecote by the house was listed as Grade B on 9 June 1981. The house was purchased by author J.K. Rowling in 2001.
| Killiechassie | |
|---|---|
,_Aberfeldy_Home.jpg) Killiechassie, showing the house in the centre | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Town or city | Weem |
| Country | Scotland |
| Cost | £440,000[1][2] |
| Owner | privately held |
History
editThe Killiechassie Estate has existed for centuries, and historically fell within the civil parish of Logierait.[5] The name Killiechassie means "the church of the steep face" which refers to a church which stood on the hill there.[6] This was part of the earldom of Atholl and was then granted by Máel Coluim, Earl of Atholl, to Scone Abbey in the 12th century.[6]
In the 17th century the estate was owned by members of Clan Murray who became the Dukes of Atholl.[6] Later proprietors of Killiechassie included the Robertson family, who belonged to the house of Struan.[7] In 1727, the estate was owned by the Reverend Robert Stewart, who left money for a chapel to be built there. On his death in 1729 he was buried here, followed by his wife, Anne, a year later.[8] According to legend, Bonnie Prince Charlie was reputed to have sheltered in a sycamore tree here on his retreat to Inverness in 1746 during the Jacobite rising of 1745–46.[9] A small loch in the vicinity is, according to superstition, occupied by a Celtic water spirit.[10]
In 1850, the estate was documented to be held by a Miss Fleming, when it was described by poet David Millar as "almost opposite Aberfeldy, a sweet place, but capable of much greater embellishment."[11] In the later 19th century, the estate was owned by the Douglas family, and an Edward Octavius Douglas, nephew of John Douglas, 7th Marquess of Queensberry held it in 1871, and a Hannah Charlotte Douglas by 1892.[12][13] In 1865 the older house was replaced with a new one. The Laird of Killiechassie is listed in the 1956 Scottish Record Society publication A Directory of Landownership in Scotland, c. 1770, ed. Loretta Timperley.[14][10]
The house was purchased by author J.K. Rowling in 2001,[15] and she married Neil Murray there, the ceremony being held in the library on 26 December 2001.[16][17]
Architecture
edit
The current house was built in 1865. A freestanding dovecote, built from rubble at this time, is a grade B listed feature, having a "Gothic, symmetrical frontage with centre tower and pyramid roof", with jerkin-head gables.[18][19] However, the house remains classified as a Georgian property,[4] and Country Life observed that it retains the feel of a Georgian building, although with intensive alteration, and now features double-glazing, "mock-Georgian" doors, and "fake stone cladding".[20]
There are two halls, a dining room, a drawing room, a morning room, and seven bedrooms, with a two-bedroom extension on the west wing.[16] The swimming pool is covered with copper domes. Since Rowling acquired the property, she has undertaken extensive security measures, with a state-of-the-art electronic security system, including 6-foot-high (1.8-metre) gates and a CCTV camera, and guards 24 hours a day, seven days a week.[16]
Aberfeldy distillery (part of the Dewar's group), school, Castle Menzies and General Wade's bridge across the Tay at Aberfeldy are in the vicinity.
References
edit- ^ "Rowling retreats to banks of the Tay Author pays (pounds) 500,000 for historic Perthshire house". The Herald. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
- ^ "Property summary for PTH17203". ScotLIS. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
- ^ Johnston's gazetteer of Scotland: including a glossary of the most common Gaelic names, p. 141, at Google Books
- ^ a b Beahm, George; Kirk, Tim (28 February 2007). Muggles and Magic: An Unofficial Guide to J.K. Rowling and the Harry Potter Phenomenon. Hampton Roads Publishing. p. 19. ISBN 978-1-57174-542-2.
- ^ Ordnance gazetteer of Scotland: a survey of Scottish topography, statistical, biographical and historical, p. 549, at Google Books
- ^ a b c Breadalbane Historical Society, Killiechassie, Explore Scotland, archived from the original on 7 April 2014
- ^ The Art Journal, p. 54, at Google Books
- ^ Anne Beeson (9 May 2013). "Killiechassie Burial Ground". Highland Perthshire News. Archived from the original on 31 March 2014.
- ^ Tara Womersley (22 November 2001), "Rowling buys a place to potter", Daily Telegraph, archived from the original on 17 February 2017
- ^ a b Harry Potter Places Book Five—Scotland at Google Books
- ^ The Tay: A Poem, p. 124, at Google Books
- ^ Burke, Sir Bernard (1871). A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain & Ireland. Harrison. p. 363.
- ^ Shennan, Hay (1892). Boundaries of Counties and Parishes in Scotland as Settled by the Boundary Commissioners Under the Local Government (Scotland) Act, 1889. W. Green. p. 234.
- ^ A Directory of Landownership in Scotland, circa 1770. Scottish Record Society. 1956. p. 277. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
Laird of Killiechassie: Pitcastle
- ^ "Rowling puts a pile of cash on mansion". The Scotsman. 21 November 2001. Archived from the original on 19 January 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
- ^ a b c Sexton, Colleen A. (2006). J. K. Rowling. Lerner Publications. p. 94. ISBN 978-0-8225-3423-5.
- ^ J.K. Rowling: A Biography, p. 217, at Google Books
- ^ "Killiechassie, Dovecot". Britishlistedbuildings.co.uk. Retrieved 30 March 2014.
- ^ John Gifford (2007), "Doocots", Perth and Kinross, Yale University Press, p. 90, ISBN 9780300109221
- ^ Country Life. 1988. p. 64.