Sites
to See
|
Castles
& Towers of Scotland |
| Location: |
Fyvie, Turriff, Aberdeenshire. OS Map
29: NJ 764393. |
| Status: |
Lived In |
| Owner: |
National Trust for Scotland |
| Facilities: |
Gardens, Guidebooks, Graftshop,
Toilets, Cafe |
| Tel. |
01651 891266 |
| Open: |
Apr, May, Jun
and Sept, Fri-Tues, 12pm - 5pm. |
|
July and Aug,
daily 11am - 5pm |
| Entry Fee: |
Adult £7.00,
Adult Group £5.60, Child Group £1.00 |
|
Family
£19.00 |
Now
a great Z-plan castle, the oldest part of Fyvie dates from the 13th century.
Each successive laird has added to the building, to give the Preston, Meldrum, Seton,
Gordon and Leith towers, in order of erection. Each alteration seems to have added a new
kitchen, the older one being converted into something else – the billiard room for
example.
The gallery and drawing room
in the Leith and Gordon towers, dating from 1900, are two of the finest Edwardian rooms in
Britain, having a barrel-vaulted ceiling and pipe organ. The great wheel stair, ten feet
wide, is also notable, and built by the 1st Earl of Dunfermline. The whole
building is covered with the arms of Lord Leith’s ancestors.
The castle has a curse,
causing the death of the laird and blindness of his wife should he try and enter the
secret chamber below the Charter Room. In this room is a case containing a ‘Weeping
Stone’, which over the centuries has oozed water at intervals.
Alexander Leith made
his fortune in the Illinois Steel Company. He bought the castle in 1885 for £175,000.
There are many American associations with the building. Sir Andrew Forbes-Leith sold Fyvie
to the Trust in 1984 |
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