Glamis Castle

Glamis Castle

A substantial and complex fortified residence evolving from a 15th-century tower house through successive major campaigns of remodelling and extension spanning four centuries.

The 15th-century tower house underwent significant remodelling in 1606 (dated). An east wing was added in 1629, followed by the raising of the tower and addition of a west wing between 1670 and 1689. A northeast corner wing incorporating a chapel was added between 1679 and 1683 and later restored in 1866. The original west wing, demolished in 1775, was rebuilt between 1798 and 1801. A Baronial wing to the east dates from 1891, with further 20th-century modernisation undertaken by James Dunbar-Nasmith.

The castle comprises a 5-storey, L-plan main block with a central stair tower crowned by an ogee caphouse, pinnacled turrets and a roofwalk, complemented by 2-storey angle wings with basements, four bays each with battlemented parapets, outer towers and corbelled turrets. A lower 3-storey east wing with attic extends seven bays with crowsteps, and a 2-storey service wing completes the composition. The structure is built principally in red sandstone.

The main block employs coursed rubble with string courses, carved heraldic panels and windheads, corbels, and roll-moulded and chamfered arrises. The stair tower is constructed of stugged squared rubble with carved band and string courses and a crenellated parapet, featuring a pilastered and corniced ashlar doorcase, corbels, roll-moulded openings and carved heraldic panels. The angle wings incorporate some dressed and snecked squared rubble bands, raised base courses, decorative eaves cornices and battlemented parapets, with trefoil-headed basement openings, architraved windows to the first floor west elevation, horizontal gunloops, and corbels. The Baronial wing employs rubble with corbel courses and crowsteps, featuring carved pedimented windowheads and panels with roll-moulded surrounds. The rear elevations show coursed rubble with corbel courses and crenellated parapets, pedimented and crowstepped dormer gableheads, and some pointed-arch openings.

The principal south elevation of the main block is largely symmetrical. A 5-storey tower contains a 3-stage, 3-bay round stair tower to the centre set within a re-entrant angle. The centre bay has two steps rising to a pilastered doorcase with a studded timber door dated 1687 and an iron knocker, beneath a carved panel bearing the Royal Arms and a circular niche containing a bust of Patrick, 1st Earl of Strathmore. The second stage is blank, with a small corbelled turret at the third stage containing a tripartite window masked by a clock face, and a battlemented parapet giving way to a set-back ogee caphouse with flanking tall round stacks. Flanking bays present two vertically aligned windows and alternate carved panels to the first and second stages, with windows only to the third stage. The bay to the left of centre contains small openings to ground and first floors below a band of heraldic panels, a large pedimented window and further small windows above, culminating in a small corbelled turret with a tripartite window and a larger corbelled angle turret featuring three small windows and three oval openings to the outer left. A narrow bay to the right has a small window to ground and first floors below a projecting band with a pedimented heraldic panel, a further window above, and a tiny window close to the base of the corbelled angle turret.

The southeast elevation of the main block, engaged below the fourth floor, presents three vertically aligned windows—that to the centre with a carved pediment—flanked by corbelled turrets and giving way to a pierced parapet with a lion-finalled, ogee-topped gazebo. The southwest elevation mirrors the southeast but lacks the central window pediment. The north elevation of the main block features low crenellated projections to ground and first floors, with five regularly fenestrated bays to the top two floors, those of the fifth floor breaking the eaves into crowstepped dormerheads save for the centre, which rises to a further attic window; a corbelled turret occupies the outer right angle, and a corbelled caphouse with an arrowslit sits at the outer left angle.

The southeast elevation of the east wing displays four bays with three blinded basement openings below windows at each floor, a small window between bays two and three, and gunloops below the parapet. Three vertically aligned windows light a conical-roofed tower at the outer right, with a small corbelled turret at the outer left angle. A return to the left shows a variety of small asymmetrical openings and regular fenestration to the centre and right bays. The southwest elevation of the west wing mirrors the east wing arrangement, with two regularly fenestrated bays on its return to the right.

The rear (northwest) elevation presents a 3-storey and attic, 3-bay wing housing the chapel and projecting from the northeast of the main block, with a door and flanking windows at ground level, three windows above, and three 4-light transomed and mullioned chapel windows positioned high at the second floor. The outer bays have further windows breaking the eaves into dormer gableheads. Adjoining to the left is a tall 2-storey, 4-bay wing with four tall pointed-arch openings at ground and regular fenestration above. A 2-storey and attic, 8-bay later wing extends beyond to the left, featuring finialled dormer windowheads and a crowstepped gable with flanking turrets to the outer left.

Windows throughout the main block employ predominantly diamond-pattern leaded glazing in 3- and 4-light casement windows, with 12- and 24-pane glazing patterns in timber sash and case windows to the rear and decorative astragals to pointed-arch windows. The chapel and dining room contain stained glass. Grey slates cover the roofs, with coped ashlar stacks and ashlar-coped skews featuring crowsteps, moulded skewputts and stone finials. Cast-iron downpipes, decorative rainwater hoppers (some dated 1882), and decorative wrought-iron roof-walk railings and finials provide further embellishment.

The interior contains numerous historically significant rooms. The dining room dates from 1798–1801 and was furnished with a Scotch Baronial revival interior between 1851 and 1853 by the Honourable Thomas Liddell. Heraldic emblems decorate oak panelling and stained glass; the oak fireplace has paired fluted pilasters, a carved frieze, cornice and an overmantel bearing the arms of the 12th Earl of Strathmore. Fluted pilasters and friezes finish the sideboard alcove and windows, the latter also possessing decorative cresting. A fine plasterwork ceiling, originally panelled and painted with scenes from Ovid's Metamorphosis, features thistles, roses and lions.

The crypt represents the formerly lower hall of the 15th-century tower house. Its stone-flagged floor and dressed stone vault are complemented by deeply embrasured windows with stop-chamfered and moulded jambs. A 9th-century stair at the centre leads to the ground floor entrance, with a further stair serving a well; the crypt was stripped of plasterwork in the 19th century. The drawing room, formerly the Great Hall, is vaulted, measuring 60 feet by 20 feet with 8-foot-thick walls and three deeply embrasured windows. A chamber occupies the west end, set within the wall thickness and serving as a well room. A carved stone fireplace with paired caryatids flanks a heraldic overmantel bearing royal arms now displayed in heraldic colours. Plasterwork frieze and ceiling, executed by the artist responsible for Muchalls and Craigevar, are dated 1621 and bear the monograms of John (2nd Earl of Kinghorne) and Margaret Erskine.

The chapel, dating from 1679–1683 as the northeast corner wing, was lined with Joseph de Wit panel paintings in 1688 and restored in 1866. Four 4-light transomed and mullioned windows contain stained glass by Kempe of London dating from 1867–1868 and 1882–1883; the paintings were restored between 1979 and 1980 by Stenhouse Conservation Centre, Edinburgh. The billiard room, a former dining room positioned above a 16th-century kitchen, was remodelled between 1773 and 1776, with a 1903 ceiling bearing monograms and a coronet for the 13th Earl's Golden Wedding. Its carved fireplace features caryatids supporting a corniced frieze and overmantel displaying the coat of arms of the Blakistons of Gibside, from their County Durham seat of Gibside, formerly a property of the Bowes family.

King Malcolm's Room displays a plasterwork frieze and strapwork ceiling bearing the monograms of the 2nd Earl of Kinghorne and Lady Margaret Erskine, together with medallion heads of Roman characters. Its fireplace is lined with Dutch tile slips and possesses an iron fireback, carved timber and an embossed leather overmantel bearing the arms of the 2nd Earl. The royal apartments comprise a suite of rooms—the King's Room, Queen Mother's Bedroom and Sitting Room—converted following the 1923 marriage of Lady Elizabeth Bowes Lyon into the royal family. The Queen Mother's Sitting Room, formerly the Tapestry Room, retains a stone ledge at its door (possibly a sentry seat) and features a carved oak fireplace lined with blue and white Dutch tiles and an overmantel with an inset tapestry. The kitchen was formed from 16th-century barrel-vaulted cellars and underwent restoration in 1990. A newel stair dating to circa 1600 contains within its hollow newel a clock mechanism.