Winton Castle

Winton Castle

This is an Anglo-Scottish Renaissance mansion designed by William Wallace, King's Master Mason, built between 1620 and 1627. Major additions in the Tudor style were made to the north and west around 1805 by John Paterson.

The original 17th century mansion is constructed of sandstone rubble with white painted harling, ashlar stair towers, and ashlar dressings. It features string courses, moulded eaves, cornices, and ornate barley sugar chimneystacks. The 19th century additions are in sandstone ashlar with base, string and band courses, hoodmoulded openings, and crenellated parapets.

The 17th century building follows an L-plan with a main block running east to west, a northeast jamb, and a square plan stair tower to the northeast. A semi-octagonal stair tower is set in the re-entrant angle between these elements. The ground and first floor of the north and west elevations are largely obscured by the later additions.

The north and south elevations are three-storey. The south elevation has a basement on falling ground down to the River Tyne. A circular stair turret adjoins the northeast tower at 2nd floor level in the re-entrant angle, topped with an ogival leaded roof and small windows. Above this sits a square four-stage tower with strapwork ornament to the cornice and an observation platform, topped with a Renaissance balustrade. The semi-octagonal tower below has four stages with an ogival roof deliberately set askew, decoratively cut ornate slates, and a gilded finial.

The second floor windows generally have pilastered rybats, some fluted, with ornate strapworked pediments that break the eaves as dormerheads. An oval oculus appears in the gablehead of the east elevation. The plan is one room deep with the northeast jamb one bay deep. Three bays are grouped closely at the centre of the south elevation with a further bay to the outer right. Tall ornate barley sugar chimneystacks in groups of three to five stand at gable and wallheads with great variety of ornamental carving. Crowstepped gables finish the building.

The 19th century additions to north and west include single-storey construction with basements. The north addition has a canted two-stage entrance bay at its centre. The west elevation addition has no basement recess. Octagonal crenellated towers of two and three stages close each addition, with hoodmoulded lancets that are blind in the upper stages. A rectangular porch projects from the canted bay to the north, featuring angle buttresses and a moulded pointed-arch doorway. Taller windows occupy the ground floor. Stone mullioned tripartities appear on the west elevation at principal floor level, flanking a canted bay set off-centre to the left. Piend roofs sit behind the parapets, with a flat leaded roof and conical skylights above the projecting entrance bay. Small and square-pane glazing patterns feature in the sash and case windows. Grey slates cover the roofs. A cast and wrought-iron balcony spans the principal floor to the south, mounted on a coped ashlar parapet with cast-iron columns and decorative railings.

The interior contains outstanding 17th century decoration. The library, known as King Charles's Room, contains the finest early 17th century plaster ceiling and a chimneypiece of large proportions. This chimneypiece bears what was probably originally the pediment over the entrance door, moved here around 1805. The flue is thought to have belonged to an earlier castle that stood on the site before the 1620s work. The drawing room, formerly the great hall, includes a similarly magnificent chimneypiece and strapwork plaster ceiling. Fine strapwork plaster ceilings appear in the bedrooms with ornate panels. Stone wheel stairs serve the building. The 19th century addition's vaulted inner vestibule features Tudor decoration. The Dining Room has a decorative plaster cavetto cornice with apsidal ends and decoratively carved classical chimneypieces. Notable fittings and furnishings, many of early date, are retained throughout.

The walled garden gate, probably 18th century, features decorative wrought-iron work with wide side panels and an overthrow crowned by a fleur-de-lys finial, sited to the south of the garden. The terrace and railings include squared and snecked sandstone walls to the south. A round-arched Renaissance balustrade spans to the east beyond an octagonal pavilion. A summer pavilion with hoodmoulded lancets and slated ogival roof is linked to the castle by a further balustrade parapet of different design. Decorative cast and wrought-iron railings finish the terraces and basement recesses at the north.