Inshes Gate Lodge, Culloden Road

Inshes Gate Lodge, Culloden Road

A group of estate buildings comprising an early 19th century single-storey rectangular-plan gate lodge, a single-storey square-plan early 19th century outbuilding, and a mid-19th century entrance archway. The buildings stand by Culloden Road, northwest of the former Inshes estate, in a suburban area west of Inverness city centre.

The gate lodge is rectangular in plan, single-storey and three bays, designed in a simple classical style. It is built of rubble with painted stone margins. The principal northwest elevation is symmetrical, with a central door opening flanked by window openings. A single-storey two-bay corrugated iron lean-to with a flat roof is attached to the southwest elevation; this addition has single openings on the southeast and northeast elevations, all now boarded up. The lodge has a piended overhanging roof with a central stack and single chimney pot.

Interior photographs provided by the owner in 2020 show a cast iron fireplace in the north room. Both principal rooms feature later floor-to-ceiling timber panelling.

The neighbouring square-plan outbuilding to the southwest is single-storey and single-bay, built of rubble with a piended slated roof topped by an obelisk finial. It has a door opening on the southeast elevation and a small window opening on the southwest elevation.

The entrance archway is designed in the Scots Baronial style, featuring a crowstepped arch over a segmental arched entrance with arrow and gun loops either side. Stepped curved wings with ashlar cope stones link to the estate boundary wall. A framed armorial panel is set at the centre of the gateway above the arched entrance. The archway is built of coursed rubble sandstone with ashlar margins and details.

The Inshes estate dates to the 14th century. The oldest surviving structure is the tower house, dating to around 1600, which may incorporate fabric from a former castle. Inshes House largely dates to 1767, when it was rebuilt after being burnt down following the Battle of Culloden; the house was rebuilt at Government expense for the Robertsons of Inshes.

The gate lodge and entrance archway first appear on the 1st edition Ordnance Survey map (surveyed 1866, published 1888), depicted as a rectangular-plan building with a small square-plan outbuilding to the west and the entrance arch with curved wings joining the estate boundary walls. A southeast avenue bordered by woodland led to Inshes House, indicating this was the principal estate entrance. A porter's lodge at Inshes Estate is recorded in an 1834 account, described as the property of A.J. Robertson, Esq, located on the Highland Road from Cawdor to Inverness by Culloden Moor behind Castlehill House. The gate lodge therefore pre-dates 1834 and was likely built in the early 19th century, a date reflected in its simple symmetrical style. The small square-plan outbuilding, built in similar materials, is considered contemporary. The entrance archway, designed in a different style, appears to have been built around the mid-19th century; its Scots Baronial style is typical of that period.

The footprints of the lodge, outbuilding and entrance archway remain largely as shown on the 1st edition Ordnance Survey map, with the only change being a small rectangular extension to the southwest of the lodge, shown on the 1964 Ordnance Survey map (1:2,500). This mid-20th century corrugated iron addition is excluded from the listing. Photographs from 1983 show it as a timber addition; it was subsequently clad in corrugated iron in the later 20th or early 21st century.

The gate lodge and entrance archway formed part of the Inshes estate until the later 20th century. The lodge was listed for sale separately from Inshes House in 1977. During this period, the A9 road was built through the estate, separating Inshes House from the gate lodge and entrance archway. Google Streetview images from 2011 show the lodge openings with two-pane timber sash and case windows; these have since been boarded up and the gate lodge is not currently occupied.