Across the centuries, Neidpath has been home to generations of the Fraser, Hay, and Douglas families. And for over 200 years, the estate has been privately owned by the Wemyss family. The true beauty of Neidpath is that very little has changed over the years. The rugged stone walls, hidden staircases, and beautiful views from the battlements would all be very familiar to its formers residents. Outside, the ancestral emblems are clear to see in the archways and carvings around the castle. Inside, the burnished wooden floors bear the indents from the spurs of the gentlemen’s boots.
A LITTLE OF THE CASTLE’S LONG HISTORY
Neidpath is a rare example of a fortified tower house, and amazingly preserved. Unlike other medieval strongholds, the castle has survived through the centuries and even endured times of neglect. By 1790, the upper storeys of the tower’s wing had collapsed, and it’s partly due to a fortuitous change in the line of inheritance that the remaining structure has been successfully maintained and improved to this day.
THE WEMYSS ARE PART OF THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF NEIDPATH
On the death of the unmarried 4th Duke of Queensberry in 1810, the castle, along with the Earldom of March, was inherited by Francis Charteris, 6th Earl of Wemyss. The Wemyss family have taken great care to protect Neidpath, and today it retains much of its original medieval character, including the vaulted ceiling of the Laigh Hall. The later additions to the castle have also been preserved, including the Great Hall with its panelled walls and fabulous artworks portraying the life of Mary Queen of Scots, who stayed at the castle in 1563.
THE STORY STARTS WITH THE FRASERS
Sir Gilbert Fraser founded the early castle, around 1190. The last Fraser to own Neidpath was Sir Simon. He was known as 'The Patriot', for his astonishing feat of conquering the English in battle three times in one day, at Roslyn Glen. He commanded just 8,000 men, in the face of an English army three times that size. He was executed in London, a year after Sir William Wallace, in 1306. The castle also suffered – being burnt to the ground by the English, leaving Simon’s daughter Mary to inherit a ruin.
ROYAL VISITS, IN THE TIME OF THE HAYS
The barony of Neidpath passed to the Hay family through the marriage of Mary Fraser to Sir Gilbert Hay, in 1312. It is thought Sir William Hay built the present castle in the late 14th century. And Neidpath stayed in the family until 1686. During their ownership, Neidpath was visited by Mary, Queen of Scots in 1563, and by James VI in 1587. Following damage to the tower during Oliver Cromwell's invasion of Scotland in 1650, John Hay, the 1st Marquis of Tweeddale, remodelled the castle and constructed the outbuildings in the 1660s. He also planted an avenue of yews, of which one side remains. Despite good intentions, he was declared bankrupt and sold Neidpath to William Douglas, the 1st Duke of Queensberry, in 1686.
MIXED FORTUNES, WITH THE DOUGLAS FAMILY
In 1693 William Douglas, the 1st Duke of Queensberry, gave the castle to his second son – who later became the 1st Earl of March, and married Lady Jean Hay, the daughter of the bankrupt Marquis of Tweeddale. One of their daughters may have been the sorrowful ‘Maid of Neidpath’, who inspired the verse of both Sir Walter Scott and Thomas Campbell. Alterations to the castle took place in the 18th century, under the 2nd Earl of March. After the 3rd Earl of March inherited the title and estates of the Duke of Queensberry in 1778, he let Neidpath to tenants, including the philosopher and historian Adam Fergusson. Sir Walter Scott spoke to William Wordsworth about having spent cheerful days at Neidpath with Fergusson. The 4th Duke - also William Douglas - was one of the wealthiest landlords, but cared nothing for his lands or Neidpath itself. In 1795, he ruthlessly cut down all the trees and demolished the beautiful hanging gardens that sloped down to the Tweed. He was famously humiliated for doing this by William Wordsworth, in a sonnet written after the poet’s visit in 1803.