A picnic spot where Queen Victoria enjoyed spending time during her visits to Balmoral has been saved from ruin by the National Trust for Scotland.
The picnic cottage in woodlands near Linn of Quoich on Mar Lodge Estate, Scotland’s largest national nature reserve, close to Braemar, has been restored to its former glory with contractors completing the building work this autumn.
The conservation charity developed the plans for the restoration work early last year in collaboration with Moxon Architects and Aberdeenshire Council’s planning department granted listed building consent in September 2023.
Brudene Joinery were then contracted to carry out the work and started in June 2024, initially focus on clearing rubble from inside the dwelling.
Work was then done to repoint mortar and harling on the cottage walls, dismantling dormer windows and installing doors, windows and floors to make it watertight and accessible.
They then repaired the fabric in the building and added a covered wooden porch to the exterior of the property to help reinstate the cottage’s original features that were discovered during research into the project.
The building had initially been built by Princess Louise – the granddaughter of Queen Victoria - around 1850 but fell into a poor state and the Trust acquired it from Mar Lodge Estate in 1975.
David Frew, the National Trust for Scotland head of Mar Lodge Estate, believes restoring it to the former glories of its heyday when the royal family would regularly visit is a great thing for the country.
He said: “Our archival research and subsequent archaeological survey showed that there used to be a porch on the property, with our archaeologists discovering post holes for the structure during research on site.
“We have tried to reinstate this sympathetically with the help of our architects Moxon and archival architectural drawings, so that it’s in keeping with the rest of the property and the 19th century period when it was originally constructed.
“The cottage, built by Princess Louise, the granddaughter of Queen Victoria, around 1850, was saved from disrepair after it was placed on the Buildings at Risk register.
“The property was in a poor state when the Trust acquired Mar Lodge Estate in 1975, and subsequent works had taken place to stabilise its condition including fixing walls and installing a new roof and shingles in the past.
READ MORE
-
'Digital-first' Gaelic language production launched by BBC Alba and BBC Scotland
-
Fiddle played by Robert Burns to be used in US performance for first time
-
Tam Shepherd's last vanishing act: Farewell to Glasgow's cave of magic and laughter
“The building is a fascinating look back at how the royals used to spend their free time and we’re incredibly proud to see it restored to how it was in its heyday when Queen Victoria and the royal family would holiday in Balmoral.
“We’re excited to welcome visitors to experience the new cottage when it officially reopens in 2025 where they will be able to engage with its history. New information boards will be added, and specially commissioned furniture created where they can relax and immerse themselves in the surrounding woodland and nature.
“I’d like to say a huge thank you to our members and supporters as well as the generosity of our colleagues at the NTS USA Foundation who have made this project possible. This project contributes to the Trust’s objective, outlined in our 10- year Nature, Beauty & Heritage for Everyone strategy, to stabilise and improve the condition of our heritage buildings and structures, ensuring their longevity through restoration and conservation to ensure that they survive for the enjoyment of future generations.”
The cottage is accessed by a footpath leading from the car park at the end of the public road on the estate, with 15 parking spaces currently available.
Andrew Macpherson, Director of Moxon Architects, said: “As an architecture practice deeply invested in the region's heritage, we have proudly worked with The National Trust for Scotland to preserve a significant piece of local heritage on the Mar Lodge Estate.
"Our comprehensive survey of the existing structure enabled us to adopt an approach that required minimal interventions while being durable and resilient – something key to the building’s remote location, challenging climate, and role as a visitor attraction.
"We worked closely with the Local Planning Authority and conservation specialists to successfully balance preservation and modernisation to safeguard the building’s history and ensure its 'fairytale' charm remains intact for years to come.”
Further information about Mar Lodge Estate is available on the National Trust for Scotland website, https://www.nts.org.uk/visit/places/mar-lodge-estate.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel