The front of Mellerstain House looks north. An expanse of parkland and a good variety of old trees create a peaceful panorama when viewed from any window in the main house.
The east and west wings were designed by William Adam and building started in 1725. A corner stone in the east wing has the date carved into it. The west wing, the home of the 13th Earl of Haddington and his family, was originally used as stable blocks and home for staff.
Work on the main mansion house did not begin until some 45 years later. William Adam's plans for this were not implemented. His son, Robert Adam, was commissioned by George Baillie to build the main house; George had been on "the grand tour of Europe" and, as he'd inherited Mellerstain, thought Robert Adam was the guy to do it. There's a fuller bit of history here: http://tinyurl.com/kpmp4b
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A diary of a nobody, but on the turf and under it all men are equal, so I'll carry on regardless!
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2009
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August
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- Hundy Mundy
- The front of Mellerstain House looks north. An exp...
- Hello, How Now, What Cheer - What's in a Word?
- Formal Gardens at Mellerstain on a Windy Day.
- A Walk on the Wild Side on a Wet August Day
- Jacques Brel: Ne Me Quitte Pas (Don't Leave Me)
- Freedom of the Town of Echt, Holland
- Tree Planting at Mellerstain
- A Snapshot of the Two of Us
- A Child and Understanding Death
- The Dowager Countess, her Sister, and the Lady's Maid
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August
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About Me
- PhilipH
- Jack of all trades, master of none. Left school at age 14. RAF at age 18. Back to civvy Street in 1956. Went to work as a trainee settler in Sth London credit office, then onto betting shop management in early 1960s. Left to join Customs&Excise in 1972, mainly London, Wales and Southend on Sea. Took early retirement. Moved to the Scottish Borders in 1995 and have loved it!
15 comments:
I have some catching up to do on your blog Philip. I like the way you have been doing the videos rather than photos. I may try that also. Your comment on my blog today cracked me up! Thanks for your visits and I will come back here and catch up.
That was a nice, different way of showing us your environs, thanks for that.
Definitely enjoying the video series - thanks!
You intrigued me with a comment on The Walking Man's recent blog about Hundy Mundy, so I took this visit to your site. As McArthur said about Korea, " I shall return."
Thank you Brenda, Silver and the lubberly Bug.
Also MonkeyMan: thanks for dropping in. Hundy Mundy is part of Mellerstain Estate and a couple of years ago it has been designated as a woodland burial site. I shall write about it soon.
I'm like Brenda, I still have a lot of catching up to do. But I've been fascinated by your posts in the short time I've been following. I love history and you are making it come alive for me. Thanks.
Thanks, also, for the info on the BBC program on bees. I checked our listings this morning and we get BBCAmerica. They are not showing the documentary that I can find. I find it wonderful that someone who is not a beekeeper would be so thoughtful to pass along this information.
Philip, the music in the background, it took me a moment to realize where I'd heard it before, it was here, wasn't it? You put up a link to a short Asian film, and that was the music in the background, wasn't it?
I love it, what's the name of the piece? It fits beautifully with your footage, by the way.
It's such a lovely place, Philip, and it is amazing. It looks as if it has many stories to tell.
Oh lovely! A bit like traveling without all the luggage. I'd like to see the inside too!
Now that is a structure built to last through the centuries. BeeeUtiful it is.
I am curious though you said "East wing where I used to live"....where are your quarters no Philip? Is there a separate cottage on the estate now for you and the missus?
Nice little pad.
Liked your hello post. I've been listening to Stephen Fry's progs but missed this one. Will check out iplayer.
well, commentary and music! you're getting quite good at this.
As you know Philip, I am also slowly but surely catching up on your blog right from the beginning. I do not normally watch video clips on the net as they simply eat up the Megs (not stingy just carefull as the Internet here in SA is still quite expensive), but I had to watch yours and I am very pleased that I did.
A very nice place!? Omigoodness, that's an understatement. It's gorgeous.
It's fun to hear your voice. You sound just as I imagined.
What a fascinating place. Thoroughly enjoyed the videos, I can only imagine what the inside looks like !
This was very interesting--thank you. The trouble with those old buildings is the lack of color, and I suppose they tended to be quite cold too. Still, they are impressive.
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