Monteviot House

Monteviot House
Monteviot House
Monteviot House is located in Scottish Borders
Monteviot House
Location in the Scottish Borders
General information
Architectural styleGothic
LocationScottish Borders
Town or cityNear Jedburgh
CountryScotland
Coordinates55°30′53″N 2°33′27″W / 55.5147°N 2.5576°W / 55.5147; -2.5576
Completed1740
Renovated1830, 1950-1962
Owner13th Marquess of Lothian

Monteviot House is the early 18th century home of the Marquess of Lothian, the politician better known as Michael Ancram. It is located on the River Teviot near Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland.[1]

History

The house which sits within 30 acres (12 ha) of land and it was built in about 1740. The lyricist Jean Elliot who wrote words to the lament Flowers of the Forest, died at Monteviot, her brother's house, on 29 March 1805.[2] Her brother Admiral John Eliot died here in 1808 after a distinguished career as Governor of Newfoundland and rose to be an Admiral of the White. He left his estates to Gilbert Elliot, first earl of Minto.[3]

River Teviot from Monteviot House garden

Further building work took place in 1830[1] just before John Kerr, 7th Marquess of Lothian married Lady Cecil Chetwynd Chetwynd-Talbot. The couple were based at Newbattle Abbey but Cecil Kerr preferred Monteviot.[4] She had moved to Monteviot in 1840 in order to attend the Episcopalian church in Kelso.[5] When she commissioned her first church, St John's, it was in nearby Jedburgh.[4]

In 1950 the 12th Marquess and his wife Tony moved from Melbourne Hall to the Scottish Borders in 1950 where they oversaw the restoration of Monteviot House. They did not move into the house until 1962.[6]

In the late 20th century the 12th Marquess repurchased and restored the old family seat of Ferniehirst Castle. They moved into the castle in 1986.[6] The Lothians also used to own two grander country houses, Blickling Hall, which now belongs to the National Trust, and Newbattle Abbey, which is now the site of an adult education college.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Monteviot House and Gardens | The Castles of Scotland, Coventry | Goblinshead". www.thecastlesofscotland.co.uk. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  2. ^ "Elliot, Jean [Jane] (1727–1805), poet". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/8665. Retrieved 25 March 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  3. ^ Laughton, J. K. (2004). "Elliot, John (1732–1808), naval officer". In Pearsall, A. W. H (ed.). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/8667. Retrieved 25 March 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  4. ^ a b "Kerr, Cecil Chetwynd [née Lady Cecil Chetwynd Chetwynd-Talbot], marchioness of Lothian (1808–1877), Roman Catholic convert | Oxford Dictionary of National Biography". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/40737. Retrieved 13 December 2019. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  5. ^ Perry, W. (23 October 2014). The Oxford Movement in Scotland. Cambridge University Press. p. 42. ISBN 978-1-107-43788-3.
  6. ^ a b "Kerr [née Newland], Antonella Reuss [Tony], marchioness of Lothian (1922–2007), journalist and charity founder". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/98549. Retrieved 25 March 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  7. ^ Julie Kerr, Sarah Foot. "Home page of the Cistercians in Yorkshire Project". www.dhi.ac.uk. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
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