Old Photograph Ednam House Kelso Scotland

Old photograph of Ednam House near Kelso, Scotland. James Dickson had this house built in 1761. He dealt in the trading and import of goods in England, mainly spices. This trade made him a very rich man. The architect was James Nisbet.



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Old Photograph Keil House Southend Scotland

Old photograph of Keil House on the shores of High Keil in Southend near Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland. Keil House was once described as the most palatial house in the country. James Nicol Fleming made his fortune from cheap Indian cotton, sold to Britain for an inflated price. By 1865, he was a director of the City of Glasgow Bank, and owner of Keil House. Unhappy with the original house, Fleming commissioned a Glasgow architect, Campbell Douglas, to design a grand house more appropriate to his status. Local sandstone was quarried for the construction, finishing stone was imported by sea, rooms were panelled with the finest wood, and finished with the most ornate plaster work. The completed house was said to have had more windows than Buckingham Palace, so two windows were blocked to reduce their number in deference to the monarch. Ninian Bannatyne Stewart, another Glasgow merchant, son of one of the founders of Stewart and McDonald of Glasgow, acquired the property from Fleming's trustees in 1883. Following Stewart's death in 1912, the remaining family then sold the house and estate to the trustees of the Mackinnon Macneill Trust in 1915, who had been looking for suitable premises in which to establish a school, and would go on to develop Keil House as the Kintyre Technical School.



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Old Photograph Interior House Speyside Scotland

Old photograph of the interior of a house in Speyside, Scotland.



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Old Photograph Craigendinnie House Tarland Scotland

Old photograph of Craigendinnie House by Tarland located five miles North West of Aboyne, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.



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Old Photograph Kingsford House Scotland

Old photograph of Kingsford House by Alford, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The Battle of Alford was an engagement of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which took place near the village of Alford, on 2 July 1645. Having defeated Colonel Hurry at Auldearn, the Marquis of Montrose continued his raiding campaign in the Highlands. Fearing that Montrose intended to attack Aberdeen again, Major General William Baillie led the Covenanter army to cut him off.

The two armies were roughly equal in size at about 2,000 foot, although Baillie had 600 horses compared with Montrose's 250, giving him an advantage. However, this advantage was negated by the effect of the presence of representatives of the Committee of Estates on his chain of command. This committee was the ruling body of the Covenanters, comprising the Earl of Argyll, the Earls of Crawford and Tullibardine, the Lords of Elcho, Burleigh, and Balcarres, who had all been involved in recent defeats by Montros, together with a number of Calvinist clergy. It had the power to overrule Bailie's orders.

Montrose took up a position on a low hill overlooking the ford across the Don at Alford. Baillie did not want to risk crossing the ford, seeing that his troops would be vulnerable to attack before they could form up for battle, but the Committee, urged on by Baillie's cavalry commander, Balcarres, insisted on battle. Montrose waited until the Covenanting horse was across the river, and the infantry was crossing, before ordering a general attack. A fierce fight ensued around the ford between the Covenant cavalry under Balcarras and the Royalist Cavalry under Lord Gordon. Montrose committed his reserves, a force of Gordon infantry, and the Covenant forces broke. The difficulties presented by escaping across a ford meant that the rout was particularly vicious. Covenant losses were about 1,500 of their 2,000 infantry, although much of their cavalry, along with Baillie, Balcarres and the Committee escaped. The Royalists lost several hundred men, including Lord Gordon. Nevertheless, the battle of Alford was one of the few bright moments for the Royalist cause in the aftermath of Naseby, only two weeks earlier.



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