A Room with a View

After a really successful Doors Open Day at the Mackintosh Church, we headed home, but on the way we decided to stop and have a relaxing drink at Mar Hall.

Mar Hall was designed in the 19th century by Sir Robert Smirke who had previously worked on the British Museum in London. Smirke was commissioned by Major General Robert Walter Stuart, the 11th Lord Blantyre, whose family had purchased the grounds and estate some one hundred years previously.

It was Smirke's wish that the building resemble the manorial, domestic gothic styles seen during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. A quarry on the estate provided the stone whilst the oak used throughout was specifically imported from Canada. Construction was not completed until 1845, fifteen years after Lord Blantyre's death with the final bill coming to over £50,000.

The house fell into disrepair over the remainder of the 20th century and it was only in 2004, following a £15million restoration, that it returned to its former glory.