Kinneil House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kinneil House |
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| Location | Bo'ness, Scotland |
| Built | 1553 |
| Built for | James Hamilton, 2nd Lord Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran |
| Governing body | Historic Environment Scotland |
Kinneil House is a very old and important house located west of Bo'ness in central Scotland. It used to be the main home for the powerful Hamilton family in eastern Scotland. The house was almost torn down in 1936, but then amazing 16th-century wall paintings were found! This discovery saved it. Now, Historic Environment Scotland looks after it.
Today, Kinneil House looks like a grand mansion built in 1677. It stands on top of an even older building from the 15th or 16th century, which was a strong tower house. You can still see two rows of special holes called "gunloops" that were used for early cannons. A smaller, older part of the house, built in the mid-16th century, holds the two famous painted rooms. Kinneil House is so important that it's protected as a Category A listed building.
The house is inside a public park. This park also has a part of the ancient Roman Antonine Wall and the only visible remains of a Roman fortlet (a small fort).
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Discovering Kinneil's Past
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The land where Kinneil House stands was given to the Hamilton family's ancestor, Walter Fitz Gilbert, by Robert the Bruce in 1323. Records from 1474 mention a castle called "Kynneil called Craig Lyown." This area also had saltpans, which were like shallow pools used to make salt from seawater. These saltpans helped the family earn money. The old Castle of Lyon might have been near the sea, and its name is still remembered by a housing area called Castleloan.
Kinneil also had a deer park a long time ago. In 1503, King James IV sent someone to get deer nets from Kinneil for Falkland Palace. He even visited Kinneil in 1508 to see Lord Hamilton's horses.
Some parts of an even older castle might be built into the current house. This older castle replaced the one at Snab. James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran died at Kinneil in 1529. Close to the house, there's a ruined church. One of its bells is now in the Kinneil Museum. A large stone cross from the church is also kept with the palace.
Regent Arran's Influence
The east wing of Kinneil House, and possibly the older tower with its wide gunloops, was built by James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran (who lived from about 1516 to 1575). He was the Governor, or Regent, of Scotland after James V of Scotland died.
Arran used Kinneil for important things. Coal was sent from Kinneil to Edinburgh Castle for heating. In 1545, wood was brought from Leith to fix Arran's room at "Craig Lyon." His wife, Margaret Douglas, stayed at Kinneil in 1546.
Building work at Kinneil was recorded in royal accounts. Wood for roofs, floors, and wall panels was sent by boat in 1549 and 1550. Around this time, a monk named Friar Mark wrote a "History of the Hamiltons" for Regent Arran.
The garden was improved in 1553 with new hedges, herbs like marjoram, and lettuce. Trees were brought from other parts of Scotland. In September 1553, Arran gave money to masons (stone workers) who were laying new foundations. One mason, Thomas Bargany, even got extra money to buy clothes! The house's well is now hidden under the floor of the east wing.
The 16th-century painted rooms and a stone carving show Arran's special ducal crown and the collar of the Order of Saint Michael, which were French honors he received in 1548. Another stone has the Hamilton family's motto, "Through!", and the symbols of his wife, Margaret Douglas, with her motto "Lock Sickar," meaning secure or steadfast.
One of the painted rooms is called the Arbour Room. It has paintings that look like fancy tapestries, showing stories like Samson and Delilah and Abraham and Isaac. The other room has scenes from the Parable of the Good Samaritan, and figures like Lucretia and Mary Magdalene. These rooms were likely the main bedrooms. The paintings might have hinted at the "Power of Women," perhaps referring to important queens of the time.
On February 4, 1560, French soldiers attacked and burned the empty house. In 1562, James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, came to Kinneil to make peace with James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran. It was said that Bothwell suggested they kidnap Mary, Queen of Scots. A few days later, the Earl of Arran, who was not well, escaped from his room at Kinneil using sheets as a rope! He went to Falkland Palace to tell the queen about the plot.
After a battle in October 1562, Arran's father, the Duke of Châtellerault, had to keep George Gordon (a defeated leader) at Kinneil.
Royal Visits and Changes
Regent Lennox damaged Kinneil House in May 1570 using gunpowder. This happened after Regent Moray was killed by a Hamilton family member.
King James VI reduced the Hamilton family's power in 1579. The Duke's wife, Margaret Douglas, and daughter, Jean Hamilton, were brought to Kinneil. In 1581, the king gave their lands and titles to James Stewart. This new Earl often lived at Kinneil, and for a while, the house was even called Arran House.
King James VI stayed at Kinneil in May 1582 to meet an envoy (a messenger) from the Duke of Guise. The envoy brought horses and gunpowder as gifts. This visit was controversial because the envoy had been involved in a terrible event called the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre.
After a political event called the Raid of Ruthven, the Earl of Arran was kept at Kinneil. When that government fell, King James VI came to Kinneil to have a banquet with Arran on November 11, 1583. Three days later, Ludovic Stewart, the son of the King's favorite, arrived from France and met the King at Kinneil. In April 1584, the captured Earl of Gowrie was brought to Kinneil from Edinburgh. He stayed five days before being taken to Stirling for trial and execution.
James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran returned to Kinneil House in 1585. King James VI held court at Kinneil again around Christmas in 1588. He was a guest of John Hamilton. The King played card games with his English courtier, Roger Aston.
Later Years of Kinneil House
The Arbour Room was redecorated around 1620 for James Hamilton, 2nd Marquess of Hamilton and his wife Ann Cunningham. You can still see the "shakefork" and rabbit symbols of the Cunningham family. This painting was likely done by Valentine Jenkin, a painter from Glasgow.
In October 1641, several important figures, including the Earl of Argyll and the Marquess of Hamilton, had to flee from Edinburgh to Kinneil because of a plot called the Incident.
When Ann Cunningham died in 1644, she left Kinneil, with its new tapestries and furniture, to her son, James, 1st Duke of Hamilton. She had worked hard to make the coal mines and salt pans profitable.
The main part of the house was rebuilt by William Douglas, 3rd Duke of Hamilton in 1677. He added a balanced front and two stone staircases. In 1700, the new Duchess of Hamilton, Elizabeth Gerard, came to stay at Kinneil.
Over time, the Hamilton family used the house less, as their money came more from the mines and the port. In the late 1700s, Dr John Roebuck, who started the Carron Iron Works, lived at Kinneil House. During this time, the famous engineer James Watt worked on improving his steam engine in a small cottage next to the house. From 1809 to 1828, the philosopher Dugald Stewart also used the house.
By 1936, the Hamiltons had left the house. The Bo'ness Town Council was actually tearing it down when Stanley Cursitor, who directed the National Galleries of Scotland, heard that wall paintings had been found. The Ministry of Works quickly saved the wing with the paintings. The paintings were restored, and now Historic Environment Scotland cares for the entire building.
The White Lady Ghost
Kinneil House is said to be haunted by a "White Lady." People believe she is the ghost of Lady Alice, who died in the 17th century. Lady Alice, or Ailie, was traditionally thought to haunt the nearby Gil Burn valley. The ghost story was written down by Maria Edgeworth in 1823. She described the house as an "old but white-washed castle-mansion," referring to the traditional Scottish lime plaster that can still be seen today.
The Roman Antonine Wall
For a long time, people thought there might have been a Roman Fort near Kinneil House. Sir George Macdonald, a famous archaeologist, even wondered about a small fortlet near the house.
In July 1961, two sites in Bo’ness were dug up by archaeologists. This followed earlier digs in 1960. The first site was in a field near Kinneil House. The digging showed special firestone blocks that were once part of the wall's base.
In the 1970s, a Roman fortlet was found, along with the remains of two timber buildings. A short part of the Antonine Wall's rampart (its defensive bank) has been rebuilt here. Kinneil is special because it has the only visible example of an Antonine fortlet that you can see today. Among the things found at the site was a Roman horse harness loop. A digital reconstruction of the fortlet has been made.
You can even find a detailed video of the copper alloy harness fitting online. A fine leather shoe from the fortlet has also been digitally recreated. Only one Roman coin was found here.
In 2018, nine more digging areas were opened at Kinneil. These revealed the remains of a metalled surface, which was likely part of the Military Way, a road used by the Romans.
