Corridors of power from a golden age
Birthplace of PM Balfour also hosted Gladstone and Lloyd George
IT is a neo-classical masterpiece with a pedigree to match, for even a visit to this early 19th Century mansion means you are walking in the shadow of political giants. These include Arthur Balfour, who served as Prime Minister from 1902 to 1905 and who was born at Whittingehame House. The public rooms played host to a striking roll call of public figures, such as HG Wells, Arthur Conan Doyle, William Gladstone, Winston Churchill and Lloyd George.
King Edward VII visited and planted a commemorative oak tree in the grounds.
The house, near East Linton in East Lothian, was the creation of James Balfour, the grandfather of the Prime Minister, who made his fortune in India providing the Royal Navy with supplies throughout the East Indies.
By the time he returned to Scotland in 1815 he had amassed a fortune of £300,000, said to be the equivalent of almost £25 million today.
Balfour bought a number of properties and estates, including the Whittingehame Estate, where he instructed the architect Robert Smirke to build him a mansion.
Smirke had plenty of experience in grand concepts, having been responsible for the facade of the British Museum in London.
The house he fashioned would remain in the hands of the Balfour family until 1963, when it became Holt School for Boys. The school closed in 1980 and the building was later split into separate units.
One unexpected aspect of the mansion is you will be tempted to spend so much time looking up, you could develop a crick in your neck – but it’s worth it.
The ceilings in each apartment are works of art in their own right, from a regimented rectangular arrangement in the music room to the flamboyant floral concoction in the dining room.
It is only when you reflect on the grandeur of the property that you understand the absence of elaborate ceiling roses is due to the fact that the building was constructed before the advent of electric light.
That has been corrected in the library, where the billiard table demands overhead lighting, but the way it has been delivered looks very 20th Century.
It is remarkable that this Grade A listed property has been able to retain many of its original flourishes since the early part of the 19th Century. Certainly, fluctuating economic circumstances over its 200 years have resulted in Whittingehame House being sub-divided into flats, one of which is for sale.
As well as operating as a school, in wartime it served as a sanctuary for Jewish German children brought to this country under the Kindertransport scheme.
The house has survived the disadvantages which these changes often bring and Apartment 1 occupies the entire ground floor of the mansion we see today, fully 9,020sq ft of opulence.
It retains marble columns in all their majesty, secret doors that lead to the garden and fireplaces so impressive that you would happily light them all in June.
At Apartment 1, the drawing room, music room and library all face south-east and overlook the 16 acres of wooded grounds.
Along the extensive hallway lies the kitchen, complete with four-oven electric Aga, two wine coolers, twin Belfast sinks and marble worktops.
The central corridor has been broken up by the present owners through the clever use of a wrought iron gate. This leads to the master bedroom suite, which harbours another lovely touch.
What was once an orangery has been converted to an en suite bathroom, with free-standing roll top bath, twin sinks in a marble surround and separate WC.
The three other bedrooms lie at the other end of the corridor and are no less luxurious.
The extensive grounds have tennis courts, six garages and a central clock tower, which has a room on the first floor.
Offers over £1.85 million to Malcolm Leslie of Strutt & Parker, Edinburgh. Tel 0131 226 2500 or email malcolm.leslie@struttandparker.com