Ballechin House
Encyclopedia
Ballechin House was a Georgian
estate
home near Grandtully
, Perthshire
, Scotland
. It was built in 1806, on the site of an old manor house which had been owned by the Stuart family since the 15th century.
In 1834 Robert Stuart
inherited the house and rented it to tenants whilst he served in India
in the army. During his time in India, Stuart came to believe in reincarnation
and transmigration. After his death in 1853, the house was inherited by John Stuart who, fearing that the previous owner would reincarnate in the form of one of his dogs, shot them all. From this story came the legend that Robert Stuart was forced to haunt the house as a disembodied spirit. The first reported haunting at the house took place in 1876; the witness was a maid in the house.
In 1896 the house was investigated by the Marquess of Bute
with the assistance of two paranormal researchers. Ballechin House was known as "The Most Haunted House in Scotland", with several similarities to the Borley Rectory
haunting, including the apparition of a ghostly nun. Ballechin House was rented for a period by investigators from the Society for Psychical Research
, including the notorious Ada Goodrich Freer. In 1899, The Alleged Haunting of B---- House was published, and serialised in The Times, containing a journal kept of the phenomena. John Marquess of Bute was one of the guests who stayed at Ballechin during these investigations, and is quoted as saying that he "could not understand how such a handsome house could have so wicked of a reputation".
Ballechin House was uninhabited by 1932, and most of the house was demolished in 1963, after a fire, leaving only the former servants quarters and outbuildings. Also lost was art work and furniture which had been collected by generations of the Stuart family, including many pieces from the far east, probably due to successive laird
s' involvement in the British East India Company
.
Locally, rumours have persisted of a lost son and heir of John Stuart, who according to local lore was born out of wedlock to a domestic servant on the estate. Different versions of this tale have this son sent to Canada or Australia, or not surviving into adulthood.
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
estate
Estate (house)
An estate comprises the houses and outbuildings and supporting farmland and woods that surround the gardens and grounds of a very large property, such as a country house or mansion. It is the modern term for a manor, but lacks the latter's now abolished jurisdictional authority...
home near Grandtully
Grandtully
Grandtully is a small village in Perthshire, Scotland.It is situated close to the River Tay, about 3 miles from Pitlochry...
, Perthshire
Perthshire
Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It was built in 1806, on the site of an old manor house which had been owned by the Stuart family since the 15th century.
In 1834 Robert Stuart
Robert Stuart
Major Robert Stuart was an officer of the British Army and veteran of the Crimean War. After the war, he was appointed Vice-Consul at Volos and later Consul at Janina and Consul-General in various locations...
inherited the house and rented it to tenants whilst he served in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in the army. During his time in India, Stuart came to believe in reincarnation
Reincarnation
Reincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
and transmigration. After his death in 1853, the house was inherited by John Stuart who, fearing that the previous owner would reincarnate in the form of one of his dogs, shot them all. From this story came the legend that Robert Stuart was forced to haunt the house as a disembodied spirit. The first reported haunting at the house took place in 1876; the witness was a maid in the house.
In 1896 the house was investigated by the Marquess of Bute
Marquess of Bute
Marquess of the County of Bute, shortened in general usage to Marquess of Bute, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1796 for John Stuart, 4th Earl of Bute.-Family history:...
with the assistance of two paranormal researchers. Ballechin House was known as "The Most Haunted House in Scotland", with several similarities to the Borley Rectory
Borley Rectory
Borley Rectory was a Victorian era mansion located in the village of Borley, Essex, England. It was constructed in 1863, on the site of a previous rectory, and destroyed by fire in 1939....
haunting, including the apparition of a ghostly nun. Ballechin House was rented for a period by investigators from the Society for Psychical Research
Society for Psychical Research
The Society for Psychical Research is a non-profit organisation in the United Kingdom. Its stated purpose is to understand "events and abilities commonly described as psychic or paranormal by promoting and supporting important research in this area" and to "examine allegedly paranormal phenomena...
, including the notorious Ada Goodrich Freer. In 1899, The Alleged Haunting of B---- House was published, and serialised in The Times, containing a journal kept of the phenomena. John Marquess of Bute was one of the guests who stayed at Ballechin during these investigations, and is quoted as saying that he "could not understand how such a handsome house could have so wicked of a reputation".
Ballechin House was uninhabited by 1932, and most of the house was demolished in 1963, after a fire, leaving only the former servants quarters and outbuildings. Also lost was art work and furniture which had been collected by generations of the Stuart family, including many pieces from the far east, probably due to successive laird
Laird
A Laird is a member of the gentry and is a heritable title in Scotland. In the non-peerage table of precedence, a Laird ranks below a Baron and above an Esquire.-Etymology:...
s' involvement in the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
.
Locally, rumours have persisted of a lost son and heir of John Stuart, who according to local lore was born out of wedlock to a domestic servant on the estate. Different versions of this tale have this son sent to Canada or Australia, or not surviving into adulthood.
External links
- Ballechin House, Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland
- Ballechin House, Visit Dunkeld
- The 'unhaunted' Ballechin House, Perthshire Diary