Scotland with Grace 2016 - Day 3: South to Abbotsford Estate and beyond

As we left Edinburgh for our lodge in Perthshire where we would spend the remainder of our trip, we stopped at Abbotsford Estate, home of Sir Walter Scott. Here along the River Tweed, he penned his novels.

Sir Walter Scott was born in 1771 in Edinburgh. At three years of age he contracted polio, and was sent to live with an uncle on the Borders. He was intrigued with the region and returned to live here later. In 1806 he became Sherriff of Selkirk. He decided he wished to live in a castle, and built Abbotsford in the Scottish Baronial Style which is also known as the imitation castle style of the Victorian period. But home boasted gas lighting, under-floor heating and indoor toilets.
Sir Walter Scott's descendants continued to live in the house until 2004. Today, part of it is available for rent.

The gardens of Abbotsford:

The house is breath-taking. We were allowed to take non-flash photos inside. This is the great hall. In the first photo, the breastplate on teh right is French, the one on the left is Polish.

Sir Walter Scott's study.

The library. The oil painting is of Sir Walter's son.

The drawing room with its lovely chandelier and imported green wallpaper.

Images from his armory. His collection was vast, with weapons from all over the world, and these are only a few items. You'll just have to visit Abbotsford for yourself to see the entire room.
​An interesting note: The Brown Bess rifle was accurate to about 50 feet and the primary weapon in the Napoleonic Wars.

The dining room, which was originally quite dark, was later painted white. During restoration, it was decided to keep the brighter look, though there are places on the ceiling where the paint was removed to show the original wood.
The dishes are not original to Sir Walter Scott's table. They are, however, designed with Abbotsford in mind.

I will leave you with a few more images of Abbotsford. What do you think of the estate?