Aberdalgie Castle

The old house known as Aberdalgie Castle was perhaps built on the same site as the modern Aberdalgie House. In the 14th century, it was held by the Oliphant/Olifard family of Dupplin as a secondary estate, and unfortunately no image of the building is known – it falls into a gap between three of Pont’s maps.

Oliphants styled “of” Aberdalgie are known to have persisted for centuries, and it is possible that the old house was destroyed by the burgesses of Perth in the 15th century. At this point the burgesses paid for the rebuilding of this and Dupplin, and from this point onwards Dupplin was clearly the main residence.

The old house was burned by Cromwell’s troops in 1651, by which time it had passed to another branch of the Oliphant family. By the 19th century Aberdalgie was the estate factor’s house, and the family were forced to occupy this when Dupplin burned down in the early 19th century. When this house was being built, the remains of a large building with walls up to 1.8 metres thick were discovered, which would be consistent with the old building. Unfortunately no record was made of the discovery. The house is occupied and is a private residence with no public access.

HES Canmore database entry