Blackcraig Castle

Blackcraig Castle is a large baronial style mansion which has been renovated. It sits within a plantation of trees within a wider estate on the west bank of the River Ardle north of Blairgowrie, and cannot be seen from public roads.

Strathardle was a large upland property within the royal estates of Gowrie, and held in thanage in the 12th century by the sheriff of Scone. It was subsequently granted as a barony to John of Inchmartin, sheriff of Perth, by Robert Bruce prior to 1327. John’s father David had been a loyal partisan of Bruce, and had been captured at the Battle of Methven and hanged in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1306. The barony, which at some point was held from the Earl of Atholl, was divided into three parts after Sir John’s death, and ceased to exist as a territorial unit. In 1534, the lands containing the site were known as Balmacreuchie and were in the hands of Robert, Lord Maxwell, supposedly having been obtained by Sir Robert of Maxwell c1400 by marriage and raised as a barony in its own right, although there were Fergusons of Balmacreuchie in 1512. It seems likely that the Fergusons were heirs to one of the portioners of the Inchmartin lands. The barony lands remained with the Maxwell family until Sir Patrick sold it to Andrew Spalding of the neighbouring estate of Ashintully, some time between 1670 and 1677, but in 1696 the lands were still held by the Maxwells, suggesting that they may have held two “portions” of Balmacreuchie. In 1698. the Earl of Tullibardine (heir to the Duke of Atholl) was granted a charter of Balmareuchie, perhaps reflecting another “portion”, but in 1731 the Duke of Atholl he sold the lands to another Andrew Spalding. There is clearly a great deal of land transactions here which can only be partially understood.

Circa 1750, the property now known as Blackcraig Castle was known as Wester Blackcraig, and was still part of the barony of Balmecreuchie. By 1767 this was the property of Robert Mackintosh, who had acquired much of Strathardle following the Jacobite Rising of 1745. A quick look at the Pont map of Strathardle (c1590) shows that Wester Blackcraig at that date was a farmtoun without a tower, which confirms that, contrary to popular myth, there was no tower of the Maxwells dating to c1550 on this site. Subsequently the estate was sold to satisfy his creditors, and the lands of Balmacreuchie were presumably purchased by Mrs Janet Rutherford in 1823, whose main home was at Ashintully. It would appear that the Blackcraig lands were sold separately, since the “big house” here was built in 1856 after their purchase by Patrick Fraser from the trustees of Robert Rattray in 1847. Blackcraig Castle is, then, a baronial mansion in its entirety, although with surprisingly archaic features such as what appears to be an L-plan tower house of the 16th century and a square tower crowned with a wallwalk and attic-house on the roof. The house was purchased in 2013, and an extensive renovation project was started involving the house and policies. It is available to hire as an exclusive use venue.

HES Canmore database entry

Official Blackcraig Castle website