Dunninald Castle

Dunninald Castle is a privately owned country house south of Montrose in Angus, Scotland. It stands on ground once occupied by earlier fortifications and manor houses. The present building dates from 1824 and is a large two-storey Gothic Revival castellated mansion. A three-storey corner tower and stair turret rise above the main structure. The architect was James Gillespie Graham, who completed the house after earlier plans had been abandoned. Gardens and parks surround the mansion, developed around the turn of the twentieth century. The house has passed through several families since the Middle Ages. The first Dunninald Castle was known as Black Jack Castle on a cliff above the North Sea. A manor house built around 1590 stood near today’s building. The property was held by the Gray family until 1610, then passed to Patrick Leighton of Usan in 1617. It later came to Thomas Allardyce of Allardyce through marriage in 1663 and was sold to the Scotts of Usan in 1696. The foundations of the surrounding park were probably laid during the 17th century. Visitors find a Gothic Revival mansion with good interiors and a three-storey corner tower. The stair turret adds to the castellated silhouette. The gardens and parks around the house were developed at the start of the twentieth century. The present building has remained largely unchanged since 1824. The estate remains the residence of the Stansfeld family, who have lived there since the 19th century.