Balmoral Castle
Prince Albert took on Balmoral's lease without ever seeing it, then bought the estate and built a grand new granite castle beside the old house.
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Quick Facts
- Location
- Royal Deeside, near Ballater, Aberdeenshire
- Built
- New castle built 1853–1856; earlier house leased by Victoria and Albert from 1848
- Architect
- William Smith of Aberdeen, with input from Prince Albert
- Building material
- Local granite from the Invergelder quarry
- Style
- Scots Baronial
- Estate size
- About 50,000 acres (around 20,000 hectares)
- Ownership
- Private property of the monarch, bought by Prince Albert in 1852
- Notable event
- Queen Elizabeth II died here on 8 September 2022
The house Albert bought for his wife's happiness
Victoria and Albert first came to Deeside in 1848, when Albert took over the lease of the old Balmoral house, previously held by Sir Robert Gordon. He had arranged it without seeing the place first. The Farquharson family were earlier owners of the estate. The Queen fell for the hills, the clean air and the freedom from formality. Albert, who found the weather reminded him of Thuringia in his homeland, was just as taken. In 1852 Albert bought the estate outright, using his own funds, after several visits. There was one problem: the existing house was too small for a growing family, a retinue of servants and visiting ministers. So the royal couple decided to build a new castle just a short distance away.
A granite castle with a German accent
The new Balmoral was designed by Aberdeen architect William Smith, but Albert was no passive client. He pored over the plans, suggested changes and shaped the look of the place. The result was a gleaming grey granite castle in the Scots Baronial style, with turrets, crow-stepped gables and a clock tower rising to around 80 feet (24 metres). It was built between 1853 and 1856, and the old house was demolished once the royal family had moved in. The granite came from a nearby quarry on the estate, which is why the walls seem to belong to the landscape.
Tartan, but make it royal
Albert threw himself into the interior with enthusiasm. He designed the Balmoral tartan, a grey and red pattern still reserved for the royal family, and it appears on carpets and furnishings. Other tartans and thistle motifs crowd the rooms, which Victoria adored. The fashion for all things Highland got a huge boost from these royal holidays. Victoria's journals about life in the Highlands became bestsellers, and Scotland's image as a romantic retreat was boosted by her loyalty to Deeside.
Grief, ghosts and a very private place
Albert died in December 1861, only five years after the castle was completed. Victoria's love for Balmoral turned into something deeper. She built memorials to him on the estate, including a huge granite cairn on the hillside, and she kept returning for months at a time. The castle has remained a family retreat ever since. The royal family traditionally gathers here in late summer, and the surrounding estate is a working one, with forestry, farming, deer management and Highland cattle and ponies. It is private property, not a Crown Estate, a distinction that matters to the family.
The place where an era ended
On 8 September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II died at Balmoral, aged 96. She had appointed Liz Truss as prime minister there only two days earlier, a break with tradition that usually required the handover to take place at Buckingham Palace. Crowds laid flowers at the gates and in nearby Ballater. She had loved the estate since childhood and spent many of her happiest private days there, walking, picnicking and driving her own Land Rover on the estate tracks.
What to look out for
Visitors to the estate in the open season can usually see the grounds, gardens and the castle ballroom, which is the only part of the interior generally open to the public. The ballroom holds exhibitions and royal artefacts. Outside, look for the granite castle's tower, the sculpted stag and the views of Lochnagar, the mountain that inspired Lord Byron and a children's book by Prince Charles, The Old Man of Lochnagar. Nearby Crathie Kirk is where the royal family worships when staying at Balmoral.
Notable people
- Queen Victoria
- Prince Albert
- William Smith
- Queen Elizabeth II
- King Charles III
- Lord Byron
- Liz Truss
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