Haltoun House

[2] Alan and his first wife, Alicia, daughter of Sir Colin Campbell of Lochawe, already owned (1371) the adjoining lands of Norton.

[3][4] George de Lawedre of Haltoun, Provost of Edinburgh, Alan's second son by his second wife, Elizabeth, was put in fee of Hattoun in 1393.

[10] Nicolas Hubert alias French Paris rode from Linlithgow Palace to Hatton House with a letter from Mary for Bothwell.

[11] James VI of Scotland stayed at Hatton using it as a hunting lodge in April 1589, but returned to Edinburgh over fears for his safety from disaffected lords.

Haltoun was much closer to Edinburgh than Thirlestane Castle, and with the loss of Lethington the Maitlands made Haltoun House their principal residence (as opposed to seat) until 1792 when the 8th Earl of Lauderdale sold the estate for £84,000 to Miss Henrietta Scott of Scotstarvet, who married William Henry Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland.

He broke up the estate into lots, of which that including Haltoun House and 500 acres (2.0 km2) was bought by the Reverend Thomas Randall (who afterwards took the surname of Davidson).

The first Lauders built a massive Pele Tower at Haltoun before 1400, which Hannan refers to as "an L-shaped castle with walls of a uniform thickness of about 10 feet (3.0 m)."

On the first floor the saloon and drawing rooms were fitted out with Memel pine panelling, greatly used in Scottish country houses at the time.

Haltoun House was approached by an original avenue, half a mile long, abutted by tall elms and beeches, lime trees, hollies, Yews, and rhododendrons.

Haltoun House c1900
Hatton House c.1690 by Capt. John Slezer
Richard Lauder, laird of Hatton, painted in 1669.
Hatton House, road side gate, remodelled 1829