Marchmont Estate

Marchmont Estate lies near the village of Greenlaw in Berwickshire in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, circa 45 miles (72 km) south east of Edinburgh.

There are a number of documents on the matter in places such as the National Archives of Scotland and Register House in Edinburgh, but many of these are estate papers dealing with internal or personal issues rather than the bigger picture.

Marchmont Estate was developed as a result of the improved fortunes of a certain Sir Patrick Hume, 8th Baron of Polwarth, born in 1641.

A staunch supporter of William of Orange, Sir Patrick was forced to flee to Holland and Polwarth estates were confiscated in 1686.

Moreover, he was made Lord Chancellor in 1697 and created Earl of Marchmont, and then in 1698 was elevated to "the highest official position in the kingdom, that of the King's High Commissioner to the Parliament".

The construction of this great house, together with many of the land purchases in the 18th century, were funded[1] to a large extent by the sale of Cessnock estates, which came into the ownership of the family following the marriage between the Alexander the 2nd Earl, and Margaret Campbell.

She was "a great heiress, and on her father’s death, in 1704, her husband succeeded him, not only in his Ayrshire estates, but also in his place on the Scottish Bench, where he sat under the same title of Lord Cessnock".

The list of names and dates of acquisitions include: Slegden 1668; Greenlaw 1697; Foulshallow (probably the now called Flourishwalls) 1700; Hallyburton 1702; East end of Fogo 1725; Bellshill 1710; Hurdlaw 1712; Gordonbank, Bellshill, Spencerigg 1775;Barony of Hume 1766; Rollandston 1762 Braelands of Hapington (Hassington), east end of Fogo 1771; Eccleshill 1779; The Slap 1779.

In addition to the "Accounts of the Rt Hon the Earl of Marchmont" there are two further reliable references that document the composition of the estate and thereby act as milestones in its history.

Many of the outlying farms were sold off, in particular the belt of estate situated south of Greenlaw such as Hume, Stanmore, Belmont and Hassendean.

Although some trees have been cut down, the handsome avenue, arguably the longest in Scotland, stills leads to the house from a north easterly direction.

During the remainder of most of the 20th century and during the time of the former proprietor the estate comprised the following farms: Woodheads, Whiteside Slegden, Clerkenville, Castlemill, Elwartlaw and Cothill, the last two being sold off in about 1978 and 1981 respectively.