Some houses aren’t just good for entertaining; they’re made for it. That’s the thought that kept running through our minds on taking a closer look at this grand country pile in Scotland, whose every facet seems designed for superb weekends spent with a good group of friends.
It was just such things that were on the mind of Robert Bruce – a descendant of The Bruce himself – in 1555 when the laird, then Provost of Stirling, bought a stretch of land just south of the city with the intention of building himself a fine new home. The building he created was Auchenbowie House.
In the intervening four centuries there has been plenty of change at this Bruce family seat, including extensive remodelling in both the 18th and 19th centuries. Yet the original L-shaped plan remains essentially intact, and it is now – as then – a grand house perfectly-designed for entertaining.
An illustrious guest list reflects this. Robert Burns came to stay in 1787, and recorded the occasion in his journal. His host at the time was a Munro, incidentally, with the Bruces having lost the place after one of them was forced to flee the country after killing a man in a duel. Visits by the great and the good continued, and Winston Churchill is also said to have been a house guest.
There are nine bedrooms to put those guests up in, and five reception rooms in which to entertain them – one is used as a delightful billiard room, while another is presently set up as the grandest home office we’ve seen for some time.
There are lovely period details throughout, from wood-panelled rooms, huge windows, a vaulted dining room and a staircase which sweeps up from a parquet-floored hallway to the first, second and third floors above.
Outside, the highlights are the immaculate stables and all-weather manège, tennis courts and just under 100 acres of grounds and woodland with gloriously open views across Stirlingshire.
For those keen to find even more outdoor entertainment there is peerless golf not far away at Gleneagles, while to the west are Loch Lomond and the Trossachs for enthusiasts of climbing, hill walking, watersports, fishing, shooting and stalking.
Auchenbowie House is for sale via Savills at £1.825 million – see more pictures and details.
Spectacular Scottish castles and estates for sale
A look at the finest castles, country houses and estates for sale in Scotland today.
Credit: Strutt and Parker
Best country houses for sale this week
An irresistible West Country cottage and a magnificent Cumbrian country house make our pick of the finest country houses for
Credit: Strutt & Parker
A magnificent ten-bedroom country house in Devon for sale at a startlingly low price tag
A beautiful Hampshire house with fascinating history inside, outside and even underneath
This ten-bedroom country house lies in the Hampshire village of Droxford, one of the locations in the build-up to the
-
If the future of Ferrari is electric vehicles, then it is our future tooIt's widely believed that Ferrari will unveil its first electric car this year. It's the signal that the internal combustion era is coming to an end.
-
Gaze over Cap Ferrat in this four-bedroom French villaIgnore the wind and the rain. Imagine yourself in this hillside home with some of the best views the Mediterranean can offer.
-
Gaze over Cap Ferrat in this four-bedroom French villa
Ignore the wind and the rain. Imagine yourself in this hillside home with some of the best views the Mediterranean can offer.
-
Classical style meets fun and flair in a seven-bedroom manor in CornwallAt Polstrong Manor, the current owners have combined period charm and elegant modern interiors to create a flamboyant country home 10-minutes from the beach.
-
Two halves make a sublime four-bedroom home in Kent's North DownsA contemporary extension to a traditional clapboard house brings light and life to Lavington House.
-
The week in property statistics: Service charges reach record highPlus, how first-time buyers prop up the mortgage market, why you need to move north if you want to live by yourself, and house-price growth slows
-
A seven-bedroom oast house for sale in East Sussex, where your dreams can run riotUnlisted, yet full of character, this property in the High Weald National Landscape is an eccentrically furnished family home that screams fun.
-
Character, history and comfort combine in a four-bedroom farmhouse in NorfolkWillow Farm near Southburgh is that rarest of things — a perfect combination of period charm and modern elegance in some of England's best countryside.
-
A Grade I-listed Georgian townhouse that's part of the fabric of Bath's historyWith 5,500sq ft set over six floors in the centre of Britain's most architecturally rich city, there is much to love here.
-
17 delightful homes for sale, as seen in Country LifeOur round-up of some of the best houses to come to the market via Country Life this week includes a wonderful Cotswolds home and a happily affordable cottage in the West Country.
