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Spott House

Spott House today has the appearance of a 19th century mansion, however it is built on top of a much earlier castle.

The first mention of the Spott estate is in 1296, when Elias de Spot signed the Ragman Rolls. Whether or not a castle existed at this time is unclear, however there would have been a building of some form, and it wouldn’t be a great leap to suggest that it was defendable. The estate was later owned by the Humes, Douglases, Murrays, and Hays. A Robert Hay was the last of the Hays to own Spott House, and in 1836 it was sold to a James Sprott. It remained in the Sprott family until 1947.

Spott House may have been visited by James VI in 1595, and there are traditions relating to the Battle of Dunbar in 1650, which was fought to the north-east of Doon Hill. The Scottish general, Sir David Leslie, is said to have spent the night before the battle at Spott House while his troops were encamped on Doon Hill. Another legend has it that Oliver Cromwell spent the night at Spott following his victory.

The earliest part of Spott House can be found in the basement of the south wing, where massively-thick walls hint at what once stood there. Rising a further three storeys and attic is the south block, which is said to be a tower house dating back to 1640. The adjoining north block features chamfers around the windows, and a turnpike stair at its centre, which both also indicate a 17th century date.

Spott House stands on red sandstone bedrock on a spur extending from the south-west of Doon Hill, and is naturally moated by a fork in the Spott Burn. This moat was crossed by a drawbridge which led to the entrance on the west side, although it was later culverted and the burn runs under an arch measuring 2.4m high.

In 1830 Spott House was remodelled by William Burn, and while many older details remain, the look of the house was altered greatly to suit the taste of the times. The main entrance was made grander with the addition of a Jacobean-style surround, crow-stepped gables were added to the roofs, and the interior underwent an extensive redesign.

Spott House was completely restored some time after 2000, and now forms the centrepiece of an extensive private country estate.

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Alternative names for Spott House

Doon Hill

Where is Spott House?

Spott House is in the parish of Spott and the county of East Lothian.

Grid reference: NT 67906 75287

Lat / long: 55.969576, -2.515609

Bing Maps | Google Maps | Historic maps (NLS) | OpenStreetMap | Ordnance Survey | PastMap | Streetmap | Wikimapia

OS Map for Spott House

Dunbar & North Berwick (Musselburgh & Haddington)
OS Explorer map 351


Directions to Spott House

Enter a starting point

Weather at Spott House

1°C
max 2°C / min 0°C
3km/h WSW
991mb
82%
0%
08:20 16:23

Clear sky
Weather observed at Dunbar at 15:04

References (websites)

Canmore

Castles near Spott House

Belton Castle (site of)

3.7km away

Dunbar Castle

4.0km away

Biel House

4.6km away

Innerwick Castle

5.8km away

Thornton Castle (site of)

5.9km away

Black Castle

7.5km away

Tyninghame House

7.5km away

Whittingehame Castle

7.9km away

Stoneypath Tower

9.2km away
more castles....

Ancient sites near Spott House

The Chesters fort

2.4km away

Broxmouth (site of) fort

3.0km away

Kirklandhill standing stone

6.5km away

Preston Mains cursus

8.4km away

Drylawhill cursus

9.3km away

Traprain Law fort

9.8km away

Pencraig Hill standing stone

9.8km away

Garvald souterrain

10.0km away

St Baldred's Cave cave

11.8km away
more ancient sites....

Pictish stones near Spott House

The Coves, Caiplie Class I symbols

31.5km away

Abercrombie 1 Class III cross slab

32.2km away

Abercrombie 2 Class III cross slab

32.2km away

Abercrombie 3 Class III cross slab

32.2km away

Abercrombie 4 Class III cross slab

32.2km away

Crail Class III cross-slab

33.3km away

Largo Class II cross slab

38.0km away

Scoonie Class II cross slab

39.6km away

Sliding Cave Class I rock carving

39.9km away
more Pictish stones....
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Pictish sites near Spott House

Traprain Law silver chain

9.5km away

Haddington silver chain

16.5km away

Hoardweel silver chain

18.8km away

Whitlaw silver chain

32.8km away

Norrie's Law hoard

41.9km away

Borland silver chain

67.9km away

Todholes (possible) silver chain

70.2km away

Whitecleugh silver chain

102.3km away

Dunnicaer fort

111.2km away
more Pictish sites....

Accommodation near Spott House

Rowan Cottage Guest House
hotelDunbar
3.9km away
Sawmill Cottage
self-catering cottageTyninghame
7.7km away
Bell's Bothy Bunkhouse
hostelHaddington
12.4km away
Fenton Tower
hotelNorth Berwick
15.2km away
No12 Quality Street
bed and breakfastNorth Berwick
16.0km away
Maitlandfield House Hotel
hotelHaddington
16.2km away
Colstoun House Hotel
hotelHaddington
16.9km away
Nether Abbey
hotelNorth Berwick
16.9km away
Macdonald Marine Hotel & Spa
hotel, restaurant, barNorth Berwick
17.2km away
Letham House
hotelLennoxlove
18.6km away

Accommodation search

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more accommodation....

Cafés, restaurants & bars near Spott House

Smeaton Nursery Gardens & Tearoom
caféEast Linton
9.1km away
Macdonald Marine Hotel & Spa
hotel, restaurant, barNorth Berwick
17.2km away
Ducks at Kilspindie House
hotel, restaurant, barAberlady
22.0km away
Gosford Bothy Farm Shop
caféAberlady
22.4km away
Allanton Inn
hotel, bar, restaurantDuns
28.0km away
Symphony Craw's Nest Hotel and Restaurant
hotel, restaurant, barAnstruther
30.3km away
Station Buffet Bar
barElie
31.0km away
Carberry Tower
hotel, bar, restaurantMusselburgh
32.0km away
Premier Inn Edinburgh A1 (Musselburgh)
hotel, restaurantEdinburgh
32.7km away
Kilconquhar Castle Estate
hotel, restaurant, self-catering cottagesElie
33.1km away
more food.... / more drink....

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Wet and windswept antiquities in Berwickshire
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Cairns Castle and Harperrig Reservoir
Published on the 26th of November 2010 at 12:05 am. Updated on the 26th of November 2010 at 9:03 am.

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Andy Sweet above Fast Castle

Stravaiging around Scotland is written, photographed and researched by Andy Sweet.
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