Gosford House

Gosford House is the family seat of the Charteris family and is situated near Longniddry in East Lothian, Scotland.

The chief of the name and arms of Charteris is (Francis) David Charteris, The Rt. Hon. 12th Earl of Wemyss and 8th Earl of March. Lord Wemyss is the present occupier of Gosford.

Gosford was built by the 7th Earl of Wemyss between 1790 and 1800. It was built to plans by Robert Adam, the great Scottish architect. Adam never got to see Gosford completed. The 8th Earl knocked down the wings, his grandson the 10th Earl of Wemyss and 6th Earl of March rebuilt the wings in 1891. William Young was the architect for the new wings of 1891. The south wing contains the marble hall. Gosford is built in the classical style, and the width of the front is twice the width of that of Buckingham Palace.

During World War II the army occupied the house and burnt out the main rooms of the central block. It was reroofed in 1987 and restoration of the central block is an ongoing process which has seen serious progress in the last ten years, in a large part thanks to Shelagh, The Countess of Wemyss and March. The ponds in the policies were recently restored by James Charteris, Lord Neidpath who is heir apparent to the Earldom of Wemyss and March and is married to Amanda Feilding, Lady Neidpath. Gosford can be seen from Edinburgh on a clear day. It is open to the public in the summer. The estate's vast number of trees are tended to by the two Jimmys. The grounds boast an unusual and rare example of a Scottish Curling House.

The interior and exterior of Gosford House was used in the 2000 film House of Mirth, directed by Terence Davies and based on the novel by Edith Wharton.

ee also

*List of places in East Lothian
*List of castles in Scotland