Cambo Estate

Cambo Estate lies close to village of Kingsbarns, Fife, Scotland. It is the home of Sir Peter and Lady Catherine Erskine.

At the heart of the estate lies Cambo House, along with the Cambo Walled Garden and Cambo Snowdrop Gardens. The Cambo Snowdrop gardens are one of the most popular snowdrop gardens in all the UK. The Estate also features the Kingsbarns Links golf course, which holds the Alfred Dunhill Cup every year.

The History of Cambo Estate

The estate of Cambo was first occupied by John De Cambo who, it is thought, received it as a Norman land grant from the King in the 13th century.

The first Erskine to live at Cambo was Sir Charles Arskine, who purchased it from the creditors of Patrick Merton. In 1759 it was sold to the Charteris family as a student residence for their son who was studying at St Andrews University. The 9th Earl of Kellie, Thomas Erskine, who was a cousin of the previous owners, bought the estate back from Mr Charteris.

Thomas Erskine invested heavily in the estate and it is presumed that he is responsible for many of the handsome Georgian farmhouses and the Cambo Farm mill pond.

The original house was gutted by a large fire in 1878 after a staff party when the Erskine family was away. From the historic photos and watercolours it is possible to see that much was added over the centuries to a basic 13th century tower. One of its most attractive features was the conservatory on the first floor.

The new house building began in 1880 and the final wing was completed in 1884.Thomas Wardrop was head architect. His plans can be seen in the entrance of the house.

External links

* [http://www.camboestate.com Cambo Estate Website]
* [http://www.cambosnowdrops.com/ Cambo Snowdrops Website]