Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
This Scottish castle has a dark forest secret. Join us to Find Out?
Duff House was designed by William Adam and built between 1735 and 1740 for William Duff of Braco. The house is built of ashlar in three storeys to a square plan on a raised basement with advanced corner towers.
The house and the associated Fife gates, walled garden, Collie lodge, mausoleum, ice house, Bridge Gate House and the Eagles Gate lodge are designated as Category A listed group of buildings.
The design and construction resulted in a legal dispute between the architect and owner which culminated in a legal case in 1743. Construction began on 11 June 1735. The design of the house originally intended to have flanking pavilions linked by colonnaded quadrants but these were never completed as the Earl thought the house would be too large. This, along with further disagreements on the issue of mason work resulted in the legal case between the architect and Earl.
David Bryce Jr was later commissioned to provide a three-storey pavilion and corridor block, but this was damaged by a bomb in 1940 and subsequently demolished. The Earls of Fife moved out of Duff House in 1903, gifting the property to Banff Burgh in 1906. Between 1911 and 1913, the House functioned as a hotel and then became a sanatorium until 1923 when it became a hotel again. The hotel closed in 1928 and Duff House entered a period of limited use. However, during the Second World War the House became an internment camp and later a prisoner of war camp. In 1940, the House was damaged during a bombing raid resulting in eight dead and serious damage to parts of the building. By 1942, the House was used by the Free Norwegian forces as their Headquarters, along with use by Polish exile forces
Welcome to our version of Vanlife in Scotland. Follow Desmond's adventures as we travel around Scotland and beyond in our old motorhome and as we now embark on a self build replacement. We bring you the details of some of our park ups and show you the surrounding area and even a little history of the area we visit, plus do not forget the wildlife and birds.
With Nature, history, wildlife and the beautiful Scottish countryside there is always something to see in our videos. We also have Lindsay's walks and talks on a wide range of topics.
Join us on our journey by clicking subscribe and hitting that bell and follow our adventures.
@SergePavkinMusic
Please subscribe for more Roams, Waffles and some History as well as views and park ups
Currently we are Nearly Full Time Warriors. We may go full time in the future but for now we continue our explorations.
#selfbuild #vanlife #Scotland
We are on Facebook and Instagram links are on the about page.
This Scottish castle has a dark forest secret. Join us to Find Out?
Duff House was designed by William Adam and built between 1735 and 1740 for William Duff of Braco. The house is built of ashlar in three storeys to a square plan on a raised basement with advanced corner towers.
The house and the associated Fife gates, walled garden, Collie lodge, mausoleum, ice house, Bridge Gate House and the Eagles Gate lodge are designated as Category A listed group of buildings.
The design and construction resulted in a legal dispute between the architect and owner which culminated in a legal case in 1743. Construction began on 11 June 1735. The design of the house originally intended to have flanking pavilions linked by colonnaded quadrants but these were never completed as the Earl thought the house would be too large. This, along with further disagreements on the issue of mason work resulted in the legal case between the architect and Earl.
David Bryce Jr was later commissioned to provide a three-storey pavilion and corridor block, but this was damaged by a bomb in 1940 and subsequently demolished. The Earls of Fife moved out of Duff House in 1903, gifting the property to Banff Burgh in 1906. Between 1911 and 1913, the House functioned as a hotel and then became a sanatorium until 1923 when it became a hotel again. The hotel closed in 1928 and Duff House entered a period of limited use. However, during the Second World War the House became an internment camp and later a prisoner of war camp. In 1940, the House was damaged during a bombing raid resulting in eight dead and serious damage to parts of the building. By 1942, the House was used by the Free Norwegian forces as their Headquarters, along with use by Polish exile forces
Welcome to our version of Vanlife in Scotland. Follow Desmond's adventures as we travel around Scotland and beyond in our old motorhome and as we now embark on a self build replacement. We bring you the details of some of our park ups and show you the surrounding area and even a little history of the area we visit, plus do not forget the wildlife and birds.
With Nature, history, wildlife and the beautiful Scottish countryside there is always something to see in our videos. We also have Lindsay's walks and talks on a wide range of topics.
Join us on our journey by clicking subscribe and hitting that bell and follow our adventures.
@SergePavkinMusic
Please subscribe for more Roams, Waffles and some History as well as views and park ups
Currently we are Nearly Full Time Warriors. We may go full time in the future but for now we continue our explorations.
#selfbuild #vanlife #Scotland
We are on Facebook and Instagram links are on the about page.
