View from south

Description View from south

Date 24/7/2001

Collection Records of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), Edinbu

Catalogue Number E 15466 CN

Category Photographs and Off-line Digital Images

Copies SC 769262, SC 1255706

Scope and Content Rhebreck, Balmoral Estate, Aberdeenshire, from the south This picturesque cottage orné is constructed from the same light-coloured local granite as the castle. It is built on an L-plan, with a scullery extension in the angle. It has a steeply pitched slated roof, and deeply projecting eaves decorated with bargeboards. The wooden outbuilding (left), a later addition, is painted in 'Balmoral beige', a colour chosen by Prince Albert, and decorated with a set of stag's antlers. When Prince Albert and Queen Victoria bought the Balmoral estate in 1852, they inherited many of the staff who were already employed on the estate, and whom continued to serve in the employment of the royal family until death or retirement. Many more staff were engaged, all of whom had homes built for them in a range of housing that reflected their social standing in the hierarchy of staff employed at the castle. The Balmoral estate was bought in 1852 by Prince Albert and Queen Victoria at their own expense as a Highland retreat from the stresses of London life. Prince Albert initiated many improvements, including the building of a new holiday home, Balmoral Castle, in 1853-5, and put forward plans for a model estate with new houses and offices for estate workers and tenants. Rhebreck, one of the new houses built c.1855 for estate workers, was probably designed by William Smith, the architect who designed the castle. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

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