Duff House, Banff, Aberdeenshire
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Duff House was designed by William Adam and constructed between 1735 - 1740 as the home of the Earls of Fife. It is now a country gallery run by a partnership of Historic Scotland, Aberdeenshire Council and the National Galleries of Scotland. I must admit that the admission fee of £6 rather put me of visiting, when I can visit so many other galleries in Scotland free of charge. However it was really lack of time which influenced my decision not to go in.
Duff House
The house has a chequered history. The 1st Earl of Fife, the wealthly William Duff, desired a fitting seat but didn’t like it when it came down to paying the bills. As building costs soared the Earl fell out with his architect, William Adam, and Duff house was not completed according the original plans. The whole saga ended with a court case and the premature death of the Earl.
The house was owned by the Earls of Fife until 1906 and had various uses such as hotel, sanatorium and 2nd World War prisoner of war camp before being opened as a gallery in 1995.
There are several marked woodland walks around the grounds, including one along the River Deveron, a large childrens playground, ample parking, a tearoom and a shop.
Have you visited Duff House? It’s certainly very impressive from the exterior and is said to be one of the best examples of a Georgian mansion in the UK.
