Staneyhill Tower

Staneyhill Tower is a 17th-century tower house in West Lothian, Scotland.^{[1][2][3][4][5]} The tower is located to the southeast of Hopetoun House.^[1][6] It is a scheduled monument of national importance being the "remains of a 17th-century L-plan tower house which incorporates a particularly fine and unusual hexagonal tower".^[7] The building is said to provide important information about 17th-century domestic architecture.^[7] It is also said to be evidence of 17th-century court life in Scotland.^[3]

Staneyhill tower seen in 2018

Building

The building onsets primarily of a ruined octagonal stair tower that is built onto a L-plan structure.^[1] The walls and vaults of the ground floor also partially remain.^[1] It includes a "superb broken pedimented doorway of a highly fashionable house, possibly by Sir James Murray of Kilbaberton or William Ayton."^[2]

History

The tower house was first erected circa 1630 for the Shairps family.^[2] William Sharp of Staneyhill was the brother of James Sharp, Archbishop of St Andrews, who was murdered by Covenanters in 1679.^[8] The site originally had a fine fountain which derived its water source from the nearby former Maggie's Loch which was drained in the 19th century.^[5] Waterpipes have been recovered during digging by farmers.^[5]

It had fallen out of use by the 18th century, coming under the ownership of the Earls of Hopetoun where many of its building materials were reused, potentially at Niddry Castle.^[3]

The site became a scheduled monument on 24 Oct 1935 and additional designation given on 9 Oct 1998.^[9][7]