Mount Stuart House

Mount Stuart House is set within 300 acres of gardens and grounds including a private beach. A café and shop are also available on site. Well behaved dogs on leads are permitted within the gardens and outdoor seating areas.

The house itself is the ancestral home of the Marquesses of Bute. Mount Stuart’s original house was built in 1719, but was severely damaged by fire in 1877. Most of the contents survived, along with the wings of the building. These were incorporated into the house you see today, which was built in the late 19th century. The main part of the present house is a flamboyant example of 19th-century Gothic Revival architecture, built in a reddish-brown stone.

Mount Stuart's major features include the colonnaded Marble Hall at the centre of the main block and the Marble Chapel; this has an elaborate spired tower which is the tallest part of the building. Two earlier wings in a strikingly different style survive. They are much smaller in scale, have Georgian-style sash windows and are painted white.

Inside, decoration and design are inspired by astrology, art and mythology. See a map of the stars on the ceiling of the Marble Hall. Take the spiral staircase to what is believed to be the world’s first domestic heated swimming pool. This house is filled with innovations – from an early telephone system to a Victorian passenger lift.

Additionally, the house holds The Bute Collection, a private collection of artwork and artefacts. The Collection also houses archives, books, furniture, and silverwork reflecting the interests of the Bute family's various generations, including 25,000 books on topics including theology, botany, agriculture and Scottish history and literature.

In April 2016 it was announced that a Shakespeare First Folio had been discovered in the House's Library.