St Colme

http://portal.historic-scotland.gov.uk/designations

Type of Site

An early 19th-century parkland landscape, originally forming part of the much larger Donibristle designed landscape (q.v. Inventory, Volume 4, pp.372-5).

Location and Setting

St Colme House is situated on the Donibristle estate, to the west of Aberdour, off the A92. It lies between Aberdour and the satellite town of Dalgety Bay. The policies are bounded by the A92 to the north, the Firth of Forth to the south, Aberdour to the east and Dalgety Bay to the west.

St Colme is set on elevated ground overlooking Barnhill Bay, with extensive views over the Firth of Forth to Edinburgh and the Lothian coast. The eastern approach from Aberdour allows uninterrupted views over the Firth of Forth. Along the remainder of the old east drive to Donibristle House, there are panoramic views over the Firth of Forth to the Lothians and towards Donibristle House. From the site of the old summerhouse in Temple Plantation there is a panoramic view over the Forth. Perimeter tree belts enclose the landscape to the north.

Roy's Military Survey (1747'55), depicts a house and square parks called Dalgety within the eastern part of the Donibristle policies. St Colme is not indicated, and the area around the present house is shown as run-rig.

An unattributed plan for the improvement of Donibristle, dated 1772, indicates a pre-existing building on the St Colme House site. By 1811, this property and the Parks of Dalgety had been embraced by an informal parkland landscape which extended eastwards from Donibristle House to Aberdour. This landscape remained relatively unchanged following the building of St Colme House in 1845.

Since the 1960s, with the development of housing at Dalgety Bay and Donibristle, St Colme House is now the focus of the eastern half of the landscape, formerly associated with Donibristle House.

Landscape Components

Architectural Features

St Colme House, built c.1845, is a 2-storey house of random rubble, with a projecting central bay to the south. The Coachhouse, also c.1845 but a possible remodelling of an earlier building, is 2-storey random rubble under a slate roof with a later lean-to greenhouse on the south side. An Ice-house, located in the garden to the east of the coachhouse (1st edition OS 6", 1853) could not be located. The Sundial to the south of the house has a square pedestal with carved faces, borne on four stone balls, and resting on three steps.

A mid 19th-century brick Walled Garden joins the coachhouse and the house. The walls are ashlar coped with stepped wall-heads. The entrance to the walled garden has new cast-iron gates. 'The Monk's Cave', on Charles Hill at the cliff edge to the south-west of St Colme House, consists of the lower storey of a medieval building, perhaps once a ferry-house to Inchcolm Abbey. The upper storey is no longer extant. The late 15th-century doorway opens into a vaulted cellar partly excavated into the cliff-face. The circular Doocot is 17th- or 18th-century with corbie steps on two sides; the lean-to roof has fallen in. There are 653 nest-holes.

The single-storey East Lodge with Gate-piers, erected in 1870, has elaborate cast-iron and wrought-iron Gates and Screen Walls and lies on the western edge of Aberdour. The North Lodge, by the A92 trunk road, is mid Victorian, also single-storey, with elaborate Gates and Gate-piers, c.1870. Gun Emplacements on Charles Hill are situated to the east of Braefoot Gas Terminal. This oil installation lies to the west of Braefoot Plantation. The standing remains of St Bridget's Church, a single chamber, pre-Reformation church, lie on the Dalgety Bay foreshore. There are a number of Cottages and Farm Buildings scattered throughout the estate.

Drives and Approaches

There are two main approaches to St Colme House, from the north and east. Both link up on the north side of the house to become what was in the past the main east drive from Aberdour, past Dalgety Gardens, to Donibristle House. West of Dalgety Gardens and St Bridget's Church, the designed landscape has been developed as a housing estate, thus the link with Donibristle House is not now apparent. The surviving drives remain a strong, well-preserved feature of the St Colme House designed landscape. However, the east drive successfully exploits views over the Firth of Forth and along the Fife coast. The parkland planting has been cleverly executed to enhance the outline of ridges or hills viewed from this drive.

West of St Colme House, Temple Plantation lies on the north side of the drive. Some rubble masonry on the southern edge of the plantation marks the temple-site, or r summerhouse (1st edition OS 25", 1853). The remains of the distinctive beech avenue planting along the east drive dates from at least the 18th century.

Parkland

Parkland on the west side of St Colme House comprises 18th-century formal parks, once associated with Dalgety House and Gardens. Towards the end of the 18th century, their formal layout was informalised and softened by planting belts and clumps, but the early layout is still identifiable. To the east and south of the house the parkland is strictly informal and it sweeps gently down to Barnhill Bay before merging into Aberdour Golf Course, which stretches eastwards from Kenniker Cottage to Aberdour.

Woodland

The skilful planting of mixed deciduous trees, mostly beech (Fagus sylvatica) and oak (Quercus petraea) in clumps, belts and along ridges visible from the drives to St Colme House, still creates a striking impact. This would also have been apparent when the estate formed part of the policies of Donibristle House.

St Colme House itself occupies an elevated position surrounded by mixed deciduous trees which provide protection from the winds coming off the Firth of Forth.

The Gardens

St Colme House sits within an open lawn. There is a modern rockery with conifers. The garden extends north to the former site of the walled garden attached to Barn Hill. The coachhouse, forming part of the walled garden, is now linked to St Colme House. To the south of the house are serpentine walks edged with cherry laurel (Prunus laurocerasus). These are indicated on the 1836 estate survey (Fullarton 1836).

Walled Garden

The walled garden forms part of the St Colme gardens. There is no longer evidence of the separate walled garden at Dalgety House but below ground archaeology may survive.