Those who want to live in a home with a richly layered history should consider The Old Manse.
This five-bedroom former clergy house is set in five acres on the banks of the Frostlie Burn, and is located near Hawick.
It’s especially notable, as the lawn at the front of the house surrounds the grave of border reiver Johnnie Armstrong, who featured in Sir Walter Scott and Herbert Maxwell’s work.
On the market for offers over £895,000 with GSC Grays, this property and small estate includes trout fishing rights, a walled garden, and outbuildings including the former stables and a groom’s bothy, dog kennels, garden stores and a triple car port, among other square footage perks.
We spoke to its owner, James Pow - former head of design at Pringle of Scotland , who has also been a sales and marketing boss at Mulberry, CEO at Hackett, and chairman and CEO at Aquascutum - about his special home.
Why is it time to sell?
We have happily lived here now for 22 years but as I pass through the autumn of my life we both think it’s the right time to downsize, do some well-considered travelling and let someone else enjoy the house and its beautiful rural landscape.
Tell us a bit about its history
It was built in 1844, around the time the Teviothead Church was built by the Duke of Buccleuch. It was latterly the residence known as Teviothead Old Manse for the minister at the church. It’s in the centre of two paddocks lying alongside the Frostlie Burn - a tributary of the River Teviot, which is a famous salmon river. History records two buried chapels in the front paddock and excavation of Roman artefacts. John Armstrong, otherwise known as Johnnie (Laird) of Gilnockie, was a famous Scottish border reiver of the powerful Armstrong family. He gained notoriety as a plunderer and raider, operating along the lawless Anglo Scottish Border
in the early 16th century and, like many of his fellow reivers, thought nothing of changing his allegiance as power shifted. Armstrong’s romantic image was promoted by the writings of Sir Walter Scott. He operated with impunity until King James V took personal control of the situation. In 1530, Armstrong was captured having attended the King in response to a letter that he thought assured his safety. He was hanged with 36 of his men at nearby Caerlanrig Chapel where a memorial stands in the graveyard. Armstrong’s grave lies just to the north of The Old Manse.
Any other interesting features?
Being a classic Georgian manse, built on the original Buccleuch estate land, and just up the driveway from the original church and its old kirk cemetery dating back to the 1500s, there is lots of history attached. The entrance and main hallways, toilets, kitchen, rear hallways, boiler room and pantry, all have lovely flagstone floors. Downstairs, there are the original Georgian windows and stunning curved balustraded main staircase. The boiler room - previously the maid’s washroom - houses the original Belfast sinks and Georgian fired boiler which we retained for character. There are classic high moulded ceilings and skirtings throughout.
What kind of person would want to buy it?
Someone who seeks that place in their busy lives where they can feel space all around them for peace and tranquility but either easily work remotely or commute, as both rail and air services are plentiful. To enjoy an easily managed home with lots of inherent warmth and charm.
What are your favourite rooms?
I particularly love the drawing room, sitting room, main hallway, stairwell and en-suite double bedroom. The collection of antique Persian rugs work really well in the former three rooms, where I can enjoy my collection of Chinese and Far Eastern objects picked up on my travels over the last 45 years. I particularly love the en-suite bedroom with its yellow Chinese design wallpaper and ceramics mixed with Arts and Craft bedroom furniture. The hallway with its collection of mirrors, seashells and collectables reflects the light that streams in from the large staircase window.
Favourite area on the land?
Either sitting under the oak tree in the back paddock looking south over the hills to Dumfriesshire, or under the sycamore in the inner garden in mid summer when the borders are in full bloom.
What have been your happiest times there?
When the house is full with my children and the grandchildren exploring the gardens and grounds before all sitting round the dining room table for dinner and breakfasting together in front of the Aga in the kitchen.Then letting the grandchildren pick one thing from my various collections to take home with them to begin their own collections.
There are lots of seashells around the property, do you collect them?
They were the inspiration for my final collection of men’s clothing fabrics for my degree. Such wonderful objects of nature and symmetry that has led to a collection of so many. That magpie in me has also led to collections of antique art and watches that are part of that parachute I carry on my back. Not to mention books on vicuña, cashmere, angora and alpaca from my travels to secure the raw materials.
When it comes to the decor, did the look develop organically?
Our last house was an Arts and Crafts category one - a listed building in Helensburgh with magnificent architecture and interior fittings. So the rugs and many of my collectables just worked so well with the new Georgian manse.
Are the warm yellows and oranges your favourite decor colours?
Yes and they make for such an easy palette to bring furniture into the rooms to sit comfortably within. But importantly the architectural age of any property is a major cursory discipline to ensure sympathetic additions sit comfortably with the period , particularly wallpapers and furnishings. So we were very fortunate to have an almost ‘ready baked’ approach to our renovations at the Old Manse with warm undertones in our selected hues.
What’s the area like?
It’s both rural and splendidly beautiful. There are rolling hills like Somerset, and prehistoric ancient volcanoes dotting the landscape. Carlisle and the Lake District are an hour to the south west and the Tweedbank rail link to Edinburgh is just 35 minutes away to the north east. It’s predominantly farming country so our neighbours are really friends and we’re security enhanced because of that. We love to travel to beautiful Silversands beach near North Berwick in the summer or lose ourselves in the forests that surround us.
www.gscgrays.co.uk
