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One of the great houses of Scotland Category A listed Yester House, built between 1699 and 1728 to the design of James Smith and Alexander McGill, with subsequent modifications and internal work by both William and Robert Adam.

Yester Estate lies in an outstandingly accessible location close to the East Lothian coast. The area is renowned for being one of the most highly sought after addresses in Scotland, with the edge of Edinburgh lying within 16 miles, and the city centre just over 20 miles away.

Nestled between Haddington and the foot of the Lammermuir Hills, Gifford lies beyond the estate gates and is one of the most sought after villages in East Lothian. In addition to the local services found in the village, the popular county town of Haddington (5 miles) has a good range of shops, a supermarket, independent retailers, and an independent primary school (The Compass). The Lothians offer many choices of private school; there is Belhaven preparatory school at Dunbar, Loretto School at Musselburgh, and many other independent schools to choose from in Edinburgh.

While Yester enjoys a rural location, its situation is excellent for the commuter. Edinburgh is less than 25 miles away, and offers all the cultural, shopping, leisure and educational opportunities expected of Scotland's capital, coupled with one of the most inspiring cityscapes in Western Europe. The A1 provides access into the city from Haddington, and there are railway stations at Drem and Longniddry with regular services into Edinburgh Waverley. Edinburgh Airport (30 miles) has an increasing choice of domestic, European and international flights.

The area provides an excellent quality of life and a variety of recreational activities. East Lothian is home to 18 golf courses, including the championship links at Muirfield. Gifford boasts two courses, Castle Park and Gifford Golf Club. The Lammermuir Hills have wonderful walking and cycling, whilst there is excellent sailing on the Firth of Forth.

Yester House is approached by a drive of about 1 km in length which starts on the edge of Gifford village at the imposing entrance gates flanked by two gate lodges. The drive ends in a circular sweep at the western side of the house which passes under a porte-cochère, a carriage porch through which a vehicle may pass in order to enter the house under cover.

Laid out over three principal floors and a fourth basement level, the accommodation is as shown on the accompanying photographs and floor plans. The principal William Adam interiors that were unaltered by his son in the 1700's and subsequent architects, are the main staircase and the old entrance hall, now the Dining Room. Both are adorned with exquisite plasterwork by Joseph Enzer who also worked with William Adam at House of Dun and Arniston. Without doubt, however, even these stunning spaces at Yester are eclipsed by the magnificently proportioned Ballroom or Saloon, created by Robert Adam in around 1789. Historically recorded at almost 30ft wide and 45ft long, it floods with natural light by virtue of the three high arched windows that Robert substituted for smaller windows of his father's design. A wonderful space for entertaining, the acoustics of this room was one of the main reasons Gian Carlo Menotti bought the house. William Delacour, first master of the Edinburgh School of Design, was chosen by Robert Adam to paint the vast canvases that adorn the walls, and, although it is not known who was responsible for the plasterwork, the mesmerising detail on the 30ft high ceiling completes what must be one of the finest rooms in Scotland, as was the intention when it was created.

The Drawing Room is in two parts, one of which has double doors out onto the lawns to the south of the house. Further rooms on the ground floor include a morning or Yellow Room, a daytime study or Print Room, and a modest Breakfast Room for everyday dining. The staff flat beyond the kitchen and pantry is self-contained, and has two bedrooms and a potential third bedroom on a floor above.

On the first floor are six bedroom suites arranged around the Ball Room and Music Room. Two of the dressing rooms are currently used as bedrooms taking the total number of bedrooms on the floor to eight. On the second floor are six bedrooms, a nursery, a children's kitchen and a dining room. Three store rooms could bring the total on this floor to nine bedrooms, if required.

The majority of the house is in good order as the Menotti family have made use of most of all four floors, and brought the internal fittings into line with modern day standards. The house reportedly had electricity 75 years before the rest of Scotland, and has stayed in touch with the modern world since. The roof was comprehensively overhauled in two sections over a period of ten years with work completed in 1985, and a new oak floor has been laid in the Ball Room.

Gate Lodges

The lodges and gate piers, listed category A(S) were built by John Adam in 1753, in red sandstone with wrought-iron gates. Each lodge has two bedrooms, a kitchen, sitting room and bathroom.

Yester Stables

The stables, designed in the gothic style, were built between 1820 and 1826 and are B listed. Lying to the south-west of the main house, the footprint of the building extends to about 9,200ft2 around a central courtyard. Elaborate renovation plans were drawn up in 1992 as part of a project to create a theatre from the ruins, and a scale model remains on display today in the entrance hall. Despite planning permission and widespread support from the performing arts community, the project was abandoned in favour of the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh, and today the building remains unused. It is thought to have significant development potential, subject to the necessary planning consents, although prospective purchasers are asked to make their own investigations with East Lothian Council Planning Department on 01620 827216.

Walled Garden

The magnificent B Listed walled garden dates from around 1750 and has an unusual Serpentine coping, added in the 19th century. Adjoining the north wall of the garden is the former two storey, 3 bay Gardener's House, on the inside of which are the old glass and hot houses. The Gardener's House and glasshouses have fallen into disrepair, though the wall remains largely intact and would, subject to the relevant approvals, provide a superb development opportunity. The wrought-iron gates (circa 1900) are a good example of late 19th century - Arts and Crafts' work. The form of the original gardens can still be seen but it has not been tended for quite some time.

Policies & Woodlands

17th century formal gardens were swept away in the mid 18th century and replaced by a 'picturesque' parkland design, described in 1760 by Richard Pococke: 'the lawn behind the house is fine with large trees interspersed where the sheep feed - '; this description is still accurate today, 250 years later.

54 acres of farmland are currently let to a neighbouring farmer on a Short Limited Duration Tenancy (SLDT). This agreement expires on 31st January 2009. The same farmer typically takes 32 acres parkland grazing on an annual basis. The current agreement expires on 30th April 2008.

The woodlands flanking the entrance drive and the lawns to the west provide colour, shelter and privacy, and there are many fine trees. The wooded area continue eastwards along the banks of the Gifford Water which flows through the middle of the estate.

For the sporting enthusiast, the wooded river gorge provides excellent topography for driven pheasant shooting. There has been a formal and well-organised shoot at Yester for a number of years, and typically 10 - 15 days shooting each season might be expected. Sporting rights have been leased by the estate over an adjacent 400 acres owned by the farmer who rents some grazing from the estate.

Floor Plans
3121362_0_floorPlan.pdf