The Treasury and the care of ecclesiastical and historic Crown buildings in Scotland, 1832–79

Abstract

The paper seeks to outline UK Treasury support for the buildings owned by the Crown (largely acquired on the final abolition of the Episcopacy in 1689) and other buildings in Scotland deemed of national interest for the period 1832–79. It charts Treasury policy of grant-aid after the transference of Scottish hereditary land revenue to the Commissioners of Woods, noting that although the 1707 Act of Union implied a legal obligation to uphold and upkeep Scottish Crown property, support was limited, conditional on local contributions and notionally attributed to Scottish land revenue. It then details the evolution of subsequent preservation policy and, in the light of local representations to promote public access for recreation and enjoyment, the reclamation of other Crown property funded unconditionally from parliamentary grants. With reference to the role of Treasury patronage it then discusses the provision of grant-aid for the preservation of a number of non-Crown historic buildings and sites, a policy not commonly available in England. While noting the contribution of contemporary antiquarians, the paper concentrates primarily on the decisions of Treasury ministers, and highlights the intervention of William Gladstone and Queen Victoria in such matters. It then reviews the Treasury decision not to lease or sell such properties to local authorities and its acceptance that as the extended list of properties were owned by the Crown there remained an obligation to prevent them ‘falling into decay’. It concludes by considering the policy’s impact after the Ancient Monuments Protection Act 1882 on heightening Scottish interest and commitment towards the preservation of other sites of historical interest.