Abandoned Tertowie House outside Aberdeen could be brought back to life as a massive mansion – 15 years after being wrecked in a fire.
The Kinellar country house, four miles north of the city, dates back more than 500 years but has lain derelict since the devastating blaze in 2011.
It was used as a school for decades, and even comes with its own hidden nuclear bunker created underground in the 1960s.
Now, the prominent local business bosses who own it have unveiled grand plans to bring Tertowie House back to life.
Their architects say: “Although ruinous, this is a property of some architectural quality and is imbued with a long and rich history.”
What is the history of Tertowie House?
There has been a large house on the site since the early 16th century.
Records show Tertowie House has had a long line of owners dating back to 1506, including the powerful Robert Keith, Earl Marischal of Scotland.
By the 19th century, it was owned by a well-known military family who relocated there from Barra Castle at Oldmeldrum.
When owner Alexander King died in 1944, it was acquired by the council and used as a school and activity centre up until its closure in 1975.
A tennis court, gym and classrooms were all built during this time and, perhaps more intriguingly, so was a nuclear bunker…
Why is there a nuclear bunker at Tertowie House?
At the height of Cold War paranoia in the early 1960s, several bunkers were carved out at north-east public buildings to provide shelter in the event of a nuclear attack.
There is one at the soon-to-be-demolished Gordon House in Inverurie.
And another was built underneath the newly formed school buildings at Tertowie, which was to be used by the Grampian Regional Council “in the event of a national emergency”.
It would serve as a “basement control centre and emergency offices”.
The bunker was used by the council until 1968 – but was “reactivated and modernised” 20 years later when the Civil Defence Corps took it on.
It was later closed again in 1988, following plans for the mansion to be used as a north-east “war base”.
So who owns Tertowie House?
The house fell into disuse at that point, and was bought by current owners the Marshall family about 20 years ago.
Charles Marshall jun, the managing director of nearby Marshall Trailers, and his wife Agnes purchased the mansion and its grounds of more than 13 acres as part of a £1.2 million deal in 2005.
But in 2011 it was destroyed in a massive fire, which was later confirmed not to be suspicious.
Since then, parts of the building have “deteriorated”, with “no recognisable evidence of
the woodwork and other finishes being visible”.
It has been on the Buildings at Risk Register for some time, described as being in “ruinous” condition.
But last year, the Marshalls cleared out debris from Tertowie House to make it “safe and secure”.
And what next for the ruined building?
A certificate accompanying the application confirms the site is owned by nearby trailer kingpin Charles Marshall, 20 years after his namesake father purchased it.
Now David and Katherine Marshall are behind the ambitious proposals to transform the historic building.
They want to turn it into a house for themselves, according to the documents sent to Aberdeenshire Council.
As part of the project, they aim to tear down some of the buildings added when it became a school.
But they would look into possible “future use” for the nuclear bunker.
What do you think of the plans? Let us know in our comments section below
There would be an entrance hall, dining room, lounge, kitchen and fitness suite on the ground floor.
Upstairs, there would be two bedrooms, an office and media room on the first floor.
There would be four more bedrooms and a kitchen/living room on the second floor.
You can see the plans on the Aberdeenshire Council website.
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