History of Stobhall

The ceiling was covered over following the ascendancy of iconoclastic Calvinism in the 17th century. It was uncovered and restored in 1843. At the same time the gothic window above the altar was restored. Until the restoration in 2004/5 it had been thought that the window replaced in the 1840’s, which comprised of three oblong vertical bar sections, was the original window and that the gothic one was a Victorian imposition. However when the window surround was removed evidence of a much earlier gothic window was discovered. It appears therefore that the three vertical windows were installed at the time of the conversion of the Chapel in 1578 in place of the original gothic pattern.

When the gothic window was restored the three panels of the painted ceiling immediately in front of it had to be moved and these are now situated on the opposite wall above the door. These are the crest of the Earl of Perth flanked by the Holy Roman Emperor and the King of France.

The stained glass windows were installed in the 1840’s but may include many fragments of 16th and 17th century stained glass. It is probable that these did not originate at Stobhall but rather were in the ‘bit box’ of the tradesmen who installed the windows. In 2004/5 the windows were removed, repaired, re-leaded and reinstalled.

When Cromwell invaded Scotland Drummond Castle was occupied by his troops and rendered uninhabitable. The then Earl of Perth therefore returned to Stobhall and, finding it too small, built the Dower House and probably the brewhouse and laundry, the building that is now the kitchen and is attached by a passage to the Dower House. The Pend archway into the courtyard was added slightly later. The important and ornate plaster ceiling above the staircase in the Dower House was added sometime in the late 17th century. The family then returned to Drummond Castle, when it had been restored.

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