History of Pilrig House

We went down Princes Street this morning & did some shopping & this afternoon we went to tea with the Balfour-Melvilles at Pilrig… it is such a lovely old house… I should love a house like that. You go in at big gates off a crowded street, & a long drive, & then this beautiful old house, as quiet as if was miles in the country. We had tea in the garden & such beautiful old silver! I do wish you could have been there!

From an unpublished letter to Eleanor Mary James from her mother-in-law, Susan Eleanor James, 1928.

Incredibly, Pilrig House was owned from 1718-1941 by the same family - the Balfours.

James Balfour bought the house in 1718 - with compensation money he received from his father's part in the disastrous Darien Company.

Pilrig House also has many associations with Robert Louis Stevenson - one of Scotland's most acclaimed authors. He often visited relatives at the House, and played in the gardens as a child, mentioning Pilrig at the end of Kidnapped, and, also in Catriona.

All in all, Pilrig House is a place to enjoy and explore - and a far cry from typical city centre accommodation.

The Full History of Pilrig House

Fortunes lost, made and lost again. Literary intrigue. Powerful people and turbulent times. The history of Pilrig is a microcosm of Scotland's past – and a fascinating backdrop to your stay in Edinburgh.

Download the full historical background (Word, 96kb)

So long as houses like Pilrig survive, the past can never be forgotten or erased.

Sunday Times, 2005.