Welcome to Minard Castle - a historic house in Argyll

Minard Castle
Loch Fyne, Argyll, Scotland

Very Brief History of Minard Castle

Built by the Campbells of Knockbuie in the eighteenth century, Knockbuie House was renamed Minard Castle in the mid-nineteenth century, when a new castellated front was added. A substantial part of the building work was done for William Hamilton, who bought Minard Castle around 1850. The original Campbell building was a quite plain rectangular eighteenth century house on four floors, but William Hamilton - and perhaps the previous owners by the name of Askew - added the whole façade containing a number of large rooms in front of the older structure. The initial "H" appears in several places in the newer part of the house. The architect was J.T. Rochead whose works include the Wallace Monument near Stirling. A few years later the house was bought by John Pender. He was the pioneer who laid the first transatlantic telegraph cable and founded the Cable and Wireless Company. His ownership was also quite short, and from 1875 until the nineteen forties Minard Castle belonged to the Lloyd family, who were related to the former Campbell owners. The estate was then sold to the Forestry Commission, who sold the house to the Holiday Fellowship. Later it became a hotel for a few years before it was bought by the present owner's father in 1974. From 1997 until 2010 Minard Castle was open as a bed & breakfast where guests were invited to share the peace and beauty of this idyllic spot beside Loch Fyne.