Description

Mid 18th century. 2-storey, square-plan stable courtyard with later additions and alterations. Coursed and tooled sandstone ashlar to SE (principal) elevation; coursed and droved, projected base course; moulded eaves and rusticated, V-jointed quoins. Harled to SW with base course; lined render to remaining outer and court elevations; segmental-arched openings to ground floor of court elevations with raised, keystoned margins.

SE RANGE, OUTER (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: 7 bays. Segmental-arched carriage opening to centre; single, rectangular windows to remaining ground floor bays; remains of a mounting step to 5th bay; small square 1st floor windows to central bay and 3 bays to right; breaking eaves, piended dormers to 3 bays to left. INNER (COURT) ELEVATION: 5 bays. Segmental-arched carriage opening to centre; opening to loft above with part-glazed, 2-leaf, boarded timber doors (no direct access from court). Single windows to ground bays flanking archway; partially blocked to left; boarded to right. Doorways to outer bays; boarded timber doors with plain fanlights. Breaking eaves, piended dormer to penultimate right bay; flanking square opening to far left.

SW RANGE, OUTER ELEVATION: INNER (COURT) ELEVATION: 5 bays. Large rectangular opening with sliding, timber-boarded door (later replacement for arched opening) to centre; single windows to other ground floor bays. Square openings to 1st floor, far right-hand bay (off-centre left) and centre bay (off-centre right). Breaking eaves piended dormer to 1st floor far left-hand bay (off-centre right).

NW RANGE, OUTER ELEVATION: 10 bays. Doorways to penultimate bay left, 6th and far right bays; each with square window above at 1st floor. Window at ground floor of far left bay; square window at 1st floor. Thin, slit openings to upper ground floor of remaining bays. INNER (COURT) ELEVATION: 3 bays. Thin, round-arched opening to centre; flanking coach openings with 2-leaf, boarded timber doors. Small, square windows to all 1st floor bays.

NE RANGE, OUTER ELEVATION: 5 bays. 2 large timber-boarded sliding doors (later replacements for plain doorways) to central and penultimate right-hand bays. Windows to outer and penultimate left-hand bays; additional small window to right of far left bay. Square windows to all 1st floor bays. INNER (COURT) ELEVATION: 5 bays. Central doorway with 2-leaf timber boarded door with flanking windows; further ground floor window to far right bay. Square windows at 1st floor, far left and penultimate right bays (off-centre left).

INTERIOR: formerly converted to residential use in mid to late 20th century. Now used for storage at ground floor level; 1st floor empty (2004).

COBBLED YARD: simple geometric pattern; setts laid parallel to adjacent range; gutters on diagonals into central drain.

Statement of Interest

A-Group comprises 'Callendar House' (HB 31236), and the associated 'Glenbrae Lodge and Gates' (HB 31235), 'Callendar House, Small Bridge on South Axis of House' (HB 31237), 'Callendar House Sundial' (HB 31238), 'Stable Block Including Dovecot, Cobbled Yard, Implement Shed, Boundary Walls and Gates' (HB 46544), 'Factor's House' (HB 46545), 'Dry Bridge' (HB 31240), 'Mausoleum' (HB 31241), 'Atrium House (Former Gardener's Cottage), Including Gatepiers' (HB 50224), 'Kennels' (HB 50894), 'Policy Walls' (HB 50896) and 'Wellhead' (HB 50897), see separate entries.

Callendar House and its associated buildings are some of the most significant and prominent buildings in Falkirk. The Lands of Callendar were granted to the Livingston family in the mid 14th century, and they retained possession of the estate for nearly 400 years. The estate was forfeited to the Government after the Jacobite rising in 1715, who in turn sold on the estate. Callendar was bought by William Forbes in the late 18th century, a copper merchant from London, who continued to develop the mansion and the estate. The Forbes family brought architect David Hamilton to work on Callendar, and as benefactors, were also instrumental to the development of Falkirk as a modern 19th century town. The estate remained in the possession of the Forbes family until 1963, when it was sold to the now defunct Falkirk Burgh Council. The Burgh Council were responsible for planning the high-rise housing within Callendar Park, and also the development of the walled garden as a College of Education (now the Callendar Business Park). However they did no work on the House, which remained derelict and boarded-up until 1997, when it was restored by the present Council.

Both these stable buildings, and the adjoining Stable Block (see separate listing) are now used by Falkirk District Council as storage for the Parks and Gardens department (2004).

Callendar Stable Court lies within the amenity zone for the Antonine Wall recommended in D N Skinner The Countryside of the Antonine Wall (1973), and which will form the basis of the buffer zone, yet to be defined, for the proposed Antonine Wall World Heritage Site.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17816593

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  London 1: The City of London: City of London v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Yorkshire West Riding: Leeds, Bradford and the North (Pevsner Architectural Guides / Buildings of England)
• 
  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Pioneers of Modern Design: From William Morris to Walter Gropius (Penguin Art & Architecture)
• 
  Staffordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)