Bowhill House
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Three miles west of Selkirk off the A708, Bowhill House (July daily 1-4.30pm; £4.50) is the property of the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, a seriously wealthy man. Beyond the grandiose mid-nineteenth-century mansion's facade of dark whinstone is an outstanding collection of French antiques and European paintings: in the dining room, for example, there are portraits by Reynolds and Gainsborough and a Canaletto cityscape, while the drawing room boasts Boulle furniture, Meissen tableware, paintings by Ruysdael, Leandro Bassano and Claude Lorrain, as well as two more family portraits by Reynolds. Look out also for the Scott Room, which features another splendid portrait of Sir Walter by Henry Raeburn, and the Monmouth Room, commemorating James, Duke of Monmouth, the illegitimate son of Charles II, who married Anne of the Buccleuchs. After several years in exile, Monmouth returned to England when his father died in 1685, hoping to wrest the crown from James II. He was defeated at the Battle of Sedgemoor in Somerset and subsequently sent to the scaffold; among other items, his execution shirt is on display.
The wooded hills of Bowhill Country Park adjoining the house (July daily noon-5pm; Easter-June & Aug daily except Fri noon-5pm; £2) are crisscrossed by scenic footpaths and cycle trails: you can rent mountain bikes from the visitor centre.
Getting to Bowhill by public transport is difficult. The Peebles bus, leaving Selkirk daily at 2pm, will drop you at General's Bridge (takes 10min), from where it's a mile or so's walk through the grounds to the house.
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