King Charles has revealed plans for an $8.7 million architectural intervention at one of Scotland’s most significant historic estates, Dumfries House. His plans will convert part of the estate into an events venue ideal for weddings.
Recently, unveiled by The King’s Foundation, the project introduces a new extension to the East Wing of the 18th-century Palladian house in East Ayrshire. While the 2,000-acre estate is not an official royal residence, it has long served as the foundation's headquarters, which Charles established in 1990 to promote sustainable living through education, craft, and design.
The single-storey addition, to be known as 'The King’s Hall', is scheduled to open in summer 2027. Designed to accommodate up to 200 guests, the space will host a programme of events, from private celebrations (including weddings) to public community celebrations.
King Charles discovered the home in 2007, when he was The Prince of Wales (known in Scotland as The Duke of Rothesay). At the time, the estate faced an uncertain future and risked dispersal. Recognising its cultural and architectural significance, he brought together a consortium of organisations and individuals to 'passionately' secure the home's preservation.
In 2016, the King reflected on the home's decade in Dumfries House Magazine, noting that 'an astonishing amount [had] happened' since preservation began.
'I look back to those very early days with immense relief at the extraordinary reality that we did, indeed, save the House and its marvellous contents, but then there was the frightening thought about the road ahead,' he wrote.
'This project has been as much about people as it has about a physical place. The way that our local communities and our employees speak with such pride as to what has been achieved is enormously rewarding and wonderfully motivating.'
Today, the extension continues a careful evolution of the estate, balancing heritage conservation with contemporary functionality and reinforcing Dumfries House’s role as a living, working site – rather than a static historic monument.
You can read more about its fascinating history, on the brink of its new chapter, in Dumfries House by Simon Green, available at Amazon.
