Lews Castle is a Victorian era castle located west of the town of Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

. It was built in the years 1847-57 as a country house for Sir James Matheson

James Matheson

Sir James Nicolas Sutherland Matheson, 1st Baronet , born in Shiness, Lairg, Sutherland, Scotland, was the son of Captain Donald Matheson, a Scottish trader in India...

 who had bought the whole island a few years previously with his fortune from the Chinese Opium trade. It was designed by the Glasgow architect Charles Wilson

Charles Wilson (architect)

Charles Wilson was a Scottish architect from Glasgow.-Biography:Charles Wilson was the younger son of a Glasgow-based master mason and builder. After working for his father, he was articled to the architect David Hamilton in 1827...

.

In 1918, the Lewis estate including the castle was bought by industrialist Lord Leverhulme from the Matheson family. He gifted the castle to the people of Stornoway parish in 1923.

During World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 the Castle was taken over as accommodation for air and ground crew of 700 Naval Air Squadron, who operated a detachment of six Supermarine Walrus

Supermarine Walrus

The Supermarine Walrus was a British single-engine amphibious biplane reconnaissance aircraft designed by R. J. Mitchell and operated by the Fleet Air Arm . It also served with the Royal Air Force , Royal Australian Air Force , Royal Canadian Air Force , Royal New Zealand Navy and Royal New...

 aircraft from a slipway at Cuddy Point in the Grounds. The base was referred to as HMS Mentor. It was also used for accommodation for students of Lews Castle College

Lews Castle College

Lews Castle College is a further and higher education college in the Western Isles of Scotland. The main campus is in the grounds of Lews Castle, Stornoway. The College also has two learning centres in Benbecula and Barra. The College is part of the University of the Highlands and Islands.The...

 in the 1950s.

Today the building is owned by the local council, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar is the local government council for Na h-Eileanan Siar council area of Scotland.It is the only local council in Scotland to have a Gaelic-only name...

, and is protected as a category A listed building. Lews Castle was awarded £4.6 million by the Heritage Lottery Fund

Heritage Lottery Fund

The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...

, on 22 November 2011, to enable it to be converted into a bilingual museum and cultural centre.

External links

• Overview of Lews Castle from The Gazetteer for Scotland
• History from Stornoway Historical Society