LORD BALFOUR,in rising to ask the Under Secretary of State for War, Whether it is the case that the War Office contemplate making extensive alterations in, and additions to, the build- 399 ings now situated on the Castle Rock of Edinburgh; and, if so, whether any opportunity will be given to Members of either House of Parliament, and others interested, of expressing any opinion upon the design which it is proposed to adopt before the Government is finally committed to it? said, he understood it was the intention of the War Office to make some considerable alterations in, and additions to, the buildings on the Castle Rock of Edinburgh, and chiefly upon the eastern side of the rock near the entrance to the Castle. He believed it was proposed to build some guard rooms and court martial rooms, and some other accommodation which was required for the troops in the Castle, while some further alterations were to be made at a point near the portcullis gateway. The importance of the matter would appear to their Lordships when he told them that that point of the Castle Rock would be visible along the whole length of Princes Street, and any buildings which were put up there must always be an eyesore if they were not buildings of a proper kind. He understood that the money for this work had actually been voted by Parliament, and what he was anxious about was that the proposed buildings should not be put up, or, at least, that the Government should not. commit themselves to any particular design, until the matter had been fully considered. He had considerable suspicion of plans of this kind drawn up by unprofessional architects, and he understood that the plans for the proposed buildings had been drawn up by an engineer, and not by anyone who had made a particular study of the question. It was of the utmost importance that those who knew Edinburgh well, and those who knew the class of buildings which it was desirable to erect on the Castle Rock, should have an opportunity of seeing what the War Office proposed to do. His noble Friend (Viscount Bury), with great courtesy, showed him a photograph of the Castle and a design of the proposed buildings. The drawings which ho had had an opportunity of seeing would not remove the objection he entertained. So far as he could judge, the proposed buildings seemed to him to be an imitation—and a rather poor imitation—of what was called the old Scottish baronial style of architecture, which, in his 400 opinion, was quite out of keeping with the buildings now on the Castle Rock, and would be a great eyesore from Princes Street. He did not say that the buildings which went to form the Castle of Edinburgh were in all respects very beautiful, or everything that they ought to be; but he thought this was eminently a case in which it was better to bear the ills they had than fly to others that they knew not of. It did not seem to him that this was a time when it was desirable to make very great additions or extensions to the buildings on the Castle Rock. Some portions of the Castle were of great historical and antiquarian interest; and while these should be preserved, he did not think it was desirable to make any great additions to the present buildings unless on a settled and comprehensive plan. If more accommodation was required, he thought it would be bettor to face the question of removing the military centre to another place, and leave the Castle in charge of a garrison, and use it chiefly for stores and such like. He would respectfully and earnestly urge his noble Friend that nothing should be done to the buildings now on the Castle Rock without the most mature consideration, and without a full opportunity given for opinions being expressed on the part of those who had real intimate knowledge of the Castle.
THE MARQUESS OF LOTHIANsaid, before the noble Viscount answered the Question of his noble Friend, he should like to put a Question of which he had given private Notice. He should like to know whether any steps had been taken to clean out the old Parliament House, which was now used as an hospital in Edinburgh Castle? This question was brought before the late Government; but nothing had been clone in the matter at all, except that strict inquiries had been made into the condition of the old Parliament House. It turned out that the hall was still in existence, and very much as it was in the old days of the Scotch Parliament. It had now been converted into an hospital, and it had been sub-divided into different wards and rooms. He was told by those who knew that nothing could be more inconvenient as an hospital than the present building. The patients had no place where they could walk about and get fresh air, except a 401 small court in Edinburgh Castle, near where the regalia was kept, which was filled from week to week during the summer with tourists. Ho did not think that was a right place for an hospital, and he was informed that there would be no practical difficulty whatever in removing the hospital out of the present buildings. There was another building in the Castle for stores, and he was told by those who knew that that was a very inconvenient position for stores. It was an enormous expense to the country to have all these stores, first of all, conveyed there from Leith and Granton and afterwards distributed, and it would be an immense public gain to have the stores taken out of the Castle and removed elsewhere. He was informed that if the hospital in the Castle was once given up by the Military Authorities, private individuals would be only too glad to contribute money for the restoration of that most interesting antiquarian building.
§ THE EARL OF WEMYSSthanked his noble Friend or having called attention to this subject. He had had an opportunity of seeing the designs of the proposed alterations; and he thought it would only be right if the people of Scotland who took an interest in the matter had also the advantage of seeing the design. Some 30 years ago designs had been prepared by Mr. Billings, a celebrated architect of that time, for the improvement and restoration of Edinburgh Castle. He thought the plan then proposed would have been a great advantage to Edinburgh and an ornament to the Castle. He hoped his noble Friend would endeavour to find out where these designs were, and show the two together, so that the public might have an opportunity of judging between them.
§ THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (Viscount BURY),in reply, said, he was sure this matter must be very interesting to Scotsmen in general. They all felt that Edinburgh Castle was one of those ancient monuments which should not be lightly touched or tampered with. Ho could, however, assure his noble Friend that what was contemplated in the present instance was a very moderate improvement indeed, and would not detract from the appearance of the buildings. The fact was that there was a buy store and a guard 402 room right in the middle of the parade ground of the Castle which it was proposed to remove; and at one end of the Castle there was an old tower, known as Argyll Tower, the roof of which was fallen in, or was in a bad state of repair, and something must be done if the tower was to be preserved. He held in his hand a photograph of Edinburgh Castle, and the small piece at the end was all that was going to be altered structurally as regarded the Castle. It was merely a small addition to the roof of the Argyll Tower; and far from being an eyesore, as viewed from Princes Street, it was not expected that it would be noticed at all. His noble Friend (the Earl of Wemyss) had said, and truly said, that some 30 years ago a considerable alteration in Edinburgh Castle was proposed. He believed the truth about that matter was that two opposing schools of antiquarians interested themselves in the question. One considered that the architecture of Edinburgh Castle belonged to one period, and another held that any alterations ought to be made in the style of another period. The controversy waxed so hot between the partizans of those two schools, that, although great alterations were required in the Castle, it was eventually decided that the matter should be dropped, and that nothing should be then done. Nothing was done in consequence. That, he was afraid, was exactly what would happen now. These alterations, which were really required for sanitary and other reasons, as well as for the preservation of the Castle, would have to be put aside and entirely abandoned if they were to re-open, as his noble Friend proposed, that architectural quarrel which was laid to rest 30 years ago, and which terminated by simply doing nothing. He could only say that the War Office Department, having a sincere desire to consult the feelings of Scotsmen, had determined only to carry out the smallest amount of alterations that could be made consistently with the safety of the Castle. They proposed to make a very small alteration in the roof of the Argyll Tower, and they hoped that this might be done in such an unobtrusive way as not to constitute an eyesore, as was feared by his noble Friend; and if not found palatable to the general body of Scotsmen, he could assure his noble Friend that nothing further would be 403 done. The whole Vote for the purpose amounted to £1,200 or £1,300. It comprised the removal of some buildings right in the middle of the Castle, and, as he had already stated, the restoration of the Argyll Tower. As to the question of the hospital, that rather depended on the issue of what they now proposed. If his noble Friend caused them to hang up and abandon the restoration of the roof of the Argyll Tower, and compelled them to remain where they were, then they could not carry out the wishes of the noble Marquess respecting the suggested removal of the hospital to a more suitable position. He acknowledged that this was a matter of the greatest importance, and ought to receive immediate attention. The hospital was not in its right place—there was a better place for it—and if those alterations were stopped things must continue as they were. He trusted the War Office might be permitted to execute the very modest improvements which they at present contemplated. He would be glad to show the plans to Members of Parliament; but he hoped there would be no putting up of the designs to public competition, or inviting undue attention to the matter, as that would in all probability end in nothing being done.
THE EARL OF LONGFORDsaid, that noble Lords from Scotland must not be surprised if a War Office which sanctioned the construction of a high level bridge at the Tower of London should consent also to the making of a railway station, or anything else, in Edinburgh Castle.
LORD BALFOURsaid, he thought the subject was one of such great importance to the people of Scotland that he had heard with great regret what he regarded as a practical refusal to allow the general public of Edinburgh to know what was going to be done, and to have an opportunity of seeing and criticizing beforehand the designs of the proposed alterations. He looked with the greatest possible alarm at the idea of erections of such a character being put up without the approval and without the adequate consideration of those who were competent to judge. He was not prepared to say more on the subject at present, beyond the remark that his noble Friend did not answer one Question as to whether the money had been actually voted by Parliament 404 or not. If it had been voted, then he was unable to know how to proceed in the matter. But he was quite sure that if the discussion was reported in the Scottish newspapers his noble Friend would hear much more of it than he had heard that evening; and he was bound to say that he, for one, would not be sorry.