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Explora: Environment
and Resource Conservation, recreation, or both?

re-emerged after the earl’s death in 1974, and the Secretary completely unrealistic proposition. In the circumstances, it
of State for Scotland was approached by his widow is perhaps unsurprising that the estate’s solicitor described
concerning possible acquisition of Haddo in lieu of death the negotiations as ‘by far the most complicated deal of its
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duties. Three separate parties would be involved in these kind to pass through [my] hands.’ 112
negotiations: the NTS, the local authority (by this time What could have become a very protracted discussion
Grampian Regional Council [GRC]), and the Haddo estate was fortuitously hastened to a conclusion by the Scotland
trustees. and Wales Bill, then passing through Parliament and

A generous endowment accompanied the offer, and raising a real possibility of Scottish independence. The NTS
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the NTS was unsurprisingly very interested in acquisition. suspected that the financially constrained National Heritage
They hoped to establish a country park, with Culzean cited Memorial Fund (NHMF), which had now superseded the
as an illustration of their intent; they sought a Brodick- NLF, would not be devolved to an independent Scotland;
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type arrangement whereby they would take ownership of this would put the whole transaction in jeopardy. This
both house and grounds, managed by a Joint Committee focused minds dramatically; an acquisition price of
alongside the local authority. However, Capt. Farquharson, £28,000 was agreed with Lady Aberdeen in 1978, and a
the estate’s factor, doubted that GRC would accept such further £18,000 (£145,000 in 2024) allocation was made for
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an arrangement: ‘I think [the Council] very much wish to essential works, both to come from the NHMF. Under
go it alone here.’ He was right; the council wrote to NTS the final arrangements, issued in May 1980, GRC would
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stating unequivocally their insistence on having legal title acquire the country park, with public access to much of
to any land placed under their control, a position which the disputed area, while the NTS would accept the house,
they claimed had the Secretary of State’s support. This gardens and lawns. The two bodies undertook to share
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would not preclude working together on issues of shared the costs of improved access and car parking; a 75% grant
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interest, but would mean that ‘the NT (sic) would have to from CCS would greatly help with these costs. A Joint
be satisfied with the terrace and the lawns.’ Interestingly, Committee was also established in the end, including NTS,
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although they would clearly have preferred a different GRC and the residual estate. Moreover, Farquharson
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approach, NTS did not challenge this position with any was eventually, albeit reluctantly, persuaded that allowing
vigour, and negotiations over the country park part of the shooting in an area frequented by the general public
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transaction continued between GRC and the estate with was really not a good idea. Haddo was designated as a
only limited NTS involvement. country park on 9 December 1980.
The transition to a country park was, however, by no The NTS had become quite peripheral to the
means straightforward. There was a significant difference negotiations over the country park, and much less involved
of opinion over the price the Secretary of State should pay, than it was in its other 1980 designations, at Brodick and
with the family valuing the property at £32,000 (£300,000 Pollok. However, this more liminal engagement was
at 2024 equivalent) while the District Valuer set a figure perhaps inevitable, given that the problems caused by
of £15,000. There was disagreement over the land the estate related to GRC’s part of the arrangement; there
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to be included in the deal, with the estate insisting on was no controversy over the house or gardens. Once it
restricting access to large parts of the grounds, including was determined that these were going to the NTS, and
the monument and the deer park, an approach which once the endowment and the repair fund were agreed,
severely reduced the potential of the park in the council’s there was little for the NTS to be especially concerned
eyes: ‘we are left with enormous expenditure…and no real about at Haddo, and it was able to access CCS funding for
opportunity of opening up the area’s potential…[we would infrastructure improvements such as the car park. It may
gain] a very second-rate park without large public areas.’ also have drawn comfort from the fact that visitors to the
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The estate also wanted to retain grazing rights, without country park could well also be customers of the NTS’s gift
which, it argued, its farm operations would become shop and catering facilities associated with the house.
unviable. Despite Lady Aberdeen’s strong desire to retain It is also interesting that Stormonth Darling, who was
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the peace and tranquillity of the grounds, estate trustees so closely involved with negotiations at both Brodick and
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and others periodically put forward ideas that would have Pollok, took very little part in the discussions over Haddo.
threatened this. There was also an ongoing dispute over Even the negotiations with the aristocracy, very much
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the retention of shooting rights over part of the land. Stormonth Darling’s preserve elsewhere, was at Haddo
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The impression given in the correspondence that ensued assigned to his deputy. Stormonth Darling might have been
is that the estate was willing to take the money, but only able to find a way through the complex negotiations over
if it retained all its existing rights and usage of the land, a the country park and confronted more authoritatively the

Volume 2 Issue 1 (2025) 9 doi: 10.36922/eer.5890