Earlier Houses: There was an earlier house on a different site.

Built / Designed For: Francis Dukinfield Palmer Astley

House & Family History: Arisaig, the only Scottish country house designed by the important English Arts & Crafts architect Philip Webb, served as an upscale hotel until 2019. In 2021 the house, together with 18 acres, was listed for sale for £2.25 million. In 1941 the house, the estate, and the village of Arisaig were sealed off from the outside world with the high security designation of a Special Protected Area. The house was then requisitioned by the British Army and used as the training center for an elite taskforce of sabotage and guerrilla warfare agents. This was all part of the Special Operations Executive, a top secret organization created by Winston Churchill in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage, and reconnaissance in occupied Europe. Over 3,000 agents were trained at Arisaig during the course of the war; some of their stories were told in Julie Summers’s 2018 book, “Our Uninvited Guests: The Secret Life of Britain’s Country Houses, 1939-45.” As recently as the early 21st century five unexploded bombs were discovered on the grounds of Arisaig House, a stark reminder of the estate’s wartime past.

House Listed: Category B

Park Listed: Not Listed

Past Seat / Home of: Francis Dukinfield Palmer Astley, 1864-68. Sir Arthur and Lady Nicholson, 19th century; Miss C.G. Astley-Nicholson, early 20th century.

Current Ownership Type: Individual / Family Trust

Primary Current Ownership Use: Private Home

House Open to Public: No

Historic Houses Member: No