| Collection | GB 0231 University of Aberdeen, Special Collections |
| Level | Fonds |
| Ref No | MS 3361 |
| Title | Papers of Burnett family of Leys (Crathes Castle papers) |
| Date | c.1192 - 20th century |
| Extent | 45 archive boxes and 82 volumes: 18 linear metres |
| Creator Name | Burnett family of Leys (fl 1358 - 1997) |
| Administrative History | The seat of the Burnett family is at Crathes near Banchory, Deeside, Aberdeenshire. The land of Leys, in the same parish, was settled on Alexander Burnard before 1323 in recognition of his efforts in helping to convert part of the Royal Forest of Drum into a Deer Park; and the Loch of Leys was the principal residence of the family until Crathes Castle, begun in 1553, was completed in the late 16th century. A Queen Anne Wing and the famed 18th century gardens are amongst later additions which characterise the present policies, which were handed over to the National Trust for Scotland in 1951.
These details were extracted from a report by Rachel M. Hart in Reports and Surveys of Archives in Northern Scotland, in Northern Scotland , 12 (1992), 133-134. Further details are contained therein. See also A Guide to Crathes Castle and its gardens (National Trust for Scotland, 1959), p. 4; Schomberg Scott, Crathes Castle (National Trust for Scotland, 1971), pp. 10 - 11; and The Family of Burnett of Leys , from the MSS of the late George Burnett, Lyon King of Arms, ed. by Colonel James Allardyce of Culquoich (Aberdeen: New Spalding Club, 1901). |
| Source | Deposited in the University between 1991 (survey sections 1 & 2) and 1997 (survey sections 3 & parts of 4), by James C.A. Burnett of Leys. Additional papers deposited in September 2015 (the majority of survey section 5, which were papers extracted from the collection and on loan to the National Trust of Scotland. Also 6 other items, never previously included in a survey, and now section 6). |
| Description | This extensive archive traces the fortunes of the Burnett family of Leys and Crathes Castle from the late 14th to early 20th centuries. It is known by 2 names, Burnett of Leys, or the Crathes Castle papers. A survey list compiled by the National Register of Archives in 1986 (NRA(S) 2847) which divides the papers into 5 sections presently serves as finding aid for the collection. For a detailed description see Rachel M. Hart in Reports and Surveys of Archives in Northern Scotland, in Northern Scotland , 12 (1992), 133-134.
Section One covers the fourteenth to seventeenth centuries. The material described therein includes writs and charters relating to the acquisition of different parts of the estate; title deeds to property in and around Banchory and Muchalls; papers dealing with relations between the Burnetts and neighbours such as the Irvines of Drum; the development of the town of Banchory, and its school (including mortifications, 1650 (3361/ I/21/7 - 8) and poor; material concerning patronage and teinds of the church of Banchory Ternan (MS 3361/I/10/23 - 24); family papers, including marriage contracts from 1509; and military and personal papers concerning the Covenanting period (MS 3361/I/38) and of Major William Burnett of Balfour (also MS 3361/II/42 - 59).
Section Two contains mainly seventeenth to nineteenth century papers and correspondence of legal and financial interest, together with many accounts. There is also important domestic material relating to the castle and estate, together with personal, family and executry papers. Rentals, farm plans, tacks, etc. are included with material concerned with the administration of the estate. There are interesting items on nineteenth century forestry (MS 3361/II/89), drainage (MS 3361/II/94) and roads, and some small amount of mainly printed material on the Dee Salmon Fishing Improvement Association, 1878 - 1902 (MS 3361/II/92) (more material on fishing is to be found in Section Three). There are items of political interest, including papers relating to Kincardineshire elections, 1832 - 1874 (MS 3361/II/103), and the local development of the Banchory area continues to be well covered with nineteenth century material, for example, on Crathes Station, the Deeside Railway (MS 3361/II/117) and Banchory Lodge (MS 3361/II/144).
Section Three covers modern estate and legal records, and includes plans, rentals, details of the sale of timber, papers relating to Crathes Castle and school, improvements to roads and bridges, and the fishing of the Dee.
Section Four mainly comprises volumes, including a court book of the Barony of Leys, 1621 - 1709 (v 88); cash books, 1877 - 1938 (v 63 - 73); estate ledgers, 1889 - 1941; rentals, 1762 - 1895; valuations; wood books, 1884 - 1919 (v 40, 51); a family and domestic account book, 1798 - 1809 (v 37); and diaries of Burnett family members, 1820 - 1852 (v 10 - 13, v 5, v 57) and of an unidentified female author, 1817 - 1842 (v 16 - 24).
Section Five comprises documents previously extracted from the collection (Section 1) and which were on display at Crathes.
Section Six comprises papers that were not part of the original surveys. This includes a document from 1646 and 19th century volumes relating to Executries and Trusts, and also a library catalogue. |
| Accruals | Possible. A number of documents are still held by the family and/or held by the National Trust for display purposes.. |
| Arrangement | As above in the Description field: yet please also note:
Section 1 - is taken from an older list of records. There are gaps in this series, caused by removal of some of the papers to later sections at some time between the making of the old list and the new survey of 1986. Some documents are now held in Section 5 of the papers, or still displayed by the National Trust of Scotland in Crathes Castle. These are cross referenced in the catalogue where possible.
Section 4 - selected items are noted as held by the University whilst the rest remain with the family and/or displayed at Crathes Castle.
Section 5 - these are documents extracted from the collection (Section 1) and previously on display/housed at Crathes. It has not proved possible to fully reintegrate these documents into the bundles they were originally extracted from, so as a result, the documents have remained here as a separate section. These are cross referenced in the catalogue, where possible. |
| Access Status | Open |
| Access Conditions | The records are available subject to the signed acceptance of the Department's access conditions.
Some items are in the custody of the family and/or with the National Trust of Scotland for display purposes. These are noted in the catalogue. |
| Copyright | Subject to the condition of the original, copies may be supplied for private research use only on receipt of a signed undertaking to comply with current copyright legislation. Permission to make any published use of material from the collection must be sought in advance from the University Archivist and, where appropriate, from the copyright owner. Where possible, assistance will be given in identifying copyright owners, but responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material. |
| Language | English and Latin |
| Physical Description | No physical conditions affecting use of collection. |
| Related Material | Miscellaneous abstracts of records relating to Burnett family, taken from parish and Kirk session records, etc, from 1570; and file of notes on the Burnett and Blackhall families from various sources. |
| Publication Note | Burnett of Leys Papers. Northern Scotland, Volume 12 (1992), pp. 133-134.
Many of the documents described in Section 1 of the NRA(S) list (see Scope and Content) were published by the Spalding Club in The Family of Burnett of Leys from the MSS of the late George Burnett, Lyon King of Arms, ed. by Colonel James Allardyce of Culquoich (Aberdeen: New Spalding Club, 1901). These are referenced in the catalogue as 'Burnett of Leys'.
A transcription of the Leys estate rentals, 1762 - 1848 was compiled by Wendy Pettigrew, on behalf of the Aberdeen and North East Scotland Family History Society, in Oct 1997. Copies are available for consultation in the Reading Room, Special Libraries and Archives, University of Aberdeen and the reference library of the Aberdeen and North East Scotland Family History Society. |