page_title: Castle Mona
section_title: Private residence
hierarchical_section_title: Castle Mona / History / Private residence
caption_attribution_description: English: Aerial view of the Castle Mona, Isle of Man, 1928.
context_page_description: The Castle Mona is a former private residence and hotel in Douglas, Isle of Man. The house was built between 1803 and 1804 for John Murray, 4th Duke of Atholl in his capacity as the Isle of Man's Governor General. Before 1850 Queen Victoria proposed buying it as a more suitable royal residence than Osborne House.
context_section_description: The Castle Mona was designed by the eminent architect George Steuart, a native of Perthshire, Scotland, and who arrived on the Isle of Man in 1793. Amongst Steuart's other work were such places as Attingham Hall, Baronscourt and St Chad's Church, Shrewsbury.
  Apart from the Castle Mona, Steuart's chief work on the Isle of Man was the Red Pier, which with the lighthouse and courthouse he designed and directed the construction of between 1793 and 1799 and the Ramsey Courthouse (constructed circa 1800). In addition Steuart designed the obelisk in Braddan Parish Churchyard commemorating Lord Henry Murray.
  The Castle Mona was constructed from stone brought from the Isle of Arran, the cost of construction being variously stated from £20,000 to £40,000 with other estimates placing the cost in excess of £50,000. The building was constructed as a perfect square, with an additional wing on the south side. A similar wing was intended for the north side but was never constructed. A circular tower is situated in the center of the structure.
  The wall facing the sea was ornamented with four plaques. One of the center plaques bearing the coat of arms of the Murray family to which the Duke of Atholl belonged; another bearing the arms of the earlier Earldom of Atholl. The domain adjoining the house was comparatively small terminating on the north side to a point now represented by the end of a row of shops, where a lodge was built. Another lodge stood on part of the site which today is Castle Terrace, and a drive ran through what is today Castle Mona Avenue - the site being formerly known as The Black Lawn.
  The ground behind the castle rises abruptly in the form of a cliff and this restricted the land available for the grounds of the actual mansion. This restriction led to the Duke's choice of the land to be criticised in some earlier guides to the Isle of Man. However the land behind the cliff, which was also owned by the Duke, stretched up as far as what today is the Glencrutchery Road and which at the time of the early 19th century was said to be thickly wooded.
  Following the death of the 4th Duke in 1830 the estate was sold, and it was initially planned to break up and apportion the land for building sites. This led to the notion of establishing a new town in the area to be called Woodville, however this merely resulted in a few late Georgian houses bordering on what today is Victoria Road.
caption: The Castle Mona (circa 1927)
exif: {}