The Grade A-listed Bannockburn House hit the headlines last year when it was discovered it was the site of an attempted assassination of Prince Charles Edward Stuart.
Historians unearthed a musket ball hole hidden amidst plaster work and wooden panelling in a bedroom where he once sought refuge in 1746.
But Bannockburn House Trust operations manager, Jack Jardine, has issued a stark warning that the condition of the house is quickly deteriorating and is at risk of being “lost forever”.
The main issues are currently being caused by water ingress coming through a chimney stack on the eastern side of the house.
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A few months ago the house had to be closed to the public as it was no longer deemed safe for visitors, meaning is it not bringing in any money.
Since then, despite the best efforts of volunteers and staff, the trust has struggled the obtain the funding it requires to make sufficient repairs, with Jardine saying around £400,000 is needed.
A crowdfunding campaign launched last year – which had a target of £100,000 – only managed to gather around £5000.
As well as having hosted Bonnie Prince Charlie, the house was previously owned by prosperous mill owners the Wilson family, who were the first to commercially weave tartan.
The house contains ornate plaster work on the ceiling of the Laigh Hall, the only other example of which can be found in Holyrood Palace. While the water ingress has not reached this yet, there are fears it will not be long.
(Image: Bannockburn House Trust) The ceiling in what is known as the Blue Room is also currently being held up by scaffolding.
Jardine said the team are getting desperate for funds and have warned they cannot guarantee the future of a site “crucial” to Scotland’s history.
Jardine told The National: “The house does not generate any income at the moment and any donations we get are just keeping the lights on.
“We’ve been reaching out for emergency funding [but have so far been unsuccessful].
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“When water is coming into a building with some of the best examples of 17th century plasterwork in Scotland, putting that at risk, we are getting desperate.
“The house is such an asset to the local community, the volunteers give everything to this project and it would be such a shame for the damage to continue in a way that means that’s no longer possible.
“The house is so crucial to Scotland’s story and identity and at the moment it is at risk. It will be lucky to survive the winter at the rate of deterioration.”
(Image: Bannockburn House Trust)Bonnie Prince Charlie made the three-storey Bannockburn House his headquarters ahead of the Battle of Culloden and met his mistress Clementina Walkinshaw there.
The musket ball hole that was deemed proof of an assassination attempt against him was found in a large bedroom on the first floor’s west wing behind a secret panel.
The find was then authenticated by Jacobite historian Professor Murray Pittock, of the University of Glasgow, and Stirling Council archaeologist Dr Murray Cook.
Jardine said given that room is on the other side of the house to the water ingress, the bullet hole is not under immediate threat.
But with the dampness being created and the ingress spreading, Jardine stressed that nothing is safe.
Murray Pittock with the bullet hole discovered in a bedroom (Image: Supplied) “The water ingress is travelling now and it’s starting to wear away the sandstone and travel inside the house,” he went on.
“It has not yet reached the plaster ceiling in the Laigh Hall which has beautiful 17th century plaster work, but we’re worried if work isn’t done very soon, it will.
“With the water ingress coming into the building, it creates a dampness in the air, which causes mould and rot. The Prince Charlie bedroom does have a bit of that.
“The bullet hole I don’t think is under immediate threat but if conditions continue to get worse then nothing is safe.”
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The Bannockburn House Trust took over the house in 2017 in what was the biggest community buyout in the UK at the time. The house had been uninhabited since the 1960s.
Recent discoveries have included a coal mine in the grounds dating back to the 15th century.
Jardine said when the trust took over, it wanted to develop the house into a community asset, but with people unable to use the space currently he is deeply worried about Scotland losing “a treasure”.
He said: “If water ingress continues then we are going to lose all this historic plasterwork, we’re going to have architectural decay and the house will not be fit for people to visit it or for volunteers to work in it.
“That’s a slippery slope with historic buildings. There’s a very real risk the house may not reopen to the public in the way it was before.
“Having Scotland lose such a treasure would be a great loss both historically and culturally.”