Callendar House, Falkirk

Just a short walk from Falkirk town centre lies the 170-acre green oasis of Callendar Park. The centrepiece is Callendar House - a mansion fashioned in the style of a French Renaissance chateau, fused with elements of Scottish Baronial architecture, while a far older tower structure sits at the core. The opulent building has a varied 600-year history and is now in the care of Falkirk Council - functioning as a museum and art gallery. Entry is free and the splendid tea room offers views of the surrounding parkland.

I arrived on a misty Sunday morning, which leant the park a rather eerie air. I had limited time on my hands and proceeded straight into the museum. The ground floor exhibition deals with the history of Scotland over the lifetime of the A-listed house, while the upper levels host displays on the Antonine Wall (part of which runs through the grounds) and the local area's contribution to the industrial revolution. A collection of paintings can be viewed and the oak-panelled Victorian library holds the Falkirk archives, which can be searched by appointment. The oldest part of the house dates from the 14th century, built by the Livingston family. Many prominent historical figures have passed through over the years - including Mary, Queen of Scots, Oliver Cromwell, Bonnie Prince Charlie and Queen Victoria. The Livingstons were an influential political family and never far from the centre of public affairs. In the late Middle Ages, a string of Scottish monarchs were crowned before they were old enough to formally take up their duties. This prompted several noble dynasties to vie for power, the Livingstons among them. Indeed, they "looked after" the young King James II in the 1440s. A century later, the Livingstons walked a political tightrope, remaining loyal to the catholic Queen Mary, while emerging as a leading protestant family during the Reformation. Their luck ran out during the Jacobite era and in1783, the forfeited Callendar lands were sold by the government at public auction. Businessman William Forbes tabled the winning bid. When asked how he was going to pay, the copper magnate simply pulled a banker’s draft for £100,000 out of his pocket - the equivalent of around £50 million today. Forbes made significant changes to the house and wider estate, developing magnificent gardens and pleasure grounds with many ornamental structures, including the family mausoleum. Wings and turrets were added to the mansion. The new laird had come from rather humble origins, the second son of an Aberdeen merchant. The self-made man represented a major shift in society - the rise of the entrepreneurial business class, which challenged the landed gentry. At this point in time, Scotland moved away from agriculture dominance towards an industrial future, with growing urban centres of population springing up across what is now termed the Central Belt. The Falkirk area can be considered the cradle of this societal shift. The enormous Carron Ironworks was established in 1759 and the Forth & Clyde Canal opened in 1790, running right through East Stirlingshire. Large shipments of goods could now be easily transported to and from either coast. The world's first successful towing steamboat - Charlotte Dundas - was trialled on the canal in 1803. The intercity railway from Edinburgh to Glasgow passed right through Falkirk and commenced running in 1842. The local population mushroomed and facilities couldn't always keep pace with the influx of people. Social change eventually came and living conditions gradually improved for the working classes. Callendar House also features a fully functional Georgian kitchen - used as a filming location for the popular Outlander historical fantasy TV series. Installed around 1790, many features are more or less original. Fans of Outlander (a global success) visit in droves and - bang on cue - a busload of Spaniards trooped in with a tour guide. It all helps replenish the country's coffers.

I headed upstairs to view the permanent exhibition on the Antonine Wall. The turf barrier (with a deep ditch at the front) marked the northern limit of the Roman Empire. A window provided a nice view of the remaining evidence within Callendar Park. Construction began around AD142, by order of Emperor Antonius Pius. At that time, the vast empire spanned three continents and was around around 9000 soldiers helped erect this latest fortification - commemorating their efforts with decorative slabs, 20 of which survive. The wall ran for 38 miles and the remains of 17 forts have been discovered, the largest of which was located just 2 miles east of Callendar House. The Forth & Clyde Canal arrived over 1500 years later and followed roughly the same route across the narrowest part of Scotland. The wall was three metres high and likely topped by a wooden palisade. Pius never visited Britain and his project was abandoned just eight years after completion. Much of the structure disappeared back into the landscape, unlike the more substantial Hadrian's Wall 100 miles to the south. It has been nominated several times for UNESCO World Heritage status, but this has not yet been granted. I strolled into the art gallery, which featured an exhibition entitled This Island Earth, by Glasgow-based Marianne Greated. It explores the relationships between nature and human intervention, particularly those shaped by power generation and excavation. The show looks at two sites - a granite quarry on the small Danish island of Bornholm (where Greated’s mother is from) and the UK’s oldest oil refinery at Grangemouth - four miles from Callendar House - which controversially ceased operations this year. The artwork characterises declining industry and prompts reflection on environmental responsibilities and sustainability. It's a topic of great personal interest to me and the bleak but colourful images struck a chord. A large permanent gallery on the top floor chronicles the trading history of the Falkirk area. The foundry at Carron was fuelled by local coal reserves and the main output in the early days was a supply of military hardware. A light cannon was developed and became known as the Carronade. It proved lethal in short-range combat between ships and was successfully deployed in the Battle of Trafalgar. Bigger factories were required to keep pace with the growing industrial revolution. Only cathedrals and castles had been built on such a large scale before. Poorer quality coal was used to fire salt pans along the shores of the Forth. Flax was widely cultivated to make linen and most large towns had bleaching fields on their perimeters. Tanneries benefitted from the staging of the Falkirk Trysts - a huge open-air market for cattle and other livestock. Drovers set out on the annual pilgrimage from all corners of Scotland. Agents made their way north from England. The railway boom eventually provided a more efficient way of transporting the animals.

Falkirk town outgrew its traditional walled boundaries and began to resemble the settlement we know today. The exhibition also looked at the social habits of working people and touched upon the expanding role they played in local and national politics. Town councils were created to solve the problems created by rapid population growth and limited infrastructure. The church was no longer the dominant force in society and the state became responsible for the provision of education. The exhibition had mock-ups of several businesses, including a record shop from a more modern era. Two magnificent paintings of Falkirk High Street in 1750 and 1850 gave a fascinating glimpse of day to day life. There was a wealth of information on the gallery text panels and I have only provided a few snippets here. Set aside at least two hours if you want to visit Callendar House and do it justice.