The
centerpiece of the Seton Family was the Palace of Seton, which had
stood on the same spot on the Seton Baronial Lands for upwards of
eight hundred years.
The
original castle was a defensive one, a square tower built during
the time of Seier de Lens/de Seton sometime around 1061-66.
Later, this was enlarged to become a more commodious residence,
however it retained it's overall military character with French
styling. Having been repeatedly
embattled, and much destroyed, it wasn't until after the Rough
Wooing by England's King Henry VIII that it became known as the
famed, "Palace of Seton". It was George, 6th Lord Seton,
under James V, who was responsible for the re-creation, and Mary
de Guise, the French wife of Scotland's King James V, was often
present. Prior to this, the Seton's had been much involved
in the affairs of Scotland's Royal Family, having the privilege of
their presence on many occasions, over successive generations,
with the family's munificent tastes being much sought after by the
Scotland's Monarch's as a place of relaxation and refuge.
For this reason was
the Seton House rebuilt into a magnificent Palatial Structure by
the 6th Lord Seton, and continued upon by his son, the famed
George, 7th Lord Seton, as well as their descent, the Earls of
Winton.