Prince savours the ‘heavenly’ £45m stately home he saved

But instead of a wake for a "sleeping beauty" sold off to the highest bidder, yesterday was a celebration that the house, one of the ancestral homes of the Marquis of Bute, had been saved, in its entirety, for the nation in a £45m deal.

Given the Prince of Wales had provided the pivotal cash - £20m - to save the home from private sale at the last minute, it was more than apt he visited the property yesterday.

It had been planned that Friday, July 13, would be the day when the unique contents of the house, including one of the finest collections of furniture created by Thomas Chippendale, were to be sold for more than £12m. Nevertheless, they were still all in place when Charles visited on a dreich Friday lunchtime.

"Isn't it all wonderful stuff? It's heavenly", said Charles, formally in his guise of the Duke of Rothesay, peering into another room of bespoke antique furniture in the 250-year-old house as he continued his lengthy tour of the property.

The appreciation of the interiors of the house was continued by Alex Salmond, First Minister, as he examined a bathroom off the Red Bedroom, and noted of the furnishings: "It's not Armitage Shanks, is it?"

Led on a tour by the marquis, the former racing driver known now as John Bute, and his wife Serena, Charles showed studied appreciation as he was led through some of the 31 rooms.

He admired the ornate carved ceilings, heavy tapestries, archaic musical instruments and the banks of portraits lining its walls.

He also expressed interest in a four-poster Chippendale bed that took pride of place in one of the bedrooms, and mentioned it had obviously supported a lot of night-time reading over the years.

Although a previously obscure country house, the funders of the rescue deal think it will blossom into a major tourist attraction.

David Barrie, director of the Art Fund, one of several charitable bodies involved in the purchase of the property, said: "I think it will be a roaring success.

"In a sense, it is a bonus that not many people knew of its existence, because when it opens to the public they will find they have this treasure on their doorstep."

Later, Charles visited Cumnock itself, to meet some of the local bodies and politicians in the area at the Baird Institute History Centre and Museum.

A key part of the huge deal, which was driven predominantly by the prince's Charities Foundation, as well as a consortium of charities including The Monument Trust, the National Heritage Memorial Fund, the Art Fund, the Garfield Weston Foundation and the Dunard Fund, is the purchase of 66 acres of land in the area near the estate.

Around 1000 "mixed housing" homes, for all income brackets, will be built on this land.

The project is expected to bring employment and people to the area, and add to the economic impact that the prince hopes will be beneficial to the area.

Other outbuildings on the 2000-acre estate will also be upgraded and used as workshops and other business opportunities.

An independent trust, The Great Steward's Dumfries House Trust, is being established to organise the presentation and maintenance of the house, which will open to the public next year. The trust takes formal control of the house in November.

Douglas Reid, leader of East Ayrshire Council, said: "It's a great thing in terms of tourism and in terms of jobs.

"Ayrshire is all about tourism just now and this will bring (tourists) over to the eastern side of the county. It really will put us on the map."

He added: "Up to this point, many had been planning for a population decline here but that's not going to happen now. It is such a massive shot in the arm for the area."

Stephanie Young, provost of East Ayrshire, added: "This is absolutely wonderful.

"It's just as though Christmas, Easter and all the holidays in one have arrived.

"It is so surprising that it happened in such a short space of time."

The marquis said he was not upset at the sale of the house. Being brought up on Bute, he visited only because his grandmother lived there.

However, he was optimistic about its future.

He said he wanted to sell the house, which before the campaign to save it had remained little known, to restructure his family finances and concentrate on his family home, Mount Stuart on Bute, in the Firth of Clyde.

"This is the end of a long process for me, he said.

"I started talking about it with the National Trust for Scotland in 2004, and planning in earnest to sell it for two years, so it has been a real relief to come to this deal at what was really the 11th hour.

"I feel positive about the future of the house and what the developments will mean for the area.

"Of course I have a sentimental attachment to the house but it's now time to think of the future. There is no sadness for me at all: this seems to be the best solution for everyone."