 In 1675 , the Loch Leven estate was bought from the Douglases by Sir William Bruce ( <unk> – 1710 ) , royal architect in Scotland . Bruce built nearby Kinross House on the lake shore from 1686 , aligning the principal axis of house and garden on the distant castle . The " Newhouse " , which was finally demolished in 1723 , was just to the north of Bruce 's site . Kinross was one of the first buildings in the classical style erected in Scotland . Thereafter Loch Leven Castle was no longer used as a dwelling , but it was preserved by Bruce as a picturesque focus for his gardens . 
