The Trust was established in 1931 at the initiative of the Association for the Preservation of Rural Scotland to act as a guardian for the nation’s magnificent heritage of architectural, scenic and historic treasures. The National Trust for Scotland owns a great variety of buildings ranging from, castles and country houses to rural cottages. On display inside the buildings is an extraordinary variety of contents including paintings, furniture, porcelain and silver often providing an insight to the families who lived there. Ordinary and industrial objects of bygone ages may be seen in cottages, folk museums and mills.