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san4uzel · Joined: 16 Nov 2006 Posts: 72 Location: British

Dunster Castle

Dunster Castle dates from Norman times and, like many very ancient sites, has the reputation of being the haunt of many ghosts.

The castle dominates a steep hill overlooking the picturesque village of Dunster. The hill has been fortified since Saxon times, although nothing now remains of these early defences. During the early medieval period the sea reached the base of the hill offering a natural defence, and strong walls, towers, ramparts and outworks protected the other sides. In the late 14th century the castle came into the possession of the Luttrell family, and remained in their ownership for the next six hundred years.

By the 15th century the sea had receded and the Luttrells created the deer park. When Sir George Luttrell inherited in 1571, the castle was dilapidated and the family were living elsewhere. In 1617, Sir George employed the architect, William Arnold, to erect a new house in the lower ward of the castle. During the Civil War, Dunster was a Royalist stronghold under the command of Colonel Wyndham. In November 1645 Parliamentary forces started a siege which lasted until an honourable surrender of the castle in April 1646. Dunster shared the fate of many other Royalist castles and had its defences demolished to prevent any further use against Parliament. All that now remains of the medieval fortifications are the impressive gatehouse and the stumps of two towers.

The house was modified and developed over the following centuries, and much of the current appearance dates from the 18th century when the park was landscaped and the Green Court, terraced grounds and follies were created. Much of the furniture in the house also dates from this period.The shop is housed in part of the 17th-century stable block, and this area seems especially prone to supernatural happenings.

HAUNTINGS

Staff report occasional sightings of a man dressed in green who passes the door of the shop and proceeds down the stable block blithely ignoring their questions, only to disappear without trace.

There are accounts of a mysterious green light that floats from the front door to the far end of the stable block, and staff are aware of a presence in the stock room opposite the shop – the shop manager has always felt most uncomfortable when working in there.

Visitors often comment on a sense of menace at this end of the building. On five separate occasions, visitors who have felt uneasy have specifically asked if anyone had been murdered here, and one lady was adamant that two people had been murdered in the stables.

In the shop itself there are frequent, inexplicable happenings. Stock items which have been perfectly secure one minute suddenly fall over, especially displays of books at the far end of the shop

Sedgemoor

The battle of Sedgemoor, 1685, was the last stand for the 'pitchfork' rebel army of the Duke of Monmouth. His army of supporters, which numbered around five thousand strong, were mainly armed with nothing more than farming implements. They were slaughtered mercilessly by the accurate gunfire of James II troops, as they attempted a night attack across the Sedgemoor marshland. The revolt started in June of that year, when the Duke tried to claim the throne, landing first at Lyme Regis in Dorset. The Duke managed to muster a fair amount of support from the Somerset people, who suffered terribly in the aftermath of the battle, during the trails known as the 'Bloody Assizes'. The trails were presided over by the notorious hanging Judge, Judge Jeffries, who sentenced hundreds of people to death

There are many stories of ghosts other traditions attached to the area, and there is little wonder as the events of the battle and the bloody aftermath, left a deep mark upon the local people. One traditional tale tells of a local lad fighting with Monmouth's army, who was captured after the battle. He was famed throughout Somerset as an exceptional runner, and to amuse themselves his captors told him that his life would be spared if he could keep pace with a horse. He rose to the task and managed to stay beside their finest horse at full gallop.

This remarkable feat of athleticism was not to save his life however, for after the race he was put to the sword just the same, his captors reigning on their promise to spare his life. His sweetheart was so devastated by the news of her lovers death that she drowned herself in the shallow waters of the levels, her ghost remaining to haunt the levels accompanied by the sound of a man and a horse running at full pelt.

In her book ‘Somerset Folklore’ Ruth L Tongue records a local tradition recorded in 1890, of how a researcher in the 18th century was told by a farmer that he had heard the sound of someone shouting "come over and fight" one foggy night in the vicinity of the battlefield. This was said to have been the battle cry of the Duke's men, desperately shouting at James's army to join them in battle as they were mown down by musket balls. Although the farmer believed that the source of the voice must have been a drunkard, the tale has now become the tradition that the battle site is haunted by the sound of ghostly cries.

The ghost of Monmouth is also said to appear on the battlefield either on the third or sixth of July, on the anniversary of the battle (the battle was on the night of the sixth of July). Monmouth actually managed to escape the battle with his life but was captured a few days later hiding in a ditch. He was executed for treason at the Tower of London on July the fifteenth. The Duke had calmly paid the axe man - Jack Ketch - to do a swift and clean job, but the axe man lost his nerve and took five bloody strikes to relieve the Duke of his life, much to the outrage of the massed crowd. Even after those five strikes the Duke's head was still attached to his twitching body, finally separated from his shoulders with a knife, on the order of the Sheriff.

The George & Pilgrim Hotel

The George & Pilgrim Hotel. Is reputedly Glastonbury's most haunted place, It was built in about 1475, to accommodate wealthy pilgrims and other visitors to the Abbey. In the years of intrigue leading up to the 1540 Dissolution, secret matters were expedited via the underground passage that used to run from the hotel cellar to the Abbey Gatehouse. That tunnel would have hosted many dramas over the years. One tale says a monk was discovered using that tunnel for his secret love trysts. As punishment he was shut into the tunnel alive when it was blocked up. Some think that the ghost monk occasionally glimpsed in the hotel may be him.

Whatever the origin, G&P staff say that guests regularly report paranormal experiences, getting so spooked that they sometimes check out in the middle of the night - or even straight after arriving. Many of the staff have experienced the hotel's strangeness at some time.

"It was late night, after closing time" one of the managers reminisced. "The place was locked up, the guests all in their rooms. A few of us were sitting quietly chatting. Suddenly the back door slammed. Footsteps came down the passage. We went to see who it was, but no-one was there - and all the doors were still locked."

Over the years, significant numbers of both staff and guests have reported the same repeating phenomena. A man who looks quite real except for his historical clothes will now and then walk through the bar and then disappear. Late at night, after everyone's gone to bed, ghostly footsteps creak in the passages. A smell of cigar smoke that no-one is smoking sometimes drifts into certain rooms. Moving lights and sudden bangs can manifest at odd moments any time of the day or night. A violent argument sometimes rages from the small lounge - but whenever it's checked, no-one is there. A spectral monk wafts down the passage now and then.
These phenomena have been observed many times over the years, but none of them have caused distress or done any harm. Perhaps the only potentially frightening presence is one that seems to lurk in the older bedrooms at night.

In one of those rooms, a hotel guest's experience began when she saw the ghost of a woman in modern dress who complained of the cold, then disappeared.

"What then followed was the worst, scariest thing in my life," the guest continued. "I will call the phenomena he, as it felt male. I felt a great pressure above me but not touching me. It was large and it was as if my life force was completely immobilised. I was paralysed. I could not move a muscle, nor could I make a sound. I knew that I had to keep calm as whatever it was wanted to cause me great distress. I asked him to please leave me alone. I also asked if I could help him go to the Light. Then I was released. I thought I could help, and prayed, but it was no use. I knew I had to leave the room as soon as possible. I was shaking. I started packing

16 th Century Choughs Hotel.

A rich array of phantoms inhabits the 16 th Century Choughs Hotel. Situated in the town centre of Chard, it is a mysterious building made of solid stone riddled with secret passageways & hidden rooms. Set into the wall of an ancient fireplace is what appears to be an inverted tombstone on which can be discerned a weathered inscription that looks like the name ‘Winifred’. It is said that anyone attempting to take a picture of this relic using flash photography is doomed to fail.

The most sophisticated camera equipment has been known to malfunction and even if the flash does go off, the resulting images are either very foggy or do not appear on the negative at all.

Successive landlords just tell perspective photographers that ‘The ghost won’t like it’. No one is certain which ghost is responsible for the phenomena and since there are several to choose from, the would be ghosthunter might be better rewarded seeking out a spectral rather than a photographic image.

A former landlady was walking along an upstairs corridor one night when she encountered the mysterious figure of a night in armour. His bulk was blocking the passageway and she thought at first that he must be something to do with the carnival that was taking place in the town that day. She asked him if he would mind moving aside to let her pass and was astonished to see him vanish into thin air.

The ghost of a sinister looking old man has also been seen crouched by the fireplace in the bar. Some say that this particular entity is Judge Jeffries who supposedly stayed at The Choughs in a room where his coat of arms can still be seen on a wall.

In the early 20th Century a guest in the hotel was awoken one night by the sound of a woman's voice, alternating between whispering and laughing. It was accompanied by the more forceful and menacing voice of a man who seemed to be arguing with her. As the strange sound ceased the guest fell asleep but when he awoke next morning he had a deep red welt across his face, as though a whip had struck him.

Ethereal figures drifting around the hotel, objects moving of their own accord and doors that slam in the night are just some of the other supernatural occurrences that have been reported