6. Edinburgh Castle

One of the largest ghost hunts ever conducted results in dozens of strange experiences, unexplained photos... and perhaps more questions than answers. The most haunted abode in Scotland is the Close of Mary King in Edinburgh. It was built in the 1600s, and it contained hundreds of people during the plague of 1645 when they were quarantined. Voices, dogs, and a lady clad in black have all been recorded.

The most haunted Castle in Great Britain stands up on the basalt plug of an extinct volcano which is estimated to have risen some 450 million years ago, during the lower Carboniferous period. Standing 120 metres (390 ft) above sea level, the Castle Rock, and the sloping hill to the east, is a classic example of a crag and tail formation. These geological foundations cannot be underestimated in their significance for the subsequent development of the Castle, and indeed the city, and the events which have defined its history. To the south, west and north, the castle is protected by sheer cliffs rearing some 80 metres (260 ft) from the surrounding landscape. This means that the only readily accessible route to the castle lies to the east, where the ridge slopes more gently. But just as its location has rendered the Castle all but impregnable, it has also presented difficulties. Not the least of these is that basalt is an extremely poor aquifer, and therefore providing water to the Upper Ward of the Castle in particular has long been problematic, and has proved disastrous under siege conditions, for instance when the garrison ran out of water during the Lang Siege of 1573. 

Edinburgh Castle, suspected to be one the most haunted spots in Scotland, is appropriately judged considering Edinburgh has been said to be the most haunted city in all of Europe, and possibly the world. The castle is a historical fortress and parts of it have withstood its 900 year history. A battleground of countless deaths, Edinburgh Castle can easily be thought of as an eternal spot of unrest for fallen soldiers. Other ghosts said to haunt the castle are a phantom piper, a headless drummer, the spirits of French prisoners from the Seven Years War and colonial prisoners from the American Revolutionary War and even a dog that wanders the castle's cemetery. Other areas of Edinburgh also have ghostly reputations: the subterranean vaults of South Bridge and a disused street called Mary Kings Close where victims of the Black Death plague were sealed up to die. What also makes Edinburgh Castle so noteworthy among the paranormal community is that in 2001, Dr. Richard Weisman took a group of 240 volunteers, ignorant of the castle's past, on a walk-through of the castle and its surroundings in order to gather paranormal data. Armed with every ghost busting tool imaginable, almost all the volunteers reported experiences such as drops in temperature, shadowy figures, burning sensations in the limbs, physical touching, and tugging at clothes. One woman was even brave enough to stay the night alone in a South Bridge vault. She reported hearing heaving breathing from the corner of the cell that got louder throughout the night and she saw strange flashes of light. What is most intriguing about the whole experiment is that even though none of the volunteers had any previous knowledge of what rooms had haunted reputations and which ones didn't, they reported the most amount of activity from the reputed locations and saw many of the same things as other tourists.

Edinburgh Castle is an ancient fortress which dominates the sky-line of the city of Edinburgh from its position atop the volcanic Castle Rock. Human habitation of the site is dated back as far as the 9th century BC, although the nature of early settlement is unclear. There has been a royal Castle here since at least the reign of David I in the 12th century, and the site continued to be a royal residence until the Union of the Crowns in 1603. As one of the most important fortresses in the Kingdom of Scotland, Edinburgh Castle has been involved in many historical conflicts, from the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 14th century, up to the Jacobite Rising of 1745, and has been besieged, both successfully and unsuccessfully, on several occasions. From the later 17th century, the Castle became a military base, with a large garrison. Its importance as a historic monument was recognised from the 19th century, and various restoration programmes have been carried out since.

Few of the present buildings pre-date the Lang Siege of the 16th century, when the fortifications were largely destroyed by artillery bombardment. The notable exception is St Margaret's Chapel, the oldest surviving building in Edinburgh, which dates from the early 12th century. Among other significant buildings of the Castle are the Royal Palace, and the 15th-century Great Hall. The Castle also houses the Scottish National War Memorial, and National War Museum of Scotland.

The Castle is now in the care of Historic Scotland, and is Scotland's second-most-visited tourist attraction.[1] Although the garrison left in the 1920s, there is still a military presence at the Castle, largely ceremonial and administrative, and including a number of regimental museums. It is also the backdrop to the annual Edinburgh Military Tattoo, and has become a recognisable symbol of Edinburgh and of Scotland.

 

Greyfriar’s Cemetery has been considered haunted for generations. Its history is filled with the horrific, from deliberate headstone removal and desecration, bodysnatching and live burial, to witch burnings and use as a mass prison. Around 1998, however, a new and inexplicable phenomenon began occurring in the graveyard where visitors claimed to have encountered cold spots, nauseating smells, loud noises coming from empty tombs, and even physical injury. Many visitors and tour guides have been the victim of attack by unseen entities who leave bruises, cuts, and scratches on the unwary. People were routinely knocked unconscious and overcome by debilitating nausea and vomiting. Homes near the graveyard became plagues by poltergeist activities such as smashed china and glassware, moving objects, shadowy figures, and menacing, guttural laughter.

 

 

There are two areas of the cemetery where activity is extremely dense, one being the area around the MacKenzie Mausoleum (also called the Black Tomb) and the other in the gated area known as the Covenanter’s Prison.

It is said that George MacKenzie is the shadowy entity haunting the area near his family tomb. In the 17th century, MacKenzie, a loyal subject to Charles II of England, is said to have ruthlessly persecuted and imprisoned “unrepentant” Scottish Presbyterians who formally entered into what they called a “Covenant Between God and Country.” This act of Scottish loyalty excluded the authority of Charles II and it is said that MacKenzie soundly punished all those Covenanters he could round up. Many were imprisoned in harsh and unforgiving conditions in a small area inside Greyfriar’s and most of the Covenanters died there rather than revoke their oath. Since that horrible event, the Covenanter’s Prison as well as the MacKenzie Mausoleum have both been fearsomely active, although it was not until recently that the spirits said to inhabit the area have begun to strike out against visitors and nearby residents.

Currently, the Covenanter’s Prison area is only accessible to visitors accompanied by a tour guide; the MacKenzie Mausoleum is nearby and can be visited and photographed – at one’s own peril, evidently.

Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is in the hands of a separate trust from the church. For many people, the graveyard is associated primarily with Greyfriars Bobby, the loyal dog who guarded his master's grave. Though Bobby's headstone is at the entrance to the Kirkyard, he is actually buried at a grassy verge by a wall nearby, as the Kirk authorities would not allow his burial on consecrated ground. The dog's famous statue is opposite the graveyard's gate, at the junction of George IV Bridge, and Candlemaker Row.

The Kirkyard was involved in the history of the Covenanters. They began in 1638 with signing of the National Covenant in the Kirk, and in 1679 some 1200 Covenanters were imprisoned in the Kirkyard pending trial.

Many of the plots are enclosed in ornate stone and ironwork cages, called mortsafes, to preserve the dead from the attentions of the early 19th century resurrection men who supplied Edinburgh Medical College with the corpses for dissection. During the early days of photography in the 1840s the kirkyard was used by David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson as a setting for several portraits and tableaux such as The Artist and The Gravedigger.

The Greyfriars Cemetery is reputedly haunted. One such haunt is attributed to the restless spirit of the infamous 'Bluidy' George Mackenzie (buried there in 1691), which is said to cause bruising and minor scratches and grazes on those who come into contact with it; strangely enough, many visitors have reported feeling strange sensations. Particularly, visitors who take the ghost tours which lead patrons inside the yard's mausoleums have indeed emerged with injuries they have no recollection of sustaining. Even more interestingly, a number of deaths have taken place in the Kirkyard itself. The Kirkyard's ghost tours operate during the summer months, generally leaving from the High Street, and it is these which have turned in many of the reports. The SciFi channel's Scariest Places on Earth featured Greyfriars Cemetery.

The Kirkyard backs on to George Heriot's School, and the Greyfriars Bobby pub.

A sign at the entrance of the Kirkyard (right) reads as follows

In Greyfriars Church the National Covenant was adopted and signed 28 February 1638. In the Churchyard are objects of historical interest as the Martyrs' Monument towards the North East and the Covenanter's prison towards the South West. Also the graves of many Scotsmen and citizens of Edinburgh of whom some of the most important are
James Douglas, Earl of Morton Regent of Scotland died 1581
George Buchanan, Historian and Reformer died 1582
Alexander Henderson, Churchman and Statesman died 1646
Sir George Mackenzie, King's Advocate died 1691
Mary Erskine, School Founder died 1707
William Carstairs, Statesman died 1715
George Watson, School Founder died 1723
Colin MacLaurin, Mathematician died 1746
Thomas Ruddiman, Grammarian died 1757
Allan Ramsay, Poet died 1758
William Robertson D.D., Historian died 1793
Duncan Ban MacIntyre, Gaelic Poet died 1812
William Creech, Bookseller died 1815
Henry MacKenzie, "The Man of Feeling" died 1831
Thomas McCrie, Historian died 1835

Duncan Ban MacIntyre's memorial was renovated in 2005, after a fundraising campaign of over a year at the cost of about £3,000 [1].

Other people buried in the kirkyard include:

* Joseph Black (1728–1799)
* William McGonagall (1825–1902)
* Captain John Porteous (ca. 1695–1736)
* Maj Gen William Farquhar, (ca. 1770–1839) 1st Resident of Singapore

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