England’s Haunted Houses

The other predominant ghost at Muncaster is that of Mary Bragg. Mary was a house keeper at Muncaster in the late 1700s. She was in love with one of the footmen, but, he did not feel the same. One night in 1805, two men called on Mary and told her the footman was seriously ill, however, they were lying and they took her to a huge tree and killed her on the spot. Her body was found floating in the nearby River Esk. She is frequently seen in the grounds of Muncaster castle to this day, perhaps, searching for her love. It is a local rumour that the tree where she was killed began to bleed as it was cut down.

Muncaster castle is open to the public throughout the year. Why not see for yourself the spectres of the castle?

Borley rectory

Borley Rectory is after referred to as ‘The Most Haunted House in Britain’, whether that is true, who knows? However, there have been many accounts of strange happenings there over the years. One ghost which is regularly seen is that of a nun. Locals believe that she is the spirit of a 13^th century nun who was bricked up in a wall, while still alive, as she tried to elope with her lover, who was a monk at the local monastery.

Noted psychical researcher Harry Price conducted his own investigation of Borley. He claimed to hear phantom bells ringing and rapping noises and he also saw objects move of their own accord. He also found many other local people who had similar experiences whilst at the rectory.

Reverend Henry Bull, who was the pastor at Burley in 1862, often heard phantom footsteps, rapping’s and saw the occasional ghost, as did his family. They found the events to be a great form of entertainment and would often seek to find the ghost of the nun. However, the next family to live there would have a very different view of the haunting.

In 1932 reverend Lionel Foyster and his wife Marianne moved into the rectory and the strange phenomena saw a sharp increase. The doors to bedrooms were locked, windows were smashed, objects disappeared and furniture was moved. There was also an increase in rapping noises which were heard in the home.

Whatever was haunting the house seemed to take a dislike to Mrs Foyster and she would be slapped by an unseen force and thrown, violently, from her bed. Occasionally heavy objects would fly across the room at her. After a while, messages began to appear on the wall of the rectory begging Mrs Foyster to help. Many people believe that Mrs Foyster herself was responsible for much of the phenomena although she always denied this.

The foysters left the house in 1937, but strange things continued to be documented. In 1938 some people held a séance at the rectory and a spirit told them the place would burn down and 11 months later it did. Some old bones were found under the rectory after the fire, which many believed were those of the nun who perished in the wall. The rectory was demolished in 1944.