The Clatter of Ghosts at Glamis Castle
Located in Angus, Scotland Glamis Castle consists of a staggering 14,000 acres that include not only the castle, but parks, gardens, and farms. Although Glamis Castle doesn't date back as far as the early 1000s, the importance of the land has. In 1034, it was used as a Royal Haunting Lodge and, notably, is where Malcom II was murdered. By 1372, a castle was built for the Lyon family, specifically Sir John Lyon, Thane of Glamis. To this day the Lyons still own the home. By 1445, the title of Lord Glamis bloomed into existence. Interestingly, Glamis castle plays host to the players in Shakespeare’s Macbeth. So, it should come as no surprise to you that it is bursting with legends and lore.
Glamis plays hosts to several common hauntings, including disembodied footsteps and the eternally sullen Gray Lady. But, it’s also home to some ghosts that are of a more…interesting flavor. One of them being The Tongueless Lady.
The Tongueless Lady can often be found wandering the grounds and anxiously pointing at her mouth, from which blood pours from. But how did she end up here? Well, Glamis Castle had a secret. The secret was apparently so heinous, yet necessary, it was only known by 2-3 living people at a time. However, somehow a maid had eavesdropped on this conversation and tried to black mail him. She told him the secret and threatened to share it with the world. However, before she could do so, a guard cut out her tongue and then murdered her.
What was the secret, you ask? Well, it may be lost to time.
According to legend, the only people allowed to know the truth was The Earl, the Earl’s heir (only after turning 21), and the estate manager. For 50 years, the gossip mill turned this story again and again wondering at what the secret could be. Well, the 13th Earl finally put an end to it. It was said that he refused to participate in the initiation rite that would disclose to him the dark history of the castle and, possibly, the family. It is believed the legend died with him. Despite it being lost to time, many visitors from history through today comment on the chilling atmosphere of the castle and how dreadful and dreary things begin to appear between midnight and daybreak.
Although I mentioned a Gray Lady above in passing, there is a ghost that may or may not be here that haunts the grounds. One of the first ghouls to call the castle their permanent home is believed to be Lady Janet Douglas, wife to the 6th Earl.
During her life, the craze with witchcraft and witch burning were reaching their heights. When the 6th Lord of Glamis died, she was immediately accused of poisoning and witchcraft. She was tried and found guilty in 1537. She was taken to Edinburgh and burned at the stake. It makes one question, though: did she return to the home she lived in and grieved her husband’s death before being wrongly accused and murdered? Or, perhaps, she was a witch (whether or not she killed her husband) and stalks the house in revenge. Either way, it is said her ghost can often be found lurking in the clock tower (whereas the Gray Lady is often seen in the chapel).
Finally, we come home to Earl Beardie. Alexander Lindsay, fourth Earl of Crawford, aka Earl Beardie’s presence is one of the most seen, heard, and felt all around the castle. It seems he has a near chokehold on the place, and it could be from his hateful spirit that the sense of dread around the castle comes from. Beardie was a known drunk and drew pleasure from physically and mentally hurting waitstaff. Some stories even report that he demanded a young black servant boy remove his clothes and run around the grounds so Earl Beardie could hunt him.
But how did he end up at the castle?
He was at Glamis Castle on a social visit. One Sunday night, after playing cards and drinking, he decided he wasn’t ready to retire. He began shouting and demanding someone to play with him. No one wanted to play, especially on a Sunday, with him so in a huff Beardie said he would wait to play with the devil himself.
Then, there was a knock at the door. There was a smartly dressed man offering to play cards with Beardie.
The two men went into a room to play cards, and a great amount of swearing and ruckus could be heard. A curious servant looked through the keyhole to see what all the commotion was about and saw a hugely bright beam of light. When he pulled away from the keyhole, he was blind in that same eye.
It was believed that the game was for Beardie’s soul, which was doomed and damned to forever play cards and cause a drunken raucous in the halls of Glamis for eternity. To this day, shouts, swearing, and noise can be heard from the part of the castle where the alleged card game took place.
Others have seen the large, imposing man stalking around the castle and small children have seen what they describe as a knight scaring them awake in their beds.
These stories only scratch the surface of what is lurking in the depths of Glamis Hall. Keep going down the rabbit hole, if you dare.
The above image is Creative Commons Attribution 3. It is a lithograph of Glamis Castle.
