Ghosts and Haunted Castles in the Middle Ages

People believed in ghosts in the Middle Ages. What are some of the most haunted castles in Europe?
In the Middle Ages, spirits and souls were essential to life. Folks believed they could sneeze out their soul (see my post on superstitions in the middle ages here)! Therefore, people believed in phantoms. They were the deceased’s souls that returned to earth for some reason. Ghosts would return from the dead to settle a score, feel at home, prove loyalty, or other reasons. There are many supposed haunted castles. People believe the Tower of London is home to malevolent spirits of dead royalty. Windsor Castle is also allegedly haunted. Leap Castle has a bloody history; therefore, it must be home to some ghosts, right?
What are some of Europe’s most haunted castles? Which ghosts roam their halls?

Ghosts of the Tower of London

Thanks to its monstrous past, people believe the Tower of London is home to a few malevolent spirits. In fact, there are several ghosts rumored to walk its halls. First, Anne Boleyn died by beheading, thanks to her husband’s orders. He framed her because she didn’t have any sons.

In the Tower of London large as life
The Ghost of Ann Boleyn walks, they declare
Poor Ann Boleyn was once King Henry’s wife
Until he made the headsman bob her hair
Ah yes, he did her wrong long years ago
And she comes up at night to tell him so.
With Her Head Tucked Underneath Her Arm lyrics here and sung here

If that doesn’t make someone angry enough to haunt her death place, I’m not sure what is! She often stalks Tower Green. Other medieval castles also claim she visits them, including Windsor Caslte. Unfortunately, Anne’s ghost is headless, like her physical body. That has got to be a little creepy for the unfortunate people who see her.

Two little ghosts haunt the Tower, as well. People believe they are the Princes in the Tower that disappeared. Supposedly, Lady Jane Grey also haunts the place. A ghostly bear occasionally turns up to scare people to death, and rumor states that additional ghosts walk the Tower’s halls.

Ghosts of Chillingham Castle

Chillingham Castle had a brutal past. In fact, some people even consider it to be the most haunted building in Britain. The Blue Boy was the ghost of a young boy who tended to haunt the Pink Room. Some people have seen blue flashes of light giving him the nickname “the Radiant Boy”. The castle’s owners opened a section of the wall during construction, and found the skeleton of a little boy with some blue cloth around it.

The Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough

They buried him properly. Since then, the Blue Boy has seemed to disappear.
The castle has two female resident ghosts. First, Lady Mary is looking for her husband. She lived alone with her daughter for a long time after he abandoned her. Additionally, the mysterious White Lady turned up in the room where the resident family kept their silver, asking for water.

The guard tried to get her some, but she disappeared. The guard had locked himself in beforehand, and she hadn’t, in fact, opened the door. That had to freak him out. She pops up every once and a while requesting water. Additional ghosts include a pair of voices in the chapel, and some people sense invisible, malevolent spirits.

Ghosts of Windsor Castle

Surprisingly, many supposed ghosts found in Windsor Castle aren’t there for the usual reason. Most didn’t suffer a horrible death there. They lived there before they died and simply wanted to check on things or feel at home.

Henry the 8th by Hans Holbein the Younger

Henry the 8th shows up, limping with his ulcerated leg and sometimes shouting. Anne Boleyn, his second wife, pops up from time to time. One of my favorite ghosts in Windsor Castle is Elizabeth the 1st. She usually visits the library wearing a black dress and shawl. Maybe she liked to read?

Elizabeth the 1st by William Scrots

People have reported seeing Queen Victoria, King George the 3rd, Charles the 1st, and others. Queen Victoria showed up to protect a tree when someone tried to cut it down. Multiple phantoms have appeared in the kitchen, including that of a horse because the kitchen used to be the stables.

Berry Pomeroy Castle

Berry Pomeroy Castle isn’t an overly famous medieval castle. However, it has curious history and ghosts. The land belonged to the Pomeroy family for a very long time. Eventually, they had to sell the land to the Seymour family (remember Jane Seymour, Henry the 8th’s third wife?). The Seymours didn’t love the castle, so they abandoned it. They chose instead to live in another manor belonging to them that was more to their tastes.

The old fortress was not lucky enough to avoid getting its own resident ghosts. Two of the better-known ghosts are the Blue Lady and the White Lady. The White Lady is the ghost of Margaret Pomeroy. Her jealous sister imprisoned her and starved her to death. She sometimes waves to visitors, but she isn’t dangerous. However, the Blue Lady is a little more sinister. She leads people on top of the tower so they fall to their death, or she leads them through the castle so they lose their way.

Ghosts of Dragsholm Castle

Dragsholm Castle is beautiful; it also has ghosts living inside. There are three main ghosts. First is the White Lady (many phantoms are named White Lady). She was a member of the gentry. However, she fell in love with a servant, against her father’s wishes. Moreover, she refused to stop loving him.

Therefore, he threw his daughter into the dungeon. Hundreds of years later, during excavations in and around the castle, workers found the skeleton of a young woman; the emaciated corpse wore a white dress. Another ghost is a servant girl. She grew up working for the owners of Dragsholm and was extremely loyal.

Now she roams the halls taking care of the castle and looking for her masters. Finally, the last of the three main ghosts is Earl of Bothwell. He died while in prison there. He generally rides around the grounds in his ghostly carriage.

Medieval Castles: Leap Castle

Leap Castle was home to the O’Carrolls for a long time. However, the O’Carrolls were violent and terrible. One of the O’Carrolls murdered his brother in the middle of a church service. Moreover, his brother was the priest leading the service. Now that priest purportedly haunts the Bloody Chapel, where he died. In fact, people claim to see shadows around the priest’s home, even now.

Another ghostly figure pushes a barrel up the stairs. Then he rolls it down, and he and the barrel disappear. Another ghost is called “It.” “It” is a similar size to a sheep with a rotting face, and it smells like rotting flesh and sulfur. Finally, the Red Lady walks around carrying a dagger, ready to stab someone. The O’Carrolls kidnaped her.