The mystical secrets of Glamis Castle in Scotland: its past and present. The story of the ghost of Count Bierdie is known in several versions.

In the Scottish region of Angus is Glamis Castle - one of the most famous in the United Kingdom. Once upon a time there was a hunting house in its place, which belonged to the royal family.

In 1376, King Robert II presented it with the surrounding lands to his son-in-law, John Lyon Bowes-Lyons. By the 15th century, the estate was significantly modernized - towers and numerous fortifications. The new castle was named, like the nearby village, Glamis.

In the 17th century, the forts lost their military relevance, and the Bowes-Lyons hurried to turn the castle into a palace.

Glamis Castle is surrounded on all sides by gardens and parks for several kilometers., which have become one of the main external attractions. The architecture of the castle also cannot but arouse admiration: high walls and towers made of brown boulders, topped with conical spiers, often serve as a backdrop for tourists for photographs. Also, the interior of the castle falls under the scope of the photo lens, the corridors of which are not plastered and keep the appearance of a severe stone fort. Sometimes in photographs, silhouettes appear miraculously next to people, and they are too clear to raise doubts about their nature ...

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Glamis Castle is one of the most haunted buildings on british island. Perhaps only the Tower of London can compete with Glamis in terms of the number and frequency of their appearance. Ghosts are main reason, along which crowds of tourists flock to the castle. Local ghosts, unlike the tower martyrs, are very friendly with visitors, and therefore tourists willingly spend the night at the Glamis inn. However, this does not save from fright those who wake up at night from strange sensations, and, opening their eyes, find a man in armor hanging over the bed. Visitors are woken up by one of the local ghosts, who for some reason very intently looks at the faces of the sleeping people. He silently passes through the walls in heavy equipment, sometimes disturbing the sleep of the guests, but so far he has not harmed anyone - however, like his neighbors.

Undoubtedly, the most famous ghost of Glamis can be called "Monster". Its appearance is associated with a terrible story, which is displayed in one of the legends. A freak was born in the family, and in order not to spoil his reputation, he was hidden from prying eyes in one of the many secret rooms of the castle. His whole life was spent in a cramped cell without windows, the light into which penetrated only from a narrow vent in the wall. When the nameless freak died, his body, so as not to arouse suspicion, was simply walled up in one of the rooms of the castle, which is called the “Monster Room”. Since then, in the chambers and corridors adjacent to this crypt, groans from the wall have been heard, which at times are replaced by powerful deaf blows into the thickness of the masonry. Some have also seen a ghostly window appearing in the castle wall where the freak's spirit lives. This legend is possibly based on the tragedy of the Ogilvy family: they fled from enemies in a secret room, but were walled up and died there.

Another famous ghost- Count Beardy. From time to time, from his empty chambers comes the choice of Scottish obscenities, mixed with the sounds of objects falling to the floor and tearing fabric. The count during his lifetime was an avid gambler. Rumor has it, one day he sat down to play on a Saturday night with friends. Shortly before midnight, they laid down their cards, since playing on Sundays was considered a gross blasphemy in those days. But Beardi won, and therefore became furious, exclaiming: "If no one will play with me, I will play with the devil himself!" Exactly at midnight, a stranger entered the card room, but this did not bother the already pretty tipsy count. The stranger sat down to play with Beardi, betting a handful of rubies, and after a few hours he won all the property from him. Desperate, the count pawned his soul and lost it, as before - everything else. They say that Beardi swears in his chambers when he again loses to the Devil, with whom he is forced to continue the game until the Last Judgment.

Panorama of the castle

In the small, cozy chapel of the castle, the Gray Lady is often encountered - this is the spirit, as they say, of Janet Douglas, who was burned in the castle on a trumped-up charge of trying to poison the king. The Gray Lady is usually seen praying in the chapel, where the clergy have even reserved one of the forty-six seats.

Glamis is also haunted by the ghosts of a Negro servant, the Tongueless Woman, the White Lady, who frightens drivers at the entrance to the castle, and many other former residents of the castle. Connoisseurs count about two dozen such “personalities” in the castle, each of which has its own colorful history.

If you crave without excess risk touch the other world - you are welcome to Glamis Castle, the castle of the living and the dead.

Glamis Castle in Scotland is surrounded by more stories and legends than any other castle in the UK, but at the moment it is, of course, known as the birthplace of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, mother of the current Queen Elizabeth II. The castle is now owned by the Queen's great-nephew, the Earl of Strathmore, and is partly open to the public.
The ghosts of Lady Glamis burned at the stake, and the White Lady, the Arap boy and the mysterious old man continue to roam the castle among visitors, and in one immured room there has been a continuous game of cards with Satan himself for several centuries. Even among the castles of Scotland, almost every one of which is inhabited by several ghosts, Glamis stands out in terms of the number of ghosts per unit area.

But, in order...

Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (future Queen Mother)

Glamis Castle

The history of the castle is rooted in the depths of millennia, when at first there was a modest hunting lodge designed for the needs of the king and his retinue. It was in this house that King Malcolm II was killed in 1034. According to various versions, he was killed by the Britons, dissatisfied with the accession to Scotland of Strathclyde, abstract courtiers, or even more abstract bandits. It seems that no serious investigation was carried out, but they bothered to organize a spectacular show, with hanging the drowned people caught from the lake on the surrounding trees. Favorite granddaughter Duncan tried. But the real motives and method of committing the crime remained a mystery. Bringing poor Malcolm II and wandering in these places.

Interiors of Glamis Castle

In 1372, one of the sons of John Lyon, Baron Forteviot, also John, who had the honorary nickname of the White Lion, received lands in Glamis and the title of thethen from Robert II for his service. The success of John Lyon did not end there. In 1376, he married the daughter of the king, Lady Jane (in some sources, Joanne) Stuart - then the Lyons first intermarried with the kings. John decided to build a family castle on the land he received.

Interiors of Glamis Castle

In 1382 Sir John quarreled with Sir James Lindsey Crawford and was killed in the heat of the quarrel. The spirit of the old man has been cursing his neighbor within the castle walls for several centuries now. His son, also John, once again became related to the royal family, married the great-granddaughter of Robert II.

In the 1400s, a small castle of the Scottish lord was built on the site of the old house, which until the 18th century was overgrown with numerous towers and outbuildings. And also, densely populated with ghosts.

Interiors of Glamis Castle

In 1445, the son of the first builder of the castle, Sir Patrick Lyon received the title of Lord Glamis. As already mentioned, in Scotland it was equated to a baron. By the way, the 1st Lord Lyon was married to Isabelle Ogilvy. Then, in the legends, the Ogilvies act as decent people, and Lindsey, of course, the villains. True, according to the same legends, despite this, periodically Lord Patrick Lyon, Alexander Lindsey and the Devil made up a company to play cards.

Interiors of Glamis Castle

In the middle of the 16th century, a whole tragedy broke out here. John Lyon, 6th Lord of Glamis died in 1528 at the age of 37. His widow Janet (née Douglas) was left with four children in her arms, but after a while she remarried Archibald Campbell. In 1537, while investigating another conspiracy (real or fictitious - it is not known exactly), she came to the attention of justice.
Maybe it would have cost, but remembering the exploits of her brother, Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus, King James V ordered the investigation not to bother for a long time, and to execute her, not particularly bothering to search for evidence. In order not to execute a person whose participation in the conspiracy has not been proven, Janet was also accused of witchcraft, and the participation of her first husband Lord Glamis in these cases was colorfully painted (in a conspiracy or witchcraft - it was not specified).
The poor woman was burned at the stake in the yard Edinburgh castle. Despite the fact that Lady Janet had been named Campbell for several years, this episode was preserved in history as the execution of Lady Glamis, although she was burned due to the fact that her maiden name was Douglas. There is no evidence that the Campbells in general, and Lady Janet's husband in particular, were seriously affected by this story.

Interiors of Glamis Castle

But John Lyon, 7th Lord Glamis, at that time still a minor, was stripped of his title, imprisoned and sentenced to death. As the son of a witch, or for participating in a conspiracy - it is not clear. The laws, however, in Scotland were humane, the execution was deferred until adulthood. Imagine a teenager sitting in prison, waiting for him to turn so many years old (most likely sixteen), and he knows that he will be executed on his birthday. It was lucky for him and all his descendants that James V was in poor health, died at the age of thirty. The remaining widow, Queen Mary of Guise, announced an amnesty, even returning the title to young John Lyon.

Interiors of Glamis Castle

The 8th Lord Glamis was one of the most powerful and richest men in Scotland. But he was also unlucky. In 1578 Stirling had a clash between his vassals and the people of David Lindsey, Earl of Crawford. That is, a team to a team, led by leaders (seniors). Sir John Lyon is dead. Again these Lindseys, very reminiscent of a blood feud for 300 years that way.
In 1767, the next Lord Lyon changed his surname. He married Mary Eleanor Bowes, whose father, dying, left his only daughter about a million pounds. The same as in our time half a billion. According to the will, the future husband of Mary Eleanor, in order to receive her money, had to take her last name. So the Earl was now called John Bowes-Lyon.

Interiors of Glamis Castle

In 1820, Lord Thomas Bowes-Lyon had a misfortune in the family, he had a grandson with numerous deviations, who practically did not look like a person at all. According to some sources, he soon died, according to others, he was isolated in a back room of the castle for many years. This is another strange creature still roaming the castle.

So, who is the most welcome in the castle now? This:

Gray Lady - Lady Janet, nee Douglas, burned in 1537 at the stake at the stake, by her first husband - Glamis, by the second - Campbell. Pra - great (many times) grandmother of the current count, actually a member of the family. It meets regularly, a place is reserved for her in the family chapel, no one has the right to occupy it. In the chapel, she most often happens.

The White Lady - who she is - is unknown, but she moves very quickly, likes to accompany approaching cars.

In the courtyard of the castle there is a ghost of a woman with a disfigured face.

The ghost of a black boy in the clothes of a servant - usually sitting and waiting for something in the drawing room of the Queen Mother. They say that three hundred years ago he was treated badly.

A man in chain mail - enters closed rooms, looks at the sleeping ones, does not cause much harm, but can scare.

A pale girl who periodically rides out of the castle on an equally pale horse.

The ghost of the man who was being tortured Was seen, however, only as a face in the window.

Someone incomprehensible regularly roams the roof of the castle, presumably the very grandson of the lord. His legend sounds like this in more detail: In 1821, Thomas George Lyon - Bowes, Lord Glamis (son and heir of the Earl of Strasmore and Kinghorn) and his wife Charlotte had a child with numerous deviations. It was unlikely that it was a birth injury or just some kind of deformity, most likely a failure of the genetic code, the child practically did not look like a person at all. How did the parents and grandfather succeed - but the death certificate was corrected, and the newborn was hidden in the castle.
After this creature was out of infancy, it was kept in secret room, trusted servants fed through the bars, and occasionally, on dark nights, they took them out for a walk around the castle. The monster lived, thus, for about a hundred years, until the 20s of the last century. Less than a year later, a son was born again in the family of Lord Glamis - a completely normal child, and later another son and daughter. Each heir to the title of earl, upon reaching the 21st year, was initiated into this family secret and taken to look at the monster - a relative. The last, most likely, was Patrick Bowes - Lyon, the elder brother of the Queen Mother.

On the wooden floor of one of the rooms there are stains of blood that was once killed here by King Malcolm II, who sometimes appears here. Apparently the spots from the hunting lodge somehow showed up in the castle room. :)

Another legend says that once in one of the rooms the servants saw Lord Glamis playing with Satan himself. According to the stories, this room was walled up, but sounds and voices are still heard from there. In confirmation of this story, there is one window on the facade of the building, which, with all the desire, cannot be entered from the inside. There is no door.
This story has different details in different retellings. It seems that it went something like this: Earl Alexander Lindsey Crawford, generally a very active person, who had the nicknames Tiger and Birdie, was visiting Lord Patrick in Glamis. They buzzed specifically. After sleeping a little and having a hangover, the Tiger desired to play cards. Lord Glamis still seemed to be in a state of astonishment. Apparently, a third partner was needed for the game. The count began to run around the castle, inciting its inhabitants to take part in the game, even servants. There was Sabbah. That is, the holy time, the period from Saturday noon to Sunday noon, when it is impossible for a believer to play cards in any way - a great sin. Lindsey became furious and yelled that since no one wants to be their partner, they will play with the devil himself. Immediately a stranger appeared at the gate and inquired if the Earl of Crawford needed a companion for the game. The count was delighted, and they sat down to the game - gambling Lindsey, who is in a vague mind of Lion and a mysterious stranger. How long they played and who won is unclear. But after his death, Earl Crawford came to Glamis to finish the game. In order not to disturb the guests, the room where the game took place was walled up around 1700, but the noise and screams come from there to this day. And at night, supposedly, this window glows.

Here it is, the ancestral castle of the Queen Mother. :)

Scotland is famous all over the world as a country of many superstitions that appear in a completely unthinkable way. Family castles on its territory attract not only and not so much architectural perfection, rich history and beauty, but also many mystical stories that are attributed to them.

To find out what is true and what is specially invented to attract tourists, you can find out only on own experience That's why people come here from all over the world. One of the objects that attract the closest attention of the curious is Glamis Castle.

The castle is located in the vicinity of the village of Glamis in the Angus region.. This place is located 20 km from the city of Dundee and 120 km from the capital of Scotland - Edinburgh. The castle has long ceased to serve as a fortress. Now one wing is a museum, and the other wing is the property of the owners of the castle.

Glamis is owned by the Bowes-Lyon family., Earls and Countesses of Strathmore and Kinghorne. The owners and the area are closely connected with the royal family. It was here that the Queen Mother, the mother of the current II, was born. However, even royal relatives aren't as much of a tourist draw as the many dark stories that surround the castle.

The history of the construction of the castle

Geographically, Glamis was known even before the castle was built here. Initially, a small royal hunting lodge was erected here, where King Malcolm II later died. The history of the castle itself is usually counted from 1372, when local lands as a reward from King Robert II were presented to John Lyon.

His son, also John Lyon, after 1400 began the construction of the main building (now it is only the eastern wing of the castle). In general, today appearance Glamis Castle has nothing to do with what was then planned to be built on this territory.

Initially, it was planned to build according to the L-plan, i.e. the construction of a kind of double tower, where one part of the structure is perpendicular to the other. Numerous outbuildings, turrets and other details arose during the improvements of the castle in the 17th-18th centuries.

Now Glamis Castle, despite many of the darkest stories, is a magnificent building in beauty, surrounded by numerous parks and gardens stretching for several kilometers.

There is also a large arboretum with plants brought from all over the world. Royal apartments, a dining room, a tea room, a library and other rooms that have preserved the spirit of antiquity are open to visitors.

However, lovers of mystical stories are not so interested in the beauty and decoration of the castle. They are much more important than those events that cannot be explained modern science: numerous ghosts, incomprehensible noises and, in general, all the gloomy stories associated with this land.

Mystic

Almost all the legends about Glamis Castle are connected with its history, which, by the way, is sometimes more than real.. For example, one of the most famous stories- this is the appearance in the walls of the castle of the ghost of the Gray Lady, for which there is even a separate place in the chapel.

No one ever sits in this place, because in the owner's family it is reserved for Janet Douglas, whose ghost appears to people in this guise. Her story is extremely tragic: in 1537 she was burned in Edinburgh Castle on charges of witchcraft, although everyone knew that these charges were fabricated. In fact, these were the machinations of the evil King James V who hated his stepfather, who was Lady Janet's brother.

The young son of Janet Douglas, who then bore the surname of her second spouse Campbell, was first placed in prison with her awaiting execution, but after Jacob's death he was released, and the right to own Glamis Castle was returned, however, everything more or less valuable from the castle for almost the five-year period of his imprisonment was taken out.

Just after the death of Jacob, the spirit of Lady Janet began to appear, and the sounds that accompany her appearance resemble the hammering of the workers who built the scaffold for the fire.

Other interesting story associated with the appearance of the ghost of Count Beardie. identify it with different people Fortunately, this cannot be verified. He was an avid gambler, but on the night from Saturday to Sunday, even the servant did not want to play with him, since it was impossible to gamble on Sundays.

The count was indignant, loudly uttering a tirade that he would even play with the devil himself, which, according to legend, he had to do. A man in black appeared at the door, agreeing to the game. Ultimately, the count was punished for his act, and now his ghost is forced to play forever, and screams, curses and the sounds of throwing cards are still heard from the count's bedroom.

Another story related to the monster room- born in 1821 in the family of a child with numerous deviations. He looked little like a man, which is why he was called a monster. The newborn was hidden in the castle, straightening out the documents about his death.

He was kept in a secret room, fed through bars, and taken out for walks around Glamis Castle at night. It is believed that the monster lived like this for about 100 years, and upon reaching the age of 21, all the children in the family were taken to see a relative and initiated into this family secret.

Also, visitors are frightened by stories about the ghost of an unknown knight in armor, the ghost of the White Lady meeting all the cars, the noise from the roof that is heard every night, the ghost of a black little servant and other inexplicable things. Probably, even inveterate skeptics will not be at all surprised by what is happening here, because the castle has actually survived many dark days.

Glamis Castle is one of the most mysterious and mysterious castles, directly connected with stories about all kinds of spirits and ghosts. A remarkable castle with a rich history is located about 8 km south of the Scottish town of Forfar in the county of Angus (Forfar, Angus). Glamis Castle and the dilapidated Hermitage Castle are real champions in terms of the otherworldly and inexplicable.

Article: Glamis Castle

When the Scottish king Robert II (Robert II) officially announced that the small settlement of Glamis becomes the fief of John Lyon, in 1404 the eastern wing of Glamis Castle was erected. Following this, the son of the first builder, Patrick Lyon, continued construction work, and only under the son of Patrick himself was the construction of the main tower completed.

Sir John Lyon, already the 6th Lord of Glamis, married Janet Douglas, with whose family James V was then at enmity. In December 1528, Janet was charged with treason for having helped supporters of the Earl of Angus infiltrate Edinburgh. She was also accused of poisoning her husband, Lord Glamis, who died on September 17, 1528. In the end, Janet was "convicted" of witchcraft, and burned at the stake in the courtyard of Edinburgh Castle on July 17, 1537. James V subsequently took possession of Glamis, where he lived for some time.

In 1534 Glamis was returned to John Lyon, 7th Lord of Glamis. In 1606, Patrick Lyon, 9th Lord of Glamis, was created Earl of Kinghorne. It was he who began serious work on the construction of the castle. Many majestic towers and turrets were born in the coming years and the next century, during which Glamis Castle underwent several repairs. The castle was made in the standard L-shape - with a double tower with an extension.

During the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland, soldiers garrisoned Glamis. In 1670, Patrick Lyon, 3rd Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, returned to Glamis Castle - to find it in complete disrepair. Restoration work took place until 1689, including the appearance of big garden in baroque style. John Lyon, 9th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, in 1767 married Mary Eleanor Bowes, who inherited a fortune from the coal industry. This marriage allowed him to improve the grounds of the castle in the picturesque style of the 1770s.

The southwestern wing of the castle was rebuilt after a fire in the early 19th century. Some interior spaces, including the dining room, also date back to the 19th century.
Lady Elizabeth Bowes Lyon was born in 1900, the youngest daughter of Claude Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, and his Countess, Cecilia. She spent most childhood in the castle, which during the First World War was used as a military hospital. Elisabeth was instrumental in organizing the rescue efforts to rebuild the castle after the fire on September 16, 1916. On April 26, 1923, she married Prince Albert, Duke of York, second son of King George V (George V), in Westminster Abbey. Their second daughter, Princess Margaret, was born at the castle in 1930.

The blood-curdling stories about Glamis Castle during its existence would be enough for a whole collection. One of the stories says that Earl Baird (B "" aird), 4th Earl of Crawford (Crawford), played cards with the Devil in one of the rooms of the castle. Another refers to the year 1034, when the Royal hunting lodge stood on the site of the castle. In it, the Scottish king Malcolm II was brutally murdered. According to legend, the blood of the cut victim seeped into the floorboards, traces of which are found to this day in the so-called Malcolm Room, which is visited by the ghost of the king.

The guests of the castle are also frightened by a certain ghost of the Knight in armor, who penetrates the closure of the room. The "collection" of ghosts is complemented by the Gray and White Lady, the Woman with the Disfigured Face; A man tortured to death by torture; Black boy dressed as a servant, etc.

All this does not prevent renting out the castle for private parties and celebrations. The ominous cellar, the fabulous reception hall, the private chapel, are especially popular with visitors. beautiful park and an Italian garden. The statues of kings on display tell the story of Scotland.

Glamis is surrounded by more stories and legends than any other, but it is best known as the birthplace of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, mother of the current Queen Elizabeth II. Queen Elizabeth's younger sister, Princess Margaret, was also born in Glamis. The castle is now owned by the Queen's great-nephew, the Earl of Strathmore, and is partly open to the public.

Myths and facts

In the 11th century, this place was the royal hunting house. The castle was built in 1376, when the lands were donated by King Robert II to his daughter's husband, Sir John Lyon of the Bowes-Lyons family. In the 15th century, the building was significantly rebuilt, towers were added, but the biggest changes occurred in the 17th-18th centuries, when the castle was no longer used as.

Over the years, Glamis has grown incredible amount mystical legends. The most famous of them is about the monster room. According to legend, in one of the secret rooms they kept a terribly ugly child born in the family, where he spent his whole life, and then was walled up. There are also rumors that every generation of the family hid one child in the monster's room. Perhaps the basis of the legend was real story the Ogilvy family. Fleeing from the enemies, they hid in the secret room of the castle, arranged in a wall 4.9 m thick, where they were immured alive.

Another legend tells of Count Beardi, who was an avid card player. Once, when the guests refused to play with him, the count exclaimed: “Then I will play with the devil himself!” Then there was a knock on the door and a stranger in black entered and offered to play, but the stake was - the soul of the count. Not suspecting that the devil himself was in front of him, Beardi agreed and lost. Since then, his soul has been doomed to play cards until the end of the world, and the sounds of falling cards and swearing are still heard from the count's bedroom at night.

Another ghost - the Gray Lady - lives in the chapel. They say that the spirit of Janet Douglas, who was burned at the stake as a witch on Castle Hill in the 16th century. She was accused of trying to poison the king, but the charges were most likely politically trumped up. The ghost of a woman is also often seen behind the bars of a clock tower window, or running through the park.

What to see

Glamis Castle is surrounded by gardens and parks spanning several kilometers. Its architecture with numerous round towers looks like a french castle medieval fortress.

Visitors can see some of the royal suites with exquisite carved ceilings, a 19th century dining room, a tea room, a library, and stroll through the extensive grounds, which includes a large arboretum with trees from all over the world.

The clock tower houses the archives of the castle, which consists of a large number historical materials.

The small 46-person chapel is still regularly used by the Strathmore family, but one of the seats in the chapel is always reserved for the Gray Lady and no one is allowed to sit on that seat.