Charleville Castle in Ireland is shrouded in rumours. It attracts lovers of mysticism from all over the world, and even spiritistic séances are held in it. What secrets are kept in the Irish “haunted castle” Charleville?
Its ancient history and magnificent Gothic architecture are overshadowed by horror stories of ghosts wandering the corridors and unexplained phenomena taking place in its premises. Old Charleville looks very mysterious.
History of the ancient castle
Until the 6th century, the territory on which the castle was later built belonged to monks. And in the sixteen century, Queen Elizabeth I granted land to the Moore family. At the end of the 18th century, this family sold the land, and a relative along the line of one of the Moore sisters began to own it. The new owner decided to build a castle here, and the construction lasted about 15 years. The author of the project is Francis Johnston, who at that time was a very famous architect.
Although made in a neo-Gothic style, the castle is not quite similar to other old Gothic buildings. In addition, it is very compact and, when viewed from above, has an unusual shape.
According to history, its first owner, Charles, attached magical significance to geometry and put a special sacred meaning in the outlines of the building and the layout of the rooms. The premises themselves are gorgeous. The decorative ceilings are especially impressive.
The castle was abandoned, but not for long
The last owners of the castle were the traveller Colonel Charles Howard-Bury and his mother. While the colonel travelled to different countries, his mother was waiting for him at home alone. She died in 1931, and her son had no desire to return to the castle. After his death, the majestic castle gradually fell into decay, the roof began to collapse, and the walls started to damp. But then, with the help of volunteers, the court managed to restore, restore and open some of its premises for tourists.
Blue-grey walls, massive gates, ancient trees (for example, an oak which is about a thousand years old), and the forest itself, which enveloped the castle – all this seems to have been specially created to inspire thoughts of ghosts on visitors.
Scary myths of this castle
Myth one: the ghost of a girl wanders here. The most famous history of this female is the story of an eight-year-old girl named Harriet. They say this is the daughter of one of the previous owners. According to a terrible myth, once the baby fell from the high stairs of the castle and crushed to death, and now, many years later, in different rooms of the castle, you can hear children’s laughter, from which cold begins to run through the body. Impressive natures claim that the presence of something otherworldly is exceptionally well felt when you walk up the very stairs.
The second myth: there are secret torture chambers under the castle. According to this history, prisoners were tortured in the dungeons of Charleville. Allegedly, their ghosts also still do not calm down and frighten visitors with sighs, rustles and other strange sounds. Since monks, druids, and important persons of the Middle Ages lived in these places at different times, there are rumours about the ghosts of various stripes residing in the castle – from monks to druids.
The third myth : a room with a poltergeist; however, the castle’s rooms are considered paranormal. They say that objects move by themselves, which is confirmed (either by believing in it or attracting tourists) by volunteers living in the castle.
The fourth myth: the sounds of balls, some (and many) claims that they heard the sounds of a ball in the castle: as if a piano was playing somewhere behind the wall, silk of dresses rustling, heels knocking, someone whispering and laughing softly. All this is mixed with the crying of children. Apparently – the very same Harriett.
The fifth myth: pranks of ghosts. The daughter of one of the owners of the castle said that one day while playing, she climbed into the closet. Suddenly a tiny ghostly handle appeared and locked the door. The frightened girl began to scream – it’s good that her mother heard her and hurried to get her out of the closet. Also, the owner’s daughter allegedly once got lost in the basement of the castle, and she managed to get out thanks to a ghost who appeared in the form of a little girl. Like, the ghost took her hand and led her.
The sixth myth: a terrible prophecy of oak trees. As we have already said, ancient oaks near the castle have seen more than one generation of owners of this estate. The oldest and most majestic is the so-called Royal Oak. It was believed that when a branch fell off a tree, one person in the family of the owners of the castle dies. In May 1963, a lightning strike almost destroyed this oak tree, and soon the last owner of the castle, Colonel Charles Howard, died.
Sometimes TV or paranormal groups even come to the castle to film something unusual or record the sounds of “ghosts”.
Not all stories are fiction
Despite many horror stories and myths, this castle and this area have legends that are real. For example, when the colonization of Ireland took place, Charleville was indeed the coronation of the Stuart dynasty.
It is also true that Lord Byron stayed at the castle during his visit to Ireland.
In general, the fact that the castle is considered “cursed” and that it is known to tourists mainly for its legends and rumors about ghosts is, of course, unfair. After all, it is primarily an interesting monument of history and architecture.
