Up next in 10
EDINBURGH CASTLE, SCOTLAND. Built upon an extinct volcano, Edinburgh Castle has witnessed hundreds of years of warfare.
Famous ghosts.
The Lone Piper, A headless drummer, French prisoners, American Revolutionary War prisoners, and Ghost dogs in the castle cemetery.
Visitors frequently report hearing phantom drums, bagpipes, and marching soldiers.
Travel free or at discount. Work from home as a Travel Agent: https://gr3f.co/c/61445/er6g5
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
Perched high above the Scottish capital,
0:02
Edinburgh Castle dominates [music] the
0:03
skyline, standing proudly atop an
0:06
extinct volcano that was formed 350
0:08
million years ago by immense geological
0:11
forces.
0:12
This majestic stronghold holds the
0:14
British record for being attacked
0:15
[music] 23 times throughout its bloody
0:18
history, serving alternately as a royal
0:20
residence, a military fortress, and a
0:22
dark prison.
0:24
For ages, [music]
0:25
visitors and staff have experienced
0:27
chilling paranormal activity across the
0:29
grounds, with believers attributing
0:31
these ghostly encounters to the castle's
0:33
[music] sordid past of torture,
0:35
executions, and violent sieges.
0:37
Scottish monarchs occupied the citadel
0:39
for more than a millennium until 1633,
0:41
[music]
0:43
when King Charles I
0:44
became the final reigning monarch to
0:46
sleep within its [music] historic royal
0:48
chambers.
0:49
Among its oldest architectural treasures
0:52
stands St. Margaret's [music] Chapel,
0:53
proudly recognized as Edinburgh's oldest
0:56
surviving building, having been
0:57
originally constructed [music] during
0:59
the 12th century by royal decree.
1:02
Visitors touring the majestic [music]
1:04
Great Hall can admire its magnificent
1:06
timber hammerbeam roof, a masterpiece of
1:09
medieval engineering that has witnessed
1:10
[music]
1:11
centuries of royal banquets and
1:13
turbulent political gatherings.
1:15
Beyond recorded [music] history, Castle
1:17
Rock preserves older folklore of
1:19
mysterious cults, including the nine
1:21
maidens [music] and legendary
1:22
connections to Arthurian figures like
1:24
Morgan le Fay from ancient European
1:26
lore.
1:27
As far back [music] as 1558, chroniclers
1:30
recorded bizarre urban legends of a
1:32
phantom dragon supposedly spotted
1:34
resting atop one of the fortress's
1:36
tallest [music] towers during turbulent
1:38
times.
1:39
While modern skeptics attribute these
1:41
eerie sightings to natural atmospheric
1:43
phenomena, countless witnesses maintain
1:46
that the fortress harbors residual
1:48
energy from its traumatic and bloody
1:50
[music] past.
1:51
Among the numerous ghostly legends
1:53
associated with the fortress,
1:54
>> [music]
1:54
>> the most famous spectral entity is the
1:56
Phantom Piper, said to manifest
1:58
exclusively when the castle faces severe
2:01
peril.
2:02
Centuries ago, when workers first
2:04
uncovered hidden subterranean passages
2:06
extending beneath the Edinburgh Royal
2:08
Mile, tremendous curiosity arose
2:11
regarding where these dark tunnels
2:12
ultimately terminated.
2:14
The primary obstacle facing the early
2:16
explorers was that the subterranean
2:18
entrance opening was far too small for
2:20
an average-sized adult to physically
2:22
[music] squeeze through.
2:24
To solve this logistical dilemma,
2:26
authorities decided to send a young
2:28
member of the castle's royal piper corps
2:30
through [music] the tiny entrance to
2:31
investigate the unknown depths.
2:34
Equipped with his bagpipes, squeezed
2:36
through the narrow opening, the young
2:38
boy was instructed to keep playing
2:39
[music] continuously as he explored the
2:41
winding subterranean passageways.
2:44
Above ground,
2:45
>> [music]
2:45
>> onlookers tracked his progress by
2:47
listening to the music until the sound
2:49
of the bagpipes abruptly [music]
2:50
stopped, leaving only eerie and absolute
2:53
silence in the tunnels.
2:55
No sound of footsteps, no frantic crying
2:57
for help, and no indication [music] that
2:59
the boy was fleeing from any danger ever
3:01
echoed back from the dark depths.
3:04
Repeated attempts were made by search
3:05
parties to call [music] out for the
3:07
missing boy, but he never answered back,
3:09
and nobody heard his living voice
3:11
[music] again.
3:12
After months had passed, thorough
3:14
searches were carried out throughout the
3:15
subterranean labyrinth, but despite
3:17
[music] all efforts, the young piper
3:20
could not be found anywhere.
3:22
It was not until many years later,
3:23
[music]
3:24
during the 18th century, that the boy's
3:26
remains were allegedly discovered
3:28
[music] by workers conducting emergency
3:30
repairs on the underground tunnels.
3:33
To this day, visitors walking near the
3:34
castle ramparts [music] occasionally
3:36
report hearing faint, disembodied
3:39
bagpipe music echoing mysteriously from
3:41
beneath the ancient stones of the
3:43
fortress.
3:44
Another legendary spectral resident
3:46
haunting the ancient stronghold is a
3:48
headless [music] drummer boy whose
3:50
ominous presence has terrified guards
3:52
and visitors for centuries.
3:54
Historical records note that this
3:56
ghostly headless drummer boy was first
3:58
sighted just prior to Oliver Cromwell's
4:00
aggressive 1650 military siege of the
4:03
fortress.
4:04
According to traditional lore, whenever
4:06
[music] the phantom drummer boy is seen
4:08
pacing the ramparts, it serves as an
4:10
infallible omen warning of impending
4:12
[music] doom or attack.
4:14
Guests staying overnight near the castle
4:16
have frequently reported waking up to
4:18
the sudden rhythmic sound of phantom
4:20
drum beats reverberating through the
4:22
[music] heavy stone walls.
4:24
Patrol guards have also recounted
4:26
unnerving experiences of hearing steady
4:28
marching cadences and drum rolls without
4:30
ever spotting a single living person in
4:32
the corridors.
4:34
Another famous and mournful spectral
4:36
presence haunting the castle halls is
4:38
known simply as the Grey Lady, who
4:40
wanders the ancient corridors in deep
4:42
sorrow.
4:43
Many historians and believers suggest
4:45
that the Grey Lady is the spirit [music]
4:47
of Lady Janet Douglas of Glamis, who
4:49
suffered a horrific fate on the castle
4:51
grounds.
4:52
Accused of treason and witchcraft by
4:54
King James V, who harbored intense
4:56
hatred for her family, she faced
4:59
baseless [music] claims fabricated to
5:00
exact political vengeance.
5:02
Regardless of the obvious falsehood of
5:04
the charges, she was publicly burned at
5:07
the stake on [music] the castle grounds
5:08
in July 1537.
5:11
Tragically, this brutal execution was
5:13
carried out directly in front of her
5:15
grieving 16-year-old son,
5:17
>> [music]
5:17
>> sealing a dark legacy of injustice
5:19
within the fortress walls.
5:21
Alternatively, [music] some researchers
5:23
theorize that the Grey Lady could
5:24
instead be Marie de Guise, the Catholic
5:27
mother and regent of Mary, Queen of
5:29
Scots.
5:30
Having [music] found herself on the
5:31
losing side of the turbulent Scottish
5:33
Reformation, she ultimately [music]
5:35
passed away within the fortress in June
5:37
1560.
5:39
Following her [music] death, her mortal
5:40
remains were kept securely stored at
5:42
Edinburgh Castle for months before final
5:44
burial, [music] cementing her spectral
5:47
tie to the location.
5:49
Visitors today frequently [music] report
5:51
sudden drops in temperature and an
5:53
overwhelming sense of profound sorrow
5:55
when walking through the exact hallways
5:56
[music]
5:57
where the Grey Lady walks.
5:59
Beneath the magnificent surface
6:01
structures lie the infamous [music]
6:02
castle dungeons, dark and rat-infested
6:05
caverns that once held prisoners of war
6:07
[music] in horrific conditions.
6:09
Over the centuries, these grim
6:11
subterranean vaults incarcerated [music]
6:13
captured soldiers from major conflicts,
6:15
including the Napoleonic Wars and the
6:17
American Revolutionary War.
6:19
>> [music]
6:20
>> French prisoners endured unimaginable
6:22
suffering within these damp enclosures,
6:24
with [music] many perishing from
6:25
disease, malnutrition, and the harsh
6:28
Scottish winter cold.
6:30
Records indicate that American
6:31
Revolutionary War sailors were also
6:33
locked away in these dark chambers,
6:35
leaving behind poignant [music] carvings
6:37
etched into the wooden doors.
6:40
Countless unfortunate inmates met their
6:42
end [music] inside the dungeons as a
6:43
result of brutal torture, summary
6:45
executions, or simply unfavorable living
6:48
conditions.
6:49
Among the desperate inmates, one
6:51
prisoner dubbed the Dung Man plotted a
6:53
daring escape from the rat-infested
6:55
dungeons by hiding inside a wheelbarrow
6:57
of waste.
6:58
He believed the guards would wheel the
7:00
barrow out through the front gates,
7:02
[music] allowing him to slip away
7:04
unnoticed into freedom with a soft
7:06
landing.
7:07
Unfortunately for the escaping prisoner,
7:09
the guards chose instead to tip the
7:11
wheelbarrow straight over the ramparts,
7:14
plunging its contents down Castle Rock.
7:17
The unfortunate inmate tragically
7:18
[music] broke his neck upon impact
7:20
against the jagged stones of Castle
7:22
Rock, bringing an abrupt and violent end
7:24
to his escape bid.
7:26
Several modern visitors to [music] the
7:28
castle have reported encountering a
7:30
ghostly man who smells distinctively of
7:32
manure and attempts to push people off
7:34
the battlements.
7:36
Believers claim this [music] vengeful
7:37
spirit tries to force unsuspecting
7:39
guests to meet the exact same fatal fate
7:42
that he suffered centuries ago.
7:44
Beyond human [music] spirits, the castle
7:46
grounds are famously haunted by animal
7:48
phantoms originating from a historic
7:50
animal cemetery located within the
7:52
fortress.
7:53
Among these animal hauntings is the
7:55
legendary [music]
7:56
black hound, a ghostly dog said to roam
7:58
the ramparts and surrounding courtyards
8:00
with glowing eyes.
8:02
Visitors have frequently [music]
8:03
described hearing phantom barking and
8:05
the sound of unseen claws scratching
8:07
against [music] stone floors in areas
8:09
where no animals are allowed.
8:12
Paranormal [music] activity at the
8:13
fortress is not merely ancient folklore.
8:16
Sightings and unexplained [music]
8:17
phenomena continue to be documented well
8:19
into the 21st century.
8:22
A notable recent incident occurred in
8:23
2003
8:25
>> [music]
8:25
>> when construction workers carrying out
8:27
repairs in the castle dungeons reported
8:29
being harassed by unseen forces.
8:32
In 2001, [music]
8:33
researchers conducted a massive
8:35
scientific study inside the castle
8:37
deploying dozens of investigators to
8:39
monitor anomalous temperature drops and
8:41
magnetic [music] fields.
8:43
A significant percentage of the
8:45
scientific participants reported
8:46
experiencing sudden touches on the
8:48
shoulder, shadowy figures, and extreme
8:51
[music] cold spots in specific dungeon
8:53
areas.
8:54
Parapsychologists suggest that the
8:56
intense psychological trauma experienced
8:58
by prisoners [music] and executed nobles
9:00
over centuries has permanently imprinted
9:03
upon the castle stone [music] structure.
9:05
Countless everyday tourists buying a
9:07
ticket to tour the castle report the
9:10
unnerving sensation of someone walking
9:12
directly behind them when the corridor
9:14
is completely empty.
9:16
From feeling unwelcome presences to
9:18
witnessing shadowy humanoid figures
9:20
darting between doorways, reports from
9:22
terrified guests remain remarkably
9:24
consistent year after year.
9:26
Adding to its folklore, a modern urban
9:29
legend claims that any university
9:30
[music] student who passes through the
9:32
castle gates will fail their upcoming
9:34
academic examinations.
9:36
Many superstitious students strictly
9:38
[music] follow this rule, deliberately
9:40
avoiding visiting the historic fortress
9:42
during their entire stay in Edinburgh,
9:44
just [music] to be safe.
9:46
Perched majestically on Castle Rock,
9:48
this legendary fortress continues to
9:50
watch over the Old Town as a silent
9:52
guardian of Scotland's turbulent [music]
9:54
and fascinating history.
9:56
The lingering spirits of pipers,
9:58
prisoners, and royals ensure that the
10:00
castle [music] remains a captivating
10:01
bridge connecting the modern world to
10:03
Scotland's bloody medieval [music] past.
10:06
Whether you seek ghosts or historic
10:08
architecture, exploring [music]
10:09
Scotland's most haunted landmark
10:11
guarantees an unforgettable journey into
10:14
the dark heart of Edinburgh's storied
10:16
past. [music]
10:17
If you enjoyed uncovering these chilling
10:19
castle legends, remember to subscribe
10:22
for [music] more fascinating historical
10:23
documentaries, and share your thoughts
10:26
in the comments below.
Travel & Transportation