Have you seen any phantom pooches at Warwick Castle?

By Joanne Morris on Aug 4, 08 12:42 PM in

Warwick Castle, dates back to the year 1068, and was built on the orders of William the Conqueror - the Norman King. The Earldom of Warwick was created in 1088 by William II and was given to Henry de Beaumont, who later changed his name to Newburgh.

The medieval stone fortress is said to have its own resident spectre. The ghost of Sir Fulke Greville, who was murdered by his discontented manservant, allegedly walks around the rooms where he often stayed -known rather aptly as the 'Ghost Tower'.

Sir Fulke was an English poet and courtier - who was granted the castle in 1604 by James I, and owned the castle as the 1st Baron Brooke. Fulke died on the 30th of September 1628 after having received a vicious knife wound inflicted upon him by his manservant, who by all accounts was disappointed and angered at not being named in his master's will. His ghostly footsteps have been heard walking around the bed chamber and through the corridors that lead to other rooms within the tower.

An audio recording continuously plays as you enter the tower rooms and tells the story of Fulke's life and murder, nearly four hundred years ago. Sir Fulke Greville is buried within the nearby church of St. Mary's. On his tomb his epitaph reads,
"Folk Grevill Servant to Queene Elizabeth Conceller to King James Frend to Sir Philip Sidney. Trophaeum Peccati."

During the summer months the ghost tower is turned into a terrifying attraction known as 'Ghosts Alive'. This new theme addition is not for the faint of heart, nor for those of you that scare easily - believe me when I tell you that I jumped out of my skin! I must say very enjoyable though and I do recommend a visit, but please leave your grandmothers at home.

Another ghost is that of Moll Bloxham. She was given licence from the Earl of Warwick to sell milk and cheese from the castle to the townsfolk. Unfortunately for Moll, she became too greedy and decided to short-change the locals. The town's people complained with outrage to the Earl and with this he acted with great haste to punish Moll for her cheating deed.

She was summoned before the Earl who banished her from Warwick. Cursing the Earl, she raced to the top of Beauchamp tower and locked herself inside. The legend goes on to tell us that when the door to the tower was finally broken down, the men who entered the room was confronted by a large black dog with red blazing eyes and immense fangs snarling...but Moll could not be found. The men instantly thought that she'd turned herself into the hound, using sorcery.

The hound, now having a route for escape, charged out and hurled itself over the battlements into the river Avon below. However, that was not the end of the story. Folklore has it that the good people of Warwick would be terrorised by a large black hell hound if they were unwise enough to be travelling alone at night. An encounter with the beast meant that death was close. A mysterious black dog is said to be seen wandering the castle grounds to this day. Some people claim to have seen the ghost of a woman in medieval dress, Moll Bloxham perhaps?

The black dog story is interesting because it crops up in folklore throughout the British Isles. The Moll Bloxham tale is just one of several examples in Warwickshire alone.

In nineteenth century Alveston, a farm worker was startled by the legendary beast on his way home one night. With a sense of deep foreboding he arrived home to be told of the death of his little sister. This particular hound is said to be accompanied by a tall spectral woman, who some witnesses claimed to be headless.

Another farm worker saw a large black beast bounding over a muddy field. It left no foot prints. Rural people have always known to avoid certain areas because an encounter with the black dog (known as Shuck or Padfoot) meant certain death.

Are these phantom 'pooches' out there, have you ever seen one? Please let us know.