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Estries: Vampiric Spirits the Ashkenazi Jewish Folklore

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Although few written sources, the fear of the Estries Vampires from the Jewish community in Europe in the middle ages still lingers. 

Across old European folk traditions there are many stories of night spirits that feed on life rather than blood, of creatures that stalk the living when the stars have risen and the world lies silent. Among these legends is that of the European Jewish Estries folklore from the medieval period.

The Estries vampire is a rather obscure legend for many, even the Jewish community it comes from because of its old and limited text sources discussing it. Unlike the archetypal corpse-vampire that rises from its burial place, the Estries is typically described as a being that moves freely among the living by night and hides by day while drawing life from others.

Origins in Language and Belief

The folk lore and imagery sur­round­ing them has some over­lap with that of Lilith as many succubus and life draining female demons often do. However, there are not many written down sources specifically mentioning the Estries by name. Most of the lore is traced to Sefer Hasidim, a medieval text chron­i­cling Jew­ish life and prac­tices in twelfth and thir­teenth cen­tu­ry Germany.

The Rhineland Jews and their Fears: The Estries legend emerged within the context of the Ashkenazi Hasidic movement in 12th- and 13th-century Germany, a period marked by intense external pressures from the Crusades and the onset of blood libel accusations against Jewish communities. The Hasidei Ashkenaz, or “Pious of Ashkenaz,” arose in the Rhineland following the devastating massacres of 1096 during the First Crusade, which claimed thousands of Jewish lives and instilled widespread trauma and calls for spiritual renewal. // Image: Friedrich Hottenroth – Jewish pogroms in Germany during the First Crusade led by Emich of Leiningen, 1096

The book is attributed to Judah ben Samuel of Regensburg, a descendant from a long line of Northern Italian Kabbalists and mostly writing about members of the Hasidim Ashkenazi, who were descended predominantly from two main families from Northern Italian and France.

The word Estries is derived from the French word for night owl, strix, which is in keeping with the connection between the Hasidim Ashkenazi and the French. In pagan European lore, the owl was seen as mystical, and a lot of old vampiric and magical stories center around the owl. 

Also in ancient times, the Greeks wrote about the striges and strix, a bloodthirsty screech owl. In both traditions the Estries occupies a place between human and demon. It was not simply an animal or a ghost. It was something that walked at night with intent.

Night Visitors

Key passages in Sefer Hasidim detail Estries’ behaviors and vulnerabilities. In Siman 1465, Estries are described as women “created at twilight” who can transform into animals like cats or birds, fly by loosening their hair, and sustain themselves by drinking human blood, particularly from newborns or the ill.

The Law of Parua: The Hasidim Ashkenazi lived a life of rigid self-discipline and self-deprivation. They abided by the law of parua, which requires the marital binding of hair. If a woman appeared with her hair unbound, this was grounds for divorce. The concept of a woman flying with loose hair was therefore a scandalous and horrifying thought for the Jews at this time.

They are said to feed only on the blood of Jewish men and children and can fly when they let their hair down, although her way of feeding and the practicalities about flying with her hair down is a rather vague description. 

Because the Estries was believed to have a daytime life indistinguishable from other villagers, suspicion and fear often spread through communities. People whispered that a neighbor who seemed healthy by day could still be an Estries at night. Her true nature was revealed only in the wearied bodies of others who slept nearby.

Read More: Check also out Alukah: The Vampire of Ancient Text and Folklore 

In Jewish mystical interpretations and cross-cultural retellings, the Estries was sometimes equated with demonic feminine figures who prey on men or children in their sleep. Like the Lilith and other night spirits, she represented both the danger of the unseen and the vulnerability of the sleeping body.

The Legend of Lilith:Lilith is a feminine figure in Mesopotamian and Jewish mythology. According to accounts in the Talmud she is a primordial she-demon. Lilith does not appear in the Hebrew Bible or any other biblical source, although her name is derived from a single word in the Book of Isaiah, the meaning is debated. She first appears in Mandaean and Jewish sources from late antiquity (500 AD onward). In Mesopotamian religion, lilû (Lilith) are a class of demonic spirits, consisting of adolescents who died before they could bear children. In modern day Christianity and Judaism, she is often considered demonic. // Lilith, by John Collier

The Oldest Stories of the Estries

As mentioned, there are only a few stories and sources about the Estries from the middle ages. One of the first and most telling though is how they are introduced in Sefer Hasidim:

“1465 There are women that are called Estries… They were created at sunset before the first Sabbath before creation. As a result of this, they are able to change form. There was one woman who was a Estries and she was very sick and there were two women with her at night; one was sleeping and one was awake. And the sick woman stood up and loosened her hair and she was about to fly and suck the blood of the sleeping woman. And the woman who was awake screamed and woke her friend and they grabbed the sick Estries, and after this she slept. And moreover, if she had been able to grab the other woman, then she, the Estries, would have lived. Since she was not able to hurt the other woman, the Estries died, because she needs to drink the blood of living flesh. The same is true of the werewolf. And since….the Estries need to loosen their hair before they fly, one must adjure her to come with her hair bound so that she cannot go anywhere without permission. And if a Estries is injured or seen by someone, she cannot live unless she eats of the bread and salt of the one who struck her. Then her soul will return to the way it was before.

Cleansing and Protection

Unlike many of the vampiric creatures around the world, Estries were considered undeterred by religious iconography and religious verses and chants. Estries were believed to be able to walk into holy places, and synagogues and sometimes to seek prayer for healing from unsuspecting religious people. Blessing an Estries was considered an evil act, but how did you know, and how did you fight her?.

An Estries can only fly when her hair is loose, and it was believed you could subdue her by tying her hair back. Estries were also thought to be mortal, so it doesn’t take much to hurt them. According to the “Sefer Hasidim,” striking or even looking at an Estries might kill her or at least weaken her. 

When an Estries is hurt, in the stories, most often by being observed in her demonic state and weakened, she can heal herself by consuming bread and salt. while Siman 1467 depicts a more merciful Estries who permits her victim to obtain the bread and salt, sparing her life and highlighting their potential for good. 

The Monsters from the Tower of Babel:According to Rabbi Menahim Zioni, a Kabbalist from the 14th century, Estries, giants, werewolves, dybbukim came from those who had built the Tower of Babel, cursed by God for their hubris. Some say that Estries are the children of Lilith. Others say they were created on the twilight of the sixth day of creation and left unfinished by God and is why they’re able to change form and lack souls.

The most reliable way to kill one is to bury her and shove a stake through her mouth, pinning her to the coffin/dirt. When a broxa or an Estries is being buried, one should notice whether or not her mouth is open; if it is, this is a sure sign that she will continue her vampirish activities for another year according to the Rabbi Eliezer Rokeah. Her mouth must be stopped up with earth, and she will be rendered harmless.

Testament of Solomon and the Ancient Vampires

But how old are the biblical vampires? Are the Estries’s more of a jewish version of the European vampire myth or the other way around. Perhaps it is both? 

The first explicit reference occurs in Late Antiquity and is from the Testament of Solomon. In this book, the story is told of a boy loved by the king. But day by day, the boy grows thinner. When King Solomon asks why, the boy says that each night he is visited by a demon. It takes his money, his food and sucks the life force out of him while sucking on the boy’s thumb. Because of this, King Solomon fashions his famous ring and uses it to enslave the demon.

What name the demon goes under is perhaps of less importance. Estries, Lillith Akuha, there are many names, many leading back to the same figure. A seductive and deadly woman, praying and hunting down the blood of the innocent and the good. 

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References:

Estriess – Wikipedia

https://www.heyalma.com/the-history-of-Estriess-aka-jewish-vampires

(PDF) From Dracula to the Motmindam: The Evolution of the Jewish Vampire

Jewish Magic and Superstition: 3. The Powers of Evil | Internet Sacred Text Archive

https://voices.sefaria.org/sheets/469622?lang=bi

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The Lady of the Stairs Haunting Ardgillan Castle

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Outside of Dublin overlooking the Irish sea, a white lady is said to be haunting the premise. Seen coming up from the beach and wandering on the castle grounds, the ghost that is called the Lady of the Stairs is just one of the ghosts said to linger at Ardgillan Castle. 

High above the crashing waves of the Irish Sea, where the green hills of Balbriggan roll toward the cliffs, stands Ardgillan Castle around 20 miles from Dublin. It is not the castle itself that draws whispers of the supernatural, but the lonely bridge known as The Lady’s Stairs, where a sorrowful figure is said to appear on misty nights.

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Built in 1738 by Reverend Robert Taylor, Ardgillan Castle has long stood as one of North Dublin’s most striking estates and it remained in the family until 1962. The grounds stretch toward the sea, with manicured gardens giving way to rugged cliffs and the endless horizon beyond. But even in such beauty, tragedy has left its mark. When the railway came, so did the private stairs down to their private beach in the 19th century at the end of the property overlooking the Irish sea. The stairs have been named The Lady’s Stairs, and it comes with a haunted story.

Legend of The Lady of the Stairs

The most famous ghost said to haunt Ardgillan is that of the Lady of the Stairs. There are particularly two legends said to be the origin of the ghosts. According to the first version, the Lady of the Stairs was the devoted wife of a nobleman who loved to swim daily in the cold, unpredictable waters below the estate. Each day, the Lady of the castle would walk to the arched footbridge overlooking the sea, known ever since as The Lady’s Stairs, to watch for his safe return.

One fateful evening, as the tide swelled and the skies turned dark, her husband did not come back. He was claimed by the merciless sea, leaving Lady Langford broken with grief. She returned to the bridge again and again, hoping in vain to see him emerge from the waves. Her vigil ended only when she too passed away, although her ghostly presence is still watching out for her long lost husband.

The Ghost of Lady Langford

Some however, say that the ghost is actually Louisa Augusta Connolly, Baroness of Langford haunting the Lady’s Stairs. Lord Langford of Summerhill House in Co Meath had just married her and brought her to the castle as he went hunting in Scotland as she was a friend of the Taylors. 

Lady Langford lost her life in a drowning accident on the 4th of November in 1853 on their private beach. She was known as a strong swimmer, but it was November, and the wind and waves got stronger and she was pulled out to sea. Several people saw her lifeless body floating in the water, but the waves were too strong to swim against. 

A boat had been launched from Balbriggan, believed to be manned by Mr McGregor. and at 1.40pm, the boat brought her ashore. The lifeless body of Lady Langford was carried up the steep cliffside and across the bridge and on into the castle. Although the servants tried to bring her back to life by placing her in a hot bath, it was to no avail. She was only 31 years old when she died. 

The Ghost of the Lady’s Stairs

For generations, people walking near the cliffs after dusk have claimed to see a figure dressed in white standing silently on the bridge, her gaze fixed on the restless waters below. Locals call her The Lady of Ardgillan or the Lady of the Stairs.

Some say she appears only at twilight, her form faint and shimmering like sea mist. Others insist they have heard soft sobs carried on the wind or seen her vanish when approached. The air grows cold around The Lady’s Stairs, and those who linger too long often describe an overwhelming sense of sorrow, as if the grief of centuries still lingers there. It is also said that if a person goes to the end of the bridge at midnight on Halloween, she will appear and throw them to their death in the ocean. 

The Haunting of Uncle Ned

The Lady of the Stairs is not the only one said to be haunting Ardgillan Castle though, and the ghost of the Reverend, now called Uncle Ned is said to wander the cold corridors of the castle, still looking for his bible he lost. 

It is believed to be the ghost of Reverend Edward Taylor. He moved to the castle with his wife in 1807.  The story goes that he was sitting in the corner of the dining room on the 7th of June, 1852, reading his Bible. Suddenly, he died after a heart attack and the Bible fell out of his hands and to the floor. 

Outside there are 21 yew trees that were planted for his birthday, and workers have sometimes claimed to have seen Uncle Ned strolling on the yew walk. He is also said to be the one opening a particular door that opens by its own in the night. 

After the death of her husband, Mrs Taylor dismissed the staff and moved to Meath. She left a gardener with the key. Some time after, although not specified, the two sons of the gardener were working on the terrace where a passageway leads to the cellars through a glass door. As they were working, they heard footsteps approaching the door inside of the castle. And although they looked everywhere, they found no intruders, and all of the doors were locked. 

The gardener also had some experience with the paranormal activity of the castle, as he a few years before had seen a woman in a white dress, standing behind the glass cellar door. But when he moved to open the door for her, she vanished. When he talked with Mrs Taylor about it, she said she had been visited by the spirit of her son and talked with him, four nights after his death. 

The Castle Banshee

Not only has it been said that ghosts haunt the halls of the castle, there are also workers that swear they have met the ancient banshee entity Ireland is filled with. Tom Reilly, according to the Irish Independents says that one of the rangers swears he met the banshee once as he was making his rounds. This activity is said to have happened in the surrounding forest area, and Banshees are Celtic harbingers of death. She asked him for his comb and he never saw it again. 

The Banshee: People have depicted the Banshee as many things, everything from a beautiful fairy like woman to a monster. Here from the book Bunworth Banshee, Fairy Legends and Traditions of the South of Ireland by Thomas Crofton Croker, 1825

Whatever really happened, the ranger was apparently adamant that it really did happen, although it hasn’t been reported to have happened ever again. There have been investigators that claim to have evidence of a Banshee presence by screaming into an app and getting something screaming back. Make of that what you will. 

Source

There are also some reported activities, although a bit more vague in nature, in the old kitchens in the basement and the servants quarters in the east and west wings. According to Tom Riley, the local historian and manager of the castle, the death of Edward Richard Taylor’s death as well as a maid who allegedly died during childbirth in the castle, deaths that have helped fuel the haunted stories as well. 

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References:

Ghosts of Ardgillan | Irish Independent

The story of The White Lady of Ardgillan Castle | Skerries Historical Society

‘Spooked Ireland’ Team Tackles Generations-Old Banshee Haunting At Ardgillan Castle | Higgypop Paranormal

Ardgillan Castle – Wikipedia

And now they say her ghost walks the steps at Ardgillan Castle… | Irish Independent

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The Church of San Giuseppe: A Sacred Place Where Rain Still Falls

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In the woodlands on the Hill of the Dead, the Sanctuary of Somazzo or Church of San Giuseppe has been the place of a strange pilgrimage for ages. According to legend, praying to the three girls said to be entombed alive in the church is said to bring rain in times of drought. 

Near the Swiss-Italian border outside Brusata, in Novazzano, where the lush greenery of Ticino meets the rustic charm of Lombardy, stands the Church of San Giuseppe in Somazzo, also known as the Sanctuary of Somazzo, or even the Sanctuary of the Dead. The church on top of the Hill of the Dead in the middle of the woods is a serene yet haunting sanctuary with a story as mysterious as the mists that often gather around its spire. 

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The current religious building was constructed by expanding a previous oratory dedicated to San Cassiano, whose existence is attested as early as the 15th century where the oldest historical mention dates back to 1423. In the 17th to the 20th century, hermits used to settle around the sanctuary. In a visit from the bishop in 1671, the building was called “Oratorio delle Anime Purganti” and indicated a dedication to the souls in purgatory.

To the unassuming visitor, the Sanctuary of Somazzo may appear as just another picturesque rural church, but local legend speaks of a chilling sacrifice and a miraculous legacy tied to its stones.

Source

A Haunting Legend of Three Girls

According to oral tradition passed down, the Church of San Giuseppe hides a tragic and unsettling secret. The tradition comes to life during times of drought.

Long ago, during a time of religious fervor and superstition, three young girls were said to have been walled up alive on the north side of the Uggiate sanctuary because they resisted a lord who wanted to abuse them or because they wanted to keep the women’s fidelity to their husbands.. “To keep faith with the husband,” is written on the sanctuary wall.

Legend has it that a kiln worker from Riva San Vitale who was passing by heard their cries and helped them by offering them water with his hat through holes in the wall. As thanks they gave a prophecy: “When you are thirsty, come to us and we will quench your thirst.”

Miracles on the Hill of the Dead

The phenomenon has persisted well into modern times. Farmers and devout villagers from both sides of the border make their way to the hilltop Sanctuary of Somazzo during particularly dry seasons, holding onto hope, and often, walking away in awe when the skies open shortly after.

Rather than fading into obscurity, the legend grew. Over time, locals began to believe that these girls, martyred in silence, had been granted a unique and powerful gift: the ability to bring rain. In times of prolonged drought people began to climb the hill to San Giuseppe, praying to the spirits of the girls for relief. “Nem a tö l’acqua a Ügiaa,” they say in Riva.

A particularly memorable edition of the procession in Mendrisiotto was held in 1976. On that occasion, the faithful of Riva walked to the sanctuary at the height of a long drought. Their initiative was followed by several days of heavy rain. It rained so much that “the lake rose and the firefighters worked for weeks to empty our cellars.” as the river overflowed. 

As one who actually attended one a couple of the processions said: “I don’t believe it, but I can confirm,” an elderly man reports, “out of four processions I’ve attended, it rained four times.”

A Place of Faith and Mystery at the Sanctuary of Somazzo

The Church of San Giuseppe, humble in its architecture and quiet in demeanor, has become a spiritual focal point for those who believe in the intertwined powers of nature, sacrifice, and the divine. While no historical records confirm the story of the three girls walled up in the walls of the Sanctuary of Somazzo, the power of the tale endures. 

There are however the supposed relics of the three girls still kept at the sanctuary of the dead, dedicated to the people in purgatory.

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References:

La leggenda e la profezia In processione per l’acqua

Il piccolo valico che apre solo due volte l’anno (una per San Giuseppe) 

Santuario di Somazzo – Wikipedia

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The White Lady of Duino Castle: A Haunting Beneath the Cliffs by the Castle Ruins

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Frozen in all eternity as a stone below the old castle of Duino on the cliffs. It is said to be haunted by the Lady in White, the former lady of the castle, thrown off the cliffs by her jealous husband. Now she returns to the castle to watch over her child she left behind. 

Lovers, if Angels could understand them, might utter
strange things in the midnight air.
– Rainer Maria Rilke, Duino Elegies

High above the Gulf of Trieste on a rugged cliffside stands the ruins of the old Duino Castle, a fortress of ancient stones and whispered sorrows. According to stories, this was once a place of druidic worship dedicated to the Sun God. The oldest written document that deals with the fortress of Duino dated 1139, built on the ruins of a Roman outpost, the period in which the dominion of the Tybein de Dewino, or Tybeiner who were vassals of the patriarchs of Aquileia.

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The castle ruins we can see today date back to the castle from 1389, when the Wallsee family commanded the construction of a strong fortress. Over time, the Wallsee family disappeared and the castle, after having been used as a prison, became the residence of the Luogar and Hofer.

Tales of the old Duino Castle and area have been immortalized by the Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke in his Duino Elegies. Though its walls have withstood centuries of storms, wars, and noble intrigues, one tale lingers more vividly than any written in the history books — the legend of the White Lady, a spirit trapped between grief and stone.

Rilke: René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926), known as Rainer Maria Rilke, was an Austrian poet and novelist. Duino Castle near Trieste, Austria, was where Rilke began writing the Duino Elegies in 1912, recounting that he heard the famous first line as a voice in the wind while walking along the cliffs and that he wrote it quickly in his notebook.

The Jealous Knight and the Locked Tower

Centuries ago, according to local lore, a powerful and cruel knight lived in the castle with his beautiful young wife and their infant son. Some sources give her the name Esterina da Portole. This version was told to Rainer Maria Rilke, who was a frequent guest to Duino Castle by his dear friend, Princess Marie of Thurn und Taxis.

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The knight was renowned for his wrath and his greed — and his unbearable jealousy. He was always in a fight with his enemies who plundered the village and his properties.

So striking was his wife’s beauty that he refused to allow anyone else to see her and he was terrified that some other noble would take her away. It was rumored that when he was away, they would try to get her to run away with them. But every time a suitor came, she rejected him, staying loyal to her husband, loving her captor despite it all. Each time he left on military campaigns or diplomatic missions, he would lock her away in a tower on the edge of the cliff, where no eyes but his own could admire her.

The woman, though imprisoned, bore her fate with quiet dignity. A model of patience and compassion, she spent her days tending to her child, singing lullabies through the high windows of her stone prison, gazing longingly at the sea below.

A Fatal Return and Divine Intervention

One fateful day, the knight returned from a long and grueling campaign. Weary, paranoid, and possessed by a wild suspicion that his wife had been unfaithful — despite her unwavering loyalty — he flew into a fit of uncontrollable rage. In his madness, he dragged her to the edge of the cliff and hurled her from the tower. In some versions he planned it all, lured her out to the cliffs and pushed her off. 

But the sea never claimed her.

According to legend, God took pity on the faithful woman, and before her body could be shattered on the rocks below, she was transformed into white stone — frozen mid-fall, her soul spared but not freed. Her grief was so great, her maternal longing so powerful, that even as her body became rock, her spirit remained trapped, condemned to search for her lost child for all eternity.

The Rock of the White Lady: Said to be the petrified stone of the lady of the castle, La Dama Bianca is said to wake up in the night and wander the old castle ruins. // Source: Flickr

The Wandering Ghost of Midnight

To this day, the locals of Duino whisper that at midnight, when the winds from the Adriatic stir the waves below the castle, the White Lady awakens, or La Dama Bianca di Duino as she is known in Italy. Her stone form detaches from the cliffside and takes on spectral life. It is said that she appears and disappears three times in the night. Cloaked in white, she wanders the halls of the old Duino Castle, her translucent figure searching every room, desperate to find her infant’s cradle.

Witnesses have described hearing soft footsteps in empty rooms, the sound of a mother weeping, and even lullabies drifting through the corridors on moonlit nights. Others tell of a Roman candle that is in a castle hall every night burns and crosses the salons until the doors open by themselves.

The apparition never speaks, but her anguish is palpable. And just before dawn, when the first light touches the cliffs, the Lady in White walks back to her ledge, turns once more to stone, and resumes her eternal vigil.

The Stone That Still Watches

In the stories told to Rilke, there is another version of how the rock was formed. This version describes a young princess named Duna, 13, who had “green eyes that look like the sea.” She fell in love with Rein, 15, a boy from a fishing village near Duino Castle. Her father, King Aquillio, opposed their romance, demanding that Rein sail into the sea in a storm. Forced to obey, Rein set out but never returned. Heartbroken, Duna went to the rocks below the castle to look for him, hoping he would come back. She stayed there so long, embracing a large rock, that she eventually turned to stone herself.

Castello Duino: Castle Duino with the ruins of the old castle in the background.

Tourists who visit Duino Castle today can still see the White Lady’s Rock or the Rocca della Dama Bianca. It’s a striking limestone outcrop that juts from the cliff just beneath the castle’s walls. From the sea, the rock’s form eerily resembles a robed woman mid-fall or mid-reach, her face lifted toward the fortress. Sailors and fishermen long claimed the figure protected them from storms, while others say it’s best not to look too long, lest the Lady’s sorrow follow you home. 

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References:

The White Lady

The White Lady Legend, Duino Castle, Trieste, Friuli Venezia Giulia

FOLKLORE: LA DAMA BIANCA

Duino Castle – Wikipedia

Ukategorisert

The Cursed Forest and Poltergeist of Finnskogen at Välgunaho

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Bordering Norway and Sweden, the mysterious Finnskogen forest, with its deep rooted trees holds ghosts, curses and lingering spirits. Like the poltergeist-like ghost at Välgunaho farm, who drove its residents away and left it abandoned for over a century. 

Deep along the border between Norway and Sweden lies Finnskogen, a wilderness that has frightened generations. The spruce forest closes in, the air turns unnervingly still over the marshland and twisting rivers, and the weight of something unseen settles over the dark paths. Even seasoned woodsmen avoid walking alone in certain parts beneath these branches once dusk arrives.

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The forest and area is rather undefined, but one of the more well known hiking trails crossing it, stretches for 240 km on the border between Sweden and Norway. It gets its name from the Finish people that settled here in the mid 1600s. They needed wood for their farming. This created a unique culture with their own ways, language and they are now a recognized minority. Because of their own nature based shaman religion and rituals, there has been a lot of mystery and magic surrounding the place that was considered foreign and haunted. 

The Haunted Finnskogen: The serene landscape surrounding Vermunden in Finnskogen, a forest steeped in mystery and folklore. // Source

Välgunaho: A Settlement Driven to Abandonment

In Röjden on the Swedish side of the forest sits Välgunaho, also spelled Velgunaho, a place so plagued by haunting that it was completely deserted in 1901, although some sources state it was in 1900. The year before had already become infamous as the ghost summer, a season of relentless activity that drove fear into the hearts of every resident and drove them out.

The Halinen and Saastainen family moved into Valea aho, “the bright shack”, in the 19th century. The name changed over time though, and when they moved out, their home was Velguna ho,  “the ghost shack”.

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In 1866, a man named Henrik married Marit Olsdotter Saastainen in Röjden. She was eighteen years older than him, who had joined the family as a maid a few years earlier. Marit had serious problems with her eyesight and would eventually become completely blind.

He lived at Välgunaho with Blind-Marit who was practicing rituals, sometimes called witchcraft. She was said to be sensing the ghosts haunting her home, and she would say and warn others by saying: “Now the little ones are coming again”. She would also feed them, thinking they lived underneath the floorboards, and she poked down breadcrumbs from the edge of her bed. 

Henrik’s brother Olof was deaf and mute and his sister Brita or Bitta is recorded in the church register as “almost deaf and mute”. Hearing loss seems to have been a hereditary trait in the Halinen family. A lot of family members were diagnosed as “deaf and dumb” by the priests. Meaning deaf and unable to speak of some sort of muteness most likely. 

Every long Friday at Easter, Blind-Marit ordered Bitta to walk around the barn three times towards the sun and read ‘Our Father’ out loud. If they were churning butter, they put money in Kjinna they were churning in, and if strangers arrived for coffee, Henrik always put his finger in the coffee. If he didn’t, all hell would break loose. And even with all their precautions and superstitions, it did. 

The Haunting Starts at Välgunaho

The first noticeable events occurred during an Easter weekend when the family’s cows ran around in the forest one morning, instead of staying safely in their locked stalls.

Henrik’s nephew, Sanla-August, or August Andersson that was his full name had been working in the forest in Trysil in Norway when he came home and heard about all the commotion at his uncle’s farm. Although not a particularly superstitious person himself, he went there on a bright summer day for a visit and experienced the darkness taking over the farm. He was often called over to help them clean up the mess the poltergeist was said to make. 

Sanla-August who we have most of the story from said: “The hauntings began, if I remember correctly, during an Easter weekend. The cows were let loose in the barn and invisible hands untied the cowhides as soon as they were put around the cowhides. The milk pails were thrown over and every conceivable mischief that could harm the farm people arose. The invisible forces eventually became so common that they were given the name ‘he’. Many doubters, both learned and unlearned, visited Välgunaho. Some did not gain anything from the trip to the haunted place. ‘He’ chose to remain still. I saw that you had to hold on to the food containers, plates and pans, etc. with all your might, which wanted to turn over immediately when you sat down to eat. Välgunaho is and remains a mystery.”

When Marit and Brita were milking the cows, large stones would suddenly fly into the air, as if they were intended to harm the two women. The fear and anxiety grew stronger and stronger in the small family and the mysterious phenomena seemed to escalate over time. Soon “he” had moved into the warmth of the cottage and was also haunting the indoors.

“You had to use all your strength to hold on to the food containers, plates and pans and more that promptly wanted to turn over when you sat down at the table and ate.”

People reported objects hurled across rooms with violent force, as if angry hands were tearing through their homes. Crockery exploded against walls, furniture toppled without warning. In the middle of the night they were woken up by the long-table made from heavy wood that was turned around on the floor. Even furniture fastened was thrown across the room and was torn apart. In the barn, the cows were let loose and even the stove pipe from the house ended up on the roof of the barn. 

Biblical Exorcism and Shamanic Practices

They tried to get Kosila-Ola, a person well versed in the mysterious rituals of the forest-finns to scare the evil forces away with gun-powder and salt and pepper. It didn’t really work. They summoned a Christian priest who brought his bible, but as soon as he put it on the table it was thrown into the wall. Nothing seemed to work, and it only seemed to worsen. 

Ole Henriksen, a Norwegian teacher from Rotberget didn’t believe any of it, and decided to stay over one night. A coffee burner or pot above the stove was thrown through the room and knocked on his fingers. Eventually, everyone left, and Henrik Olsson moved that fall and they tore the farm down, leaving only cairn stones and rusty copper cauldrons. After this it remained abandoned and known as the haunted place.

Back at the Haunted Välgunaho: Sanla-August who talked about his family’s experience at the place where it all happened, years after. Photo taken by Dagfinn Grønoset. // Source: Digitalt museum

Afterwards, they preferred not to talk about what happened in Velgunaho. When people told them about the ghosts, August from Sanala interrupted and said: “Don’t add to it. What happened is more than enough.”

The Forest That Punishes the Living

Those who know the legends warn never to remove anything from Finnskogen. A pinecone, a stone, a fragment of old wood. It does not matter. The forest’s guardians are said to punish anyone who steals from it. Tales circulate about travelers whose luck soured immediately after pocketing a harmless trinket, suffering accidents, illness or a strange streak of calamities that only ceased when the object was returned.

Throughout time, people wandering there came for the haunting. We know about it today much to the work of Dagfinn Grønoset who wrote Finnskof of Trollskap where he interviewed Sanla-August, then an old man in 1953. Another well known Finn, Nitaho-Jussi once brought a group of people up to see, warning them about not disturbing, “the little grey ones.” as he called them. But one kicked a stone and in the same moment, his home caught fire and burned to the ground according to the stories. 

Even in more recent times, people have blamed the mystery that happened on the farm for strange things happening. A bus of tourists once had a motorstop after they had passed through. Two women were taking white stones with painted crosses that the locals had put up around the farm. The guide Kjell Magne Nordvi convinced the driver to pretend to not be able to turn his key. He asked if someone had taken something from the place and asked them to deliver it back. After this, the bus started just fine, but definitely helped add to the story. 

According to stories, the ghostly phenomena were now instead moved due east, to Rikkenberget in the southern Finnish forest.

A Wilderness That Watches

Finnskogen remains a place where folklore and fear walk hand in hand. The wind seems to whisper in a language older than the trees, and many believe the spirits who tormented Välgunaho never left. Wanderers swear they have felt unseen eyes following them on the trails. Others hear knocking in the underbrush or the sudden rustle of branches when no breeze stirs.

Why did the haunting occur? Some speculated that the old woman at the place was said to have been in contact with the devil and “became blind and unable to fulfill her obligations to the highest of the same.”

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References:

Finnskogens hemmeligheter – Aller Travel Reisemagasin

Spøkelset på Välgunaho – Finnskogene

Finnskogen – inte bara mystik

Ukategorisert

Alukah: The Vampire of Ancient Text and Folklore

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In Jewish mysticism, the vampiric Alukah from ancient text is still debated and feared today. But where does the demonic spirit really come from? 

The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough:
– Proverbs 30:15, King James Bible

Among the many supernatural figures that populate world myth, the alukah occupies a unique place. It is rooted in ancient Hebrew language and scripture, but over centuries the name became associated in Jewish folklore and later mysticism with a vampiric or blood-lusting entity rather than a simple animal or symbolic image.

The word alukah itself appears only once in the Bible, in Proverbs 30:15. In its original Hebrew context Alukah, or עֲלוּקָה, literally refers to a kind of “horse-leech,” a parasitic creature that clings and feeds at the throat of animals. In some translations this same term is rendered as “leech” or “blood-sucker.”

Vampire Motifs in the Alukah Tradition

In the context of Proverbs, the leech’s insatiable appetite could be seen as a metaphor for human greed or desire, with its “two daughters”, ‘Give’ and ‘Give’, symbolizing the never-ending demands of greed or lust. But there were also those taking the story more literally. 

Over time, the concept of the alukah expanded beyond zoology into demonology and folk belief, some connecting her to the Babylonian and Assyrian demons and succubus creatures. 

Defeating the Alukah: The only way to protect oneself from her attack is through God’s intervention, which can be evoked through the psalm “Shir shel Pega’im.” A psalm most often used for protection against evil. // Image: The Burney Relief (also known as the Queen of the Night relief) is a Mesopotamian terracotta plaque in high relief of the Isin-Larsa period or Old-Babylonian period.

By the medieval period, references to alukah in rabbinic texts such as the Sefer Hasidim show the creature described not as an insect but as a living being with vampiric traits. In this tradition the alukah was depicted as a human-like entity that could shapeshift into a wolf and at night feed on blood. It could even fly by unfurling its long hair, a detail that echoes later European vampire lore in which bats or other creatures are associated with the undead.

In the Sefer Hasidim, the alukah is presented as more than a simple monster. It is capable of quasi-human cunning, able to change shape and to rely on the nourishment it takes from blood for continued existence. If prevented from feeding for long enough, the creature would eventually die. This belief reflects a common theme in vampire folklore worldwide: that the undying or blood-drinking being must feed to persist in a form of unlife.

The Book of the Pious: The Sefer Hasidim or Sefer Chassidim ( ספר חסידים) is a text attributed to Judah ben Samuel of Regensburg (died 1217), of the teachings of the Ashkenazi Hasidim. It offers an account of the day-to-day religious life of Rabbinic Jews in medieval Germany, their customs, beliefs, and traditions. The movement is known for its strict asceticism and mystical doctrine and supernatural entities.

According to later interpretative tradition, if an alukah was killed, it could be prevented from rising again by burying its corpse with earth placed firmly in its mouth. This belief serves a similar function to European practices of staking or dismembering supposed vampires before burial.

Associations with Lilith and Womb Curses

Folklore and mysticism also link the alukah to other ancient female supernatural figures, most notably Lilith. In rabbinic legend and Kabbalistic interpretation, Lilith is sometimes described as a demonic figure associated with infant mortality, night terror, and seduction. In some strands of tradition, alukah is regarded as either another name for Lilith or as a descendant or aspect of her. This connection intensifies the vampiric associations, especially in tales where the creature’s presence is tied to harms involving blood, childbirth, and nocturnal peril.

The Legend of Lilith:Lilith is a feminine figure in Mesopotamian and Jewish mythology. According to accounts in the Talmud she is a primordial she-demon. Lilith does not appear in the Hebrew Bible or any other biblical source, although her name is derived from a single word in the Book of Isaiah, the meaning is debated. She first appears in Mandaean and Jewish sources from late antiquity (500 AD onward). In Mesopotamian religion, lilû (Lilith) are a class of demonic spirits, consisting of adolescents who died before they could bear children. In modern day Christianity and Judaism, she is often considered demonic. // Lilith, by John Collier

A well-known riddle in Proverbs that mentions the alukah also references a curse upon a pregnant womb, reinforcing the creature’s reputation for threatening life in vulnerable states. These interpretive layers contributed to the belief that the alukah was not a neutral animal but a blood-lusting monster with ominous spiritual implications.

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References:

Alukah – Wikipedia

Alukah A

Lilith – Wikipedia

Ukategorisert

The Haunted National Museum of Ireland: Ghosts of Collins Barracks

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Now, the former barracks has turned into the National Museum of Ireland. If we are to believe the rumors, the ghosts of war from the former Collins Barracks are said to still linger. 

In the quiet hours after the museum lights fade and the heavy doors of Collins Barracks, or the Dún Uí Choileáin, are locked, something old stirs within its stone walls. Long before it became home to the National Museum of Ireland, Decorative Arts and History, this complex was the heart of military life in Dublin. Built in 1702 as the Royal Barracks and later renamed for Michael Collins, Commander in Chief of the Irish Free State Army in 1922 and said to be haunted by its military past.

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From the days of the British garrisons to the handover in 1922, countless soldiers have lived, fought, and died within its vast parade grounds and echoing corridors. With such a long and turbulent past, it is no wonder the place is whispered to be haunted.

Source

The Ghostly Soldiers of the Royal Barracks

Visitors and night guards have long reported strange happenings in Collins Barracks. The heavy tread of unseen boots marching through the courtyards. The sound of horses snorting and hooves striking stone where no stables remain. Ghostly gunshots ringing out in the distance, fading into silence. Some truck drivers have even claimed to have seen spectral soldiers in Napoleonic uniforms, their faces pale beneath the moonlight as they patrol the grounds as if still under orders and burying the dead in Croppie’s Park. 

Read More:  The Haunted Fields of Croppie’s Acre: Dublin’s Restless Rebellion Ground

The most famous of these ghostly figures is said to be the Quartermaster, a British officer from the First World War who lingers in the east wing, now mostly used for storage. He appears solid at first glance, standing watch with military precision, before vanishing into the cold air.

The Phantom March of 1925

The haunted reputation of Collins Barracks is not a modern tale. The Christmas 1925 edition of the Irish Army newspaper An t-Óglach printed a curious story told with a mix of humor and unease, making you wonder about the truth of the experience. 

According to this story, an Irish Army officer on night duty claimed to see ranks of ghostly British soldiers assembling in the courtyard, preparing to march away. As he watched in stunned silence, the phantom legion fell into step and vanished toward the gates, “returning to Blighty” to join their comrades in the afterlife.

Source

It was written as a lighthearted tale, but the story spread quickly through the ranks. Some dismissed it as fiction, while others quietly admitted they too had felt something strange in the barracks after dark.

The Singing Woman Haunting Collins Barracks

Another phantom tale comes from the writer, Gillian o’Brien in the book: The Darkness Echoing when visiting the museum. In the book there is a clattering of metal and the voice of a woman singing. The book then details that the barracks are also haunted by the ghost of a young woman from the eighteenth century. This was when it was a British military barracks, and she attended a party hosted by some young officers.

She fell from a window and died from her injuries, but before she died, she told the doctor that the officers had pushed her. No one was ever charged with her murder, and her ghost is said to walk the corridors seeking justice.

The Haunted History Beneath the Museum

When the barracks was finally handed over to the Irish Free State, the soldiers of the past may have remained. The name changed from Royal to Collins Barracks, but the echoes of centuries did not fade.

Today, as visitors wander through the museum halls filled with history and art, few realize they are walking through one of Dublin’s most haunted sites. The creak of a door, the faint ring of metal, or the murmur of unseen voices may just be the lingering spirits of the men who once served here, still keeping watch long after their duty ended.

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References:

5 Haunted Ireland Military Bases | Spooky Isles

“What about the ghosts?’ I asked”… an extract from ‘The Darkness Echoing’ | Ghost Stories of Ireland – Seeking Tales of the Unexplained | Our Irish Heritage 

Haunted Pasts: Exorcising the Ghosts of Irish Culture | SpringerLink

Dublin Ghosts, Folklore and Forteana

Collins Barracks, Dublin – Wikipedia

Ukategorisert

The Ghosts of Løp Gård North of the Veil

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In the old farm for the rich and the powerful in the northern parts of Norway, Løp Gård is said to hold many of their former inhabitants, even in their death. 

Løp Gård in Nordland, Norway has long carried a reputation that unsettles locals after nightfall for centuries. Løp Gård is today a tourist attraction run by Salten Museum and in the summer times, it turns into a cage. Parts of the house are up to 300 years old.

Read More: Check out all ghost stories from Norway

The old farmstead is steeped in whispered stories, but none are as enduring or as eerie as the legend of the twin sisters said to haunt its halls. Their presence is not announced by screams or violence, but by something far more unsettling. The feeling that someone is watching from just beyond the edge of the light.

Shadows That Move on Their Own

Throughout Løp Gård’s history, people who have had great power have lived here, such as civil servants, skippers and policemen as a center of power. Layers of exclusive tapestry, a rarity in Norway at the time, shows how much riches were poured into the house. The house as it stands today is made up of seven different houses and to this day, a lot of the original furniture is still the museum and cafe. 

Some believe that young children are more sensitive to the supernatural. It has been reported that infants and young children refuse to go inside the house. If they are carried inside, they scream, howl, and want to get out.

The Ghosts of the Sisters at Løp

One of the stories is about an artist and his wife who lived in the house in a room that is now called the Boys’ Room. The room is on the second floor. It is said that the two often heard the main door on the first floor open and close, as if someone was entering the house. They often heard footsteps coming up the stairs, but when they went to check, no one was there. This happened over and over again, but there was never anyone there.

One day, as his wife was painting a picture, she turned around and saw a woman in white. She slowly turned back to the picture. She decided that she wanted to paint the woman, but when she turned back to her, she was gone.

Hanna Krogh-Hansen (1873 – 1971)

It is said that the woman in white was Hannah Løp, who also had a hobby of painting, an early owner of the house. It is said that both of the sisters are haunting their old home today. 

The Sisters Haunting their Home

Sisters Hannah and Arnolda inherited the house after their father Lauritz died, and became sole owners of the house, often called Frøknene på Løp (The Misses on Løp) and were known to be hard working ladies. They still serve their famous lemoncake in the cafe in the summertime. 

Before taking over the farm, Hanna learned photography from Louise Engen and was a professional in Oslo from 1898 until the 30s. Although a learned and well travelled woman, she sought back to her roots together with her sister after her father died in 1945.

Source

They lived there until they died in 1971 and 1979, 97 and 103 years old. The bed they spent their last days in is in one of the rooms in the house and is called the four-poster bed. There they both lay under several quilts to keep warm.

The Maid With the Red Bow

Another story is about a maid who once lived in the house. She fell in love with a civil servant and her employer and became pregnant after a short time. He rejected her though and she confronted him before she left the house forever. But where did she go?

In the 1990s, renovations were done and two workers loosened the floor and found a tiny red bow lying there. It is said it was the exact type of bow the maid had been wearing the last time she was seen. The workers ran out of the house and didn’t return to finish their job at all, according to some stories.

But what happened to the maid? There are many theories. Anna Elisabeth Westerlund is one of the psychics who has visited the farm and presented her own. When she was in the pantry where the two workers found the red ribbon, she said that something terrible had once happened here. The manager for the museum, Barbro Laxaa claimed that she believed the bow was still in the same place to this day. 

Some also said that the maid actually had the child there at the house. The son screamed and cried every day the mother left for work. And it is said that the sound of a child’s cry can still be heard in the house. But what happened to them though, is still a mystery. 

The Shipwrecked Man who Comes Knocking

Once a ship is said to have sunk off Løp. There were reportedly several people on board, but there was one man who managed to climb up from the beach at Løp and up to the farm, fighting his way from the freezing Norwegian winter waters through the equally freezing air.

He knocked as hard as he could on the door, and a man came and opened it. At that time, the farm was inhabited by some people of very high social rank, and they refused to let the man into the house. The poor man is said to have frozen to death outside the house during the night because he could not get anywhere else.

Cold gusts are blowing through the house, some workers say, and they think it’s the man just stopping by for a look.

The Civil Servant in the Ceiling

It is said that a female from the eastern part of Norway came to visit and had heard about the farm. This was after the house had become a tourist attraction and she wanted a tour of the house. The staff were simply too busy preparing for the party and running the café, so they told the lady she could just take a walk around the house and see what she wanted. 

The woman looked around and when she reached the second floor, she entered the room called the Great Hall. There she saw a man hanging from the ceiling. In that very room, it is said that an official had hanged himself, and according to some, his spirit is still hanging. 

At Løp Gård, even in silence, you are never truly alone, as more than one room holds the eternal residences from just beyond the veil. 

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References:

Spøker det på Løp?

Løp gård — Nordlandsmuseet

Hanna Krogh-Hansen (1873 – 1971) – Hederskvinner Nordland

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Darkey Kelly: The Green Lady of the Liberties

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Was she a Witch or Serial Killer with connection to the Hellfire Club that her legends paint her to be? What was the true story behind Darkey Kelley, said to haunt Dublin as the Green Lady of the Liberties.

In the twisting lanes of Dublin’s Liberties, there is a tale whispered even now on misty nights. At the bottom of the 40 steps leading to St. Audoen’s Church, an apparition sometimes appears of a woman shrouded in green light, her form wreathed in fog. She drifts silently before vanishing into the old stone wall as if swallowed by time itself. 

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Locals call her The Green Lady. Many believe she is the restless spirit of one of Dublin’s most infamous figures: Darkey Kelly.

The Life and Death of Darkey Kelly

Dorcas “Darkey” Kelly lived in 18th-century Dublin, an innkeeper and madam who ran the Maiden Tower brothel near Fishamble Street. A pub on Fishamble Street, near where her brothel once stood, is named Darkey Kelly’s.

The tavern was said to attract the city’s most powerful men, including members of the notorious Hellfire Club, a society of Dublin’s elite who indulged in blasphemy, debauchery, and whispers of occult rituals. Among her patrons was Simon Luttrell, the Sheriff of Dublin and a reputed Hellfire Club member who had the nickname “King of Hell”.

According to legend, Darkey and Luttrell were once close, perhaps even lovers, until a bitter feud erupted between them. Some stories claim she accused Luttrell of fathering her child, a scandal that threatened his reputation. Others say she discovered something dark about the club’s rituals — something she was never meant to know. Whatever the truth, Luttrell turned on her, accusing her of witchcraft and infanticide.

In 1760, Darkey Kelly was tried, found guilty, and sentenced to death of killing the shoemaker John Dowling by partial hanging and burning at the stake at Gallows Road, now called Baggot Street. She was publicly burned at the stake on St. Stephen’s Green on January 7th. 

An account described her execution like this:

She was placed on a stool something more than two feet high, and, a chain being placed under her arms, the rope around her neck was made fast to two spikes, which, being driven through a post against which she stood, when her devotions were ended, the stool was taken from under her, and she was soon strangled. When she had hung about fifteen minutes, the rope was burnt, and she sunk till the chain supported her, forcing her hands up to a level with her face, and the flame being furious, she was soon consumed. ~ Edward Cave, 1773

Legends After her Death

After her death, her prostitute friends collected, or rather stole her remains, and held a wake for her on Copper Alley, however, the 13 women were arrested for disorder and sent to Newgate Prison for it. 

Newgate Prison

There were many legends and stories about her burning. For posterity, people believed that she was in fact burned at the stake as a witch, not on a murder charge. Witnesses said she screamed curses as the flames rose, vowing vengeance on those who condemned her. 

Another legend was that she became pregnant with the child of Dublin’s Sheriff Simon Luttrell, 1st Earl of Carhampton, a member of the Hellfire Club and probable client of Kelly’s Maiden Tower. She demanded financial support from him. He responded by accusing her of witchcraft and of having killed their baby in a Satanic ritual. The body was never found. Darkey was then burnt at the stake.

A 1788 account in the World newspaper claims that her brothel was investigated by the authorities and that investigators then found the corpses of five men hidden in the vaults. One of them was thought to be Surgeon Tuckey’s son, who went missing and had never been found.

However, this does not appear in any contemporary account of her trial and execution and appears to be a later embellishment. So how accurate this investigation was, is rather dubious.

The Hellfire Connection

Darkey Kelly’s ties to the Hellfire Club deepen her legend and has perhaps even overshadowed it. The infamous group met in the Dublin Mountains at Montpelier Hill, a site already steeped in dark lore. It is said that Darkey supplied women for the club’s meetings, unaware of the darker rituals that took place there. Some tales even claim she witnessed a summoning gone wrong like that she saw the Devil himself.

Read the whole story about the Hellfire Club in Dublin: The Hellfire Club on Montpelier Hill and The Killakee Dower House in Dublin and the haunted mysteries connected to the club.

Whether she was a victim of vengeance, a scapegoat for the sins of powerful men, or something more sinister, the truth remains shrouded in shadow. The Hellfire Club’s reputation for corruption and cruelty only strengthens the belief that Darkey Kelly’s fate was one of betrayal and injustice.

Montpelier Hill: Here from the hunting lodge at Montpelier Hill in Dublin, where the Hellfire Club had meetings and many of the stories of dark rituals and the likes comes from. //Source: Joe King/Wikimedia

Was the father of her alleged child one of the members of the Hellfire Club? Darkey had contested a trial on the grounds that she was pregnant. After it was found that she was not with child by a jury of midwives, she was sentenced in January 1761. Had she even been pregnant? Perhaps the two parts of Dublin’s darker history have merged because of the mysterious and dark aspects?

The Haunting of the 40 Steps

Centuries later, her ghost is said to linger near St. Audoen’s Church, close to where she once lived. Those who have seen her describe a woman in tattered skirts glowing faintly green, her face both sorrowful and fierce. She appears at the bottom of the ancient stone steps, drifting upward before fading into the wall itself.

She is also said to have been seen walking down Fishamble Street towards Copper Alley. 

For some, she is a tragic spirit  who was wronged, burned, and forgotten as a human where another legendary figure took her place. The additional torture for her execution were certainly not something a man would go through for the same crime as he would only be hanged until death. For others, she is a reminder of the cruelty that hides behind respectability and power. Either way, her story lives on, whispered through the cobbled streets of the Liberties.

When the fog thickens and the church bells toll midnight, take care walking near the 40 steps. The Green Lady might be waiting there, her eyes glowing faintly in the dark, keeping watch over the city that condemned her.

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References:

Darkey Kelly – Wikipedia

Dublin’s most-haunted – the city’s five most famous ghost stories | Irish Independent

Darkey Kelly: Witch, Killer or Ghost? | Fringe Rebels

Ukategorisert

The Limping Ghost of Fossesholm

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After tragedy struck Birthe Svendsdatter, she threw herself from the window and ended up with a limp and a brain injury. Called Halte-Birthe because of her limp, she is said to haunt Fossesholm Manor to this day. 

At Fossesholm Manor in Vestfossen, Buskerud, love is said to have left a wound that time itself could not heal. This was the main estate of the Foss estate , which was united in 1541–1548 by the lord of Akershus, Peder Hanssøn Litle , to gain control over the profitable sawmilling business in the area.

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When night settles over the old estate and the trees cast long, trembling shadows across the empty buildings, some claim that a figure still moves behind the upstairs windows. She limps. She waits. And she remembers.

Fossesholm: It is said that a limping ghost of a girl who used to live at Fossesholm manor in Vestfossen is haunting it. //Source: Wikimedia

A Broken Promise

In the mid eighteenth century, Birthe Svendsdatter lived a life of privilege as the daughter of a wealthy family. Or was she? Some say that she was actually a servant girl at Fossesholm in the 18th century. And if not, she certainly became one after her tragedy. 

Her future should have been secure, but her heart led her elsewhere. To a German officer in some versions of the legend that her parents didn’t think was good enough to marry. She secretly held her own wedding in the forest, a place between Lier and Røyken. 

But the ending wasn’t a happy ever after though. What happened is not known. Was she tormented by her parents who when they learned about the wedding, made her life a misery? Was she betrayed by the man she loved and carrying his child, Birthe saw no escape from her shame and despair. In a moment of desperation, she threw herself from a second floor window at Fossesholm Manor.

Death did not claim her that night.

Instead, Birthe survived with terrible consequences. The fall left her permanently crippled. She lost both her sanity and the child she carried. What was meant to be an ending became a fate many would consider worse than death.

Legend has it that after the brain damage, she could not count beyond three. People are said to have teased her by asking how many chickens there were on the farm. To this, Birthe is said to have replied “one, two, three in a heap”. It is said that she was treated with great respect by the manor house, but was unpopular among the other servants because she had been asked to gossip if someone was not doing their job.

The Ghost from the Tapestry: One of the motifs shows a lady standing bent forward and pointing at the chickens and turkeys that are tripping around her. The lady’s name was Birthe and was called hen-Birthe or lame-Birthe. She is supposed to be haunting the manor house.

After this, her husband also leaves her and travels back to Germany. Once home in Germany, he feels guilty, sits down to write a letter and the rescuer is again Cappelen at Fossesholm. He writes to Cappelen and asks if he can use Birthe on the estate. We will never know what Cappelen sends in response to Germany, but Cappelen builds a small house a short distance out towards Lake Eikeren where Birthe can move in. Birthe does not want that, she wants to live with Cappelen and his wife at Fossesholm. 

A Life Reduced to Shadows

At the time, Fossesholm was owned by Gabriel Cappelen, who took pity on Birthe and allowed her to remain on the estate. Some say that he was the one who stepped in and convinced the priest to marry the two lovers. 

Despite her background and wealth, her life was reduced to that of a servant. The renowned artist Eric Gustav Tunmarch was commissioned to paint her, and the image still hangs on the manor walls today.

In the artwork, Halte Birthe appears bent and broken, dressed in servant’s clothing, feeding the farm’s chickens and turkeys. This despite the fact that she owned chests filled with fine dresses she would never wear again. It is a portrait not of dignity, but of quiet humiliation and loss.

Birthe died at 64 in 1788, recorded in church books as a pauper. But many believe her story did not end there.

The Window on the Second Floor

Locals whisper that Birthe never truly left Fossesholm. Late at night, when the manor stands silent and abandoned, witnesses claim to see a figure in the second floor window. A woman who moves unevenly, forever marked by her fall. This is where she leapt. This is where her life was broken.

Some say her ghost is drawn back to that window again and again, trapped in the moment when love failed her and despair took hold. A reminder that not all ghosts are born from violent death. Some are created by lives that were allowed to continue, long after they should have ended.

At Fossesholm, Birthe Svendsdatter is remembered not as the woman she was, but as the limping ghost she may still be.

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References:

FLERE GJENFERD SOM OGSÅ VILLE VÆRE MED – Issuu 

«Halte-Birthe» Eller «Hønse-Birthe» Fra Vestfossen – Sagnfigur Og Historisk Skikkelse – Historier.no

Fossesholm 

Sagn, spøkelseshistorier og dystre skjebner

Fossesholm