Montjuïc Cemetery, Barcelona’s most hauntingly beautiful burial ground is believed to be haunted. Both famous spiritualists, serial killers and the cemetery’s own ghost reside on this hill in their afterlife.
As night falls, the tombstones cast eerie shadows, and whispers of ghostly legends become louder. Beyond the grave, Montjuïc Cemetery holds tales of tragic love, mysterious apparitions, and restless spirits that continue to captivate both locals and tourists alike. This historical cemetery, nestled on a hill overlooking the vibrant city, is not only a final resting place for the departed but also a portal to a world where the supernatural meets reality.
Montjuïc Cemetery, located on the rocky slopes of the Montjuïc hill overlooking the industrial port of Barcelona towards the Mediterranean Sea, is one of the largest cemeteries in the city. Established in 1883, it is a maze of streets and alleys, where history intertwines with the supernatural.
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The cemetery holds great significance for the locals, as it serves as the final resting place for many notable figures in Barcelona’s history and there are now over a million burials and cremation ashes in the cemetery. From politicians and artists to writers and musicians, the cemetery houses the remains of those who have left an indelible mark on the city. The grandeur of the mausoleums and gravestones reflects the prominence of the individuals buried within.
The Ghost of Morrot on the Montjuïc Cemetery
As the sun sets over Montjuïc Cemetery, a sense of eeriness fills the air. Whispers of ghostly legends and mysterious apparitions echo through the silent corridors. The Montjuïc Cemetery in Sants-Montjuïc in Barcelona is said to be haunted. One of the most chilling tales revolves around the infamous “Ghost of Morrot.” Legend has it that the ghosts roamed the grounds in mourning.
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There is the Dalmau de Queral i Codina who was the Count of Santa Coloma. He was the viceroy of Catalonia and got caught up in the revolt of the Reapers in 1640. An angry mob got hold of him and he was lynched at the foot of the hill of the cemetery. His legend is known as the Ghost of Morrot and he is thought to be haunting the cemetery.
The Grave of Ms Amalia Domingo Soler
There are many curious graves at the cemetery, among them you can for instance find the grave of Enriqueta Marti, otherwise known as The Vampire of the Raval for her crimes.
Montjuïc Cemetery: The haunted cemeteries in Barcelona holds many graves that are said to have strange things happening to them. Many notorious and people with ties to the occult and paranormal are buried her, among them, many from the spiritualist community.
One of the strange graves you can find walking to the Vial Sant Jaume on the Agrupacio XI on tomb NO. 35. In this place, Ms. Amalia Domingo Soler has her final resting place. She was a writer, women rights activist as well as a medium in the late 1800s.
Soler was famous for her channeling of a Father Germano, a ghost that had come to her and acted as her spiritual guide.
After she died she was buried on a plot of land for people that didn’t really morally align with the times. It was a place for anarchists and working class advocates. It was also where they buried executed people as well as Jews. The very name Montjuïc means Mountain of the Jews in old Catalan.
The Grave of Spiritist Jose Maria Fernandes Colavida
Interestingly, Ms. Soler’s grave is located in close proximity to another spiritist, Jose Maria Fernandes Colavida. Together, their graves create an atmosphere of otherworldly energy, drawing paranormal enthusiasts and curious visitors alike.
It is claimed by those that visit the place, the graves around that area are often said to appear more cracked and disarranged than they should.
In 1915 the RMS Lusitania was heading to Liverpool, but only reached the Irish coast as it was torpedoed by German forces. On the shore where the dead were washed ashore, their ghosts seem to linger in the cemetery and the hotel where the injured were brought.
In the annals of maritime history, few stories are as haunting as that of the RMS Lusitania. A luxury vessel of her time, she was not merely a ship; she was a symbol of opulence and luxury, afloat in the tumultuous waters of World War I. Her tragic tale, marked by a German U-boat’s ruthless attack, has left an indelible mark on history—and perhaps, on the realm of the supernatural.
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In the throes of World War I, the Lusitania was more than just another ocean liner; she was a prized target for German forces. So much so, in fact, that the German embassy took the extraordinary step of placing warnings in 50 American newspapers, advising potential passengers not to travel on this vessel.
Despite these ominous advisories, courage and curiosity prevailed, and on the fateful day of May 1, 1915, passengers and crew alike boarded the Lusitania, from New York bound for Liverpool.
The Sinking of RMS Lusitania
The RMS Lusitania was carrying 1,266 passengers and a crew of 696, totaling 1,962 people. At 2:10 pm, the Lusitania crossed paths with the German U-boat U-20. Due to the liner’s high speed, some consider the encounter to be coincidental, as U-20 would have had difficulty catching the fast vessel otherwise.
The U-boat fired one torpedo at the RMS Lusitania, striking it on the starboard bow, just beneath the wheelhouse. Moments later, a second explosion erupted from within the ship’s hull at the point of impact.
The vessel began to sink rapidly, listing to starboard. Crew members hurried to launch lifeboats, but the sinking conditions made it extremely challenging, and many lifeboats capsized or broke apart. Only 6 out of 48 lifeboats were successfully launched.
Eighteen minutes after the torpedo hit, the ship’s trim leveled out, and it disappeared beneath the waves, with the funnels and masts being the last visible parts. Chaos reigned as the ship rapidly descended into the abyss, leaving only a handful of lifeboats to brave the frigid waters
Tragically, of the 1,962 people aboard the RMS Lusitania, 1,199 lost their lives. Heroic acts by survivors and Irish rescuers brought the survivor count to 764, although three later succumbed to injuries sustained during the sinking.
The Eerie Remnants: Queenstown
In the aftermath of this devastating event, the town of Queenstown, now known as Cobh, bore witness to a somber spectacle. The bodies of the few survivors and many victims either washed ashore or were brought to the town.
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In the Old Church Cemetery, nestled on the outskirts of Cobh, nearly 200 of the RMS Lusitania’s ill-fated passengers found their final resting place in both mass and individual graves.
The Sinking of RMS Lusitania: The ship was Torpedoed by German U-boat U-20 and sank on Friday 7 May 1915. The wreck lies approximately 11 mi (18 km) off the Old Head of Kinsale Lighthouse in 305 ft (93 m) of water. The dead passengers from the ship is said to be haunting the city of Cobh.
It is here, amid the gravestones and fading memories of the RMS Lusitania’s passengers, that the veil between the living and the departed seems to thin. Witnesses from diverse sections of the community, including the enigmatic White Witch of Cobh and a Grave Inspector, have recounted eerie experiences.
The White Witch of Cobh
But who is this white witch that supposedly makes people believe in her words of hauntings? Her name is Ms Helen Barrett and is a 5th generation witch. Out of the 3 500 witches in Ireland, there is supposedly only one that outranks her in Kerry.
She is mostly known for her fortune telling and magic spells like whistling up a wind, but she also has claimed to have seen some of the ghosts that are said to haunt her city. She has among other things claimed to have foretold Princess Diana’s death as well as the start of the world ending in 2012.
The Haunted Funeral Procession
Foremost among these accounts is the chilling sound of a mass funeral procession for the Lusitania’s victims that took place on the 10th of May in 1915. Most people that claim to have experienced this have talked about hearing hushed voices as well as the sound of footsteps along the cemetery wall.
The White Witch herself claims to have “seen” it unfold, a spectral spectacle that haunts the imagination.
The Haunted Cemetery: Several people of Cobh have claimed to have seen a ghostly funeral procession of the victims from the ship in the cemetery.
These mournful echoes of the past have perplexed onlookers, leading them to believe that a funeral procession was approaching, only to find an empty road. It is as though the spirits of the Lusitania’s passengers still gather to remember their untimely end, leaving an enduring and haunting legacy in the hallowed grounds of the Old Church Cemetery in Cobh, Ireland.
The Hauntings at Commodore Hotel
In Cobh there was a hotel when the ship went down that was originally known as The Queens Hotel and is still in operation. It was run by a German and the entire Humbert family had to hide in the basement because of the angry mob that gathered outside.
At the time when RMS Lusitania were torpedoed, many of the survivors were taken to the hotel where they treated the wounded and stored the dead to appease the angry flock of people.
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It is said that this gave an imprint in the hotel, and many of the unexplained noises and sightings have been said to be because of the ghosts of the victims.
This is however not the only ghosts haunting the hotel according to legends though, and the hotel is also said to be haunted by a british soldier who took his own life there and the ghost of a baby that was supposedly left in a suitcase there.
The Tragic Haunting from RMS Lusitania
The haunting tale of the sinking of the RMS Lusitania and the ghosts washed ashore is one that resonates with the depths of history. As time passes, these spirits continue to linger, their presence felt in the eerie whispers of the Old Church Cemetery and the haunted halls of the Commodore Hotel.
As the years pass, the tragic haunting from the RMS Lusitania serves as a poignant reminder of the human cost of war, a testament to the resilience of spirits lingering on. The stories of these lost souls continue to captivate, reminding us of the mysterious and enduring connections between the world of the living and the realm of the departed.
We can only wonder if these restless spirits will ever find peace, or if their presence will continue to be felt by those who venture into the hallowed grounds of Cobh and the haunted halls of the Commodore Hotel.
There is not only one ghost story from Morgan-Monroe State forest and the Stepp Cemetery in the middle of it, there are many. Legends about creatures and ghosts keep the silent forest and burial ground alive.
Morgan-Monroe State Forest stands as a silent witness to a myriad of chilling tales that have woven an enigmatic tapestry of supernatural lore. The forest in south-central Indiana is more than 25 000 acres and has steep ridges and deep valleys.
From inexplicable deaths to whispered rumors of satanic rituals and elusive encounters with mythical creatures like Yeti and Bigfoot, the Morgan-Monroe State Forest has earned its reputation as one of the most infamous haunted woodlands in the United States. It is in this forest most reported sightings of the Sasquatch in the state and there is a large and active group investigating these claims.
There are also said to be UFO sightings as well as more classical tales of something mysterious and ghostly lingering in the Morgan-Monroe State Forest.
The Draper Cabin in the Morgan-Monroe State Forest
In the midst of the Morgan-Monroe State Forest itself, there is a cabin where hikers can spend their night. Draper Cabin offers a night of spine-tingling encounters for those daring enough to spend it within its timeworn walls – all for the modest price of $25, throughout the year.
It is said that many hikers have to give up on staying in Draper Cabin through the night though, as they hear loud footsteps and weird noises outside, coming closer and closer to the cabin.
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What the source of these hauntings varies. One version includes a murder that occurred there quite a long time ago. Another story states that from the time of the cabin’s existence over 130 years ago, a murderer still stalks their premises and waits for the next guests to arrive and rent out the cabin.
Draper Cabin: This cabin deep inside of the Morgan-Monroe State Forest is thought to be haunted. // Source
However, the true heart of the forest’s haunting reputation lies in the ethereal realm of Stepp Cemetery where legends and urban legends of ghosts and mysterious religious sects never let the buried rest.
Stepp Cemetery
In the middle of the Morgan-Monroe State Forest you will find Stepp Cemetery, the source of many of the haunted legends of the forest. The cemetery in the Morgan-Monroe State Forest dates back to the early 1800s and is found just north of Bloomington.
There are not many graves in the cemetery, perhaps only around 30, (other sources say 114) or so, but they surely have some stories connected to them.
Stepp Cemetery: In the forest you will find a small cemetery with big legends. It is said to be haunted by more than one type of ghosts. //Source: Shelly/Flickr
The Crabbites and their Snake and Sex Rituals
According to historians, Stepp Cemetery might have been used by a religious sect to perform rituals that came in the early 20th century. The group’s leader, William Crab, had strange practices like getting people to be bitten by a snake. A snake handler himself, he held more circus-like sermons and claimed that a true believer would not be bitten or die from the venom.
The sect known as Crabbites had strange beliefs, like that the earth was squared because of a part in revelations in the bible. They also had to be chased away from the cemetery because of performing a ”ritualized sexual license.” They were apparently participating in these orgies while handling the snakes as well as giving animal sacrifices.
It is also said they believed in resurrection and that the reverend could wake people from the dead. Once they were even arrested after trying to stop a burial of a woman who was once one of them.
It is worth noting though that the sect went largely undocumented and it is difficult to say today what was true and what was hearsay. But they said that there were roughly 600 of them in Brown and Morgan counties in 1912.
The Crabbites didn’t stay in the area of Morgan-Monroe State Forest and Stepp Cemetery for long as they are said to have moved over to Brown county, but they undeniably left an enduring mark on the cemetery’s reputation. Some even say that their mocking of the cemetery and strange rituals evoked some spirits to come back and haunt the place as they left the cemetery with a dark energy.
Teenage Parties on Stepp Cemetery and the Birth for Local Legends
Most of the stories from Stepp Cemetery are said to have been developed or happened from the 1950s to 1970s. Then the cemetery had become so remote and forgotten and was more as a gathering place for youth than for mourners. More people had access to cars in the following decades and used the place to party.
Many stories that were told were about the ghost of someone that had died in a car crash in the surrounding area, but also the cemetery itself became a part of the stories.
During the Great Depression the cemetery fell into the hands of the Civilian Conservation Corps and they carved a tree stump in the cemetery into a chair. This tree stump is today called the Warlock’s Chair, although it is gone now that it was burned down in 1974.
In many stories the chair was cursed and whoever sat on it would be so as well. It also became a part of the haunted legends as well, even after it was gone.
Some of the ghosts
It is also said that an old woman is haunting the Stepp Cemetery within the Morgan-Monroe State Forest after some fraternity boys hanged her beloved German Shepard from a tree. What they didn’t know though was that she apparently was a witch and cursed them as well as the cemetery.
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One of the other legends speaks of a young girl who was murdered in the Morgan-Monroe State Forest close to Stepp Cemetery and that her body wanders through the trees in search of justice and her way home because her killer was never found.
The Woman in Black
By far the most told story is about people seeing the ghost of The Woman in Black. The air thickens with an eerie stillness as the ghostly apparition of a grief-stricken mother dressed all in black is said to materialize on the haunted Stepp Cemetery at night, sitting on a hauntingly familiar tree stump crying over her dead child.
There are many stories about what happened, and this is also a tale we can trace back to the 1950s. Some say she was a woman named Anne, and that her man died in a dynamite explosion in the quarry and her daughter died in a car crash. The mother is said to have rarely left the grave of her child, who was the only thing she had left in her life. After she died, she is still coming to the grave to grieve.
There are also people saying that the child was a newborn and that she never recovered from the loss. The variations and details surrounding the legends are endless. Even in 1972, there were around 30 different versions of them.
There are some details that keep popping up though, like the tree stump. Sometimes the woman in black is only sitting on it, weeping close to her child’s grave. Sometimes she was a witch and murdered her husband after he murdered their child. Sometimes she has two white wolves by her feet mourning her child’s death after she was hanged for taking revenge.
The most horrendous tale though are the stories where people claim that she is sometimes trying to exhume her dead child from the grave to hold his bones, before burying him again and leaving.
The Story of Baby Lester
But what grave and who is she grieving? Sadly, there are plenty of graves belonging to children in Stepp Cemetery and the Morgan-Monroe State Forest. For some reason, the grave most associated with the legend of the Woman in Black at Stepp Cemetery is the grave of Baby Lester. His grave is in the back in a corner and has been there for many decades now. The faded letters on the grave say 1937. He was the child of O’Leatha Pryor Lester and Harley Lester for only a few hours before he passed. They named him Paul.
Still to this day, some people place little toys on the grave. In respect perhaps, but the urban legend of Baby Lester really hurt the family of the stillborn child. On several occasions the grave has been vandalized, broken or the headstone removed so they had to cement it down. On July 24 in 2021, the toys were set on fire by some vandals, or by accident after a candle set fire to them on accident.
Baby Lester’s Grave: This is how the grave looked after it caught fire as the negative consequences of being the source of a ghost story. Source: Photo by Jeremy Hogan/The Bloomingtonian
The mother was only 16 when she gave birth and went on to live a long life with more children after. When she heard about how her child’s grave was the center of this urban legend, she was distraught, horrified and disgusted. Although the family tried to shield her from the legend of Baby Lester and the Woman in Black, it had come in many forms until she died in 2007.
The Dangers of Ghost Stories
As night descends upon Morgan-Monroe State Forest, the line between the living and the otherworldly blurs, leaving those who dare to explore its depths to grapple with the unsettling mysteries that lurk in the shadows and the whispers that echo through the ancient trees.
Is it Bigfoot, the Woman in Black? Perhaps a remnant of the strange cult that used the cemetery all those years back. Perhaps there are just a couple of teenagers that can’t comprehend how stories about the dead can still hurt the living.
After the Native Burial Ground was disturbed in Robinson Woods in Illinois, people have started to notice strange things happening in the woods. Shadow figures and mysterious lights are accompanied by the Tom-tom drum.
In Robinson Woods, Illinois, lies a forest preserve with a haunting past that stretches back to the era of the Fort Dearborn Massacre. Once granted to the family of Alexander Robinson, a chief revered for his heroic deeds during that dark chapter in history, the land now carries whispers of an unresolved promise and a restless spirit.
Robinson Woods is mostly wooded, with some scattered remnant prairies along the Des Plaines River. About half of 265-acre Robinson Woods. The site includes the Robinson family homestead and burial grounds.
The Noble Deeds of Chee-chee-pin-quay
Alexander Robinson, chief of multiple Native American tribes, played a crucial role in saving lives during the Fort Dearborn Massacre. This was his English name though and he was really named chief Chee-chee-pin-quay of the Potawatomi, born in 1787 with a Chippewa mother and a Scottish father.
After he helped save the white settlers in the massacre, he was also a translator and negotiator between the settlers and the natives. In gratitude, the land was bestowed upon him in 1872 with the assurance that he and his family would rest there for eternity. However, the city reneged on its commitment, breaking the promise to bury Robinson and his kin within the woods.
The Native American Burial Land
Many sources state that it was because Robinson himself was denied burial on his land, but this is not true, he was. In the forest there are two large stones marking his final resting place together with his family. Although, the true story of what happened after is much more upsetting.
Burial Ground: Although the headstones of the graves was lost for a long time, big stones marks the burial ground inside of Robinson Woods. // Source
His family and descendants continued to live on his land, and at his homestead for decades. This was until 1955 when a fire broke out and burned the family home down. His granddaughter, Mary Boettcher had no means to rebuild their home and had to live elsewhere, thereby relinquishing their family claim to their land.
The same year three boys were found dead in the Robinson wood that would go unsolved for 40 years. Around this time, tales of paranormal sightings became rampant. It isn’t really said that the murder has anything to do with the haunting, but after the murders as well as what happened with the Robinson Homestead and Burial Ground, people started to talk about the strange things happening in the woods.
In 1973 The Forest Preserve District didn’t allow anyone else to get buried on their family burial and when Robinson’s stone was taken to be restored, it was lost for years until it returned to the family in 2016. It turned out that it was The Forest Preserve District that had the headstones in storage all along, as the stones were so frequently vandalized.
The Haunting inside of the Forest
Legend has it that Robinson’s spirit, denied its rightful resting place to his people, lingers among the ancient trees, casting an otherworldly presence upon the woods. Visitors have reported a pervasive feeling of an unseen entity, an unexplainable heaviness that hangs in the air. As daylight surrenders to the night, the forest awakens with spectral activity — mysterious knocks echoing through the trees, distant screams haunting the stillness, and elusive dark shadows that dance in the moonlight. Even the sound of the tom-toms drums have been heard according to reports.
Some claim to have encountered apparitions that vanish as quickly as they appear, leaving behind an eerie silence. Some even claim to have seen strange lights, or mist and even smelled violet and lavender, even when it was in the middle of winter.
On Haunted Holy Land in Robinson Woods
Robinson Woods, now a tranquil forest preserve, conceals within its depths a tale of broken promises and a chief’s unsettled spirit. As the whispers of the haunted past persist, those who traverse the winding trails of Robinson Woods may find themselves caught between the realms of the living and the spectral, where the legacy of Alexander Robinson and the enigmatic haunting of the woods endure.
The sky burial method by the Tower of Silencefor the Zoroastrian in Mumbai has been up for debate after the vulture population started to decline. There has also been a rise of haunted horror stories in later years circulating online, but just what is supposed to haunt the ancient burial place?
Right by the exclusive neighborhood of Malabar Hill in Mumbai lies a centuries-old structure shrouded in mystery and macabre legend – the Tower of Silence. This imposing structure deep in the 54-acre forest has long been associated with the Parsi community’s unique funeral customs, which involve leaving the dead on the tower’s rooftop to be devoured by vultures.
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However, reports of strange sightings and eerie happenings surrounding the Tower have sparked widespread speculation about the supernatural. Some say that the spirits of the departed are haunting the Tower, while others believe that darker forces may be at play. Is there something behind these rumors, or are they only fancy tales about a dwindling minority?
History and significance of the Tower of Silence in Mumbai
The Tower of Silence is a circular structure located in Mumbai’s Malabar Hill area. This particular tower was built in 1672 by Seth Moti Hirji and the Parsi community who practice the Zoroastrian religion and is not meant for outsiders to come and see, but for the community to bury their own.
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The Tower is a significant part of the Parsi community’s funeral customs that date back 3000 years, which involve the disposal of the dead in a sky burial. The concept of the towers are as old as 900 years. The Parsi religion believes that the body is impure after death and should not be buried or cremated. Instead, the dead are taken to the Tower of Silence, where they are left on the rooftop to be consumed by vultures.
The Zoroastrian religion and its beliefs around death
The Parsi community is an ethnic and religious minority in India that came to India around the 8th or 10th century AD after escaping from the rise of the Islamic Empire. In 1941 there were around 114 000 of them in India, but today, they estimate around 50 000. This does have something to do with 40 % of Parsi marrying outsiders, but you are only considered Parsi if you have a Parsi father. The women are often ostracized if they marry outside of their community.
The Parsi follow the Zoroastrian religion, which originated in ancient Persia and is one of the world’s oldest faiths that possibly dates back to the 2000 BCE. The Zoroastrian religion has a unique view on death and the afterlife compared to most religions. This comes from the prophet Zarathushtra that believed that the soul is immortal and will eventually reunite with its creator.
The Faravahar: also known as the Foruhar or the Farre Kiyâni, is a well-known symbol of Zoroastrianism. There are different interpretations of what the Faravahar represents, and there is no definite agreement on its meaning. However, it is commonly believed that the Faravahar is a Zoroastrian depiction of the fravashi, or personal spirit. The Faravahar is widely recognized in Iran and is often worn as a pendant. Although it has religious origins, it has also become a secular and cultural symbol for Iranians.
However, the body is considered Nasu which means impure after death and should not be buried or cremated. Instead, it should be left to decompose naturally. Not only was there the danger of spreading diseases, but it was also believed that corpses would attract evil spirits to possess them, also known as the Nasu Daeva, the body demon that infects the bodies.
The Parsi community’s funeral customs involve taking the body of the deceased to the Tower of Silence, where it is left on the rooftop to be consumed by vultures. This funeral process is known as “dokhmenashini,” which means “to place the body in the Tower of Silence.” and the towers themselves, called The Dakhma, originated in ancient Persia around 900 AD.
The process of disposing of the dead at the Tower of Silence
The process of disposing of the dead at the Tower of Silence is a unique and complex one. When a Parsi person dies, the body is taken to the Tower of Silence and placed on the rooftop in the dakhma, which is the funerary tower. The rooftop has three concentric circles, each with a specific purpose. The outer circle is for men, the middle circle is for women, and the inner circle is for children.
The Tower of Silence in Mumbai: A late 19th century engraving of a Zoroastrian Tower of Silence in Mumbai. Engraving from 1886 book “True Stories of the Reign of Queen Victoria” by Cornelius Brown.
Along with placing the body in the Tower of Silence, they recite the Vendidad which is a religious chant against the demons.
Once the body is placed on the rooftop, it is left to decompose naturally. The vultures consume the body, leaving only the bones behind in a matter of days. The bones are then collected and placed in an ossuary, which is a receptacle for human bones.
Controversies and debates around the Tower of Silence
The Tower of Silence has been a subject of controversy and debate for many years. Some people believe that the Parsi community’s funeral customs are inhumane and should be abolished. They argue that the Tower of Silence is a health hazard and a breeding ground for diseases, especially after Mumbai’s urban growth closing in on the once isolated sky burial sites. In Iran, they were banned in the 1970s after urbanization declared it a health hazard.
There was also the case of a shortage of vultures in India that made the burial method a controversy. After the drug Diclofenac, an anti-inflammatory medicine was introduced to livestock in the 1990s, it killed off 95 % of the birds as it was toxic for them to feed on the carcasses. It was banned in 2006, but the damage was already done.
On the other hand, the Parsi community argues that their funeral customs are an essential part of their identity and cultural heritage, although many Parsi have started to use cremation or burial instead, especially during Covid when the Tower of Silence was closed.
Entry Forbidden: An old photograph of the Dakhma from around ca. 1880 – ca. 1890. Today it is found inside of a dense forest and is off limit to outsiders.
They believe that the Tower of Silence is the most natural and respectful way to dispose of the dead. But when a woman named Dhun Baria took pictures of the piled up corpses in the dakhmas, they saw for themselves that their ancient way of purification didn’t work as it should after the vulture shortage. The rumors about the delayed decomposing of the corpses and a smell coming from the forest, although not confirmed, took hold over the narrative of the ancient tradition.
In recent years, there have been efforts to preserve and renovate the Tower of Silence, trying new and modern ways of decomposing. Like how they use solar power to speed up the process and work toward vulture conservation. The Parsi community has been working with the government and other organizations to ensure that the Tower is properly maintained and preserved for future generations.
Theories and speculations surrounding the macabre mystery
Now, perhaps this ancient and mysterious and different practice of disposing of the dead is what makes the place sound a little eerie and makes people question if there is something going on there. Perhaps it is the dwindling population that is leaving the Zoroastrian ways behind in the modern world that makes it all seem a bit out of place in modern Mumbai?
Or perhaps it is even the controversies and the difficulty the community had of disposing and honoring the dead after the vultures almost died out? Perhaps it is what the prophet said that the corpses are more vulnerable to attracting evil spirits and that is what is happening surrounding the legends and folklore of this cemetery?
There have been numerous reports of strange sightings and eerie happenings around the Tower of Silence. Some people have reported seeing apparitions of the deceased, while others have reported hearing strange sounds and voices. There have also been reports of unexplained movements and objects moving on their own.
The Tower of Silence’s Future
The Tower of Silence is a unique and fascinating structure with a rich history and cultural significance. It is a testament to the Parsi community’s unique customs and beliefs, which have been passed down through generations. Despite the controversy and speculation surrounding the Tower, it remains an essential part of the Parsi community’s identity and a significant landmark in Mumbai.
Up in the wild Scottish Highlands, inside the dark Rothiemurchus Forest it is said that the ghost of the Great Shaw warrior, Seath Mor is ready to challenge everyone passing for a final duel to show your bravery.
In the Scottish Highlands close to Aviemore in Inverness-shire, the dark Forest of Rothiemurchus stands as a silent witness to centuries of history and folklore and is a remnant of the ancient Caledonian Forest in Scotland.
Sir David Attenborough once called the Rothiemurchus Forest, One of the glories of wild Scotland. Beyond its verdant canopy and ancient trees lie tales of spectral encounters and haunted legends of the highlands.
The Ghost of Seath Mor, The Great Shaw
The most well known ghost story from the depths of Rothiemurchus Forest is about the 14th-century tribal chief of the Clan Shaw, Seath Mor Sgorfhiaclach, meaning Bucktooth.
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He was known as a good warrior, with a twisted smile that would scare everyone. He was also called The Great Shaw by his contemporaries, was also 6 feet tall and even his own people feared him according to the legends.
The Ghostly Challenge
It is said that he is still haunting the Rothiemurchus Forest. As legend has it, those who venture into the woods may chance upon his ghostly apparition, still ready for battle it seems. Seath Mor, adorned in the vestiges of a bygone era, allegedly challenges unsuspecting walkers to a spectral duel of bravery.
Rothiemurchus Forest: Lochan Deo. Lochan Deo in Rothiemurchus forest in, Cairngorms. It is said to be haunted by the old chieftan of the clan. // Source: Scot Tares / Lochan Deo / CC BY-SA 2.0
According to local lore, those who stand their ground and accept the spectral challenge are granted safe passage through the forest’s depths. But those who succumb to fear and attempt to flee are condemned to an eternal wandering within the shadowy embrace of Rothiemurchus and they are never heard from again.
The Guardian Stones
Out of the woods of Rothiemurchus Forest you will find the Old Doune Church Burial ground in the kirkyard of St. Tuchaldus and Seath Mor’s grave who is rumored to be cursed for anyone who dares tamper with it.
At the grave it reads: “Victor at the battle of Perth in 1396”, a battle where only he was left alive and that helped carve his legacy as a fearsome warrior. Some people even leave the grave a couple of coins for protection.
Five stones rest upon Seath Mor’s tomb found close to the Doune of Rothiemurchus, possibly symbolic of the comrades who fell alongside him in battle. They are certainly put there to protect the grave and Seath Mor’s soul.
Tampering with these stones is deemed a reckless act, tempting fate itself and it is said that many have fallen ill or even died from touching them. They will feel the wrath of the Shaw Clan’s guardian spirit, an elf-like spirit or a familiar called Bodach of Gealic folklore. Bodach is a Duin, a goblin of the Doune. Although mostly acting like a boogeyman in folklore, the Bodach an Duin is its protector.
The Protective Iron Cage
It is said that it happened once in the early 19th century, and a man that stole a center stone from the grave threw it into the River Spey. He was apparently a footman set to protect the graveyard from body snatchers. He wanted to prove to everyone that the curse was nonsense. Four days later the stone was back and the man was found dead, floating down the river four days later.
In the 1940s, it is said that a journalist lifted one of the stones over his head, only to die in a car crash a couple of hours after he did it.
In 1978 a Mr Leslie Walker and his two friends were working in the graveyard when Mr. Walker touched the stones to show it to his friends. He told the story to Aberdeen Evening Press where he fell ill with a mysterious disease right after and had a temperature of almost 40 degrees. He had to spend the next 6 weeks in hospital.
His friend did the same and joined Mr Walker with the same mysterious illness, suffering stomach pains after identifying the last friend who was even more unlucky.
The friend was not so fortunate though as he was found dead the following day in the graveyard after he rearranged the stones. He died after a cerebral hemorrhage.
In any case, the stones kept getting stolen, and curse or not, they decided to do something to the grave after the stones were missing for two weeks before returning.
To safeguard this ancient resting place, a wrought-iron cage was erected in the 1980s, standing as both a physical barrier and a metaphysical deterrent against the restless spirit that dwells within.
The Final Battle of Seath Mor
As sunlight filters through the towering trees of Rothiemurchus Forest, the legends of Seath Mor linger like shadows among the ancient roots, ready to challenge any wanderers for another battle.
The wrought-iron cage on his grave, though a symbol of protection, also hints at the delicate balance between preserving history and allowing the spirits of the past to weave their tales within the heart of Rothiemurchus.
Probably the closest thing Iceland has to a gothic romance tale, the ghost story of Miklabæjar-Solveig was the story of a real woman that was said to haunt the village she killed herself in after an unrequited love for a priest.
The story about Miklabæjar-Solveig turned into a mystery and there have been many legends about what really happened to her.
She is perhaps best known in connection to a priest that disappeared that she used to work for and may have had an affair with before he cast her aside to marry another. Some even think she came from beyond the grave and took him with her as he was never seen again.
Miklabæjar-Solveig and her Tragic Death
Not much about Miklabæjar-Solveig’s life is known and even her full name is disputed and could have been Solveig Þorleifsdóttir, but we simply don’t know. She could have been from Hrolleifsdal, a valley on the eastern side of Skagafjörður on the northern side of Iceland.
According to the stories, she was a housekeeper or maid for Odd Gíslason, the local priest in the village, before he got married. It is said that Miklabæjar-Solveig fell in love with Odd as a one sided crush, or was even his mistress for some time. But her feelings would have an unhappy end and he married Guðrúna Jónsdóttir in 1777, although he continued to have her working in his house.
Read More: Check out all of our ghost stories from Iceland.
This was too much for Solveig and it is said that she went insane, or at least fell into a deep depression and constantly tried to take her own life. The other workers in the house were put on watch to watch over her and prevent her from harming herself, one of them was Guðlaug Björnsdóttir, the sister of Sir Snorri á Húsafell, who slept by her side at night. It was also to prevent her from going upstairs to the reverend.
Although they tried to keep her away from doing anything, she managed to slip away one night. On April 11th in 1778 she jumped out the window onto the grass and ran off. A worker named Þorsteinn saw her and ran after her, but it was too late. She was too quick, and when he finally reached her, she had already cut her throat and died.
It is said that Þorsteinn said to her something of the likes of that the devil would take her. Miklabæjar-Solveig didn’t have an opportunity to answer, and died that night in 1778.
Þorsteinn came back with the news, her body and said that her final wish had been to be buried in the cemetery. They wrote to their superiors about this, but were denied.
Miklabæjar-Solveig was buried outside of the cemetery, and her death was not recorded in the church book. This was the custom with people that took their own life, but her grave was there, just north of the cemetery.
The Ghost of Miklabæjar-Solveig Returns
Then the rumors started and people started to whisper among themselves that her corpse was not lying still in the grave and that she was angry about not burying her in a consecrated ground.
It is said that the priest had dreams about her and about how angry was with him. She said to him that since he had refused to bury her in holy ground, he too would meet the same fate.
People referred to her now as Miklabæjar-Solveig and talked about seeing her around the cemetery, the village as well as their dreams with blood gushing from her throat, angry at them.
Miklabæjar-Solveig: According to the legend, Miklabæjar-Solveig continued to haunt the village after they refused to bury her on holy ground. She came back as a vengeful ghost that are said to have even dragged people down to her grave.
The Disappearance of the Priest
8 years went past and the ghost stories about Solveig were told among the locals. Then on October 1st in 1786 Odd Gíslason went to Silfrastaðir for mass not far from his home. He never returned from the trip. It is known that he did stop at Víðivellir to speak with the county commissioner Vigfús Scheving
From there it was only a kilometer to Miklabær and he was riding home alone in the dark, possibly very drunk. He usually rode with a companion because of how badly Solveig haunted him, but for some reason, this night he was alone.
It is said that the locals of Miklabær heard someone coming to their windows knocking. But there was a sinister sound to it and they became afraid and didn’t want to check it out. It is said that the youngest son was sent to the door to greet his father. When he opened it though there was no one there.
When they woke up the next day they found his horse not far from the town, but the priest had vanished into thin air. They searched for him for many days, but not a single trace of him was found.
Miklabæjar-Solveig took him to her Grave
Soon the stories about Solveig and that she had something to do with his disappearance started to form. They thought that she had come out from her grave and dragged him with her and that his body was now in her coffin.
Þorsteinn was not satisfied with leaving what happened as a mystery and made a resolution to continue to look for his master.
Þorsteinn shared a room with Guðlaug, the one who had shared a bed with Solveig before she took her own life. Guðlaug was a clairvoyant and kept seeing the ghost of her former colleague.
As an experiment, Þorsteinn put the priest’s clothes under his pillow and went to sleep. Guðlaug saw Solveig come into the room and towards them. Solveig reaches out her hand towards Þorsteinn’s throat. Afraid of what Solveig is doing, she wakes Þorsteinn and sees that Solveig has left a cut along his throat.
In his sleep, Þorsteinn dreamt that he met Solveig were she told him that he would never find out what happened to his master and then motioned as if once again trying to cut her throat which she still blamed them for. When he woke up, Þorsteinn decided to end his quest and would let it all remain a mystery.
The Truth About the Missing Priest
What really happened to the priest? The truth is up for debate now as there are many conflicting versions. For the longest time the villagers were left without a clue to where he had gone to and what happened to him, except from the rumors about Miklabæjar-Solveig.
One letter that is found about this is from Ragnheiður Þórarinsdóttir that was written in 1789. She was the wife of the assistant bailiff, Jón Skúlason. In her letter she stated that they actually did find his body in the Gegni stream that ran below the village. This is also written up in Vatnsfjarðarannál the youngest.
So why all the mystery surrounding his death? It seems that his burial was kept a secret from most of them. Everything indicated that he had passed away, and by his own hand, something that would make his property go to the king and that he would be refused a cemetery burial. Therefore his death and burial was kept a secret, although the talk about the ghost of Solveig had something to do with it wouldn’t let go and perhaps even fuel to cover up the truth.
The Legend about Miklabæjar-Solveig Continues
Decades later most believed that his body was never found and was most likely in Solveig’s grave. Ghost stories about her rising from her grave with blood dripping from her throat were still told.
From the Grave: In the grave they dug up they found these jewelry, that could possible have been hers.//Source: From bygdasafn skagafjordur.
A story told about Hannes Bjarnason met Miklabæjar-Solveig in Djúpadal where she haunted the hill and stopped him from getting up to the town until someone came and helped him. Going into the 19th century though, the legend about Miklabæjar-Solveig died down until 1910.
In 1910 they expanded the cemetery and suddenly Solveig’s grave was inside of it. They dug up one of the graves in 1914 and found that the coffin was buried towards the south, the opposite of the customs and people believed that this was her coffin. When they moved the coffin it was destroyed and the bones buried next to the burial site. There was nothing unusual when they reburied her.
Miklabæjar-Solveig was laid to rest like this until 1937 when she once again was exhumed and buried inside of the Glaumbær cemetery and not a whole lot has been heard from her ghost since then. Perhaps she finally was able to rest in peace?
The supposed haunted Highgate Cemetery in London left to decay suddenly became the hotspot for paranormal and occult phenomenon in the 1970s, when reports about the Highgate Vampire became a sensation and the hunt for it began.
Settled in the heart of North London lies a place that’s shrouded in mystery and intrigue – Highgate Cemetery. With its overgrown pathways, eerie Victorian tombs, and gothic architecture, it’s no wonder this place has developed a reputation for being one of the most haunted cemeteries in the world and was certainly one of the most spookiest places in the 60s and 70s.
From tales of ghostly apparitions to reports of unexplained phenomena, the dark secrets of Highgate Cemetery have captivated the imaginations of many over the years. But what is it about this place that has people so fascinated?
The Dark History of Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery was opened in 1839 in Camden and quickly became the resting place of choice for wealthy Victorians and has today over 170 000 people buried there. The cemetery was designed by architect Stephen Geary and was intended to be a place where the rich and famous could be buried in style. However, as the years went by, the cemetery fell into disrepair and began to attract a less desirable clientele.
Highgate Cemetery: The Cemetery was really made to make a more peaceful place to rest compared to the crowded churchyard graveyards. Today, it can seem like we have come full circle.
By the turn of the 20th century, Highgate Cemetery had become a shadow of its former self, with many of its tombs and monuments falling into a state of disrepair.
Famous Graves and their Mysterious Stories
Highgate Cemetery is home to many famous graves, each with its own fascinating story. One of the most famous graves in the cemetery is that of Karl Marx, the father of communism. Marx’s grave is a place of pilgrimage for many socialists and communists, who come to pay their respects to one of the most influential political thinkers of the modern era.
Another famous grave in the cemetery is that of Douglas Adams, the author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Adams’ grave is a popular destination for fans of his work, who often leave tributes and memorials at the site.
Pathways: Green pathways with tombs on each side fills the Highgate Cemetery in London.//Source: Panyd at English Wikipedia
But perhaps the most mysterious grave in Highgate Cemetery is that of Elizabeth Siddal. Siddal was a model and artist who was married to the pre-Raphaelite painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti. After her death, Rossetti buried a manuscript of his poems in her coffin. The manuscript was later exhumed, and the poems were published, but were not a commercial success. Her husband was haunted by his action for the rest of his days.
The Ghosts of Highgate Cemetery
There have been tales about the paranormal surrounding the cemetery for decades. After WW2 the cemetery fell into disarray and had little to no maintenance for a long time. In 1960 and 70s, it was so overgrown and left to decay that it was a perfect setting for horror movies like Taste the Blood of Dracula from 1970 and Tales from the Crypt in 1972.
There were reports of locals from 1965 about seeing ghosts around the premises. There were especially two different figures that had been seen. One was that of an older woman wearing all white that was haunting the graves, looking after the graves of her murdered children. Another thing that was talked about was the skeleton that was standing guard by the main gate.
There were also those that told that occult and even satanic rituals were held in the cemetery, people rising from the graves and other strange phenomena that attracted the attention of seekers of the strange and the paranormal.
The Grey Figures Haunting the Cemetery
Over the years, there have been countless reports of strange sightings and unexplained phenomena at Highgate Cemetery in addition to the strange case of the Highgate Vampire. Many visitors to the cemetery have reported feeling a sense of unease or being watched, while others have claimed to have seen ghostly apparitions moving among the graves.
Seekers of the Paranormal: David Farrant in Highgate Cemetery caught the attention of the media when he claimed something strange was lurking in the cemetery. Was it a ghost? Was it a vampire?
In 1970 there was a man that wrote to the paper about seeing strange figures at the cemetery. On 24th of December he had passed the cemetery and seen what he described as a “gray figure” and asked if people had seen something similar.
Read More: Check out all of the ghost stories from haunted cemeteries around the world.
The man was David Farrant, an investigator for the British Occult Society and in his article headlined: “Why do foxes die?” he claimed that the foxes that had been found dead in the cemetery with their throats slit had been killed by the Vampire.
Vampire Hunter: Sean Manchester in an interview. He claimed that the supernatural thing in Highgate was a King of Vampires.
People replied and told about many different figures that they had seen that they thought had to be of a supernatural origin. There was one tall man in a hat, a ghost of a cyclist as well as a woman wearing all white that was glaring at them through the bars. Another figure had been seen wading through a pond.
There was then a man named Sean Manchester that claimed that the gray figures they had seen was that of a vampire practicing black magic and even made a claim that this phenomena they were now witnessing was the King of Vampires from Wallachia, the home of Dracula before having being buried in the cemetery but awakened by satanists.
Manchester was a bishop of the Old Catholic Church, not related to the Vatican, and a self-proclaimed exorcist as well as a vampire hunter. Soon the two men were on a mission to be the first to stop and capture the vampire and restore the peace of the holy ground of the cemetery.
The Highgate Vampire Frenzie
The legend of the Highgate Vampire quickly spread, and soon the cemetery was attracting visitors from all over the world who were keen to catch a glimpse of the legendary creature.
Storming: Vampire hunters jumping over fences and gates of Highgate for vampire hunts.
Farrand and Manchester both claimed they were the one to get rid of the figure and Manchester said he was going to hold an exorcism in the cemetery the 13th of March in 1970 and they were filmed and interviewed about it.
After they were shown on TV a mob of people that wanted to see for themselves flooded the cemetery. The police tried to control the masses by locking the gates, but they got over the gates and walls in the chaos. They were armed with stakes and roamed the cemetery to find the vampire and opened graves, beheaded and staked the corpses.
Despite the fact that the vampire was never actually seen, the legend had a profound effect on the cemetery. Over the years, Highgate Cemetery has become synonymous with the supernatural, and many people believe that the cemetery is haunted by the ghosts of those who were buried there.
The Finding of the Staked Body
Months later the case was still widely discussed. On August 1st, a woman’s body was found headless and burnt close to the catacomb by two school girls. It was the body of a woman that had died a 100 years ago, been dragged from her coffin and staked through the heart before being left on the pathway. The police suspected she had been used in some sort of black magic ritual.
When the police were searching the next couple of days, they found Farrant wandering around in the churchyard next to the cemetery with a crucifix and a wooden stake on the 17th of August.
He had gathered his Society to do an exorcism by holding a seance. He tried to run for the exit when the police arrived, but was caught and arrested, but when the case came to court it was dismissed.
From BBC 24 Hours in Oct 1970 after Ferrant was aquitted.
It was not the last time Manchester visited Highgate Cemetery either. According to him his psychic helper guided him to a family vault where they broke open the door. He claims he lifted the lid of one of the coffins that he thought didn’t belong in the vault and had mysteriously been moved there from another catacomb.
Right before he was about to stake the body in the coffin, another one of his helpers stopped him. He reluctantly listened and left garlic and incense in the vault before they exited out from the vault.
After the Media Circus Died Down
Both Farrant and Manchester kept the legends about the strange satanic things going on at Highgate Cemetery, long after the other moved on.
Farrant was arrested and jailed in 1974 for vandalism and desecration of the graves and the dead at the cemetery. He kept insisting that it was the work of Satanist’s and not him. He was also involved in politics and ran as the sole candidate for the Wicca Workers Party. His cases were for free nudity and sex as well as establishing state brothels. He was less keen on communism which he wanted to ban as well as leaving the EU Common Market.
Their feud about what happened at Highgate Cemetery until Farrant died in 2019. They even challenged each other to a “Magician’s Duel” that was supposed to take place on Parliament Hill on Friday 13th in 1973, although that never happened.
There were rumors that the two were going to sacrifice a cat in front of naked virgins. When a man’s cat never returned home one day after this, Farrant was persecuted by the RSPCA and the media as they thought he was behind the disappearance of the man’s beloved pet.
Later he did sue News of the World for him being portrayed as a cat killer. And for the RSPCA inspectors, he sent them voodoo dolls with pins stuck in their heads, as well as two of the police officers that were involved in the arrest in 1974.
Staking the Vampire of Highgate Cemetery
Manchester on his end continued to write blog posts about Farrant, illustrating paintings of him looking like a demon and said he had a narcissistic personality disorder.
On his quest to rid London of what he called the King of Vampires, he claimed to have tracked it down to a house in Crouch End. There he had staked the vampire and burnt the body, finally ridding them of the vampire tormenting Camden Town.
Dracula A.D 1972 were inspired by the bizarre events:
Trailer for the movie Dracula AD 1972 that were supposedly inspired by the events that happened at Highgate around that time.
Behind the Hunt for Media Attention
What really happened in Highgate Cemetery is up for speculation. How much occult rituals and pagan sex parties with the devil really did happened or was blown up in the media’s satanic panic headlines is uncertain.
Today we don’t really hear much about vampires or ghosts from the cemetery other than hardcore paranormal investigators or curious tourists that wants to have a look at what it’s all about. Because who really knows, it is certainly not the first, nor the last cemetery were a vampire is rumoured to roam.
In a cute medieval town in Germany, there is a dark and haunted cemetery. The cemetery in Bernkastel-Kues is said to be haunted by a woman in white. And this particular woman in white is also said to be deadly dangerous.
The city of Bernkastel-Kues is a quaint little town in the Moselle valley known for its sweet Riesling wine, a state recognized health resort and a medieval marketplace. But just outside the city, where the graves and the dead reside, a Woman in White is said to haunt the place.
There are more stories about haunted cemeteries to dive into in the Moonmausoleum. Read them here: Haunted Cemeteries
The Lady In White
At Bernkastel-Kues Cemetery there are several stories floating around. The biggest one is of the White Lady og Bernkastel-Kues, a Lady in White that is often told about in German ghost stories.
The woman in white of this cemetery is said to be wearing a long flowy white dress as she is floating from one grave to another. Many reports tell about her crying.
The Haunted Hunter
One story involving the Lady in White was when a hunter encountered her, possibly at Bernkastel-Kues Cemetery. He was terrified of seeing her and fell ill. The very next day he was taken to Koblenz, which was a military hospital.
When he was put into the hospital he had swollen legs and a high fever, but he didn’t make any sense to the people around him. He kept on rambling about a woman in white that had attacked him. He died after his injuries, and no one ever found out what really happened there.
The mysterious grounds of Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris is the final resting place for many celebrities and if we are to believe the rumors, ghosts! Walk among the strange haunted graves of Jim Morrison and Marcel Proust as well as graves may or may not belonging to a vampire.
Have you heard about the mysterious tales of hauntings at Père Lachaise Cemetery? Located in Paris in France, this historic cemetery has been a popular tourist attraction for centuries and is the largest one in the city.
Famous people like Jim Morrison and Marcel Proust are buried there and if we are to believe the legends, there is a ghostly tale or two that have become part of its history.
The Père Lachaise Cemetery was established in 1804 by the French Emperor Napoleon as the first cemetery of its kind. Throughout the centuries, it has grown to become a vast necropolis that covers more than 110 acres of land.
Here, you’ll find graves and monuments of notable public figures such as Oscar Wilde and Édith Piaf — among many others. The history of this site certainly adds to its mysterious allure, and is part of what draws tourists from around the world to experience it first-hand.
Read also: More ghost stories from haunted cemeteries from all around the world: Here
The holy cemetery was also the location of a battle and the fallen soldiers are said to still linger.
Ghosts of the Père Lachaise Cemetery
There is not only one ghost that are talked about at the Père Lachaise Cemetery. Tourists have reported being chased away or startled by mysterious figures among the graves and mausoleums — like the former prime minister of France, Adolphe Thiers, who doesn’t seem to get any rest around his tomb. People working in the cemetery have also ghost stories to tell about multiple of the souls resting here.
There are also peculiar tales behind some of the graves you can find in Père Lachaise Cemetery, like the Polish composer Chopin who was buried without a heart because he was scared he would end up being buried alive.
The Cemetery as a Battle and Execution Ground
Although the idea of a cemetery is that it is supposed to be a place of eternal rest, living life often comes in conflict with it.
Within Père Lachaise Cemetery you will find the Communards’ Wall or Mur des Fédérés. This is the site of a bloody murder as 147 of the Communards were executed by the French army in what would be called The Bloody Week.
A place for execution: Once a group of rebel soldiers were lined up and shot to death inside the cemetery. The wall they used for the executions of the revolutionaries are now called the Communard’ ‘Wall.
The semaine sanglante or the Bloody Week was a weeklong battle in Paris from 21 to 28 May 1871, when the French Army recaptured the city from the Paris Commune. The Paris Commune was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris from 18 March to 28 May 1871.
One of the last remaining strong points of the National Guard was the cemetery of Père-Lachaise that was defended by about 200 men. In the army used cannon to demolish the gates and stormed the cemetery. There was a bloody and savage fight around the tombs until nightfall, when the last Communards were taken prisoner.
The prisoners were taken to the wall of the cemetery and shot and then buried with them in a common grave. This group include one woman, the only recorded execution of a woman by the army during the Bloody Week. The wall is now called the Communards’ Wall, and is the site of annual commemorations of the Commune.
This was the final battle of the Paris Commune and it is believed that in that one week between 10 and 15 thousand people died.
The Ghost of Jim Morrison by his Protected Grave
One of the more famous ghosts said to haunt the cemetery is Jim Morrison. He was the lead singer of the Doors until his death in 1971 when he was only 27 years old. Still today the exact cause of his death is unclear, however, many speculate that it was drug-related.
He had moved to Paris not long before his death to focus on his poetry writing after making hits like Light My Fire, Riders on the Storm and People are Strange.
His grave is covered in graffiti in Père Lachaise Cemetery as he is still a legend to many and the bust was even stolen in 1988, and ever since, a security guard protecting the grave. But during the night, people claim to have seen his ghost wander around the cemetery.
The Ghost of the Writer Marcel Proust Looking for his Lover
The French novelist remains a legend in literature, and so many students struggle through his heavy books before finding solace in his genius writings when they finally understand its meaning. Many reading fans leave chestnuts in his honor at his grave today.
Perhaps fine way to have the afterlife, surrounded by fans still reading his works. But according to legend, this is one of the graves that are alledgedly haunted and people claim to have seen his ghosts wandering the cemetery today.
Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust: Marcel Proust (10 July 1871 – 18 November 1922) was a French novelist who wrote the monumental novel In Search of Lost Time (À la recherche du temps perdu).
Apparently, he is still distraught that no one listened to his dying wish. Proust spent the last three years of his life mostly confined to his bedroom of his apartment 44 rue Hamelin in Chaillot, sleeping during the day and working at night to complete his novel. He died of pneumonia and a pulmonary abscess in 1922.
Alive he had a final wish of being buried next to his lover, composer Reynaldo Hahn.
However, he was a homosexual in a time when same sex love wasn’t considered true love, so when he died at 51 of pneumonia his wish wasn’t granted and he was buried alone.
It is said he rises from his grave in Père Lachaise Cemetery every night to search for his lover who he dearly wanted to be buried next to.
The Spiritualist Allan Kardec Granting Wishes from Beyond his Grave
A peculiar grave in Père Lachaise Cemetery is that of Allan Kardec, born Hippolyte Rivail from Lyon. He is seen as the founder of spiritism that took the world by storm in the 1800s and a medium with wealthy and famous clients like Victor Hugo and Sir Conan Doyle.
On his monument it is written Naitre, mourir, renaitre encore et progresser sans cesse, telle est la loi . This means To be born, to die, to be reborn again and keep progressing, that is the law.
This is not exactly a ghost story per se, but there is definitive something mysterious stuff going on with it. According to the legends, Allan Kardec said that after his death you should put your hand on the neck of his bust on his grave and make a wish. If the wish was granted, you should come back with flowers.
There are according to rumors, almost always fresh flowers by his grave.
A Years Stay at Elisabeth Stroganovas’ Mausoleum
Baronne Elisabeth Alexandrovna Stroganoff: painted by Robert Lefèvre.
The strangest grave though found at Père Lachaise Cemetery must be that of Baroness Elizaveta Alexandrovna Demidova (Елизавета Александровна Строганова) a wealthy Russian aristocrat from the Stroganov family who resided in Paris in her final years. When Elisabeth Stroganova died at 40 in 1818 she gave a strange clause in her will with a huge cash prize.
Anyone who dared to spend a full year, 365 days and 366 nights inside of Elisabeth Stroganova’s mausoleum would inherit a big chunk of her inheritance. Why this was a clause is unclear. Her sense of humor? Maybe a fear of being alone? Something else?
There were at least 3 people who tried to the insane clause to try to get their hands on her inheritance. The brave, or desperate depending on how you look at it, had food served to them through a bucket, and on their own they were to stay there for a full year.
To this day there is still no one who managed to endure the challenge. People went crazy and they started seeing and hearing things. Perhaps worst of all was the retelling of how they claimed to feel the very lifeforce were sucked out of them. Could this be the ghost of Elisabeth Stroganova still being there, not wanting to be alone for eternity?
The White Lady or Vampire of Père Lachaise Cemetery
The clause in the will and challenging people to stay inside her mausoleum is strange in and of itself, but the rumors surrounding this grave doesn’t stop there. One of the so-called Lady in White ghosts that roams among the dark graves of the Père Lachaise Cemetery is most often attributed to Elisabeth Stroganova. But there are also rumors of her being something much more sinister.
Some also claim she is a vampire because of the date of her death with the number 8 being the number linked to vampires as well as wolfs head ornaments on her mausoleum, also symbolizing vampirism. Perhaps that is stretching for many, but the reasoning of keeping alive people in her mausoleum and their feeling of their lifeforce being sucked out of them has also contributed to rumours of her being a vampire.
An online magazine about the paranormal, haunted and macabre. We collect the ghost stories from all around the world as well as review horror and gothic media.
