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The Aufhocker: The Heavy Vampiric Spirit of Germany

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Feeling like a sudden and invisible burden, the life force of wary travellers were long subjected to the terror of the Aufhocker. A creature between the vampire, werewolf and goblin spirits, the legend of the empty road were long haunted by something heavy. 

Across the old forests of central Europe, travelers once spoke of a terror that stalked lonely paths after dusk. In German folklore this entity is known as the aufhocker, a creature of fear and fatigue. 

Read More: Check out all ghost stories from Germany

The name aufhocker comes from German words meaning “to squat upon” or “to climb upon.” It is sometimes known as a Huckauf as well. Although the term appears in various regional traditions, the aufhocker’s most chilling aspect is its similarity to vampire lore. This is not the vampire that drinks blood from the neck. It is a predator that feeds on life force through relentless pursuit and physical contact.

A Footstep Followed

In folktales, the creature often appears at night along forest paths, river crossings, and isolated roads. A lone traveler walking home late in the dark might see nothing until a presence is suddenly at their shoulder. The aufhocker does not simply appear in view. It arrives with footsteps that echo the traveler’s own steps, as though it steps into the world by attaching itself to a living person.

Once it has latched on, it stays on the victim’s back. Physical weight, relentless pressure, increasing fear. Some descriptions say the creature physically climbs upon the victim and refuses to move, resting its full weight on the traveler. Others depict it as invisible yet oppressive, like someone riding piggyback only the victim can feel.

The Statue in Hildesheim, Lower Saxony: “Junge, lat die Appels stahn,/ süs packet deck dei Huckup an / Dei Huckup is en starken Wicht,/ hölt mit dei Stehldeifs bös Gericht.” (Boy, stop stealing apples,/ otherwise the thief will catch you,/ the thief is a strong imp,/ who will hold a wicked court against a thief like you.)

The result is the same. The victim becomes exhausted, panicked, and unable to escape. In some stories the victim falls or collapses from fatigue. In others, the pressure fractures resolve and spirit, leaving the person in a state of lasting terror or sickness. The person perched on the wanderer remains seated until the wanderer is released by the oncoming light, a prayer, or the ringing of bells.

The Werewolf Link

But what exactly is the Aufhocker, what does it look like? Some claim it is more like a shapeshifting goblin, a werewolf type of creature. It is also sometimes seen as a gigantic demonic dog. These characteristics are similar to that of the Black Dog in British folklore and the Kludde in Belgian tradition. Sometimes, the creatures are also said to be a black horse, luring people on their backs before throwing them in a swamp or water. 

Prevalent in mid-western Germany, the Rhineland, and adjacent Dutch and Flemish regions, the Aufhocker legend reflects localized beliefs tied to historical werewolf trials from the 16th century, where such back-riding behaviors may have substituted earlier spirit-riding traditions. 

In western Germany, the Aufhocker merges with the werewolf to form the Stüpp, a dangerous monster that leaps at people and has them carry it around until the victim dies of exhaustion. So, could it be more of a werewolf than a vampire adjecent legend then? 

The Vampiric Creature

Other variations of the legend would claim it is much closer to our modern understanding of the vampire. The parallels with vampire tradition become clear when the aufhocker is viewed as a hunter of life rather than a consumer of blood. Where the classical vampire drains the physical body, the aufhocker drains strength, breath, and will. It attaches itself as parasitic shadow. It thrives in darkness rather than daylight. 

Descriptions vary by region, but the theme remains constant. Some variations describe the creature as a shapeshifter or phantom form, while others combine it with local vampire traditions where the undead go out at night to feed and that it appears to travelers as a corpse they approach to examine. When the lonesome traveller is closes enough, it latches onto its prey. 

Other Vampiric Creature from German Folklore:In German folklore, a Nachzehrer, literally a creature that consumes from the afterlife in German, is a type of Wiedergänger (revenant), which was believed to be able to drag the living after it into death, either through malice or through the desire to be closer to its loved ones through various means. A nachzehrer was thought to be able to drain their victim’s life-force remotely. This could involve devouring their own funeral shrouds and clothing – thought to be a very common sign of a nachzehrer. Many would claim that the Aufhocker is some sort of Wiederganger.

Scholars interpret the Aufhocker as a regional variant of broader European back-riding spirits such as the more vampiric Mare for instanve. Although the werewolf stories really took off in the 16th century, there have been tales about the heavy weight of something dragging you down like an Aufhocker since the twelfth century. 

And in some version it is just that, a spirit, bodiless and invisible to the naked eye of the wary traveller. 

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References:

Aufhocker – Wikipedia

http://centre-for-english-traditional-heritage.org/TraditionToday4/TT4_SmithJ_Dobbies.pdf

Der Aufhocker – Arbeitskreis für Vergleichende Mythologie e. V.

Nachzehrer – Wikipedia

Wiedergänger – Wikipedia

Aufhocker – Wikipedia 

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The Murderous Werewolf of Allariz

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Spain’s first recorded serial killer was caught killing people up in the Galician mountains. His crimes were horrible in itself, but his defense was even more gruesome. According to him he was cursed to be a werewolf without his human will, and was remembered as The Werewolf of Allariz.

For centuries, the mythical creature of the werewolf has been the subject of countless tales, striking fear into the hearts of villagers and captivating the imaginations of storytellers alike. But how much of this terrifying legend is rooted in truth? 

Read more: Check out all of our ghost stories from Spain

From the dark forests of Galicia, Spain, to the eerie moonlit nights where the beast is said to roam, this hair-raising journey will leave you questioning what lies beyond our realm of understanding and has since been known as The Werewolf of Allariz. 

The Werewolf of Allariz Legend

At the cusp of the 19th century, Allariz, a small town in Orense, experienced a series of horrible crimes. The Galician forest seemed especially dark when 13 people disappeared and were found brutally murdered inside of it.

They found the man that confessed to the murders, but what was especially strange about this was his reasoning for the murderers. 

Manuel Blanco Romasanta, the murderer, told a story that no one really wanted to believe. He said when he was a teenager when someone put a curse on his family and he was turned into a werewolf every full moon. During these full moon turns, he lost all human consciousness and because of the beast in him, he killed and devoured the flesh of his victims.

Werewolves: There have been told stories about werewolves since ancient times. Some have even made it into trial. From The Book of Werewolves: Being an Account of a Terrible Superstition. — London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1865.

Romasanta is Spain’s first documented serial killer. His case was a sensation, not only because of the brutality of his crimes but also because of the werewolf claims. The legend of the Werewolf of Allariz had come to life, blurring the lines between myth and reality. Romasanta’s trial shed light on the dark underbelly of human nature and the fascination with the supernatural.

Romasanta Unusual Background

Romasanta, also known as the Tallow Man was born in 1809 in Regueiro in Ourense Province in Spain to a rather wealthy family that provided their children with education. He was one of five children in the family and at first he was thought to have been female. That is why he spent his first sex years being raised as a girl with the name Manuela. When he was six there was a doctor that rearranged his sex to male. 

So we might have a case of an intersex person, as the birth certificate said girl, but this was the 1800s, and there was not a science or wording that can confirm it as we know of it today. We do know he lived most of his life as a male though, working as a tailor and married to a woman that passed away. There is no indication of him being involved in her death. 

After her death, he left his job and started to travel, mainly to Portugal, and soon started to work as a guide through the mountain passes and deep woodlands among other things. 

In the 1840s at the time of a great famine and mass hysteria where the world was seen as a dangerous place, a man named Antonio Gomes showed up in a small village called Rebordechao. He helped with the harvest, worked as a cook, made yarn and worked as a guide to follow people safely over the thesaurus mountains. 

He was a short man with feminine features and became very friendly with the women in the town. But then strange things started to happen the next few years as women and children that had hired this man as their guide and trusted him, started to disappear. 

In reality, Antoni Gomez was actually Blanco Romasanta that lived under a disguise and was on the run for killing a man that tried to collect a depth. 

Although Romasanta kept delivering letters to the families to the disappeared, something was strange. Especially when he started selling the clothes of the disappeared in town. And a rumor started about him selling soap that was made from human fat, hence the nickname, The Tallow Man. 

He was brought to trial in 1852 and taken to Allariz where he had the strangest defense. At the time he was arrested he was carrying a lunar calendar.  

The Trial of Manuel Blanco Romasanta

The trial of Manuel Blanco Romasanta captivated the nation and brought the Werewolf of Allariz into the spotlight. As the evidence against him mounted, Romasanta’s story of being cursed by a witch and transformed into a werewolf became more and more difficult to believe.

The Werewolf of Allariz confessed to 13 murders and had this to say about his time as a werewolf:“The first time I transformed, was in the mountains of Couso. I came across two ferocious-looking wolves. I suddenly fell to the ground and began to feel convulsions, I rolled over three times, and a few seconds later I was a wolf. I was out marauding with the other two for five days, until I returned to my own body, the one you see before you today, Your Honour. The other two wolves came with me, who I thought were also wolves, changed into human form. They were from Valencia. One was called Antonio and the other Don Genaro. They too were cursed… we attacked and ate a number of people because we were hungry.” — Manuel Blanco Romasanta

The court asked The Werewolf of Allariz to transform in court, but he said that the curse had been broken as it only lasted for 13 years.

The Werewolf of Allariz: Manuel Blanco Romasanta were tried tin 1852 after killing people in the Galican mountains. His defence was that he was in fact a werewolf.

Some experts suggested that Romasanta may have been suffering from a psychological disorder, such as clinical lycanthropy, which caused him to believe he was a werewolf. Others argued that he was simply a cold-blooded killer using the werewolf myth as a cover for his crimes.

The Werewolf of Allariz ended up being acquitted for four of the murders he had confessed to as forensic science indicated that it was actually wolf attacks and not the butchering by a human as the other nine. 

He escaped the death penalty as there were people that wanted to study him and observe his claim as a werewolf and clinical lycanthropy as a psychological illness and even the Queen of Spain intervened so that they could study him. He died in prison though under mysterious circumstances only months after arriving. Some say that it was an illness, some say he was shot by a guard that wanted to see him transform. 

The legend of the Werewolf of Allariz continues to captivate audiences to this day, serving as a reminder of our fascination with the supernatural and the unknown. Werewolves have long been a staple of folklore and mythology, appearing in stories from cultures around the world.

The Myth of the Galician Werewolf

But where did the murderer take all of the werewolf lore from? The concept of a shapeshifting human was not a foreign concept in Galician folklore at all, and there were many tales and certain rules for a werewolf. 

In Galician folklore, it is a belief that the seventh son of a family can become a werewolf, or lobishome. If the child is born normal, it will be born with the image of a cross inside of his mouth. If not, he will become a werewolf. 

Read More: Check out the stories about The History and Legends of the Haunted Abbaye De Mortemer or The Haunted Black Forest of Fairy Tales for more stories about werewolves.

There are different variations to the myth, but most of them claim that during a full moon, they can’t help themselves to transform and roll in mud before starting to attack people.Every Friday the werewolf will shed his clothes and run off, visiting seven villages and taking another skin from that village.
 The Enduring Fascination with Werewolves

The Lobishomen: The Galician mythology have told stories about shape shifting people long before the Werewolf of Allariz were caught.

But what is it about these creatures that continues to capture our imaginations? Perhaps it is the idea of transformation, of a human turning into a beast under the light of the full moon. Or maybe it is the duality of their nature, the struggle between the human and the animal within.

Whatever the reason, werewolves have become an enduring part of popular culture, appearing in books, movies, and television shows. From the classic horror films of the early 20th century to the modern-day werewolf romances, these creatures continue to fascinate and terrify us.

So the next time you find yourself walking through a dark forest on a moonlit night, remember the legend of the Werewolf of Allariz and the power that stories have to both terrify and captivate. And who knows, you may just catch a glimpse of something lurking in the shadows, a creature caught between the worlds of man and beast.

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References:

Unusual Historicals: Myth & Folklore: Lobisome, the Galician Werewolf
Lycanthropy, were-wolves, and “lobo da xente” (full post)
Manuel Blanco Romasanta | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers
Manuel Blanco Romasanta – Wikipedia
Haunted Spain, stories for an All Hallows Eve – CaramelTrail

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Manchac Swamp and the Haunted Louisiana’s Mysterious Waters

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In the haunted swamps of Louisiana, Manchac Swamp is said to be the home of the ghost of a voodoo priestess that once destroyed her town with her curses. It is also said that you can hear the howling cries of the Rougarou werewolf at night among the trees.

Beyond the vibrant streets and enchanting mystique of New Orleans lies a realm of shadow and intrigue—the Manchac Swamp and is also known as Ghost Swamp. Less than an hour from the bustling heart of the city, this labyrinthine wetland has become the canvas for chilling tales of curses, ghostly apparitions, and Cajun legends all while the alligator’s eyes light up red in the night. 

Read More: Check of all stories from Haunted Forests

As the Spanish moss hangs low and the murky waters ripple with secrets by the bald cypresses, the haunting aura of Manchac Swamp beckons those brave enough to delve into its enigmatic depths.

The Voodoo Princess and her Curses

One of the most haunting legends surrounding Manchac Swamp revolves around the voodoo princess Julia Brown, also called Julie White or Black by some. Her real name though seems to have been Julia Bernard and seems to have been born in Louisiana in 1845, and she certainly had an eerie end. 

As the tale goes, this supposed  once dwelled within the swamp’s shadows, wielding mystical powers to cast curses upon those who crossed her. 

She was said to have lived in the small town of Frenier in the midst of the swamp in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The town on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain grew out from German immigrants that farmed mostly. 

It was said that the little village had no doctors, and the locals would turn to her for help and she was the local traiteuse, or a faith healer. But in her later years she started to change and sat on her porch in her rocking chair as she played her guitar and sang:

When I die,
I take the whole town with me.
When I die,
I take the whole town.
— Julia Brown 

Why she changed to this ominous person is unknown. Were the villagers starting to take her for granted? Didn’t they treat her as well as she should have? Is this when they changed and called her a voodoo priestess and not a healer? She continued to foretell about the coming misfortunes of them all, until the greatest misfortune hit them all. 

Eventually she did and most of the village gathered for her funeral on September 29 in 1915. Around 4 there was a hurricane that came and nearly destroyed the town around Manchac Swamp. After the 13 feet hurricane howling at 125 miles per hour passed, it was estimated that it killed over 50 in Frenier alone and 275 people in Louisiana.

Today, it is said that Julie White’s ghost lingers among the cypress trees, forever haunting the green and murky Manchac Swamp that was once her domain. But one can wonder if it really was a curse she put on the village, or if it was meant to be warning of oncoming danger. Some even claim to hear the screams of those that died in the swamp during the hurricane.

Voodoo: also known as Vodou, is a spiritual and cultural practice that originated in West Africa and evolved in the Caribbean, particularly in Haiti. Combining elements of African folk religions with Catholicism, Voodoo is a belief system that encompasses a diverse array of rituals, ceremonies, and traditions. Contrary to popular misconceptions, Voodoo is not inherently associated with malevolent practices, as depicted in popular culture. Instead, it serves as a source of cultural identity, community, and spiritual expression for those who practice it.

The official writings doesn’t really mention her work as a voodoo priestess, but there are writings about one Julia Brown working in New Orleans in the 1860s before moving to Frenier according to a Mental Floss Article. The New Orleans Times-Picayune wrote this on October 2nd in 1915:

“Many pranks were played by wind and tide. Negroes had gathered for miles around to attend the funeral of ‘Aunt’ Julia Brown, an old negress who was well known in that section, and was a big property owner. The funeral was scheduled … and ‘Aunt’ Julia had been placed in her casket and the casket in turn had been placed in the customary wooden box and sealed. At 4 o’clock, however, the storm had become so violent that the negroes left the house in a stampede, abandoning the corpse. The corpse was found Thursday and so was the wooden box, but the casket never has been found.”

The Rougarou’s Howl in Manchac Swamp

In addition to the voodoo princess’s spectral presence, Manchac Swamp is also said to be home to the Rougarou, a creature akin to the Cajun werewolf. It comes from French communities in America and is said to be connected to the French loup-garou werewolf.

Tales of this mythical being prowling the Manchac Swamp add an extra layer of supernatural intrigue to the already haunted landscape. The Rougarou’s howls are said to pierce the stillness of the night, echoing through the ancient trees and instilling fear in those who dare to venture into the darkness.

It is said to be a creature with a human body and the head of a wolf or dog. Common legends say that the Rougarou is cursed for 101 days, often by a witch, and after this the curse is given to another person that the Rougarou draws blood from. 

Mostly it is used as a cautionary tale toward Cajun children, but like the French counterpart, the Rougarous has also said to haunt down Catholics that don’t follow Lent rules of fasting for seven consecutive years. 

Dangers and Hauntings in the Swampy Shadows

As if curses and Cajun legends weren’t enough, the very real presence of alligators in the swamp waters adds a tangible element of danger to the mystique of Manchac Swamp. The slithering reptiles, eyes glinting in the moonlight, serve as a reminder that, in this haunted realm, nature itself can be as formidable as the supernatural.

Or perhaps the red eyes in the swampy waters at night is not a gator, but a blood sucking Rougarou, or a vindictive voodoo priestess? 

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References:

Frenier, Louisiana – Wikipedia 

The Legend (and Truth) of the Voodoo Priestess Who Haunts a Louisiana Swamp 

Haunting of Manchac Swamp in Louisiana | Into Horror History | J.A. Hernandez

Rougarou – Wikipedia  

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The History and Legends of the Haunted Abbaye De Mortemer

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Discover the secrets and legends of Abbaye De Mortemer, an infamous haunted abbey in rural France. Explore its haunting history from Dames Blanches, ghost monks, werewolves and a goblin cat guarding a treasure.

Hidden deep within the French countryside lies the Abbaye De Mortemer, an ancient structure with a chilling past. The former Cistercian Monastery in the Forest of Lyons is the home to eerie sightings and ghostly apparitions.

Origins of the Abbaye De Mortemer

Established in 1134, the Abbaye De Mortemer was an ancient abbey that was a gift to the Cistercians by Henry I of England. 

Read Also: There are many supposedly haunted abbeys and monasteries around the world. Check them out: Here

The name comes from the stagnant water of the lake that was dug out by the monks. It was called the Dead Pond which in French is Morte Mare. 

Abbaye De Mortemer Ruins: Most of the once grand abbay in France is now only ruins and is said to be haunted by more than one ghost. //Source//Wikimedia/Tango7174

Who owned the abbey depended on who owned the land from year to year. It was founded by the English king, but ended up under the French crown after the Hundred Year War ended in 1453. 

It held out despite it falling into disrepair until 1790 when it was dissolved under the French Revolution. Only 4 monks remained alive living in the abbey. They would end up remaining there, even in their afterlife.  

Dame Blanches of Mathilde I’Emperesse

The one thought to be haunting the place is the daughter of Abbaye De Mortemer founder, Mathilde I’Emperesse or Matilda of England.

Her father was King Henry I of England and she was one of those with a claim to the English throne in the civil war between England and Normandy between 1138 and 1153 which was known as The Anarchy. 

Why she is haunting this abbey is unclear as she died at an old age far away. She had close ties to this abbey as it was said she was a very spiritual woman and the order of the Cisterican monks because of the importance of the Virgin Mary, a saint of great importance to her. 

A picture supposedly depicting her ghost got well known in 1999, however French television has since debunked the image as lighting trickery. 

According to legend she walks by the ancient pools and mist is created on them. By local lore you do best to look away if you spot her. If she wears black gloves it means bad luck and misfortune. If she is wearing white, there is a happy event in the coming year. If you see her twice though you are condemned to death. 

The Helpful Ghost Monks

People have reported a number of sinister legends and stories about the Abbaye De Mortemer. One popular story involves sightings of the infamous Black Monks, which are said to appear on dark nights in the abbey’s ruins. 

This is believed to be the ghosts of four monks who were murdered during the French Revolution in 1789 when the churches and abbeys were robbed for their wealth to fund the revolution and the monks were hunted down and dragged to the old cellar were the last brothers of the orders were massacred. 

Other visitors have experienced ghostly apparitions, chills, strange voices, and other forms of supernatural activity. Both the Delarue family that were going to move into the former abbey reported about seeing the monks as well as an English paratrooper in the second world war. 

He said that he was spotted by the enemy and was running around in the forest to hide. A monk came forward and guided him to safety before disappearing. The people at The Resistant Cell the paratrooper found, knew it had to be a monk from the Abbey. 

The Goblin Cat Haunting the Treasure

The haunted abbey is also said to be the home to a certain Goblin cat you can meet in the ruins in the form of a black cat. 

According to the legend, the cat is guarding a certain treasure of the abbey said to be so grand it could restore the abbey to its former glory. 

The She-Werewolf

One of the most famous legends concerning the Abbaye de Mortemer is the story of a werewolf haunting its grounds. According to legend, a cursed woman transformed into a wolf every night and terrorized all who crossed her path. 

This was thought to be a female werewolf known as the Garache in French Folklore with yellow eyes. This is the only tale of a Garache in Normandy apparently, a weird thing perhaps as French Folklore is filled with legends of shape shifting werewolves. 

A man named Roger Saboureau was out poaching in the forest in 1884 when he encountered this werewolf and he shot it dead without hesitation. 

When the Garache died though it returned to its human form and he saw it was his own wife. 

The Demonic Pink Room

In 1863 the building, restored somewhat and made into a family home, was bought by a rich Parisian named M.Delarue. He moved into the place with his wife and two children, but they soon found that it wasn’t without its history. 

One of the most notorious stories revolves around Abbaye De Mortemer’s so-called “Pink Room.” The room is mentioned by some of the owners who experienced so much hauntings it even broke an engagement. 

A young girl who was the fiance of the son, Charles Delarue, the owner of the building and living there came to stay with them once. She was given the pink room as it was the only one available. She was found in the morning, terrified of all the paranormal activity that had happened during the night. She announced she would never live there, broke off the engagement and hurried back to Paris. 

M.Delarue’s daughter had been a nurse during the First World War and told her father she had never been afraid in the trenches and would not be afraid of the pink room either. She made it her own and lived in it, but said that she always felt observed, but not threatened in the same way the former fiance of the family had. 

The Exorcism of the Abbey

The Delarue family stayed in the former abbey for quite some time, but in 1921 they thought it was about time with an exorcism. Not the first one though, and they called once again upon Abbé Humbolt who had done the previous ones also. 

They ordered another exorcism of the Pink Room and the Abbey and it did become quiet for some time. But then it started again. How is it today?

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References

Mortemer Abbey – Wikipedia

Tales and legends – Mortemer Abbey 

The unquiet soul of Abbaye de Mortemer | History, ghosts and ruins

Empress Matilda – Wikipedia 

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The Haunted Black Forest of Fairy Tales

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The Black Forest in Germany is known for its haunted dark fairy tales from the brothers Grimm and the magical place has more than one legend about something magical and strange happening. But how haunted is really this place?

The Black Forest in Germany is not really a single forest, but a whole forested mountain range covering a large part of the country of dark fairy tales where around 60 % of the area is covered with some form of woodland. The Black Forest or Schwarzwald in German goes from southwest in Germany, down the Rhine Valley to the west, almost reaching the border to France and Switzerland, covering over 6000 km2. 

The place is mainly rural with a few large towns and many scattered little villagers around and has become a place where legends of the supernatural and fables are allowed to live between the brooding thick woodlands with miles and miles of a forestry trail. 

The Most Haunted Places in the World?

The place often pops up on lists of Most Haunted Places both in Germany as well as worldwide, but what exactly makes this entire place haunted as it is known as this dark and magical place for any outsiders? Calling the entire place haunted in the strictest sense doesn’t quite cover it all as the world enchanted does, with both the good and the bad. 

Read also: Check out all the haunted places around Germany: Here

The Black Forest with its ominous sounding name is said to house everything from wicked witches, hungry werewolf, beautiful nymphs and forest goblins between the dark trees. Many of the stories sound like they come from one of the Grimm brother’s fever nightmare, and a couple of the stories of the Grimm brothers actually take place in a place that looks a lot like the Schwarzwald. 

Stories like Hansel and Gretel losing their way in the forest and being captured by a witch, the menacing Pied Piper leading the children away from the urban town into the wild or the Little Red Riding Hood with the wolf knocking on the door. But do they actually take place here like the tourist guides would like you to believe? Have a bite of the Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, and finish your glühwein, because many of these legends is like a super dark fairy tale.  

Background of the Black Forest

Walking through the landscape of the Black Forest you will see the romantic part of Germany with stout timber farmhouses and remnants of Baroque fortification from the 17th century, especially on the mountain passes. The highest peak is the Feldberg at 1493 meters above sea level before drooping down with its deeply carved valleys and rivers like the Danube river starts and continues through Europe. 

In ancient times, The Black Forest was known as Abnoba Mons after a Celtic deity, Abnoba. She was worshiped in the Black Forest and the surrounding areas and couldn’t encapsulate the spirit of The Black Forest better. She was of course a forest and river goddess, showing just how much of an importance the thick woodlands with its wispy waterfalls and evergreen meadows had for the people living there.

Historically the people living in this forest area were known for forestry and the mining of ore deposits. Today however it is tourism that is the primary industry. 

It was the Romans that gave the mountain range the name The Black Forest because of the densely growth of the very dark green conifer trees. 

Because of its long history, it is easy to believe like The Black Forest area has been this unchanged and wild place forever without any disturbances. However that is not the case and the area has been through many changes and has been thoroughly cultivated by the human hand.

It used to be a mixed forest until the 19th century, when the Black Forest was almost completely deforested by too much forestry. It was replanted, this time, mostly with spruce as the only type of tree. Then in the 90s, a series of windstorms, among them Hurricane Lothar in 1999, swept over the Black Forest and destroyed much of the replanted forest. Large areas were left to nature and have since grown into a natural mixed forest again, showing how nature always finds a way. 

Myths and Legends of Schwarzwald

Deep and dark forest landscapes create mysteries and legends and Schwarzwald is no exception. Legend has it that the forest area is haunted by werewolves and witches and in some cases, the devil himself. 

Read more about the haunted forests around the world: Here

There are also stories about a headless horseman riding on a great white steed, a mythical motif we see in many instances in countless ghost stories and written horror like the famous Sleepy Hollow for example. 

We can also find dark fairy tales of an evil king who kidnaps women to take them to his magical underwater lair where he lives among the nymphs. 

The Black Forest is not short of stories that tell about the dangers of the wild and what will happen to those that step outside from the path. And none more of them than what we can find in the Grimm brothers collected stories. But did the brothers really find some of the stories among the dark pine cone trees?  

The Stories of The Brothers Grimm

This is a place where magic is everyday, the birthplace of Cuckoo Clocks ticking away on walls, fairy tale is real life and the people use tarot cards as playing cards. The Black Forest is also were most people connect the often bizarre and dark fairy tales of the Grimm brothers, and many of them can be traced back to the area.

Stories from the Black Forest: The Brother Grimm’s Fairy Tales definitely helped making the Black Forest a place of magic and wonder.

Brothers Grimm set many of their most scariest folk tales to the Black Forest as this was one of the places where they collected them throughout Germany. The brothers didn’t actually write the fairy tales themselves though. The stories themselves had been told orally for ages locally, they simply put them down to paper. 

Like Hansel and Gretel’s encounter with the witch were well suited as the place had a reputation for witches and witchcraft long before any of these tales were written down. Fairy Tales like Rapunzel and Sleeping Beauty are also said to have been set inside of the Black Forest. But is this true?

How accurate it is though is hard to say, as many of the stories are also said to be from northern part of Germany, especially around Hesse. Although the fairy tales doesn’t really have a super specific location attached to them, and many are reworks of tales that have been told all over the place, locating these fairy tales to this specific mountain range is difficult.

Although the marketing of the tourism in the Black Forest will tell you another story, because many parts of the area really fits perfectly for the more darker tales.

If you are looking for a fairy tale which explicitly plays in the Black Forest is the more under the radar fairy tale called “Heart of Stone” by Wilhelm Hauff.

The Modern Myth of Der Grossmann

There is a particular creature that shows up today on many listicles online about the Black Forest being one of Germany’s most haunted places. This is the story of Der Grossmann and it looks like it originated online together with the urban legend of Slenderman, not in the forest as a fairy tale to keep children out from the dark forest. 

Der Grossmann tells of a tall and ugly man, badly disfigured with bulging eyes and too many arms. He is associated with woodcuts carved in the 1700s by an unknown artist in Germany and has as of today a pretty extensive backstory. According to ‘local legend’ bad children were sent into the forest, and they had to confess their sins to der Grossman. It is said that the worst children never came out from the forest again. 

This particular story looks like it didn’t originate in the depth of the Black Forest because all information about it comes from articles discussing the historical aspects of the urban legend, the slender man. And in no place does the old legends from Germany mention a creature like this.  

Even though it isn’t necessarily an old folk tale, the story is a pretty good one.

Hauntingly Beautiful

Whether a modern ghost story from one of the small towns, or an ancient legend that over time turned into one of the darker fairy tales, the Black Forest holds the macabre and haunted together with the whimsical and magical. 

It has and probably will continue to draw people that wish to disappear in between the trees and off the beaten path that leads into the wild. 

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Abnoba – Wikipedia

Black Forest – Wikipedia

Werewolf Legends from Germany 

Werewolf Legends from Germany

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Top British Horror TV-Series

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British TV has given us countless of ghostly figures running down the grand stairwells of the manors and castles in long dresses and dark hallways. It has also given us some of the most funny parodies on the horror genre as well. This is a compilation of some of the more horroresque British TV-Series.

Dracula (2013)

One of the many adaptations of the Dracula legacy, was a one season series from 2013. With Jonathan Rhys Meyers (The Tudors, Vikings), the story starts with the classical premise of when Dracula travels to London, originally for revenge for a centuries old grudge of those who wronged him. However, the plans get complicated and conflicted when he meets the woman that looks like the reincarnation of his dead wife.

Tired of the same old vampire formula? Try find a vampire movie with a twist here:

5 Vampire Movies Twisting the Genre

Five movies about #vampires that made their own twist on the vampire lore and its meaning. This is a list of five vampire movie, telling all very different parts about the human experience and the life and desires we have. #horror #paranormal

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Penny Dreadful

This show from 2014 may be a joint production between Britain, USA and Ireland, but it is perhaps the most quintessential British of them all. Everything from the Victorian Gothic, to the stellar cast of brits carrying the show. In this show, the universe is drawn from the old horror stories sold for a penny in the Victorian era, combining them to a intertwining set of stories. In the midst of them is medium Vanessa Ives that battles the supernatural entities in London with the American gunslinger, Ethan Chandler and the scientist Victor Frankenstein. I confused about the different stories used in the Penny Dreadful series, have a look at this:

Read more about the background of the Penny Dreadful series here:

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Haunting of Bly Manor

The sort of sequel to “Haunting on Hill House”, is set in England this time. Based on the story, “The Turn of the Screw”, it follows an American nanny trying to escape her past as she is set to care for two orphans living at Bly Manor. Together with the chef, groundskeeper and housekeeper they have to unlock the mysteries of the house, both what happened to the former nanny, the children’s parents as well as an old curse and haunting in the house that won’t let go.

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Requiem

This part psychological horror as well as an supernatural thriller is set in a small Welsh village. A cello star’s mother suddenly takes her own life without a reason in London. Unable to grapple with her death, the daughter digs into her mother’s past and finds a link to a little girl that disappeared in the small village in the 90s. The daughter travels to Wales to find the truth and who she really is. But there is not only a dark past waiting for her there, but dark forces as well.

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Truth Seekers

Comedy Horror geniuses Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, Paul) is back with a new series. It centers around a part-time paranormal investigators with homemade equipment to track down ghosts and the supernatural to share it online to go viral. But the deeper they dig, the closer they get to a huge and apocalyptic conspiracy.

If Horror Comedy is your jam, check out:

5 Funny Zombie Movies

Yes, in these times, zombie movies are all the rage as well as pandemic movies. And they sort of belong together, don’t they? But we also need to laugh, so here are five funny zombie movies, to fill the zombie cravings of the times, but also that can make the trying days a bit more…

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The Living and the Dead

This BBC drama is like a marriage like Poldark and Turn of The Screw. Or if Howard’s End and Jane Eyre had a ghostly child. The premise is that of a young couple inherits a farm and wants to start a new life together on the countryside. But the farm they inherited turns out to be of a haunted kind. And their presence in the isolated place they live in triggers paranormal happenings that starts to put a strain on their marriage as well as their minds.

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Apparitions

Martin Shaw (The Chief) leads this drama series as a catholic priest. After an encounter he is drawn into the world of exorcism and a battle between good and evil.

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Being Human

This series originally aired on BBC back in 2008, but still holds up. It follows a werewolf, a vampire and a ghost that tries to live together as flatmates and get along as they keep getting mixed up in supernatural events. It was a hit when it aired until 2013, and even got itself an American remake.

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The Turn of the Screw (2009)

As a fairly faithful adaptation to its source material from Henry James, the mini series follows a naive and sexually repressed young governess played by Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey). She is haunted by the ghosts of previous occupants of a mansion. She keeps battling between what is and isn’t real as the readers of the story has done since its publication.

Read more about the classics of gothic horror here:

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Dead Set

From the minds of Charlie Brooker, most known for the hit series “Black Mirror”. Set at the set of a fictional version of Big Brother, there is a zombie outbreak. However, the house-mates keeps being unaware of the happenings of what goes on outside of the Big Brother House until someone comes to warn them. As the house is fan-proof, and therefore zombie-proof, it serves as an excellent hideout to stay in during the zombie apocalypse.

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How the TV-series Penny Dreadful is Influenced by Old Literature

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In honor of the new spin-off series, Penny Dreadful: City of Angels (2020), we took a nostalgic look back to the awesome Showtime series that started it all. RIP Original series, you were cancelled all too soon.


Penny Dreadful is a British-American horror drama television series created for Showtime and Sky by John Logan. It ran for three seasons from 2014-2016.

Iconic Vanessa Ives (Eva Green).
An original character and
also some of the most well crafted ones.

Penny Dreadful is an old term used during the nineteenth century to refer to cheap popular serial literature. Sort of like pulp fiction. It was also called penny blood, penny awful, or penny horrible. It means a story published in weekly parts, with the cost of one (old) penny. The main plot of these stories were typically sensational, focusing on the adventures of detectives, criminals, or supernatural entities.

This is exactly what Penny Dreadful was, and what it payed homage to. So we found some old stuff the series borrowed or was inspired by. And there is A LOT. So get your cigarette on a stick and let’s go on some vampiric monster hunt with out pals.

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Frankenstein

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is a novel written by English author Mary Shelley (1797–1851) that tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a hideous sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific experiment. 

Harry Treadaway played Victor Frankenstein, an arrogant, reclusive young doctor whose ambition and research involve transcending the barrier between life and death. In this show, Dr. Victor Frankenstein likes to quote the romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley’s second wife was Mary Shelley.

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Dorian Gray

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a Gothic and philosophical novel by Oscar Wilde, first published complete in the July 1890 issue of Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine. Fearing the story was indecent, the magazine’s editor deleted roughly five hundred words before publication without Wilde’s knowledge. It is Wilde’s only novel.

In the series he was played by Reeve Carney. A charismatic man who is ageless and immortal. And this Dorian Gray had a great, but utterly confusing story line. Where his purpose in the show was to throw great balls and parties and have sex with absolutely every character.

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Frankenstein’s bride

In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus, Victor Frankenstein is tempted by his monster’s proposal to create a female creature so that the monster can have a wife: “Shall each man,” cried he, “find a wife for his bosom, and each beast have his mate, and I be alone?”

In Penny Dreadful, the bride of Frankenstein is Brona Croft (portrayed by Billie Piper), an Irish immigrant with a dark past who dies of tuberculosis at the end of Season 1. In season 2, she is brought back to life with no memory after Frankenstein’s monster demands a bride and given the new name “Lily Frankenstein” by Victor. That last scene of her speech will haunt television forever.

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The creature

Often called John Clare. He was a labour poet in the mid 1800’s England. But if it is a reference to the creature is unclear. What is clear though is that the creature often is called Caliban as well, a character from Shakespear’s The tempes. Half human, half monster. In some traditions he is depicted as a wild man, or a deformed man, or a beast man, or sometimes a mix of fish and man, a dwarf or even a tortoise. Another connection from the creature to penny dreadful is Dorian Gray. In the preface of The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde muses: “The nineteenth century dislike of Realism is the rage of Caliban seeing his own face in a glass. The nineteenth century dislike of Romanticism is the rage of Caliban not seeing his own face in a glass.”

In the series he was played with Rory Kinnear, and had long storylines without many of the characters, alone.

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Dracula

Dracula is an 1897 Gothic horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. Dracula was a big influence from the start. From Mina being taken by him, the chase after Dracula and several character that appears in the series. Van Helsing included. But the series managed to make a twist of it all, and the influence of Dracula is almost as if just a eerily familiar setting and feeling of the series. He did however show up in series three in the flesh. Christian Camargo as Dracula, the brother of Lucifer who fell to Earth to feed on the blood of the living as the first vampire. In London, he takes the guise of kindly zoologist Alexander Sweet to captivate Vanessa.

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John Seward

In season 3 of TV series Penny Dreadful, Patti LuPone portrays Dr. Florence Seward, a female version of the character. It is originally a character from Dracula, a doctor in the insane asylum, He calls in his mentor, Abraham Van Helsing, to help him with her illness, and he helps Seward to realize that Lucy has been bitten by a vampire and is doomed to become one herself. He was in love with her and proposed to her, but was rejected. After she is officially destroyed and her soul can go to heaven, Seward is determined to destroy Dracula.

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Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a gothic novella by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, first published in 1886. It is about a London legal practitioner named Gabriel John Utterson who investigates strange occurrences between his old friend, Dr Henry Jekyll, and the evil Edward Hyde.

Dr. Jekyll (Shazad Latif) as a former classmate of Dr. Frankenstein’s.

Varney the vampire

Abraham Van Helsing gives a copy of Varney the Vampire to Victor Frankenstein, explaining that the story is more truth than fiction and that the mysterious creature the series’ characters are pursuing is a vampire.

Justine

Justine, or The Misfortunes of Virtue is a 1791 novel by Donatien Alphonse François de Sade, better known as the Marquis de Sade. Justine is set just before the French Revolution in France and tells the story of a young girl who goes under the name of Thérèse. Her story is recounted to Madame de Lorsagne while defending herself for her crimes, en route to punishment and death.

In Penny Dreadful she is the a homeless, brutalized young prostitute who becomes an acolyte to Lily played by Jessica Barden. In an interview with John Logan from the show, he also said the relationship between Justine and Lily was inspired by th Novella Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan LeFanu

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Wolfman

Larry Talbot was the main character in the movie series the Wolfman from 1941 and onward. There are sequels, reboots and several other medias tied into this franchise. He has his own interaction with all the Penny Dreadful characters from Dracula, Frankenstein and so on in his own franchise as well.

In the TV series Penny Dreadful, Ethan Chandler’s real name is revealed to be Ethan Lawrence Talbot, and he suffers from the curse of lycanthropy. This version of the character is played by Josh Hartnett.

Hecate

Hecate Poole is the witch played by Sarah Greene and is Evelyn Pool’s eldest daughter. She is the witch who pursues Ethan Chandler in seasons two and three. She shares her name with the ancient Greek goddess of witchcraft and the moon. Like Ethan’s relationship with the moon and her witchcraft ability as a Nightcomer witch.

The unquiet grave

“The Unquiet Grave” is an English folk song in which a young man mourns his dead love too hard and prevents her from obtaining peace. It is thought to date from 1400. It is heard in the mansion of the Nightcomer witches.

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