Mysterious Britain & Ireland

Specific Location: Coverdale

Ancient Sites / Early Christianity / Wells

St Alkelda’s Well, Middleham

St Alkeda was a chaste Saxon maiden, sometimes described as a princess, noble woman or a nun. On 28th March 800AD, somewhere close to the site of St Mary’s and St Alkelda’s Church, she was strangled to death for her faith by two Danish women involved in a Viking raid. It has been suggested that they killed her by twisting a napkin around her neck.

Ancient Sites / Early Christianity

Church of St Mary and St Alkelda

Dating from 1280, this is one of only two churches dedicated to St Alkeda (Alkelda,Athilda, Alcelda) (the other being in Giggleswick) and is said to be her final resting place. St Alkeda was a chaste Saxon maiden, sometimes described as a princess and a nun.

Ancient Sites / Early Christianity / Wells

St Simon’s Well

According to Edmund Bogg in “From Eden Vale to the plains of York or A Thousand Miles in the Valleys of the Nidd and Yore" (1894) ”In the township of East Scrafton is a spring of water known as St. Simon’s Well. Near it once stood an oratory called St. Simon’s Chapel; not a vestige of this remains. The well was formerly used as a bath. Tradition says that St.

Buried Treasure / Legends

Middleham Castle

The castle is reputed to be the site of a buried hoard of treasure, to find it you must run a round the castle three times, and where you stop the treasure will be found. Unfortunately there is no indication of where you should start.

Directions: Off the A6108 to the South of Leyburn.

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Apparitions / Hauntings

Middleham Moor

Haunted by the ghost of a lady in a black dress. Peat cutters are reputed to have discovered a body dressed in the rotting remains of a black shawl. She was meant to have been murdered by one of her admirers after he discovered she was to run away with another man.