Castle Rushen

Originally dating from the 10th century the imposing Castle Rushen has a reputation of being haunted by a female figure. The ‘Isle of Man Examiner’ ran the following piece entitled ‘Castle Ghost Walks Again!’ on Thursday, August 18, 1960. The article also describes a sighting in 1937.

FOUR white-faced, frightened boys ran into Victoria Road P school, Casdetown, on Sunday night. Thev looked as if thev had seen a ghost — and they reallv thought they had!

The boys, who were staying on holiday in the school at Castletown, reported that they had seen a strange figure on the Eagle Tower — the highest point of Castle Rushen.

It was the figure of a woman, dressed in blac\ with a dead white face, blacl{ hands, long flowing robes and something hanging down the bach\ from the head-dress.

Did they see the spectre of the Castle’s famous “Black Lady”? The time was 11-30 at night.

The Castle was locked and the Custodian is certain that no unauthorised person was inside. And the boys are quite certain they saw this strange figure on the high tower.. 86ft. above the ground.

The boys — 17-year-olds — said they watched the figure for about ten minutes.

They saw it from the Quay and moved to another position to get a clearer view. The next morning they wrote a statement describing what they had seen and handed it over to the Custodian of the Castle NO JOKE

The Custodian. Mr Norman Gale, said the boys came to him to ask if there was any history of a ghost of a woman haunting the Castie. Then they told him what they had seen.

At first he thought they were joking, but they insisted that they were telling the truth and he became impressed with their sincerity.

Other youths in the party said the four were as white as sheets when they returned to the school that night and said what they had seen.

“The Black Lady” is reputed to be the ghost of a woman who was executed in Castle Rushen for the murder of her child.

She is reported to have been seen on a number of occasions, the last being in 1937 when an assistant custodian. Mr Louis Vanwell. related an incident in the Castle.

He said he saw a woman in a long dark dress, with her features half hidden, leading a child from the drawbridge down towards the dungeons. He thought they were both rather peculiarly dressed but he did not pay much attention for the moment.

Then a visitor came into the Castle and asked if he had seen his wife. He said. “Yes, a lady has just gone down to the dungeons.” The visitor went to the dungeons and returned in a few seconds and said there was no one there .

Mr Vanwell was very surprised because from where he was standing he would have been bound to have seen the lady and the child come back. He immediately went down to the dungeons but there was no one there. He told the visitor that he had seen the lady go down the dungeon steps with the child and she had certainly not come up again.

The visitor said his wife did not have a child with her and Mr John Mylchreest. the Custodian, who had come along, said he had been standing in the gateway of the Castle for some time and he was certain no woman with a child had come in.

They searched the Castle and found the visitor’s wife at the top of the West Tower where she had been for some time waiting for her husband to come up. She had not been anywhere near the drawbridge or the dungeons and there was no one else in the Castle.

Mr Vanwell swore he saw the two figures go into the dungeons and that they did not come out again.