By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes… You guessed it, we’re spinning our spookiest yarns this month and sharing Kent’s creepiest attractions and most ghoulish stories, sharing tales of witches and more, plus the top locations with a dark and spooky past...
As the second wife to King Henry VIII and the very person who inspired the king to split from the Church in Rome and create the Church of England, the life of Anne Boleyn is steeped in myth and legend. Tried and convicted of treason, Anne’s fall from grace has since been plagued with tales of witchcraft, incest and even a sixth finger, all stories that were used to try to discredit her daughter, Queen Elizabeth I. Visit her childhood home, Hever Castle, and you’ll have the chance to separate fact from fiction, see her belongings like the astonishing Book of Hours manuscript, the bedroom she stayed in as an adult and even the Nursery where it is believed the Boleyn children slept. See all this and more in the newly refurbished Boleyn Apartment rooms, which have been meticulously transformed so visitors can walk in the family’s footsteps and learn of the love affair that changed history.
hevercastle.co.uk
With so many manors and castles so rich in history, it should really come as no surprise that favourites like the National Trust’s Knole have some spooky stories to tell. Conservation work here uncovered witchmarks engraved in a room that was built to accommodate King James I at Knole. These marks have been dated back to 1606, believed to be just months after the Gunpowder Plot. Legend and theory tell us that these marks in the Upper King’s Room were carved to protect the king from evil spirits, forming a ‘demon trap’ which would fend off demonic possession at a time when fear of witches, demons and plots was rife.
nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/kent/knole
Chilling tales from Canterbury Historic River Tours
Canterbury Historic River Tours are known to spill the beans on Canterbury’s historically rich, and sometimes gruesome, past whatever time of year you climb aboard, but if you take their special October Chilling Tales tours, you’ll be in for a real spine-tingling treat. Offering the chance to view this magnificent city in a whole new light, these tours will tell the tale of ghostly sightings, gory torture, beheadings and more in a deep dive into the city’s hidden horrors. Look out for haunted buildings, ghosts and the infamous ducking stool, but beware as this tour is not for the faint-hearted.
canterburyrivertours.co.uk/our-tours/chilling-tales
Dover Castle has a rich, 2000 year history, so it’s no surprise this magnificent fortress has many a tale to tell. It’s said that one of its former residents, Eleonor Cobham, the second wife of Duke Humphrey, lord warden of Dover Castle, was declared a witch under the rule of a suspicious Henry VI. Henry VI was fearful of Duke Humphrey, as second in line to the throne, and discovered that Eleanor had consulted astrologers who predicted an untimely death for the king, ultimately resulting in accusations of treason and witchcraft. While you might not find much about Eleanor’s tale at Dover Castle, you will find plenty more intriguing histories, including its role in withstanding two epic sieges led by Prince Louis of France in the brand-new Dover Castle Under Siege exhibition. See this and more as you travel from Roman rule to World War II at Dover Castle.
english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/dover-castle
A gilded cage at Leeds Castle
In the 15th century Joan of Navarre, stepmother to King Henry V was accused of the ultimate crime, the attempt to kill the king. What makes this tale even more intriguing is that Joan of Navarre’s attempt was said to be by nefarious means, or witchcraft to modern day readers, but today we know that this accusation was a ploy led by the king in order to confiscate her property and money. Imprisoned at Leeds Castle, records show that Joan of Navarre’s time under lock and key was more of a luxury gilded cage until her eventual release without trial. Visit the castle today and you’ll have the chance to see the sumptuous rooms and glorious gardens; and learn of the many other women who have called this castle home.
leeds-castle.com/
Witchcraft in Dover’s villages
In the 16th and 17th centuries, a fear of witchcraft was rife, with Witchcraft Acts passed under three monarchs. While today a visit to our beautiful Kentish villages is often a charming experience, back then they were often the location of witch-hunts and mistrust. In the historic village of Coldred you’ll find the Carpenter’s Arms, a cute village pub with a duck pond just outside that was once a site to be “swum” by those accused of witchcraft, including Nell Garlinge in the 1640s. With her hands and feet tied, Nell drowned, proving her innocence, while losing her life.
A prolific author and Kentish resident, the influence of Kent’s quirky residents and buildings can be seen throughout Dickens’ works. By Dickens’ time superstitions and fear of witchcraft had mostly dissipated and yet there still remains a supernatural, spooky quality to many of his iconic tales, including A Christmas Carol. While Great Expectations did not include any ghouls or ghosts, the opening scenes in the marshes known to be based upon the landscape around his home at Gad’s Hill Place, and graveyard are enough to strike a little fear in any reader. His description of Miss Havisham, “The witch of the place”, is another fanciful and eerie inclusion, seen through the eyes of a young Pip. For a real deep dive into Dickens’ life in Kent, we recommend booking a tour of Gad’s Hill Place, or paying a visit to The Guildhall Museum to see The Making of Mr Dickens, a fantastic exhibition which will immerse you in the life and times of Dickens in Medway. Learn about the people and places that helped shape his stories, and even see the Swiss chalet where so many of his tales were penned.
visitmedway.org/attractions/rochester-guildhall-museum-2132/
The National Trust’s romantic manor of Ightham Mote has quite the array of evidence that shows a real fear of witchcraft in its heyday. From the witchmarks or ritual protection marks seen on the medieval fireplace in the Medieval Parlour, to scorch marks on the Rood Screen in the Tudor Chapel, these were intended to fight against malevolent forces. What’s more, the team have uncovered evidence of ‘spirit traps’, which were personal objects buried in the foundations of buildings to harness protective spirits. 17th century shoes were even uncovered in the servants’ quarters of the manor. With 700 years of history and architecture at Ightham More, there are plenty more stories to be discovered at this beautiful, moated manor.
nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/kent/ightham-mote
Drama at Smallhythe Place
The former home of actress Ellen Terry, 16th century Smallhythe Place is another National Trust icon where witchy discoveries have been made. Pre-dating the time of the Victorian actress, dramatic marks on the stone chimney surround in the Lyceum Room depict sets of circles believed to symbolise the Trinity in a bid to provide religious protection. The library is no-less intriguing, with signs of superstition in the form of a book called ‘Pins and Cushions’ giving advice on using pins to ward off witches! Visit and you’ll discover even more theatrical gems in the Ellen Terry Museum, Costume Room and sprawling gardens, which all tell the tale of the famous actress who once walked the boards.
nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/kent/smallhythe-place
Literary finds at Sissinghurst Castle Garden
From Ellen Terry to Vita Sackville West, visitors to Sissinghurst Castle Garden will no doubt have gazed in awe at the house’s magnificent library, but few will know that in amongst the leather-bound books was another copy of ‘Pins and Cushions’, plus the 17th century ‘witch-hunters’ manual’, Compendium Maleficarum. Signs of Sissinghurst’s 16th century past can be seen throughout, with compass drawn designs, VV marks and horseshoe guards all to be discovered. Marks like these, along with scorchmarks were placed on fireplaces, doorways and central beams to protect residents from witches coming down the chimney (a very real fear), or to protect the building from fire. Today visitors are treated to the far more welcoming marks of autumn as the gardens and surrounding farmland are transformed with auburn colour.
nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/kent/sissinghurst-castle-garden
