HALLOWEEN FOLKLORE – THE PHANTOMS OF NETLEY ABBEY

There is more than one ghost at Netley Abbey…

The ancient Abbey of Netley now lies in ruins - like so many British abbeys - after King Henry VIII seized it during the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1530s. Over the years the building has fallen into its current sad, if not romantic, state.

Netley Abbey is located in the county of Hampshire in the south-east of England. It was founded in 1239 by Peter des Roches, the Bishop of Winchester, for the Cistercian order.

There are many legends and stories associated with this lonely ruin, but one in particular is directly linked to the date 31 October - Halloween.

The story told in the area is that anyone who dares to enter the ruins on this most bleak of evenings had best beware, for the phantoms of three misty women are said to appear upon the walls of the abbey, wandering silently, silhouetted against the skyline. All around the crumbling building the ghostly sound of church bells can be heard, carried on the night breeze. Who these women are, or why they walk on this night, is not known - but local folk know to avoid the place on Samhain evening.

Yet the spectral ladies are not the only horrors that lie waiting within the abbey. There are also tales of Blind Peter, another phantom most often sighted around Halloween. He is believed to be the ghost of a monk who roams the ruins and is linked to stories of treasure buried somewhere within the site.

When King Henry VIII took control of the monasteries in the sixteenth century, he claimed their considerable wealth for the Crown. To prevent this happening to their own riches, the monks of Netley are said to have hidden their valuables in a secret passage, sealing them away with one monk left behind to guard them - the unfortunate Blind Peter.

Over the centuries many have tried to find this treasure, but only one man ever came close. His name was Slown.

He reportedly discovered the hidden passage and entered it, while his friends waited anxiously outside for his return. After a long time, he staggered from out the darkness, his face grey and his eyes wild, and fell to his knees before them. He managed to gasp the words, “Seal it up!” before dropping dead at their feet.

Another tale tells of a builder named Walter Taylor, who was commissioned to demolish part of the monastery church. The night before the job was due to be started, he told his wife of a terrible dream in which he was warned that he would pay for his sacrilege with his life if he went ahead with the work. Foolishly, he dismissed the warning - and with a fatal inevitability - he was killed the very next day by falling masonry.

Finally, there are two modern witness accounts of Netley’s ghostly denizens. The first came from a Mrs Neal, who in 1970 claimed to have seen a tall, lean figure in a dark brown cloak with its hood drawn low over the face, beckoning her slowly towards the abbey grounds. Then, in 1981, two people camping within the ruins reported being woken in the night by a “sinister force” that caused a sudden drop in temperature and seemed to linger around their tent. Their dog growled continuously and refused to leave their side to confront the unseen visitor.

Today, Netley Abbey is cared for by English Heritage and welcomes all visitors - both the living and, perhaps, even the dead.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. I hope you’ve enjoyed this piece of Halloween folklore. If you did, please consider picking up a copy of my new book Threads of Shadow - link below.

Alternatively, there are plenty of free stories, written by yours truly, available in the download section of this website.

Until next week - stay spooky.

Sources .

The National Trust Website.

Hampshire Live.

davidfarrant.org.

Wikipedia.