The Ghosts of Bolton Abbey

Skipton, North Yorkshire

“Sir, – I am being inundated with cuttings from various North-country newspapers giving particulars of the alleged appearance of the spirit of a monk in Bolton Abbey Rectory”

Whilst doing research for the Northern Folklore Archive (I’m doing God’s work, I know, I know), I stumbled upon a really charming newspaper cut out from The Secret Library: Leeds Libraries Heritage Blog detailing a message from A. P. Howes aimed at the writer of the Yorkshire Post back in 1917. It amuses me greatly that someone would be so bold as to call out the entirety of The Yorkshire Post, but I suppose they had more audacity back in the early 1900s.

The message is very clear, stop with all the gossip! I am here to set the record straight on the ghost of Bolton Abbey!. A.P Howes suggested that the visiting of a ghostly monk is an age-old tradition for places in which a monastic establishment has existed and details his own experiences with the very diplomatic explanations of some embellishments and dramatizations.

A.P. Howes states that he ‘inherited’ this tradition from his predecessor Rev. C. Bellairs but told Howes he hasn’t experienced anything strange at Bolton Abbey, but Howes writes that Bellairs’ two daughters ‘gloried in embellishing what they imagined they saw or heard’ to anyone who would listen. Howes explains that the two daughters, in their eccentricity, would tell people that the tiles within the abbey are at odd angles and raised from the earth due to the restless dead monks wanting to return to the world (...a creepy thing to say to guests...).

Howes explains he had lived in the Rectory for more than twenty years, and he himself had heard sounds and footsteps in the dead of night but does immediately state that maybe this is because you do hear sounds in the silence of night that you wouldn’t usually get the chance to in the daytime.

“A stealthy rat in the dead of night takes his time in walking down a long passage, and can be distinctly heard, and rats in the walls occasionally disturbed my slumbers.” Howes details how he can sometimes hear rats but has never attributed this to anything ghostly.

He then goes on to explain that his successor, Mr. Macnabb, told him that ‘Augustinian garments should [be] laid aside for the raiment of an uninvited guest’, and Howes himself has imagined seeing ‘a hanging brown coat or cloak’ that could have been the back of a spiritual appearance. He does preface this, however, with ‘I can imagine myself at one o’clock in a morning, after a weary investigation of accounts, and, perhaps, with an aching head’ imagining such a thing... he seems to be quite the skeptic!

This little slice of history is absolutely fascinating to me, I’m so glad we still have these resources available to have a gander at. Despite Mr.Howes being contrarian about the experiences people have had in Bolton Abbey Rectory, there are other ghostly tales to consider.

The Abbey was gifted by Lady Alice de Rumilly, the owner of Skipton Castle, back in the 12th Century (ooft, that’s old!) The Abbey, probably more literally known as a Priory, was presided over by a Prior and operated until the dissolution of the monasteries. It is reported that a white doe can be seen visiting the ruins from time to time, and you’d be wrong if you thought this was just a beautiful slice of nature... The white doe is said to be Lady Alice herself, making sure that the grounds are still being respected.

Once the Abbey ceased operations, it was bought by Lord Clifford in 1539. More of a suspicious character than lovely Lady Alice, Lord Clifford was affectionately known as ‘The Butcher’, one can only imagine why. His tomb lies within the grounds of Bolton Abbey, and in the 1970s, an attempt to excavate this 14th Century grave was thwarted by, supposedly, Lord Clifford’s ghostly pranks. Whilst attempting to uncover the grave, archaeologists reported seeing a ghostly figure on the grounds with a horrifying feeling of an ominous presence following them around. So spooked by the unknown, they abandoned ship and left Lord Clifford alone. Probably for the best.

Prior Richard Moone, a once Prior of the Abbey, known for being a corrupt adulterer (boooo!) is supposedly the reason for the creation of the ‘Hey Diddle Diddle’ nursey rhyme because of a dispute with a local farmer. I love how nursery rhymes come from the absolute worst places... Whether or not he was the cause for the rhyme, Prior Moone is reported to be spotted under one of the carved roof bosses of the Abbey. The only of the roof bosses that people claim depicts the devil himself... Have you spotted anything strange at Bolton Abbey?

Sources

https://secretlibraryleeds.net/local-history/ghost-stories/a-spectral-monk-the-bolton-abbey-ghost-story/

https://www.thereluctantexplorers.com/blog/tales-of-the-dales-bolton-abbey