lO Davis's video: Haunted History of Bodiam Castle

https://www.facebook.com/pg/historyhaunted/posts/ Bodiam Castle, Robertsbridge ,East Sussex, England U.K One of the most picturesque ruins in Sussex and the most interesting of its class in the Kingdom. It was erected by a veteran of Agincourt and is based upon the plan of those existing in Gascony at that time. Only the encircling walls and towers now remain, the interior having been despoiled. .Above the entrance passage is an arch in the gateway, although it leads nowhere. The ceiling of the passage through the gatehouse into the castle is vaulted and pierced with murder-holes. Murder-holes were most likely used to drop objects on attackers, similar to machicolations, or to pour water to extinguish fires. A spectre stands on the top of a tower, illuminated by bright moonlight, as if waiting for someone........ Bodiam Castle is a 14th-century moated castle near Robertsbridge in East Sussex, England. It was built in 1385 by Sir Edward Dalyngrigge, a former knight of Edward III, with the permission of Richard II, ostensibly to defend the area against French invasion during the Hundred Years' War. Of quadrangular plan, Bodiam Castle has no keep, having its various chambers built around the outer defensive walls and inner courts. Its corners and entrance are marked by towers, and topped by crenellations. Its structure, details and situation in an artificial watery landscape indicate that display was an important aspect of the castle's design as well as defence. It was the home of the Dalyngrigge family and the centre of the manor of Bodiam. Possession of Bodiam Castle passed through several generations of Dalyngrigges, until their line became extinct, when the castle passed by marriage to the Lewknor family. During the Wars of the Roses, Sir Thomas Lewknor supported the House of Lancaster, and when Richard III of the House of York became king in 1483, a force was despatched to besiege Bodiam Castle. It is unrecorded whether the siege went ahead, but it is thought that Bodiam was surrendered without much resistance. The castle was confiscated, but returned to the Lewknors when Henry VII of the House of Lancaster became king in 1485. Descendants of the Lewknors owned the castle until at least the 16th century. By the start of the English Civil War in 1641, Bodiam Castle was in the possession of John Tufton. He supported the Royalist cause, and sold the castle to help pay fines levied against him by Parliament. The castle was subsequently dismantled, and was left as a picturesque ruin until its purchase by John Fuller in 1829. Under his auspices, the castle was partially restored before being sold to George Cubitt, 1st Baron Ashcombe, and later to Lord Curzon, both of whom undertook further restoration work. The castle is protected as a Grade I listed building and Scheduled Monument. It has been owned by The National Trust since 1925, donated by Lord Curzon on his death, and is open to the public As Richard Jones tells the story ... "Some people passing the ruins at dead of night have reported the distinctive sound of spectral revels emanating from the hollow shell. Others have told of hearing “strange oaths” and “foreign-sounding songs.” Finally, there is the mysterious shade of a ghostly red lady sometimes seen gazing from one of the towers, her eyes fixed upon some distant object-although what it is, and who she was, nobody knows." Another mysterious spirit involves a little boy dressed in clothes straight from a Dickens novel. His ghost was seen in 1994 by the castle custodian. He was seen running towards the castle but vanished midway across the bridge, suggesting he may have fallen into the moat and drowned. Haunted Castles of Britain and Ireland This ghost story was taken from the book "Haunted Castles of Britain and Ireland" by Richard Jones http://haunted-britain.com/ wikipedia.org Music ~~Kevin MacLeod – The Pyre