Ghosts of the Tower of London (4 page)
Read Ghosts of the Tower of London Online
Authors: Geoff Abbott
You can, if you wish, say they don’t exist. However, things happen in the Tower which cannot be explained away, and which were reported, moreover, by responsible, trained observers – yeoman warders, guards and sentries on patrol. After all, why shouldn’t events, sad or otherwise, impress themselves on an atmosphere so that their images are still Visible’ centuries later, like ink on blotting paper? And if those events gave rise to highly charged emotions at the time, could not the moans, the screams, the footsteps, continue to echo down the ages?
After the publication of my book on the Tower’s ghosts, I received many new reports of supernatural happenings, a few of which I include here. I make no attempt to explain them; I am a retired yeoman warder, not a psychic investigator! Interestingly enough, the visitations don’t always restrict themselves to the traditional ‘haunting’ times after dark. This is fortuitous, allowing the witness to observe details – if not too unnerved!
Events which occurred in the presence of more than one person were related to me by Mr George Trott, who lived for some time in the Martin Tower. This tower once housed the Crown Jewels and was the scene of the attempted robbery by Colonel Blood in 1671, and supernatural happenings were reported there in the last century. Mr Trott took up residence, with his father and mother, in 1921; and from there he relates
My father, mother and I moved into the top living quarter of the Martin Tower, taking it over from yeoman warder Smoker and his wife. They told us they had heard footsteps coming up the inside stairs to the top quarter but when they opened the door there was never anyone there.
Yeoman warder Curtis VC and his wife lived in the downstairs quarter and next day they took us all over the Martin Tower and told us about the footsteps so my mother told me not to be alarmed about it. When my cousin came to live with us she told him the same.
After about five days or so we had just settled down for an evening meal when we heard footsteps so my father thought it was Mr Curtis or his wife and he opened the door of the kitchen/living room and there was no one there. The footsteps stopped. We carried on with our meal and later I went to bed.
Now about the second Sunday night we heard the footsteps and they came up to the door – and the door opened – but there was nobody there! My mother looked out and my father checked the downstairs doors which were locked, including the door leading to the battlements. The door between the downstairs and upstairs was also locked. Dad called yeoman warder Curtis and told him about it and he said ‘So you’ve had your visitor – it won’t be long before you hear the footsteps again!’.
Dad got the foreman of the Ministry of Works to check the door and had a lock which had a sliding catch fitted underneath. Meanwhile Dad had told Sir George (Keeper of the Jewels) and Lady Younghusband and she visited mother and had a good talk. She said she had a friend in Cambridge who was interested in such ‘goings on’ as she called them.
Later on the footsteps came up the stairs again. Dad had locked the door and put the catch on. The footsteps stopped – and the door opened! The lock and catch were still in the locked position, we were amazed! Dad looked round the Tower again, everything was secure, so he relocked the door.
About the third week in November 1921, Lady Younghusband brought two gentlemen with her and introduced them to us. They also met Mr and Mrs Curtis, and then they checked the tower from top to bottom. They also looked up the history of the Martin Tower.
My mother said that next time the door opened she would say ‘Come in Mary’ and tell me to shut the door.
Nothing happened for a few days, until the last Sunday in November. One of the gentlemen was with us, and he took Dad and Mr Curtis with him when he locked the two main doors and the side doors to the tower, and the door between the upstairs and downstairs. We settled down for a late meal about 7.45pm (I was allowed to stay up on Sundays).
Mother was at the stove, I was reading, Dad and the gentleman were talking – when the footsteps came up the stairs!
The door was locked and the bottom catch on. The footsteps stopped – and the door opened! My mother said ‘Come in, Mary – close the door, George!’. But the gentleman said ‘No, stay still'. He looked at a thermometer and two more instruments and took readings. He then went with Dad and checked all doors, which were found still locked. They went to the top of the tower, all secure.
We all settled down after that, and I went to bed while they had a drink and a chat. Sir George and Lady Younghusband came over, and a report was sent to the Resident Governor.
When my cousin came to live with us he soon got used to the footsteps and door opening; they wanted to change the door but my mother said leave it, as she was quite happy with ‘Mary calling’. She said the footsteps were light so it must be a lady calling.
Later we moved out, and the Ministry of Works’ officers took over. One of the staff called on mother and told her that he had heard more than once footsteps coming up the stairs and stopping outside, and when he called out ‘Come in’ nobody came, and no one was there. My mother told him to tell everyone else not to worry, it was only Mary calling.
By a strange coincidence another holder of the Victoria Cross, Britain’s highest award for bravery, was also involved in an eerie occurrence on the other side of the Tower Green in what is now called the Queen’s House. This sixteenth-century dwelling has housed many historic prisoners, Anne Boleyn, Katherine Howard, Guy Fawkes, William Penn and others, and is the house of the Resident Governor.
Colonel Burges VC held this post in 1923 and, as related by George Trott, had gone to bed early one night. He was reading, when he heard footsteps come down the corridor and stop outside his bedroom. He thought it was his batman and so told him to come in, but the footsteps carried on down the corridor. The next day he asked his batman about this and was told that he had not been upstairs. Later on the same thing happened again, so the colonel had an alarm switch fitted and when it occurred again, he pressed the button and the soldier on duty below came running up. As he reached the corridor he heard the footsteps moving along ahead of him. The whole house was searched and everything found secure. The yeoman warder on watch duty reported the matter to Chief Warder Smoker, and though it happened again, Colonel Burges never seemed to worry about it.
However, in 1933 he was replaced by Colonel Faviell DSO, who was told about the mysterious footsteps. Some time afterwards his wife, who had forgotten all about the story, was in bed when the footsteps passed her door. She thought it was one of the soldiers visiting her maid, so spoke to her about it. The maid denied it and so Mrs Faviell had the workmen check all the doors and locks. Not only was the alarm switch overhauled, but it was arranged that when Mrs Faviell opened the bedroom door, all the lights along the corridor would come on.
A few nights later, as she lay in bed, the footsteps approached. Getting up, she pressed the alarm switch, alerting the soldier on duty below. He locked the front door and ran up the stairs. Meanwhile, Mrs Faviell had opened the bedroom door flooding the corridor with light – and revealing nothing else, although the footsteps continued along the corridor! Bravely she ran after ‘whoever it was’ but the footsteps suddenly stopped. More soldiers were summoned and a search was made, but as usual nothing was found.
But all that happened many years ago and could have been creaking floorboards! What about actual sightings, recently? Well, in January 1982, at 4.30am, the yeoman warder on watch was in the Byward Tower. This guardroom has been manned day and night by the warders and their predecessors for over seven hundred years, and the Watchman was the only one on duty at that time. He sat opposite the huge stone fireplace, which now houses a gas-fire. Two electric lights were on, one at each end of the small guardroom.
The front cover of a guide book published in 1884
Suddenly he became aware of a buzzing sound, like that of a fly. Looking up he saw, not the gas-fire, but a roaring fire of logs or coal. In front of it stood two men, side by side. They both had beards, and he noted their spindly legs, as if they were wearing breeches and stockings. The bright glare of the fire prevented him noticing any details of their dress. They appeared to be talking to each other, and then suddenly one moved his head, to lean forward and stare at the dumbstruck warder! Next minute both men vanished. The gas-fire reappeared, leaving the Watchman to collect his senses and hope for the dawn’s early arrival. There is one fascinating point on which to ponder – if the ‘man’ leant forward and saw the Watchman: who thought who was a ghost?
Before the public are admitted to the grounds, the White Tower staff sweep the floors and prepare for the coming day’s rush of tourists. At 8.05 one morning in 1978, a warden thus engaged noticed a woman through one of the tall glass showcases. Puzzled by a stranger’s presence at that time of day, he went towards her, only to see her move through an archway into the next room. Yet when he arrived there it was empty, and the only way out was up a spiral stair to the chapel. He climbed the narrow stairway and reached the heavy oak door to the chapel to find it securely locked, and although a search was carried out, the results were negative.
Another incident in the White Tower occurred in September 1980, when the night security guard was patrolling. It was 11.15pm and the guard was approaching the spiral stairway which connects the vaults with the uppermost floors. As he started to go down, he was aware of a woman to his left, going up. He had taken two steps further down before he realised what he had seen, so he turned and ascended. He found nothing, all doors ahead of him being locked securely, and he had all the keys!
He described later how he had been unable to see the upper half of her body for she had leant forward climbing the steep circular stairs and so was rounding the newel post. However, he distinctly saw that she was wearing a black and grey panelled skirt. Again, a thorough search of the eleventh-century building revealed nothing.
Finally, I include an experience that was recounted to me by a gentleman who would prefer to be known by the initials JHW. Although somewhat unnerved at the time, his profession required him to have an eye for detail, coupled with a photographic recall of memory. I quote the report in his own words to preserve spontaneity.
Though I have passed by the rear of the Tower hundreds of times, this was the only time I felt or saw anything. It was 7.30am on 11 March 1980, a slightly misty morning. As I was approaching Traitors’ Gate I noticed a blue light which was flickering and therefore drew my attention.
On looking down I was amazed to see a group of people in what appeared to be Tudor dress. There were about eight or more of them. Leading the procession was a very big man dressed in a leather apron, closely followed by two men carrying pikes or something like that, then two more men very well dressed. They wore red velvet with gold thread or brocade, and one had a small ruff, also a lace collar under the ruff. One seemed to be red headed and had a small beard, the other dark, no hat, and a small beard, his costume came up to his neck, no ruff, long puffed sleeves and several rings on his fingers. One man had a long gold chain.
Behind them were two women in their early twenties, both very richly clothed. One seemed to be dressed in grey material, silk and brocaded, with a low neckline. Both women had a small tiara, what appeared to be rows of pearls shaped like a crescent on the crown of their heads. The other woman’s dress was of a brownish colour. Both had necklets of pearls, double loops, also a golden chain and pendant of some sort, long sleeves but without frills. The hair of one was sort of auburn, the other brown. Both dresses were studded with pearls, diamonds, etc, and gold thread or something like it.
The woman in brown was holding a box against her chest with both hands. It was quite a small box, more of a casket than a box. The woman in grey was clasping a prayer book with a cross on it.
Following them were two more men carrying pikes. They were dressed the same as the other pikemen, with black hats and capes or cloaks.
The figures seemed to be gliding along as in a boat on the water, and the blue light was above them and seemed to move with the figures, growing fainter all the time they were in view.
The impression only lasted about a minute or two, then there was some movement along the wharf and they all vanished like a puff of smoke.
I cannot say if what I saw was real or not, but I can assure you I don’t want to see it again, for it left me feeling greatly puzzled and feeling a great deal of sadness, also very cold. I have had many sleepless nights since then, it is a welcome to have happened in daylight and not at night which could have had a disastrous effect. However, at no time did I feel any menacing or evil feeling towards me, only as I have already said, a feeling of overwhelming sadness and coldness.
As well as being an observer, I felt that someone or something was also observing me, to what purpose one cannot tell. In my case there was no fear, but a knowledge that I was privileged to see it. I can only say once more I hope never to see anything like it anymore.