This House Is Haunted
Britain is blessed with an abundance of Haunted Houses.
The many haunted manor houses and stately homes; the homes of the infamous and the homes of the long forgotten; all of these offer the intrepid ghost hunter a plethora of different types of ghosts to hunt for.
As the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882, put it in his poem on the subject:-
All houses wherein men have lived and died
Are haunted houses. Through the open doors
The harmless phantoms on their errands glide,
With feet that make no sound upon the floors.
Buildings Have Moods
As I've toured the haunted houses of Britain and Ireland, I've always been struck by the fact that buildings certainly have moods about them
We've all been in the situation where we've entered a house and been struck by how it feels. How many times, for example, have you said to yourself, this is a very happy house, or this house has a sad aura about it?
I've often wondered if the reason for this is that those who have occupied a particular building have, in some way, left their emotions behind on the fabric of the building.
Eventful Histories
In that respect the haunted houses that you will find on this website all have histories that are most certainly eventful.
Some of them have been the scenes of great tragedies, whilst others have been proud witnesses to glorious events. Perhaps it is the heightened emotions of the residents at these times of joy or sorrow that have been left behind and it is the subconscious sensing of these emotions that we pick up on when we visit them?
Whatever the reason for these houses been haunted, visiting them can be a real experience.
I've never been a great fan of those houses where you turn up on a timed ticket and then are taken around in a group by a guide.
Give me a wild and desolate haunted ruin on the west coast of Ireland, or in the Highlands of Scotland, over a prim and orderly National Trust property in the Home Counties any day.
I suppose the reason for this is that, when I visit a haunted houses, the most important thing for me is the atmosphere. I like to attune myself to the surroundings, and I like to form my own mental image of the type of people who have lived there, not be subjected to a scripted rendition of the house's past.
A Personal Choice
That is why the houses that feature on this website are so varied. It is also the reason why some well known haunted properties have been omitted. I visited them but they just didn't engage me.
So I hope you enjoy the collection of haunted houses to be found on this website and if you are aware of a property that I've left off and you think I should include then please feel free to email me and I';ll pay it a visit and see if it has the ambience that I look for.
Good hauntings!
