Greyfriars Kirkyard Edinburg, Scotland

I recently subscribed to Netflix about a month ago and quickly learned that my favorite show, Ghost Adventures had several episodes that I immediately spent days watching while home. One day while enthralled with my favorite ghost busters I pressed play on a episode about an underground city in Scotland. During the show, which scared me somewhat when they were interacting with a rather angry spirit of one "Mr. Boots" the crew went in search of answers from residents of the city. They came across a guy who claimed that a truly haunted spot to be checked out would be Greyfriars Kirkyard, a 400 year old cemetery south of Edinburg, in which he was violently attacked by an unseen force that left him in the hospital.

Zak, Nick, and Aaron, Members Of The Ghost Adventures Crew

A LITTLE ABOUT THE GRAVEYARD

Greyfriars Kirkyard Edinburg, Scotland

Greyfriars Kirkyard is a graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirkyard in Edinburg, Scotland. It is located on the southern edge of the old town, adjacent to George Heriot's school. Richly steeped in history. Mary Queen of Scots granted the former covenant garden surrounding Greyfriars Kirk to be used as a burial ground in 1562. According to records, burials began in the late 16th century. Greyfriars takes its name from the Franciscan friary on the site, which was dissolved in 1559. The churchyard was founded to replace the churchyard at St. Giles, which was considered full to capacity.

THE HISTORY OF SIR GEORGE "BLUIDY" MACKENZIE

Sir George Mackenzie, Lawyer, Law Advocate, and Writer

Sir George Mackenzie was a Scottish lawyer, Lord Advocate, and legal writer born in Dundee to Sir Simon Mackenzie and Elizabeth Mackenzie sometime between 1636 and 1638. The Mackenzie were a clan from Ross-shire that had risen to prominence in the 15th century during the disintegration of the Lordship of the Isles. As Lord Advocate, he was the minister responsible for the persecuting policy of Charles II in Scotland against the Presbyterian Covenanters. He resigned for a short time in 1686, taking up office again in 1688. He opposed the dethronement of James II, and to escape the consequences retired from public office and founded the library of the Faculty of Advocates in 1689. When offered his previous position as Law Advocate, Sir George Mackenzie, refused to concur in this partial application of the penal laws by not prosecuting those responsible for the Glencoe Massacre, and his refusal led to his temporary disgrace.

After the Battle of Bothwell Bridge, Mackenzie imprisoned 1,2oo Convenanters in a field next to Grayfriars Kirkyard. Some were executed and many others died of maltreatment. Through his relentless persecution of the Covenanters and the inhumanity of the manner in which they were treated, he earned the nickname "Bloody Mackenzie". Ironically, Mackenzie would be buried in the same yard in which he imprisoned the Covenanters that despised him so.

THE COVENANTERS PRISON

The Covenanters Prison Edinburg, Scotland

The Kirkyard was involved in the history of the Covenanters. The Covenanters were a Scottish Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland, and to lesser extent in that of England and Ireland, during the 17th century. The Covenanters are so named because in a series of bands or covenants they bound themselves to maintain the Presbyterian doctrine and policy as the sole religion of their country. The Covenanting movement began with the signing of the National Covenant in Greyfriars Kirk on February 28th, 1638. Following the defeat of the militant Covenanters in 1679, some 1,200 were imprisoned in a field to the south of the churchyard. In the 18th century, this area became known as the "Covenanters' Prison". In total, 18,000 Covenanters died for their beliefs during and after the Restoration.

URBAN LEGEND OF MACKENZIE'S MAUSOLEUM

Mackenzie Masoleum Edinburg, Scotland

There have been hundreds of reports of poltergeist activity surrounding this mysterious mausoleum. According to several individuals who have attended ghost tours to the small marble castle, it is the Mackenzie poltergeist that is responsible for all of this violence. Some say it is because of his violent and torturous treatment of the Covenanters that he is not allowed to rest. This mysterious activity did not begin to occur until one fateful night.

According to local legend, a homeless man looking for shelter passed the graveyard on a rainy December night. The gate had been left unlocked by mistake and unbenownsed to anyone. As it was cold and dreary, the urge to survive the night without incident or illness brought on by the weather led him into Grayfriars Kirkyard. After searching the graveyard for a comfortable place to sleep, he decided to get into Mackenzie’s tomb, as it was one of the most sheltered spots in the whole graveyard. He looked through the grille at the front door and a light sparked his interest. Intrigued, he climbed over some railings and saw a small opening at the back of the tomb where it nearly connects with the graveyard wall. The railings run between the mausoleums near the wall. He found that he could fit through and, once inside, saw there was a stairway down to a vault below where the bodies actually went. He found several coffins and attempted to open one, as there may have been something valuable buried with the bodies, they were, after all, nobility. Everyone knows that you must not do on to others what you would not want done to yourself and to desecrate a grave or mausoleum is a huge no no, especially if a restless spirit is present and watching you interfere with the eternal rest of himself or his loved ones.

While this man was ransacking the interior of the mausoleum, another man who was taking his dog out on a mid-night stroll noticed that the gates to the graveyard were open as well. Knowing that they should be closed at that time of night, he decided to investigate. As the curious pedestrian was entering the site, the homeless man, while trying to open up coffins, fell through the floor onto several skeletons long since forgotten. Terrified, he ran out of the mausoleum screaming and ranting. Naturally, during a dreary night drenched with rainfall and visibility to a minimum, the dog walker immediately thought that this must have been the spirit of Mackenzie. He informed police who investigated and found nothing out of the ordinary other than the gaping hole in the floor.

This is when the activity began. Maybe the desecration of the mausoleum disturbed the restless entity or it was occurring all along without anyone noticing, but as more and more visitors were being led to this 400 year old mausoleum, attacks became frequent and malicious. The first incident occurred when a woman on a tour was looking through the grilles of the front door and was thrashed backwards by a blast of cold air. There is also mention of incident previous to that one in a book about the South Bridge Vaults, a city underground, and equally as inhabited by spirits of those who never had a chance to live a normal life.

Although no one can say for sure who this entity is or if it actually is the spirit of Mackenzie, it has been said that after the first incident, it was given the title of the "Mackenzie Poltergeist" because the first attack occurred near his mausoleum. This entity has never spoken, although laughing has been heard and never taken form to give evidence that it is even human. There are also accounts that after the first attack, the poltergeist moved into The Black Mausoleum, a little tomb in the Covenanter’s Prison with no connection to Mackenzie. Nobody knows who’s buried there as no name or information about its inhabitant is listed on it. Some say that Mackenzie's mausoleum and the black mausoleum are one in the same. Reports vary greatly from person to person. It does make one wonder about why it would attack in front of Mackenzie's tomb and then move to the area of Grayfriars Kirkyard where he imprisoned and ordered the torture of so many? Why protect the resting place of your persecutor?

In the past, exorcism was attempted to remove this energy with miserable result as it only got stronger and appeared more frequently. Hundreds of individuals take tours to this site in hopes of seeing or experiencing the paranormal activity now famous around the world. The Mackenzie Poltergeist does not fail to amaze on lookers as many participants are often assaulted by an unknown force, often being taken away by ambulance to local hospitals with injuries ranging from scrapes and bruises to broken bones and internal injuries. Why anyone would want to subject himself to the abuse of an angry spirit is beyond me, but it does make for an awesome legend.

Grayfriars Kirkyard has a long history of civil unrest, public execution, torture, imprisonment, inhumane treatment of human beings, etc. As one theory suggests, activity occurs when an entity channels energy from the site it inhabits or from human energy to manifest. I believe that this energy was slowing accumulating over four centuries of pain and bloodshed and the disturbance of grave robbers desecrating tombs brought about a violent and destructive force that is now very much active and eager to harm those whom it presumes as potential trespassers.

GREYFRIARS BOBBY

On a lighter note and for those animal lovers, one very beautiful and touching story regarding Greyfriars Kirkyard comes to mind. This story is that of Greyfriars Bobby. Greyfriars Bobby was a Skye Terrier who became well known during the 19th century for guarding the grave of owner John Gray (Old Jock), who worked for the Edinburg City Police, as a night watchman, and to all accounts were inseparable for over two years. Gray died of Tuberculosis on February 8th, 1858. Bobby remained vigilant of his owners grave until he died himself on January 14th, 1872. Although he couldn't be buried alongside his owner because the graveyard is considered to be consecrated ground, he was buried just inside the gates of Grayfriars Kirkyard, not too far from his favorite guy in the world. I don't know about you, but that is an eternal bond between man and animal. What a wonderful companion with an undying love for the man that cared for him. A year after Bobby died, Lady Burdett-Coutts had a statue and fountain erected in honor of this faithful pooch. In 2011, Jan Bondeson wrote a book titled "The Most Faithful Dog In The World" with the most detailed biography of Bobby to date. Although, there are many theories regarding this story, I choose to believe that a dog can love his master so much that another family isn't an option.

NOTABLE BURRIALS AT GRAYFRIARS KIRKYARD

Along with these legendary and varying characters that are interred in this graveyard, there are also many unmarked graves of those whose stories were never told or recorded and of which we will never know. With such an eclectic mix of classes and bloodlines buried here, there are some very notable burials of mention.

• James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton (d.1581), Regent of Scotland
• George Buchanan (d.1582), historian and reformer
• Alexander Henderson (d.1646), churchman and statesman
• John Mylne (1611–1667), mason and architect
• Sir George Mackenzie (1636–1691), Lord Advocate
• Mary Erskine (1629–1708), founder of The Mary Erskine School
• Archibald Pitcairne (1652–1713), physician
• William Carstares (1649–1715), churchman and statesman
• George Watson (1654–1723), accountant and founder of George Watson's College
• Colonel Francis Charteris (1675-1732), notorious rake and member of the "Hell-fire" club
• Captain John Porteous (c.1695–1736), soldier and lynching victim
• Colin MacLaurin (1698–1746), mathematician
• Duncan Forbes, Lord Culloden (1685 – 1747), politician and judge.
• William Adam (1689–1748), architect
• Thomas Ruddiman (1674–1757), classical scholar and grammarian
• Allan Ramsay (1686-1758), poet
• William Robertson D.D. (1721–1793), historian
• James Craig (1739–1795), architect and designer of Edinburgh's New Town
• James Hutton (1726–1797), geologist
• Joseph Black (1728–1799), physician
• Duncan Ban MacIntyre (1724–1812), Gaelic poet
• William Creech (1745–1815), bookseller
• Henry Mackenzie (1745–1831), writer and author of The Man of Feeling
• Thomas McCrie (1772–1835), historian
• Major General William Farquhar, (c.1770–1839) 1st Resident of Singapore
• William McGonagall (1825–1902), poet (unmarked grave)

I hope you enjoyed learning about Greyfriars Kirkyard and the inhabitants that lived and died centuries ago. I'm not a historian, but I do love history and enjoy meeting others who share the same passion. I will soon be posting about the South Bridge Vaults, a long forgotten underground city that was mistakenly unearthed by a man who had no idea of what laid behind a sealed door in his basement.