Charleville Castle

Charleville Castle, also known as Charleville Forest Castle, is located in the village of Tullamoore, Ireland. Surprisingly, this Castle is located in the same county as Leap Castle: County Offaly. The history of this Castle though is quite different from that of Leap, but there are still druid, and potential occult, connections which will be discussed along with the hauntings. The Castle itself isn't that old as far as castles go, but the use of the land Charleville stands on dates back so far that hauntings are definitely warranted here.

History

Use of the land Charleville Castle stands on dates back to the 6th century. During this time, the land served as the ancient monastic site of Lynally; an Irish Druid site. It was an ancient settlement at the time, and the lands became a focal point for the first Stuart, and then Elizabethan, plantations. This was all back in the early days of Ireland's colonisation when the city of Dublin felt threatened by the wild tribes of the west. The land itself is an ancient oak forest site, and funnily enough there is a legend to do with one of the oak trees which is near identical to one which exists near to the Alton Towers Resort in Staffordshire, England. This will be discussed at the end along with the hauntings.

During the 1500s, the land was part of an estate belonging to the Moore family. This family were granted 1,700 acres of land by Queen Elizabeth I during 1577, which marked the start of the estate being assembled. During 1641, Thomas Moore built a manor house known as Redwood on the land, although I've found the name of this property may have changed from Redwood to Charleville Forest in later years. Thomas's grandson, Charles Moore, became the first Earl of Charleville during 1758, however the title did lapse in 1764 due to the lack of direct male heirs in the family.

Upon Charles' death, the lands were inherited by the then six months old Charles William Bury; a grand nephew of Charles Moore who had been born into a family who owned land in County Limerick. Charles William Bury went on to become an influential figure in the history of Tullamoore; although his influence couldn't have gotten off to a worse start. During Charles' 21st birthday celebrations, a hot air balloon accidentally crashed into Tullamoore. Due to the village consisting of wooden thatched roof buildings, the village was mostly destroyed by a fire during 1785; a direct result of the hot air balloon crash.

Charles quickly turned the situation around though as a huge rebuild of the Tullamoore took place afterwards, sponsored by the trustees and estate of Charles William Bury. The rebuild saw Tullamoore gain wider streets and more substantial buildings. Charles became Baron Tullamoore during 1797 and, as he had considerable wealth at the time, he decided that he wanted to build a castle. He then employed the renowned architect Sir Francis Johnston to design a castle which would be built near to Tullamoore. The building began during 1798, but the castle was not completed until 1812; fourteen years later. The castle replaced Thomas Moore's Redwood House, and it's even said that the construction of Charleville Castle began a craze of castles being built across Ireland. This isn't surprising if true as some consider Charleville Castle to be the finest neo-gothic castle in all of Ireland. During 1806, Charles William Bury became the first Earl of Charleville following the second creation of the earldom.

Over the course of the following years, the Charleville estate extended to be 24,000 acres, although ownership would change for most of this land, and castle refurbishments occured. Such refurbishments included the additions of stencilling in the dining room, which was designed by William Morris and added during the 1890s. It's also been discovered that the library contains a secret passage leading to the old Church, plus there are a few secret closets and false doors within the castle. Lord Byron even stayed at the castle on a number of occasions, and it's said he never failed to visit if ever he was in Ireland. It's believed Byron liked the location so much due to either the owners eccentricity, or Byron's own. Tullamore also prospered as, in 1893, the village expanded greatly in population and wealth. This was due to it being a terminus for the grand canal, along with it becoming recognised as a county town of the then King's County.

During 1885, the earldom lapsed again; and so the estate passed to a niece of the earl. This niece was Lady Emily. Before 1885, when Lady Emily became married, the family took the name Howard-Bury to meet the terms in the title deeds to the estate they were set to inherit. Lady Emily's son, Colonel Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury, inherited Charleville Castle following Lady Emily's death in 1931. The Colonel was quite a remarkable figure. He escaped prisoner of war camps during World War One twice, and was recognised as an explorer, a diplomat, an amateur botanist, and led the first expedition to climb Mount Everest during 1920/1921. A room in the Royal Geographical Society in London is even named in honour of Colonel Howard-Bury. Plus, following the expedition to the Himalayas, the Colonal won a seat in the house of commons.

Unfortunately, the Colonels care of Charleville Castle did not match the magnitude of his life achievements. After inheriting the location, he left it with minimal staff to look after it. The castle was abandoned for a while after 1912 due to the economical crisis and the War of Independence which occured between the IRA and British government between 1919 and 1921. The Colonel moved to Belvedere House in County Meath, a location he inherited before the castle, and then spent most of his time on an estate he bought in North Africa.

Colonal Howard-Bury died during 1963, and this caused the castle to fall into complete disrepair. The location was uninhabited, and the roof was deliberately damaged and removed in 1968 to avoid paying high local property levies. Due to the condition of the roof, the local authorities deemed the castle a ruin. Thankfully, Charleville Castle has been prevented falling to further ruin. During 1970, a thirty-five year lease was granted by David Hutton-Bury, the heir of the secondary family line, to Michael McMullen. From this point, Michael lived in the castle and worked to restore it. I have found that plans for the restoration were created in 1971, and work began in 1973. I've also found that the roof was renovated during 1968, so I'm not convinced on the accuracy of the renovation timeline. I have found though that by the early 80s, Michael had restored six of the main public rooms.

In 1987, Bridget Vance, possibly also known as Bonnie Vance, and her mother Constance Vance-Heavey, possibly also known as Constance Heavey Seaquist at some point, took over from Michael McMullen. During 1994, the Charleville Castle Heritage Trust was formed. This group is managed by Dudley Stewart and Bridget Vance, and is a non-profit voluntary organisation which gathers funds to maintain, restore, and operate the castle. Luckily, the gallery, the entrance hall, the main staircase, the landing, the library, the morning room, and the dining room didn't suffer any critical damage as the castle fell into decline over the years. The gradual restoration of the castle has been conducted by Irish craftsmen with traditional skills akin to those that originally constructed the location.

Charleville Castle has played host to many events such as various 'Fright Nights', an auction, and 'Dearest Nancy, Darling Evelyn'; a play by the English Chamber Theatre. The auction mentioned was quite possibly the one which occured during either 1948 or 1949 which saw the castle contents being sold off. The castle has also been used as a filming location for 'Becoming Jane' which was released in 2007, and for 'Northanger Abbey' which was also released in 2007.

Hauntings

Charleville Castle has been investigated by many paranormal investigation teams, and has featured on ABC Family's 'Scariest Places On Earth' and 'Ghost Hunters International'. Some call this castle the most haunted castle in Europe, and it is even thought to lie on 'magnetic ley lines'; although there is no scientific evidence of this. These are lines across the globe where it is thought magnetic fields are stronger. It is also believed that the second first Earl, Charles William Bury, practised devil worship and so conducted occult practises within what tour guides refer to as the 'waste not want not' room; but I've found that his practices may have occured in the library and dungeon.

Funnily enough, Charleville has two striking similarities to the nearby Leap Castle regarding it's hauntings. These connections are to do with an owner practising in the occult, and one particular spirit; an elemental. Yes, it is thought that an elemental haunts Charleville Castle along with Leap Castle. In the case of Leap, it has been speculated as to if a previous owner summoned it though their occult practises, or if the Druids who conducted rituals on the site before the castle stood summoned the elemental. The same speculation could occur here in the case of Charleville Castle as it was a Druid site, and an owner is thought to have dabbled in the occult. Apprently a balcony of Charleville Castle is kept locked due to that being the territory of the elemental; a powerful nature spirit, or a collection of spirits in one being.

The most well known spirit of Charleville Castle is an eight year old girl called Harriet. She does show herself, and is dressed in a white and blue dress with ribbons in her blonde hair. Harriet was the daughter of the third Earl of Charleville and died on the 3rd of April 1861 after falling over a staircase handrail after sliding down it. Harriet broke her neck upon impact and was killed instantly. It's said she can be seen with the spirit of a boy of similar age to her. This boy is thought to be her uncle Henry Walter, who died from influenza on London when aged only seven. Even though he died in London, his body was brought back to Charleville Castle in Ireland, and his body was lay to rest in the family vault.

Together, Harriet and Henry are known as 'the terrible twins' due to the jokes they like to play on people. Cold spots can occur on the staircase where Harriet died, and she likes to play hide and seek with visitors. Harriet can also be heard singing and laughing. There is an account of Harriet and Henry locking the daughter of a resident in a closet of her playroom once. Another account is of an experience Bridget Vance has had. One day she couldn't find her three year old son, and thought he had fallen down the stairs. When she found him, he was at the bottom of the stairs, perfectly fine, and he told Bridget that a girl and boy looked after him as he went down the stairs.

Bridget Vance's mum has also had an experience in the castle. One night she was sleeping in the tower and was woken by monks and figures in red cloaks who stood in a circle around her bed uttering blessings. Another ghostly occurence occured when a guest of Bridget's couldn't sleep because they could hear two men having a loud discussion near to their room. They turned on the lights and opened the door, but found that no one was there.

Many strange occurances happen around the castle. Voices have been heard, as have footsteps, and the singing and screaming of children. A white mist has been known to appear throughout the castle, and the ghost of a creepy looking man is said to appear. Apparently one gallery is permanently closed due to the presence of a malevolent spirit who harms residents and guests due to viewing them as trespassers.

It's also been said that the first Earl of Charleville, Charles William Bury, watches over the property in silence from one of the castle towers. Orbs have also been reported, as have the sound of clocks chiming when there are no clocks present, and chairs have been said to rock on their own. Some more experiences include one of the trustees being woken at 3am by a girl singing and then screaming. As the trustee thought someone had broken in, they went to check but found that no one was present. It was presumed the sounds she had heard were Harriet's final moments repeating themselves.

Noises have been heard and a light has been seen on the floor above by someone who was staying in the octagon room. Manic laughter and disembodied voices have been heard coming from the dungeons where prisoners would have been tortured during the 1800s. Knocking on a door has been heard at 1.30am, and when staying in the octagonal red room, an odd noise has been heard at the door which led to the man in the room discovering that the door would not open. Apparently you can see the damage the man did to the door while banging on it to alert someone of him being trapped. When his wife returned, she opened the door with ease as it was not locked.

Strange lights have been seen on the ballroom ceiling, plus people have felt their hair be pulled in the castle. A green mist is also said to appear within one of the bedrooms. The forest around the castle is also said to be haunted by Druid ceremonies and various apparitions,

The King Oak

As mentioned earlier, Charleville Castle features a legend which is near identical to one surrounding an old oak tree at Alton Towers Resort. The legend of the King Oak at Charleville revolves around a 900 year old oak in the castle gardens called the King Oak. It is said that if a branch falls from this tree, then a member of the Bury family will die. During 1963, a bolt of lightning struck the King Oak tree. This bolt nearly split the tree in half, and oddly enough, Colonel Charles Howard-Bury died only a couple of days later without any plausible cause.

The legend of the chained oak in Alton is identical, aside from it featuring more detail regarding a cause of the legend and a consequence. The legend of the chained oak takes the King Oak legend about a member of the family dying upon a branch falling from the oak tree, but adds an Earl encountering a witch who he refuses to give money to. It also adds that the oak is then chained to prevent any branches from falling after one does fall and a member of the Earl's family dies soon after.

Summary of Hauntings

1. Harriet apparition, 8yr old girl

2. Henry Walter apparition, 7yr old boy

3. Daughter locked in playroom closet

4. 3yr old accompanied down the stairs by Harriet and Henry

5. Monk apparitions/figures in red cloaks - utter blessings

6. Disembodied voices, loud male

7. Generic voices heard through the castle

8. Footsteps heard

9. Children screaming heard

10. Children singing heard

11. White mist appears

12. Green mist appears, one of the bedrooms

13. Creepy looking male apparition

14. Malevolent spirit, in one gallery, harms visitors

15. Charles William Bury apparition (first Earl), one of the towers

16. Orbs

17. Druid ceremonies, forest

18. Apparitions, forest

19. Harriet's death replays, audio

20. Manic laughter, dungeons

21. Knocking occurs on doors

22. Doors don't open when unlocked, octagonal red room

23. Audio of clocks chiming when no clocks present

24. Strange lights on the ceiling, ballroom

25. Hair pulled by unseen force

26. Elemental spirit

27. Cursed oak tree, the King Oak

My Thoughts

It's fascinating how this castle shares a story as somewhere in a different country, and that it shares similarities to the nearby Leap Castle. I can't help but wonder if maybe Charleville Castle has nabbed these stories of other locations to boost it's own tourism value. This could certainly be the case with the oak tree as the death around the Chained Oak occured before the one around the King Oak. As for the elemental spirit, people online may have muddled up the two castles due to their proximity. It's also possible that there is actually an elemental at both sites due to the Druid connections of both locations, plus the potential occult dabbling which may have occured in both castles.

I am quite surprised at the lack of events which I've found to occur at Charleville Castle, although it is quite modern for a castle. It's just strange that it has a dungeon and I haven't found any tales of torturers, imprisonment, and death. With twenty-seven individual haunting phenomena I could list, it doesn't surprise me that this castle has been called the most haunted Castle in Europe. However, aside from Harriet, Henry, and the first Earl, it's all very vague and revolves around individual events. There isn't much of a track record to suggest that there are more than three active spirits present in this location, so I wouldn't personally go as far as to say it's the most haunted castle in Europe.

Thank you very much for reading to the end of this post! Please let my know your own thoughts on this location, especially if you've investigated it yourself; I'd love to hear any of your own experiences, along with how haunted you think it is. Alton Towers is my favourite place to visit, so it was a pleasant surprise to discover that Charleville Castle has a story so similar to that of the Chained Oak in Alton. It was also a surprise for me to have read about there being an elemental here along with at Leap Castle.

A special thank you to Damain, Nicolette, The Cornish Ghost Whisperers, and Kerry for your continued support of The True Paranormal. If you want to follow The True Paranormal you can do so on Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter), Instagram, and Tumblr. You can also subscribe to The True Paranormal on YouTube, or directly to this website through the bar on the left which will give you email notifications. That bar also lists all of the links which will take you to The True Paranormal's various social media platforms. If you want to contact me about your own experiences, or about anything at all paranormal, you can email thetrueparanormal1@gmail.com