Mary King's Close
Mary King's Close, also known as 'The Real Mary King's Close', is located in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland. This location is not your typical building, but instead is a 'close' which is a Scottish term for a narrow alleyway. While not knowing exactly when the close came to be, the earliest information I've found about it dates to the 1500s. As this location was a cramped and tightly packed area, it was heavily effected by the plague until the plague began to disappear from Scotland after 1660. The close itself was reopened to the public during 1685. The unique thing about this location is it resembles an underground street. It's 'roof' was added when the Royal Exchange was built above it during 1753. The close has had a few names over the years, but it's current name comes from someone believed to have once lived here; Mary King. She was seemingly an influential woman, and gained the ability to vote as a woman three hundred years before women achieve the same voting rights as men.
Mary King is one of the figures believed to haunt the close, and it's said she appears as a woman in black. The most well-known haunting is that of a little girl called 'Annie' who people leave dolls for. This is because when a medium discovered this spirit, she said Annie was sad due to being left by her family and that she is looking for her doll. The final resident of the close, Andrew Chesney, is suspected to haunt the location. Other ghostly activity such as footsteps and voices have also been reported.
History
Before discussing the close itself, it's important to briefly discuss how Edinburgh was built. Due to it's geography, and the city being enclosed in a medieval defence known as the Flodden Wall; instead of growing outwards as cities traditionally do, Edinburgh expanded upwards. This method of growth has led to people claiming that Edinburgh is the home of the world's first skyscrapers. As for the lanes and alleyways formed, they were known as 'wynds' and 'closes'. The closes had gates to protect residents who lived in the close from thieves or worse during the nights. This particular close has had a few names through the years, and the names for closes took inspiration from businesses, activities, and essential people. Examples of this include Fleshmarket Close, which was the city's abattoir, and Anchor Close, which was named after a tavern there. During 1530, which is the year the Edinburgh streets first gained names, it was known as 'John Towris Close' after Towris of Inverleith. It was also known as 'Livingston's Close' after burgess Henry Livingston. During the 1600s it was renamed yet again to 'Alexander King's Close' due to his prominent work as a lawyer in the city. Finally, during 1694, it gained it's current name of 'Mary King's Close'.
During the 1500s and 1600s, most people lived in this particular close, and by the 1600s Edinburgh was the most populated city in Scotland. As a result, and due to the cramped conditions, there was hardly any sanitation. It was the second largest street in Edinburgh at the time, with the first being the Royal Mile, and so it was used as a market. Apparently though, the Royal Mile is made up of closes and one of these is Mary King's Close. I've found that Mary King's Close is one of the closes located beneath the Old Town buildings, and that these buildings are on the Royal Mile. So, technically it's beneath the Royal Mile and not on it like the other buildings and main entrance are. This is a good indication as to how Edinburgh developed, and it shows how the houses were built vertically. Some of them were up to fourteen storeys high.
Mary King's Close has eight layers, and apparently these layers are made of a cluster of several closes connected by small alleyways and walkways. The rich, such as successful merchants, lawyers, and doctors, owned 'high' houses. The people who lived in the 'low' houses were anyone from tradesmen to the poorest people, and these houses were mostly dark and lacking of sanitation. During the 1500s, Sir Simon Preston, the Lord Provost of Craigmillar Castle, owned a house in this close. He was one of the last people to have sympathy for Mary, Queen of Scots, and she actually spent her last night in Edinburgh in this close during 1567 after losing the battle of Carberry Hill. This battle wasn't a typical one with soldiers, but was one featuring a series of negotiations. While Mary stayed in this close, she was constantly watched by guards due to most people wanting her dead at the time. After her stay, she was taken to be imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle.
Another event from the 1500s involved the murder of Alexander Cant. It seems his murder may have occured in the close during 1535. He was murdered by his wife, Katherine, and her mother, Alison Rough. Alexander had sued Alison for not paying all of Katherine's dowry and so was beaten to death with a pair of fire tongs. Alison was executed through drowning in Nor' Loch and, as Katherine was pregnant at the time, her daughter escaped punishment. Katherine escaped beyond giving birth because she fled to England, and then she fled to Germany.
It was at the end of the 1500s that Mary King was born. We don't know anything about her pre-married life; and despite sharing the same surname as Alexander King, who died during 1619, there is no evidence to show that she was related to him. Mary married Thomas Nimmo during 1616 and, despite tradition, she kept her last name as King. The two had four children together: Alexander, Euphame, Jonet, and William. During 1629, Thomas died and so left Mary to raise their children alone. In his testament, he left Mary a title which named her a burgess. She gained a seat on the Edinburgh Council, and this is what granted her voting rights before women achieved the same voting rights as men during 1928. This put Mary as being three hundred years ahead of her time. Mary was also a fabric merchant who sewed for a living, and so sold clothes and cloth to support her family,
Due to Mary being a merchant, it made sense for her to move to what was known as 'Alexander King's Close' at the time. She bought two properties: her 'turnpike hoose', which was a taxed house with a cellar, and her 'laigh forbooth', which was her stall. It was during 1635 that Mary brought her family to the close, and she lived here until her death which occured during 1644. It has been said that she lived until 1645, but this seems incorrect. It has also been said the plague hit Edinburgh during 1644, but the correct year for this seems to be 1645; or at least, that's when the worst of the plague hit. It seems Mary died before the plague occured.
There is some controversy around Mary King and if she lived in the close. Historic Environment Scotland says a Mary King lived nearby, but that there is no record of anyone of that name living in this particular close. However, the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments Scotland says she was the daughter of Alexander King and lived in the close. So, it seems she definitely existed, and was clearly prominent to have the close named after her; but no one seems to know for sure exactly who she was and where she lived. Today's attraction, 'The Real Mary King's Close', which runs tours of the close tell the story of her being a widow who moved to the close with her kids. Very little is known about Mary King, but she has been called a fiercely independent woman. She also led a family comfortable life and worked hard.
Mary never lived to see her name be recognised as the first recognition of Mary King's Close was in a council meeting fifty years after she had died. She left the following items in her will: 2 gold rings, 6 silver spoons, a long settill (a wooden bench), 3 buffet stools, 2 pairs of tongs, a variety of fire-irons, 2 tinned chamber pots, wine, and beer. Mary was left with very little money in the end, but the collection left in her will shows she used her money to buy finer things for herself. She had a taste for luxurious things in life such as fine wines and imported ceramics.
As mentioned earlier, the sanitation of the close was very little and it did lead to the plague spreading. Funnily enough, the first ghost stories of the close originated during the 1600s and it's thought these stories were due to Nor' Loch. Mary King's Close was located beside the old Nor' Loch, which at the time was a heavily polluted swamp used for dumping rubbish. It's been rumoured that Nor' Loch was used for drowning witches in Scotland, which was a practise known as 'dunking'. Poisonous gas would come from the swamp, and this gas caused hallucinations and a greenish light which was mistaken for ghosts. This Loch was eventually drained during the 1820s to become today's Princes Street Gardens. There were other hazards and misfortunes in the close aside poisonous gas. Oil lamps containing fish oil were used to light the close and worshops, such as the tanner's, used horse urine for their leather making process. This process was a danger to public health. Plus, between the hours of 10pm and 7am, people were allowed to throw buckets filled with bodily waste into the street. This action was accompanied by the waste thrower shouting what sounded like 'gardyloo'. This phrase came from the French 'gardez l'eau' which meant 'watch out for the water'. With these conditions, it's really no surprise that Mary King's Close was hit hard with the plague.
Regarding which plague, this plague has been referred to as the Black Death. However, the first wave of the Black Death occured between 1347 and 1351 with the second wave, which saw a new virulent strain, occuring during the 1500s. The plague has also been reported to be 'The Great Plague', but this occured during 1665 and 1666. Looking more into plagues, Edinburgh was hit by two types of plague at the time. These were the bubonic plague and the pneumonic plague. The bubonic plague caused boils which grew to the size of oranges, and the pneumonic plague effected the respiratory system which resulted in coughing and internal bleeding. These plagues were caused by the bacterium Yersinia Pestis, which was the Black Death, but it seems the specific plague which occured in Edinburgh during 1645 hasn't been labeled as anything specific like this aside perhaps 'The Great Plague of Edinburgh'.
The overcrowding led to the plague spreading rapidly, and apparently 300 infected residents were sealed in the close as this was the only way to prevent the spread. It is a myth that the victims were walled up and left to die, and instead they were quarantined in their houses. The residents would hang white rags outside of their houses if they were in need of supplies such as food or coal. A plague doctor would visit them too. At the time it was believed the plague was caused by 'bad air', also known as a miasma, and it was actually caused by fleas which were carried by rats. Due to these details, plague doctors would were thick leather coats which protected against flea bites, and they would wear a bird mask with a beak containing herbs to block out the smells of the bad air.
Edinburgh's first plague doctor was John Paulitious, and he died in weeks. The plague doctor of Mary King's Close was George Rae, and part of his job was to cut away the boils and then cauterize the wound with a hot poker. The city council promised Dr Rae a large sum of money as a reward, presuming he would die doing the job. He didn't die, and the council refused to give him the money they promised. George Rae spent ten years fighting to receive his pay. Some say he died without receiving it, but others say he was successful. Apparently he received a payout of £1,200 Scots per year following the ten years. He later died from tuberculosis, although some people apparently believe he was murdered. There were also people known as 'foul clengers' who frequented the close during the time of the plague. These people would clean homes and dispose of the dead.
Another figure of Mary King's Close during the 1600s is Dr Arnott. He trained at the Royal College for Physicians and Surgeons, specialised in internal medicine, and was the local physician of Mary King's Close. He drunk urine to determine the health of his patients, which is an old medical practise dating to the ancient Greeks as it is believed Hippocrates drunk urine to determine the health of his patients. Following the plague, Mary King's Close re-opened to the public during 1685 and, as mentioned earlier, the close was officially renamed to Mary King's Close during 1694.
During the 1750s, the council decided that they wanted to create a 'covered place of exchange' which would keep merchants off the streets from around Mercat Cross and St. Giles. As a result, they built the Royal Exchange across a seven year period. This cropped the tops off many buildings in Mary King's Close and created the vaulted ceiling which can be seen today. Being covered by the Royal Exchange's foundations is what led to the close seeming like an underground village. The exact year the Royal Exchange was built is 1753, but I don't know if this is when construction finished or began. Merchants didn't want their trade inside the exchange, so they continued their business outside. Due to this, the council changed the Royal Exchange into the City Chambers and used it themselves.
By the 1750s, the close was in the same state as other closes. There was decay, intense overcrowding, and political upheaval; however it was never abandoned. I have found that the close was apparently effected by a great fire during 1750, however only one source has said this. There was a Great Fire of Edinburgh, but this broke out on the 15th of November 1824. I've found no information about this fire effecting the close, likely because the close was effectively underground at the time. The other end of the close, presumably not effected by the Royal Exchange, was demolished during 1853 so that Cockburn Street could be built.
The final resident of Mary King's Close was Andrew Chesney. During 1897, Andrew was given a compulsory purchase order for £400 because the City Chambers were being extended and this would completely seal up the close. He was a saw maker with a workshop in the close, and so he got away with remaining there. It was illegal to live underground in Edinburgh, but technically Andrew was only working underground and so didn't leave until 1902. An odd detail about Andrew is he was especially proud of his toilet, which he would call his 'thunderbox'. He would leave the door open while on it and wave at people who walked past.
Apparently Mary King's Close was rediscovered during the 1930s following a series of excavations. It was then used as an air raid shelter by council members during World War Two. There is slightly contradicting information regarding when the close first opened as a tourist attraction. It seems like tours of the close were available during the 1990s, and they were run by Mercat Tours, but it didn't officially open as a tourist attraction until 2003. It was during the June of 2003 that King Charles, who at the time was Prince Charles, visited the close for it's opening year. During his visit, he gifted a wooden chest which sat at the foot of a doll pile which belonged to one of the resident spirits, Annie. This box was used to collect donations for local charities, and is now displayed in the admissions office which is on the Royal Mile. Regarding the dolls, donations are given to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh. The attraction has collected nearly £100,000 in donations from Annie's room, and this money goes to local charities.
The attraction is called 'The Real Mary King's Close', and is run by Continuum Attractions. They were chosen to develop and operate the attraction by the City of Edinburgh Council, and they also run The Loch Ness Centre, Oxford Castle and Prison, and York's Chocolate Story. Tours of the close include dressed up tour guides, but there are no actors dressed as ghosts, and none of the actors are there to scare you. TripAdvisor named the attraction as the Best Visitor Attraction in the UK in the 2024 travellers' choice awards. It's main entrance is located at 2 Warriston's Close on the High Street, Royal Mile. It's also Edinburgh's only preserved street from the 1600s.
Hauntings
During 1685, Thomas Coltheart and his wife moved to the close. Thomas was a respected lawyer at the time, and so in some ways it makes this story a little more credible for him to have legitimately experienced. Apparently their maidservant fled the house almost immediately while claiming it to be haunted. Coltheart and his wife later saw a disembodied man's head floating around the house, and it disappeared shortly after. It later returned with a child's spirit and a severed arm. A spghost dog also appeared, ran through the living room while being followed by a ghost cat, and the whole room filled with creatures who they claimed 'danced around prettily'. A deep groan filled the room and all of the ghosts disappeared. The dog appeared again in later accounts and would curl up on a chair.
The final resident of the close, Andrew Chesney, is also thought to haunt the location. His ghost is seen as a worried looking man wandering through the alleys. There is also a woman in black who is believed to be Mary King. Scrathing sounds have been reported coming from a chimney, and apparently it's believed to be where a child sweeper died. People who have put their hands into this chimney claim to be scratched. Footsteps and voices are heard around the entire close, and occasionally stones are thrown. It's also believed plague victims haunt the close and knocks are heard. The shadow of a tall man was captured on a video, and during the May of 2008 what looked like an apparition was caught on camera. This apparition was a tall human-like figure standing in the doorway at the top of the close, and the image was captured around midnight on Saturday the 11th of May. It also occured a few hours after Richard Felix had hosted a ghost hunt in this location.
Arguably the most well known spirit of the close is that of Annie. During 1992, the Japanese medium Aiko Gibo visited the close and found the spirit of a little girl crying in the corner of a room where the psychic experienced a heavy feeling of dread and a tugging on her trousers. The child told the medium that she was sad because she couldn't find her family and she lost her doll. It's thought the girl is roughly nine years old, and that she was probably infected with the plague and so was abandoned by her family through fear of infection. The medium bought a new doll for the child and left it in her room. Many other dolls have been left since, and Annie promised not to bother anyone anymore as long as she could keep her doll. Apparently, all dolls except for the original are donated to the Sick Kids Friends Foundation.
On the 17th of April 2019, the original doll gifted by the medium went missing. The doll was part of the Daisy Doll airline collection and was designed by the Mary Quant fashion designer. It was nicknamed 'Tartan Barbie', and a social media search for the doll was organised under #BringBackTheDoll. It was originally suspected that it could have fallen into the pile of dolls for donation, but it was not found with them. Although there is no record of a girl called Annie having lived on the close, Annie was possibly the unnamed daughter of Jean McKenzie. Jean's name was recorded during the plague in Allan's Close. Unexplained temperature changes have been felt in Annie's room.
Summary Of Hauntings
1. Andrew Chesney, worried looking man - wanders through alleys
2. Mary King, woman in black
3. Annie, roughly 9 year old plague victim - Annie's Room
4. Footsteps - entire close
5. Voices - entire close
6. Stones thrown
7. Temperature drops - Annie's Room
8. Shadow figures (?) - top of close
9. Scraching sounds - a chimney
10. People scratched - a chimney
11. Plague victims
12. Knocks
My Thoughts
You will notice that I didn't include any of Thomas Coltheart's experiences in the summary of hauntings, and there is a specific reason for that. It's a similar reason why I've put a question mark next to the shadow figures. As mentioned earlier in the article, Nor' Loch gave off hallucinogenic gas during the time Thomas will have had his experience. This gas did effect residents in the close, and this is what I believe led to Thomas' experience. Having researched a number of locations, I have a decent feel as to how extreme activity can realistically be; and Thomas' experience sounds like a story created by a child's overactive imagination due to how much occurs. This is why I confidently believe it was a hallucinations caused by the gas and conditions in the close; so do not expect to experience what Thomas did if ever you visit this location.
I've placed a question mark beside the shadow figures because I know how easily false images can be captured which appear like genuine apparitions. Plus, I haven't found any reports of shadow figures outside of reference to the image and video. Specifically regarding the image from 2008, there has been speculation that it was captured for tourism reasons. It seems very coincidental that it was caught only a few hours after Richard Felix, known from Most Haunted, was hosting a ghost hunt. I'm not saying that specifically he faked the image though, I'm just saying there is tourism and publicity to be gained from such events and such captures.
This logic can also be applied to the story of Annie. Apparently the Japanese medium Aiko Gibo has a record of going to locations and claiming a girl is present after tugging on the medium, whether that be on the medium's thumb, arms, or trousers. The reason I haven't put a question mark beside this one is I don't know enough about the medium to deem them as being false with what they've said. I do believe people can genuinely be psychic, and as lots of money has been raised for charity through Annie's story; I want it to be real. I know that's being bias due to a sob story, but I don't have enough evidence or knowledge to go against this one like I have with others.
As for the spirits of Mary and Andrew, I agree they could be present. They lived on the close, and so I think that's enough for them to possibly haunt it. I'm more skeptical of the chimney sweep as I haven't found at all much about this one. Hopefully I will get to visit this location soon, and if I find that chimney then I'm definitely going to test it to see if I get scratched. I do think the voices and footsteps could occur, although I presume the acoustics in such a location would very easily play tricks on you.
Thank You!
Thank you for reading this article! Before writing it, I was aware of the location due to having written about the Edinburgh Vaults, and so I was intrigued to see what the history of such a place would be like. I definitely do think this location would be haunted, especially by plague victims. I just don't know how willing I am to believe what is claimed go haunt the location knowing how much tourism and publicity can factor into these things. The next article will be published on Friday the 20th of December/Saturday the 21st of December due to me travelling to Scotland on the 20th. This article will document a paranormal experience. The following locaiton article will hopefully be uploaded on Monday the 23rd of December, and it will document a location in Cornwall. As I'm on holiday from the 20th until the 30th, articles may end up being delayed; however, I will try to keep them on schedule.
A special thank you goes to Damain, Nicolette, Kerry, GD, Gran, Chris Willcx, Nicola Jada, Nita Raveling-Hamilton, David Lee Jones, theinoculator, 1141520851813892291920, Angeles Wernicke Zapiola, Ke v, Crispinfandom, Thiago Lima, Edgar Darnell, Megzii Hughes, SPIDEY/theronwhittet, Baptist Dsouza, Mike Olsvig, Karin Beasant, Jacqueline Dixon, Beth Beauxis, Andy Lindon, Tracy Lindon, Cambria A Sheridan, warIIikeparakeetiii, Perkeleen Rotta, archivistforager, Saun Evans from Lift Hills and Thrills, Jacks-and-graves, The Cornish Ghost Whispers, Beardo Gets Scared, Starlight Phoenix Paranormal, Paranormal Penny Pinchers, the Australian Paranormal Society, Codegas Codex of Curiousity, Phantom Detectives LLC, Shadow Walkers Paranormal Investigators, South Of Spooky, Don't Scare Claire, blogparanormalexpresso2stuff, Paranormal Connections, Phantom Seekers Paranormal, chatibelieveinghosts, Purbeck Paranormal Investigators, Ghost Investigations, ParanormalTruthNetwork, haunted, Kev Kerr Paranormal, Verona Ghosts, Conjure Quest Paranormal Investigations, Edge Paranormal Research, Soulsearchers Northumbria, and Tamworth Castle for your continued support of The True Paranormal. If you want to be thanked in an article, or in the monthly appreciation post I make across social media, then please share my articles and tag 'The True Paranormal'. If I see that you've shared, then I will publicly thank you!
If you want to follow The True Paranormal you can do so on Facebook, Tik Tok, Instagram, YouTube, X (formerly known as Twitter), Tumblr, and Pinterest. 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
A Donation Message
If you've enjoyed this article, it would be massively appreciated if you could donate anything you can towards The True Paranormal. With your donations, I can continue to build up the database and document haunted locations, paranormal experiences, the individuals who are involved in the paranormal, plus more. If you are interested in donating, then you can do so when I am live on tiktok. If you donate, I will be sure to thank you across social media and in my articles. Anything donated is much appreciated.
Thank you very much to b0nez67, enthusiastic_bum_muncher, ssjb.17, frankiesbarbers, niamh.gallagher10, leomowatt, preppy-chloe11, autistic willy wonka, Rishi, Shay, Ruaridh, Brainrot mash, Erikthompson1971, Rhianna.private, Niamh, Boris, SPIDEY/theronwhittet, Jamie, LLA, kay1, UnknownUserOffical, JOSHY, Spoon., josh.309, Meeehow, evan.cowell1, D.Thornton, Leo, Maisy, Fr@nkie0'Reilly, ParanormalExplorationsuk, *.chloe.*, Sel, . , Zoro, Bertie boy, j.br2590, MIKOsousa, Natedog, PETER IS BACK, matsdyrnes, Josh, liampxyne, z7moz, GratsTrash, @ryan_yates26, and bencottis for your amazing donations on tiktok. Anyone else I see donate after a tiktok stream has finished will be added to this thank you list. I'm really sorry if I miss any names as I don't know if tiktok tells me everyone who has donated, but I will try my best to thank you all.
Sources I Have Used
10. Culture Trip
11. Skype Travels
12. Edinburgh Live
15. Truly Edinburgh
16. The History Mom
19. History Skills
21. Hotels.com
22. City Days
23. Haunted Rooms
24. Travel SETU
25. Kiddle
26. Edinburgh Tips
28. Scotland.com
30. Wikiwand
31. Traveling Boy
32. J. H. Moncrieff
33. Daily Record
37. Sophie's World
40. Travel Darkly
41. Atlas Obscura
49. Eerie Edinburgh
52. The Scotsman
55. Spooky Isles
56. The Ghost Club
58. The BS Historian
59. Business Insider
60. Ariescape
61. Planet Cruise
62. Dark Hauntings
65. Higgypop
66. Moon Mausoleum
68. Huffpost
Comments
Post a Comment