Is Scotland really a land of ghosts?
Scotland likes to play the mystery and paranormal card... and it does it very well! In fact, official websites listing ghost hunters' reports indicate a good thousand spectral apparitions in recent years. Whether you believe in it or not, visiting a haunted site or castle is an experience that can give you the shivers. And the sheer number of sites where spooky stories have taken place suggests that yes, Scotland is indeed a land of ghosts!
The lost souls are sometimes warriors - a Spanish soldier killed during the first Jacobite revolution in Eilean Donan Castle -, former prisoners - in Edinburgh Castle -, women who passed away under obscure conditions - a Grey Lady inInveraray Castle or a Green Lady in Crathes Castle -, and even children - a little girl wearing a plaid dress in Dunnottar Castle. A white lady is said to hover in the haunted tower of St. Andrews Cathedral. Phantasmagorical apparitions also haunt battlefields: on the anniversary of the massacre, screams can still be heard in the valley of Glencoe; similarly, screams, the clash of swords and gunfire can be heard at night on the battlefield of Culloden.
A more recent and even more frightening phenomenon is the passage of a ghostly train over the old Tay Bridge near Dundee. On December 28, 1879, two years after its inauguration, the building was severely weakened by a storm. It collapsed as a passenger train passed by, leaving no survivors. On the anniversary of the disaster, a ghost train would appear between the still visible remains of the old bridge.
Here the brownies are not eaten, they are observed joyfully!
Scotland is a land of predilection for lovers of imaginary worlds. In addition to the famous unidentified monster undulating under the waters of Loch Ness, it unveils, to those who know how to see or imagine them, a number of creatures, each one more fantastic, joyful or frightening than the next. All it takes is a movement as precise as it is unexpected or, on the contrary, a very precise ritual - sliding with your right foot on an oak leaf and with your left on an elder leaf (it's acrobatic!), carry a hawthorn flower in your pocket, greet the first dust devil you see with a magic formula - only to see a nymph, elves, goblins... The latter, called brownies, are joyful creatures, whisky and beer lovers, poets and bibliophiles. It seems that a few pinches of tobacco attract them, said, about them, the elficologist Pierre Dubois. Be careful not to come across a "Red Cap", recognizable, as its name indicates, by its red cap. The Scottish equivalent of the bogeyman, he watches for the lost walker to slit his throat. His cap needs its natural scarlet dye to keep its bright color!
Walk in the footsteps of King Arthur
The legendary King Arthur, king of Brittany (the small and the large) is very famous here. Scotland, too, is often cited in Arthurian romances. It has its own version of the Arthurian legend, which it has folklorized. The mythologizing of certain places is even quite recent.
In every corner of the country, events and sites bear witness to her passage and the great battles she fought. It is even said that Camelot, the castle of the good sovereign, is located in Scotland... although no specific location has yet been put forward. Edinburgh's legendary heritage includes Arthur's Seat. Situated at the top of a volcano, in a wild setting in the heart of the city, it offers a sublime panoramic view of the capital and the Forth Estuary. In Glasgow, Arthur is said to have fought one of his worst enemies: Caw. He also fought the Picts on the shores of Loch Lomond and in the Dumfries & Galloway (Battle of Coit Celidon), near Ardderydd. Along Hadrian's Wall, in Sewing Shields, an area that is now English but was often Scottish, lies one of Arthur's presumed sleeping places.
Other characters in the Arthurian story have links with Scotland. Gauvain, King Arthur's nephew, is originally from the Orkney Islands, being the son of King Lot of Orkney. He can be traced back to Rosslyn: the shields and various figurations in the chapel depict him, which is plausible, since the building was built by a Sinclair, Earl of Orkney. It is highly probable that he chose to commemorate this mythical ancestor of his family.
Merlin also left his mark on Scotland. In Stobo Kirk, the church features a stained-glass window in which Merlin (Myrddin) is shown being converted to the Christian faith by Saint Kentigern, the first bishop of Glasgow (c. 550-612), also known as Mungo. The Scots, like the Bretons and other Celtic peoples, claim his grave on their lands. He is said to be buried near Powsail Burn, also known as Drumelzier Burn.
Scotland and its many religions
As we can see with Reverend Kirk or the Arthurian mythology related to the Grail, the Christian religion is never far away. It is also at the heart of Scottish history. The Presbyterian (Protestant) Church founded by John Knox is recognized as the official church even though the separation of powers between church and state is well in place. The Roman Catholic Church is also widely represented, with 20% of the population, concentrated mainly in the Central West. The various waves of immigrants, mainly from southern Asia, have also brought their religions: Hinduism, Sikhism and Islam, which is very much practiced in Scotland, which hosts many Islamic centers and mosques. Judaism and Buddhism are also represented, but in a more minority way. Let us quote, for the latter, an island belonging to it and where it set up a Buddhist center opened to the visits and retreats: Holy Isle (on the west coast).
