Haunted Places in Ireland

The thought of Ireland brings up many colorful images: green hills, friendly natives, glasses of
Guinness, medieval castles, the odd fairy or two. But it is also home to many places reputed to be
haunted by ghosts and other turbulent spirits. Here are just a few from the crowded field . . .

St. Michan’s Church - image via Wikipedia

St. Michan’s Church, Dublin

The famously haunted 17th century St. Michan’s Church is in north Dublin and sits on the site of a church built in 1095. Under the church lie 30 mummified bodies. Down a dark stone stairway you’ll walk, into long narrow halls of coffins. Though some are locked shut, others are open, some with a stray arm or leg sticking out. The most notorious gallery displays the dusty remains a woman, a nun and a man with one hand and both feet lopped off. He is believed to have been a thief, and perhaps too tall to fit in the coffin with his feet on. In another nearby coffin lies a man’s body cut in half, though one of his hands is still held aloft. Visitors have heard whispering, disembodied voices and the sounds something being dragged across the floor.

Kilmainham Gaol, Dublin

During Ireland’s fight for independence, the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising were jailed at Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin. All but one (American-born Eamon De Valera) were shot after a short trial, stoking the fires of independence all the more. While visiting, you may meet up with the ghosts of former inmates and wardens—the wardens’ ghosts have the reputation of being the more frightening and threatening. The prison’s chapel is said to be its most haunted part.

Malahide Castle, County Dublin

For 800 years, till 1976, Malahide Castle was the official home of the Talbot family. In medieval times a jester named Puck served the castle. Not following social convention, he fell in love with a lady well above his station—a noblewoman visiting the castle with Lady Elenora Fitzgerald.
One night Puck was stabbed in the heart outside the castle walls. He lived long enough to swear to those who found him that he would haunt the castle after death. Visitors claim to sense the presence of the jester throughout the castle, but in 1976 he made a special appearance, no doubt disturbed by the sale and removal of all of the Talbot family belongings.

Ballygally Castle (now a Hotel) - image via Wikipedia

Ballygally Castle, County Antrim

Along the stunning County Antrim coastline in the North sits Ballygally Castle, constructed in 1625. In the central tower of the castle walks the ghost of Lady Isobel Shaw. She is said to awaken guests of the castle by knocking on their bedroom doors in the middle of the night.

Royal Opera House, Belfast

Actors who have played the Royal Opera House, a stately Victorian theater in Belfast, have spoken of seeing a face appear, staring in through a window from the outside. An unknown figure wearing long black robes has been known to walk the stage area, and people who have walked onto the stage alone have had the feeling they were being followed. The Northern Ireland Paranormal Research Association has made recorded contact with two long dead stagehands, a cleaner and an electrician whose ghosts still roam the theater.

Fairy Tree, County Fermanagh

About a mile outside the town of Garrison in County Fermanagh there lies a field with a tree dubbed “the fairy tree” by locals, as it is said to be inhabited by elementals, also known as nature folk. Sitting under the tree can provoke ghost sightings, voices calling your name, and the feeling of small flutterings in your face—fairies, perhaps, since they’re winged.

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