Dating back to the 1100s, Malahide Castle is one of the oldest castles in the country. With its stunning gardens, picturesque picnic areas and prime gigging grounds less than a half hour's drive from Dublin city centre, it's easy to see why it's one of the county's best-loved spots for a family day out.
The castle may be renowned for hosting both domestic and international musicians who come to play on its grounds but it’s also known as the home of several spirits from the estate’s past. Staff, visitors and even celebrity guests have reported paranormal activity over the years.
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Some claims more generally refer to strange and inexplicable happenings such as doors slamming unprovoked or taps and locks turning by themselves. Others report an encounter with one of six specific figures from the estate's past, now believed to haunt the castle as ghosts.
We decided to take a look at the famous ghosts of Malahide Castle - and the stories behind them. Between the betrayals of lovers and kings, a celeb-taunting jester and a painting come-to-life, the history behind the haunting of this castle is a colourful one.
A lover scorned
Three of the reported spirits who inhabit the castle are connected in a love triangle (or square?) of sorts. Sir Walter Hussey, son of the Baron of Galtrim, died on his wedding day in 1429. The young lord was betrothed to Maud Plunkett, daughter of the Baron of Killeen, but the couple’s time together was short-lived.
One story suggests Walter was ambushed and murdered on the way to his wedding, while another suggests he married his bride but was killed in a local battle mere hours later. Either way, his ghost is said to haunt Malahide Castle, groaning and pointing to the spear with which he was stabbed in the side.
His groaning is thought to be caused not only by the pain of being stabbed, but by the pain of being betrayed by his wife. Maud remarried not long after Walter’s death, allegedly to one of his rivals.
Marital woes
The story goes that this second marriage also didn’t last long for whatever reason and Maud was married a third time to a Lord Chief Justice. By this stage, she had become paranoid, insecure and even possessive over her final husband.
The pair were said to have argued incessantly, with the Lord Chief Justice walking away and Maud following in his trail. Today, her ghost reportedly chases the ghost of her last husband down the castle corridors - pursuing him in death as she did in life.
The dismembered regicide
The fourth ghost said to haunt Malahide Castle is that of Miles Corbet, an English politician and one of the 59 signatories of King Charles I’s death warrant. Upon Charles I’s execution in 1649, Miles was granted the estate of Malahide Castle by Oliver Cromwell, and was later appointed Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer in 1655.
King Charles II was restored to power in 1660, putting a target on every MP who signed the death warrant of his father. Considered a regicide, Miles fled to the Netherlands, where he was captured and returned to England for trial.
Convicted of high treason, Miles was executed at Tyburn gallows in April 1662. His spirit is said to return to Malahide Castle to this day, particularly on the anniversary of his death.
Sightings over the years have claimed his ghost appears in full body armour and breaks into four pieces. This matches his body’s final form at the time of death, as records show he was hanged, drawn and quartered for his part in betraying the monarchy.
Portrait of a lady
There have also been a number of sightings of a ghostly woman referred to as ‘the White Lady’, which is connected to a portrait of a woman in the castle’s Great Hall. The anonymous woman, who wears a flowing white dress, is said to emerge from her painting and walk the estate’s grounds on occasion.
Puck the prankster
The best-known ghostly resident of Malahide Castle, however, is a mischievous spirit named Puck, who lived there during the reign of Henry VIII. Puck was reportedly a four-foot-tall watchman who also served as a jester to a generation of the Talbots, the aristocratic family who were in possession of the estate for around 800 years (apart from the Cromwellian period in which it was under the control of Miles Corbet).
There are several stories surrounding Puck and his demise. Some say he died by suicide in the tower room he called home, either because he was rejected by a kinswoman he fell in love with, or because he was distracted enough by her to fail in his duties.
Others say he was found dying just outside castle walls after being stabbed one night. Dressed in full jester garb, he reportedly used his last breath to vow that he’d haunt the castle forever.
Despite that version of events sounding rather menacing, Puck has historically been regarded as a non-threatening spirit whose “haunting” of the castle more so revolves around protecting it - and pranking those within its walls. Talbot family letters are said to mention his continued presence for generations, referring to a sense that he was still acting as a watchman centuries after his death.
In recent years, his ghost has been known to appear around his old tower, on the staircase or in his room. Even US singer Lizzo claims to have had a run-in with the jester while on tour.
The Grammy winner visited the castle with her team ahead of a sold-out Dublin gig in 2019. Speaking to Tracy Clifford on 2FM at the time, Lizzo recalled how Puck pranked the group the day prior.
“The minstrel, his name is Puck, he f****d with us,” she said. “He took my phone and he put it in my dancer’s pocket, it was so crazy.
“They looked all over the castle for it. Then we called it and it was in my dancer’s pocket outside. She was like, ‘How did it get in here?’
“It happened after I knocked on his door. It’s so creepy in there but so beautiful.”
Have you ever had a paranormal encounter with the Malahide Castle ghosts? Let us know in the comments below.
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