Greyfriars Churchyard.

© Brian Allan 2000

The motivation behind this case was created by a steady stream of newspaper articles concerning bizarre occurrences at Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh. The reports alleged that ‘evil spirits’ had caused poltergeist type attacks on upwards of fifty visitors within the confines of the churchyard, particularly the old Covenanters Prison.

Historically, the term ‘Covenanter’ applied to Scots Presbyterians who rejected the ecclesiastical modernisation’s of King Charles I of England. This took the Episcopalian view that the church be governed by a hierarchy of bishops, plus various changes in religious practise. Ultimately, this precipitated the anti-covenanter ‘Bishops Wars’ which proved financially disastrous for Charles I, culminating in the English Civil War in which a Covenanter army fought against the crown. Following the restoration of the Monarchy in1660, the Covenanters began their period of martyrdom. The covenant was declared illegal and for the next 25 years the signatories suffered brutal persecution. Attempts to restore their religious beliefs resulted in three rebellions in 1666,1679 and 1685 all were viciously suppressed. The prison dates from 1679, when some 1200 Covenanters were imprisoned within the churchyard awaiting trial. The ‘attacks’ have caused people affected to be pushed or bumped and sometimes hurled to the ground, in nine cases the victims were allegedly knocked unconscious. The supposed assaults are frequently attributed to the ruthless 17^th century Lord Advocate, George MacKenzie, who’s earthly remains, ironically, lie within a vault, dubbed, rather theatrically, ‘The Black Mausoleum’ in the Covenanters Prison, There are claims that certain visitors entering his vault have been possessed by an entity.

This recent activity is not an isolated occurrence, the churchyard has been the scene of a variety of alleged psychic phenomena over the centuries, some witnessed by more than one person. The term ‘Covenanters Prison’, perhaps gives a slightly misleading impression of the area, conjuring up the impression of a vast gloomy edifice. In fact, the ‘prison’ is an open rectangular area around 100 meters in length and perhaps 20 meters wide. For its entire length it is lined on both sides with tombs and vaults, most of them open to the sky. Only two have a roof: the tomb of George ‘the bloody’ MacKenzie, and another, locked, unnamed tomb a few yards away. MacKenzie’s fearsome reputation was richly deserved, known as a hanging judge, he took great delight in condemning the Covenanters to their deaths on the gallows. As we later discovered, his tomb was the scene of other, more recent abominations.

One of the victims, college lecturer Amanda Hamilton of Portobello experienced feelings of suffocation, as if a hand had been placed over her face. She also claimed to have been left with large bruises on her neck and face. Ms. Hamilton had been taking part in a guided tour of the area when, abruptly, she found it difficult to breath. She started to feel dizzy and passed out. Regaining consciousness, she found herself sitting on the ground; other people on the tour helped her to her feet and asked if she was OK. According to Ms. Hamilton, she would not re-enter the churchyard again. There are several explanations for this, all of them more likely than an encounter with a poltergeist. The tour organiser Jan Henderson claims that this type of incident occurs on an average of once a month, the usual outcome being cuts and bruises. I have to say that having attended similar tours, the guide is not above hyping the situation for dramatic affect. This is certainly true on tours of the so-called ‘underground city’ near the Royal Mile, which include a great deal of atmospheric detail.

Recently, the Rev Colin Grant a spiritualist minister, made an attempt to ‘exorcise’ or cleanse the area after allegedly discovering the spirits of ‘hundreds’ of men in the prison grounds. We have, during an investigation at Stirling Castle experienced a similar situation in the Elphinstone Tower where two psychics sensed the presence of dozens of people awaiting execution. The feeling of oppression was almost tangible. Mr.Grant is reported to have attempted the cleansing armed with the traditional weapons of bible and crucifix. At the first attempt, he refused to proceed beyond the gates, evidently fearing reprisals from the spirits. He did return at a later date, but was unable to make contact with the spirit of MacKenzie. Sadly, Mr.Grant, who suffered from a heart condition, passed away recently while conducting a seance at his premises in Edinburgh, much to the consternation of the client.

We first contacted Mr George Bell at Edinburgh City Council to obtain permission for the evaluation to go ahead He was very relaxed about it and after I explained the project, agreed to allow us to proceed. He advised me to contact the churchyard visitor centre to inform them of our intention, I did this, and after some clarification, again they were also agreeable. As is often the case in situations such as this, expectations can run high at the prospect of gleaning some scrap of evidence, some shred of proof one way or another concerning the ‘afterlife’. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. The ‘spiritual’ aspect is usually the most difficult to quantify since we have to rely almost entirely on the subjective impressions of the mediums involved. It is sometimes possible that the mediums can intensify what they perceive as ‘spirit energy’ and allow us to interface with it. This, although a remarkable and quite unique sensation, is still subjective and open to various interpretations and limitations

It is worth making clear from the outset that there is more than one explanation for these phenomena. Apart from the ‘spirit world’, possible causes range from medical conditions and hysteria, to the underlying geology of the area creating geo-magnetic fields. As a precursor to the investigation, we contacted the British Geological Survey (BGS) at Murchison House in Edinburgh requesting information on the rock formations below the area. There are two valid, non-spiritual, possibilities here. Either there are (a) electromagnetic (EM) fields created by the action of micro tremors on the rock formations which are interacting with sensitive people, or, (b) there are low frequency terrestrial standing waves of around 5 to 7Hz, which can induce nausea, disorientation and in extreme cases, loss of consciousness. If this is the case, then hopefully these unusual, but natural phenomena may present an explanation for the bizarre happenings. If not, then our psychic colleagues may be able to shed some light on these otherwise inexplicable goings on. Whatever the cause, hopefully we can clarify the situation once we have concluded our evaluation. The reply from the BGS showed that the ground beneath the Kirkyard consists of mudstone turning to sandstone at about 300 ft. According to the information, if the pores of the sandstone were to become saturated with mineral electrolytes, this in effect would create thousands of tiny batteries. Given the right conditions, a micro-tremor perhaps, the stored energy could be discharged, creating an electrical field above the ground affecting a sensitive person by causing a tiny seizure in the temporal lobes of their brain. These seizures appear to run in distinct patterns, with the people affected experiencing the same or similar images. It is rather as if the responses in the human brain are common throughout all races and when triggered produce similar images. It was our intention to use our newly acquired TriField meter to quantify this aspect of the investigation. On the other hand, if the meter detected nothing, then hopefully, our psychic colleagues could supply the answers

We finally set a date for March the 5^th to begin the investigation and prepared accordingly. We arrived at the cemetery and were met by council employee, Stuart Feighan who opened up the Prison for us. It is normally kept locked since, unfortunately, Edinburgh, in common with other cities, has problems with vagrants and people suffering from drink problems and the rudimentary shelter afforded by the old tombs is better than nothing. Taking Stuart to one side, I asked him to indicate where the most ‘active’ area seemed to be. This proved to be an area in the immediate vicinity of MacKenzie’s tomb. Once I had rejoined the group and we had access to the prison area we entered, locking the gate behind us. Our party, which consisted of myself, Bill Devlin, AnneMarie Sneddon, and Jim Lochhead had been joined by journalist Alison Gray and a Photographer from ‘The Scotsman’, plus Forbes McPhail, a presenter from Radio Scotland. These agencies had expressed an interest in covering the project, which was convenient as it allows us to convey our findings to a wider audience, hopefully promoting a better understanding of the phenomena.

As the mediums strolled around the area, I began taking readings of the local magnetic field strengths. I was disappointed to find no deflection at all on the meter, even in its most sensitive stetting. Moving slowly down towards the bottom of the enclosure I noticed that there was some movement from the indicator. Although just off zero, there was an almost imperceptible increase in the strength of the local magnetic field. When I reached the rest of the group, AnneMarie had sensed the presence of a man, standing beside the entrance to one of the vaults. I moved over and surveyed the area with the meter; there was a definite increase in the reading. Entering the tomb, I noticed a steady field reading; AnneMarie said that she sensed a more powerful energy on the other side of the wall. I moved round and to my excitement, the meter indicated a higher reading than before. Returning to the group the psychics suggested that I try some readings where they were picking up more energy, once again the meter responded positively. I laid the instrument on a low wall beside us adjacent to the energy field; it maintained a steady - low - indication of 1mG, (milligauss). This is by no means a strong field, but nevertheless it was an encouraging sign. The mediums offered to attempt to intensify the field. They both stood quietly, AnneMarie extended her hand towards the meter, and then, almost as one, they closed their eyes and bowed their heads in concentration. Incredibly, the indication on the meter increased slowly, settling at 1.5 mG. They gradually decreased the ‘energy field’ intensity and the indication fell back to the previous reading. Then, astonishingly, they proceeded to do exactly the same thing again, once was perhaps a coincidence, but twice…?

We were thrilled by this development, at last we appeared to have a visible form of interaction between the mediums and whatever local anomaly was present. I cannot state with any certainty what the exact nature of this field is, except that it registered on the 0-3mG scale of the meter, therefore by inference it is electro-magnetic in nature. Still discussing this, we crossed to another open tomb at the bottom of the prison; again there was a clear, steady reading of 1mG on the meter. AnneMarie mentioned that there were spirits moving around us, displeased that we were there. As she said this, the indicator needle abruptly shot fully upscale and dropped immediately back to its former reading. While this may have also been a co-incidence, I do not believe so, the meter had somehow registered a transient reading, a ‘spike’ in the local magnetic field. I suppose it is possible that there may have been a ‘blip’, a sudden increase and decrease in local field strength, but if there was, it was very convenient.

We wandered slowly back towards the gate, closer to the tomb of ‘Bloody Mackenzie’, I looked back towards the group. AnneMarie made to enter one of the tombs lining the walls, suddenly she staggered back, and she beckoned to me. "Quickly, here, take a reading here" she said indicating the tomb I hurried towards them. I entered slowly, the meter held in front of me as if it would ward off whatever was present. "It pushed me back out of the doorway, its really annoyed at us being here" AnneMarie’s voice followed me in. To my disappointment there was nothing measurable there, no reading at all, the mediums both suggested that we try sensing the energy with our bodies, still nothing. We left this open vault and carried on towards the gate and MacKenzie’s tomb. We entered, I felt an air of expectation, examining the meter, and I found nothing, totally flat, not even a background reading, which may in itself be significant.

The mediums could both see a child a young boy standing in the doorway watching AnneMarie shuddered. She glanced at her partner Jim, her nose wrinkled in disgust, "The smell is appalling, its like rotten meat, filth and offal, there’s something not right in here", Jim agreed that he too could smell the fetid stench. We of course could detect nothing, which was probably just as well, the psychics smelled death and corruption, the smell of the Covenanters prison, but there was more. The mediums were convinced that bizarre ceremonies had been held here in this tomb, perhaps witchcraft, but more likely the black mass and Satanic Rituals. This comes as no surprise, Edinburgh, like a surprising number of towns and cities, has practising covens, usually they are based of Wiccan teachings and relatively harmless, but sometimes they are not. When Wicca decides to display its darker side, then Satanism is its twin brother, its darker sibling. Unless run with a strong degree of discipline, a coven can easily tip over the edge, sliding into negativity, into the pit of devil worship. This can be for a variety of reasons, revenge, money, power and sex, often a combination of all of them the results are seldom pleasant. Although it was cold and windy outside, it was still preferable to the dank surroundings of the tomb. Evidently the local unfortunates do not find the ambience too off putting, as there were still a few - empty - cans of beer etc. against the walls.

Another find in one of the tombs opposite was viewed with a mixture of fascination and horror, there was what appeared to be a human thighbone lying in a corner amongst the dead leaves. No one wish to touch it, but the hip joint could be easily seen, while I am no expert on anatomy, the bone looked human to me, we all exited the prison considerably more quickly than we entered. This evidently is a problem in old cemeteries as natural forces bring the remains to the surface; they are usually re-interred by the attendants.

At the request of BBC television, we had occasion to visit the churchyard and prison once more, this proved rather more unsettling for us. Our first visit had generated considerable interest from various media groups; one of these was BBC TV, who asked us to recreate our visit for the Sunday morning ‘Heaven and Earth’ programme. As a result of this, we discovered that the alleged assaults had not happened in MacKenzie’s tomb, but in the locked one next to it. This had been the result of initially being given the wrong information about the assaults. We arranged to meet on Thursday 6^th of April at 2pm to carry out the reconstruction.

On this visit the correct tomb was unlocked for our benefit and we were curious to see if there was an answer here: there was, in spades! The gate swung open revealing the dark interior, I entered, closely followed by the presenter Toyah Wilcox, the spring sunlight cut bright slices through the dusty atmosphere. As with MacKenzie’s tomb, there was no response at all from the meter, the rest of the party, eight in number filed in and stood in silence. The mediums were clearly uneasy, I quickly became aware of feelings of nausea sweeping over me, I felt dizzy almost as if I was outside my body. Bill glanced at me and leaned against a wall, a grim expression on his face, he told me that he felt very dizzy and squeamish. I left the group in the tomb and went outside into the bright sunshine, the nausea continued. A few moments later the rest of the group joined me. The mediums looked pale and particularly ill at ease, I did not have to be told, there was clearly something ‘not quite right’ about the tomb. Both of the psychics feel that there is an negative presence in the tomb, a Lower Astral Entity. We have experienced these before and are aware of how unpleasant they can be. Although the TriField meter did not detect any anomalous magnetic readings, it was regrettable that we did not have equipment to check for low frequency sound waves. Curiously, neither the presenter the director nor the camera crew were affected, only the mediums, Bill and myself.

This particular tomb is visited by the ‘City of the Dead’ tour during their visit to the ‘haunts’ of old Edinburgh and importantly, is where all the problems appear to originate. While all the sensations we experienced while within the tomb were entirely subjective, it appears that the interior of this grim building does affect certain people. Until all the environmental factors have been taken into consideration, it would be unwise to dismiss the reaction of visitors to the area as either imagination or hysteria.

CONCLUSION

While we did not achieve any especially dramatic results, we established that the meter detected an anomalous change in the local magnetic field, which the mediums perceive as ‘spiritual energy’. This of course inevitably leads to speculation regarding the nature of the interaction, was it a localised field being amplified, physically manipulated by the talents of the psychics, or, did it emanate from them as a form of resonance? My own opinion favours the former, however all that can be said with certainty is that the test meter measured a change, an interaction with the field, a change that appeared to be repeatable. Although we had inadvertently gone to the wrong tomb on our initial visit, we corrected this on our return and experienced an unusual and thoroughly unpleasant physical reaction. With hindsight, the mediums have agreed to pay another visit to the Covenanters Prison, with the intention of contacting the entity within the tomb, we hope to achieve a materialisation.

We intend to revisit the sites of previous investigations, especially Roslyn Chapel, and take a series of reading. If these indicate the presence of electro-magnetic fields that vary in intensity corresponding to what the psychics are doing, then there is an apparent correlation; the problem then remains to determine the nature of the correlation. Apart from the non-spiritual aspect, the mediums feel that the prison area would benefit from a conventional religious blessing. While they could easily carry out a cleansing, they consider that in this case it would not be appropriate. Perhaps a few words of blessing from the minister of Greyfriars church would provide some comfort for the tortured souls still trapped within the prison area.

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