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Fyvie Castle abounds with stories of restless spirits and deadly curses. Situated in expansive parkland north of Aberdeen, this ancient baronial castle dates back to the 13th century, and is one of the most haunted buildings in Scotland.
One of the castle’s well-known ghosts is Dame Lilias Drummond. Known as the ‘Green Lady of Fyvie’, on account of her wearing a greenish dress, Lilias has been witnessed on many occasions since the 17th century. She is said to manifest in the halls and on the great staircase, having been spotted by both staff and visitors alike. Apparently she was once seen in a mirror by a tourist visiting the castle. The smell of roses is said to accompany her presence.
Dame Lilias was married to Alexander Seton, the then laird of Fyvie, of whom she bore five daughters. However she was unable to provide Seton with his much longed for male heir. She died in 1601, aged about thirty; some say under suspicious circumstances.
Soon after Lilias’s death, Alexander married a beautiful young woman by the name of Grizel Leslie. It was on the couple’s wedding night that a very odd and unaccountable incident occurred. The newly-weds had retired to bed in an upper chamber of the castle, when Grizel was awakened in the small hours by a strange moaning, a sort of horribly unearthly sighing coming from beyond the bedroom window. She roused her husband and he went to investigate but didn’t find anything. However sleep proved elusive for young Grizel as the moaning persisted.
The following morning Grizel went to check the window and got a terrible fright. Inscribed into the very stone of the window sill were the words “D. Lilias Drummond”. Had Dame Lilias returned from the grave and carved her name in stone? The room where Alexander and Grizel had slept is located very high up and would have been difficult to access, so how the inscription got there is anyone’s guess. It can still be seen to this day.
Some say the ghost of Lilias Drummond only manifests when a laird at the castle is about to die. Tradition tells of how she was seen on a December afternoon in 1879 by Alick Gordon, the brother of the then laird, Colonel Cosmo Gordon, who had been ill in bed at the time. Cosmo did indeed die soon after and Alick came into possession of Fyvie.
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