It is said that the cruel and rebellious knight cursed all his property, which was robbed. The ghost of Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville is now said to appear on Christmas Eve with his headless dogs on his former estates.
In the nippy silence of Christmas Eve 1932, a miniature group of curious people gathered on the bridge over Pymms Brook in Oak Hill Park in East Barnet, a suburb of north London. Midnight was approaching, and with it the echo of “uncanny sounds” that called them south. They followed these ghostly sounds through the frigid night until they reached Monks Frith, where they encountered the eerie sight they had long expected: the appearance of a headless dog. A moment later, the shining figure of a knight dressed in silver armor and a flowing red cloak appeared, completing the haunting image.
Oak Hill Park and the Ghost Walk
The group gathered in Oak Hill Park did not end up there by accident. They have come to witness a haunting that has been whispered about for centuries, a ghostly procession that repeats itself every six years around Christmas. Even the place where he was seen was called Ghost Promenade.
In 1926 there was also a watchman working on Church Hill Road. According to Mr. Gibson, he saw the ghost as a skeleton, still wearing a metal breastplate and a black cape. When there was a group in the night watchman's hut trying to stay overnight, they saw nothing, but heard everything. According to them, just after midnight, there was the sound of many hoofbeats and the earth shook.
It is said that in the early 1930s, on a clear summer's day, there was an aged oak tree on Church Hill Road that burst into flames for no reason. While there has been a lot of speculation about this, no one has actually found the cause of this phenomenon and it just turned into a lot of strange things supposedly happening in the park. It was also said that religious self-proclaimed prophetess Joanna Southcott sat under this tree when she left her visions in her box.
A ghostly knight and his headless canine companion are said to wander the southern regions of Hertfordshire and northern Middlesex, a chilling reminder of a turbulent past. This ghostly knight is none other than Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville.
Anarchy and the curse of Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville
Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville lived through one of the most tumultuous periods in England, known as anarchy. This civil war, characterized by a brutal power struggle between King Stephen and Empress Matilda for the English throne, saw many nobles change allegiance over the twenty years it lasted.
Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville, Earl of Essex, was a significant figure at this time as the first constable of the Tower of London with estates in Barnet, South Mimms and Monken Hadley. He came from an aged family, and his grandfather was made a count by William the Conqueror. However, he was known as a cunning man, and his life was marked by betrayal on both sides, rebellion and excommunication. He is said to have been the worst of the cruel and lawless barons of that era.
In 1143, after being arrested and deprived of his lands by King Stephen, Geoffrey began a rebellion, capturing and strengthening Ramsey Abbey. He retired as a mutineer and bandit on the peat bogs of the east of England. There he used the Isle of Ely and Ramsey Abbey as his headquarters, and legends grew around him.
The desecration of the abbey led to excommunication by the Pope, and the chronicler Henry of Huntingdon wrote that during Geoffrey's occupation: “blood flowed from the walls of the church and the adjacent cloister, witnessing God's indignation.”
Geoffrey died in battle in 1144 after being shot by an arrow during the siege of Burwell Castle, still under excommunication, and was denied a Christian burial. His body was placed in a lead coffin by the Templars; burial in the Temple Church in London was finally accepted. Before that, however, his body was kept in the Old Temple in Holborn for 20 years. Some say he hung in a coffin from a tree.
The Haunting of the Granges
So where were the properties he owned? They say it was around ten o'clock. There is one in the East Barnet area where you can see it in Oak Park. On top of Mandeville's aged fortress in East Barnet they built an aged house on top of a grange. When they dug into the foundations and disturbed them, the haunting began. They saw the tramp of footsteps and the jingle of spurs.
As with Oak Park, people also claimed to have seen the same sight of a man on a horse dressed for battle.
Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville haunting the Hertfordshire Enfield Chase
Despite Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville's turbulent life taking place mostly outside Hertfordshire, his ghost is said to patrol the area around Enfield Chase, an area on the border between Hertfordshire and Middlesex. These lands were once part of his power base and his titles included Sheriff of Hertfordshire and had been in the family for hundreds of years.
The exact reason for his ghostly presence in these areas is unclear, but may be related to the curse he supposedly placed on the foundations of Walden Abbey and other properties he owned.
He said that if his donations were taken away, then: “feel the curse of Almighty God, the Blessed Virgin Mary, blessed James the Apostle and all the saints in this life; and that in the next life he will suffer eternal torment with the traitor Judas, unless he repents and makes amends.”
This curse apparently came true during Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries, potentially binding Geoffrey's spirit to these lands in eternal outrage and forcing him to return to his former estates every 6 years.
The return of the Knight in the Red Coat
Legend has it that Sir Geoffrey's ghost, accompanied by a headless dog, appears every six years around Christmas Eve. However, it is not certain where the dog came from. Witnesses describe the headless dog as a chilling prelude to the knight himself, who follows closely behind in his ghostly armor and blood-red or black cloak. This haunting presence is a stark reminder of the violence and curses of the past.
The next predicted sighting of the Red Coat Knight and his ghostly companion is said to be in 2028. Those who find themselves in Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville's aged lands on Christmas Eve may just encounter some amazing characters that have haunted the area for centuries.
Reference:
Geoffrey de Mandeville, 1st Earl of Essex | Norman Conquest, Feudalism and Rebellion | British
Geoffrey de Mandeville, Earl of Essex – Wikipedia
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