Combe Sydenham
Combe Sydenham is associated with a legendary story concerning Sir Francis Drake, and another historical figure, George Sydenham, who has also become the subject of folklore.
Category: Folktales
The Origin of The Wrekin
This is one of two folktales, which explain the origin of the Wrekin, a 1,334 foot high hill standing on the Shropshire plain. The hill has the remains of an Iron Age Hillfort on its summit, and folk evidence suggests it was an important focal point for our prehistoric ancestors.
Kelpies Footmarked Stone by Vayne Castle
In James Mackinlay’s ‘Folklore of Scottish Lochs and Springs’ (1893) he states ‘If anyone refuses to believe in the existence of water-horses, let him go to the parish of Fearn, in Forfarshire, and there, near the ruined castle of Vayne, he will see on a sandstone rock the print of a
Every Easter Monday the village of Biddenden, not far from Staplehurst in Kent, is the scene of old custom, called the Biddenden Maids’ Charity. Tea, cheese and bread are given to local widows and pensioners at the Old Workhouse, while the celebrated Biddenden Cakes, baked from flour and water, are distributed among the spectators. This folktale was kindly brought to our attention by Alma Oakley of Weston in Hertfordshire.
Weston churchyard is reputed to be the final resting place of the Weston Giant: Jack o’ Legs. Two stones mark his grave. One is positioned at his head and another at his feet, a distance of eight feet apart. Around the time of the crusades (in some accounts) in the area around the river Wear, there is a tale told about a fearsome dragon, which terrorised the area and was dispatched with cunning by a brave warrior. This particularly sinister folktale of the wild hunt is from Devon, and is based in the Dartmoor area, a place full of tales of the supernatural, especially the wild hunt.
One wild stormy night a farmer was returning home from Widecombe, somewhat worse the wear from the strong local beverages brewed on-site. This old story provides an explanation for the naming of the Black Dog Inn near Uplyme in Devon. The black dog seems to be a spirit guardian of treasure. The stone that lies in the village square to the East of the church is turned every year on November the 5th by local people. The stone is made from a type of quartz not found in the area, measures about six feet by four feet and weighs about a ton. The phantom of Croglin Grange is one of the best known vampire stories in Britain. It is as famous in the annals of vampire lore as Whitby and its Dracula associations. The actual story bears the marks of fiction and first appeared in a book called ‘In My Solitary life’ by Augustus Hare. What follows is an adapted and shortened version of his story.
Biddenden Maids
Jack o’ Legs
The Lambton Worm and Penshaw Hill
The Wild Hunt, A Tale From Devon
The Lyme Regis Black Dog
The Devil’s Stone, Shebbear
The Phantom Of Croglin Grange
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