Fields where ghosts wage bloody battle...

This article explores fascinating and terrifying stories related to the ghosts of battles that took place in England and Scotland. It describes, among others, the Battle of Edgehill in 1642, where deceased soldiers supposedly return to the scene of battle, and the brutal Battle of Culloden in 1746, which resulted in the massacre of Scots. Examples from the 20th century, such as the Dieppe Night Invasion, demonstrate how wartime events leave traces that permeate the present, sparking interest from tourists and paranormal researchers.

During the English Civil War, in October 1642, at Edgehill (Warwickshire), supporters of King Charles I clashed with troops raised by the rebellious Parliament.

A terrifying clash

For nearly four hours, the armies, each numbering over 14,000 soldiers, fought. Neither emerged victorious. The fighting ceased after nightfall. Soon, rumors spread that the sound of drums could be heard occasionally near Edgehill, followed by the sounds of fierce fighting. Curious, local shepherds crept to the battlefield. They saw a battle raging there, involving not humans but specters.

Rumors of this reached the king. He sent representatives from the battle to Edgehill to investigate.

For over a week, they recorded witness statements and then went to the battlefield. It was then that they saw, with their own eyes, ghostly troops reenacting the battle. Among the combatants, they even recognized deceased comrades-in-arms...

Spring slaughter

In April 1746, two armies, each numbering 9,000 soldiers, faced each other at Culloden in Scotland. The English army was commanded by the Duke of Cumberland, who earned the nickname "The Butcher" after the battle. The Scottish army was led by "Beautiful Prince Charles" Stewart, who wanted to seize the English throne. The battle lasted over an hour. English artillery decimated the Scots – almost half of them died. The English lost only 50 men. The defeated Scots began to flee, pursued by the English. They not only finished off their wounded opponents, but also massacred the Scots living nearby who had not participated in the battle. Prince Charles fled to France disguised as a woman. Today, thousands of tourists visit Culloden to see the site of the famous battle. And they tell of ghost armies, of spectral Scots fleeing from the battlefield. And in the "spring of the dead" you can supposedly see the bloody faces of long-dead soldiers instead of your own reflection..

Night Invasion

The "ghost battles" of the 20th century are a different story. They cannot be seen, only heard. In August 1942, Allied forces, composed primarily of British and Canadian commandos, attacked the German-held port of Dieppe in Normandy. It was a dress rehearsal for the invasion of Europe. The fighting lasted four and a half hours. Of the six thousand attackers, nearly four thousand died. Nine years later, two English women went on vacation to a village near Dieppe. In the night, they were awakened by violent gunfire. Then they heard screams, distant explosions, and the roar of dive bombers. The noise lasted less than an hour, followed by a brief lull, and then the invisible battle continued. At six in the morning, everything fell silent.

Upon their return, the Englishwomen wrote down their experiences and submitted them to the London Society for Psychical Research. Researchers combed through archives for documents relating to the fatal attack. It turned out that all the phases of the "invisible battle" described by the tourists corresponded exactly to what had happened at Dieppe years earlier...