The Ghosts of Arundel Castle

Arundel Castle, the ancestral seat of the Duke of Norfolk, has dominated the West Sussex landscape for nearly a thousand years. With its Norman keep, Gothic towers, and Victorian state rooms, it’s one of England’s finest castles - and one of its most haunted. The Blue Man reads in the library. A young girl runs eternally toward the tower. Phantom cannon fire echoes through the halls. And when a white bird appears, it means death for someone in the Duke’s family.

The Castle’s History

Norman Origins

Founded around 1067:

• By Roger de Montgomery
• One of William the Conqueror’s lords
• The keep survives from 1138
• Continuously occupied ever since
• Nearly 1,000 years of history

The Fitzalan-Howards

The current family:

• Dukes of Norfolk
• England’s premier Catholic family
• Have owned Arundel since 1138
• Through war and intrigue
• Their ghosts remain

The Restorations

The Victorian era:

• Massive rebuilding
• Gothic Revival style
• The castle we see today
• But older spirits weren’t displaced
• They remain alongside

The Blue Man

The Library Ghost

The most famous spirit:

• A man dressed entirely in blue
• Seen in the library
• Reading or browsing books
• First sighted in 1630
• Still appears today

His Appearance

Witnesses describe:

• Cavalier-era clothing
• Blue doublet and breeches
• Sitting at tables
• Handling books
• Then fading away

His Identity

Possibly:

• A former resident
• A scholar or priest
• Someone who loved the library
• His attachment keeps him there
• For nearly 400 years

The Girl in the Tower

The Running Figure

In the corridors:

• A young woman runs
• Fleeing toward the Hiorne Tower
• In Tudor or medieval dress
• Desperate, frightened
• Then vanishing

Her Story

The legend says:

• She was fleeing someone
• Perhaps a cruel guardian
• She threw herself from the tower
• Rather than face her fate
• Her running never stops

The Sightings

She has been seen:

• By servants over centuries
• By visitors
• By family members
• Always running
• Never reaching safety

The White Bird

The Death Omen

A family tradition:

• A white owl appears
• Before a death in the family
• At windows
• Or flying through halls
• An unmistakable sign

The History

For centuries:

• This omen has appeared
• Preceding family deaths
• Taken seriously by the Howards
• Not dismissed as superstition
• Too accurate to ignore

The Meaning

Is it:

• A warning?
• A comfort?
• A messenger from beyond?
• Part of the family’s strange heritage?
• The bird knows death is coming

Other Phenomena

Cannon Fire

Heard throughout the castle:

• The boom of cannons
• Phantom sounds
• From Civil War perhaps
• The castle was besieged in 1643
• The battle continues

The Kitchen Ghost

In the servants’ areas:

• A rattling presence
• Pots and pans disturbed
• A servant who loved her work?
• Continuing her duties
• For eternity

The Dungeon Voices

In the oldest areas:

• Whispers and murmurs
• Cries from darkness
• Prisoners were kept here
• Some never left
• Their voices remain

Cold Spots

Throughout the castle:

• Sudden temperature drops
• Specific locations
• The library
• The tower stairs
• The Great Hall

The Living Castle

Still Occupied

Unlike many castles:

• Arundel is still home
• The Duke of Norfolk
• Lives here part of the year
• Sharing space with ghosts
• As his family has for centuries

Family Experiences

The Howards report:

• Accepting the spirits
• Living with presences
• The white bird is fact to them
• The Blue Man is a neighbor
• They’re all family

The Staff

Employees have:

• Their own encounters
• Certain areas avoided
• Accepted as normal
• Part of working at Arundel
• The ghosts cause no harm

Investigations

Research

Paranormal teams have found:

• Significant activity
• Photographic evidence
• Temperature anomalies
• EVP recordings
• The castle is very active

The Challenges

Investigating Arundel:

• A living building
• Occupied and working
• But activity undeniable
• The evidence accumulates
• Over centuries

Documentary Evidence

Historical records:

• First Blue Man sighting: 1630
• Written accounts over centuries
• Consistent descriptions
• Reliable witnesses
• Not imagination

Visiting Arundel

The Experience

The castle offers:

• Stunning architecture
• Art and furnishings
• Beautiful grounds
• And atmosphere
• You might see something

The Feeling

Visitors report:

• Being watched
• Particularly in the library
• On the tower stairs
• In certain corridors
• Something aware of them

Ghost Tours

Occasionally:

• Special events offered
• After-hours access
• Expert guidance
• Not for the nervous
• Activity is real

The Question

For nearly a thousand years, Arundel Castle has stood guard over Sussex.

Kings have visited. Wars have been fought. Generations have lived and died.

And some have never left.

The Blue Man reads in the library where he’s been reading since 1630. What book could hold his attention for 400 years? What knowledge does he seek?

The girl still runs toward the tower. Who chased her? What was she fleeing? She never tells us. She just runs.

And when the white bird appears, someone will die. It has always been so. The Howards know. They watch for it. They’ve learned to accept what it means.

Arundel Castle. Still a family home after nearly a millennium.

The family has grown to include ghosts.

The Blue Man in his chair. The running girl. The sounds of long-ago cannon fire.

They’re all part of Arundel now.

The living and the dead.

Sharing one of England’s greatest castles.

Waiting for the next chapter in a story that’s been unfolding for a thousand years.

And may unfold for a thousand more.

With the same ghosts.

Watching.

Reading.

Running.

Forever.