_edited.jpg)
Highgate cemetery
- mysterious world
- May 15, 2022
- 2 min read
In the early 19th century, there was a lack of burial places in London. That coupled with the high mortality rate created a lot of problems.
There were many illegal burials within the city. People were buried in the graves that were not deep enough and quicklime was thrown on the bodies to speed up decomposition so that the grave can be used for burial again. Due to overcrowded graves there was a widespread bad smell and in turn a lot of diseases were spread leading to more deaths.
The Highgate cemetery was built in 1839 to tackle these problems. It was constructed in Victorian Gothic style. Within the next 4-5 decades the cemetery consisted of more than 10000 graves which included some of the most famous figures, the most prominent among them being Karl marx.
The cemetery became abandoned in 1960 when the London cemetery company declared bankruptcy and the gates of the cemetery were closed.
By 1970,it was a wildly overgrown jungle. When hammer movie studio used the cemetery for its gothic horror movie shooting, the press rekindled their interest in the cemetery.Rumors started flowing like wildfire. Many people reported seeing men dressed in black robes who had started using the abandoned cemetery to practice dark rituals. The local newspaper, highgate express started receiving letters from frightened individuals who had gone through a ghostly encounter outside the cemetery. People reported seeing an apparition with red eyes glaring at them through the gates of the cemetery. This apparition came to be known as red eyed demon after many reported sightings. Another man while walking down the lane was knocked down by a mysterious creature which seemed to glide off the walls of the cemetery. The creature dissolved in thin air when an oncoming car shone its headlights on the man.
The most famous legend is of the Highgate Vampire. The Highgate vampire is rumored to be a medieval nobleman who practised black magic in Romania and whose coffin was relocated from continental Europe to England in the 18th century by his followers, who bought a house for him at West End and buried him there. Eventually that place was occupied by Highagate cemetery. He laid there peacefully for a while until according to one Sean Manchester, santanists performed a ritual and woke him up. The Highgate vampire is reported to be a tall, dark figure that glides through the cemetery. His presence leads to a sudden drop in temperature, he has reportedly caused the watches and clocks to stop. His presence terrifies all the animals. He has a hypnotic stare and a bone chilling effect on those who have encountered him. People have reported hearing unexplainable sounds at night including screams from the cemetery. During the 1970s people walking past the cemetery at night would see this entity inside the graveyard. Several animals were also found dead and drained of blood near the gates of Highgate cemetery. The legends revolving around the cemetery only grew in the following years.
Highgate cemetery is reportedly the most haunted cemetery in the world and people are still debating about the hauntings.
Commenti