Drummer of Cortachy

The Drummer of Cortachy is the name given to a spirit who is thought to haunt Cortachy Castle. There are many interpretations of the story, but he is variously thought to portend the death of a member of the Ogilvy family, Earl of Airlie or the owners of Cortachy Castle.^[1] He is said to be nine foot tall and is occasionally accompanied by ghostly pipes.^[2] The legend can trace its roots back to at least the 19th century and the death of the 14th Earl of Airlie.^[3] He is said to play a tattoo when he appears.^[2]

The ghost is thought to be the spirit of a drummer for the Carlisle family; who was thrown out of a window in the high tower of the castle after incurring the jealousy of the then Lord.^[4][2] However, some versions of the story say that the drummer was the messenger for a hated cheiftan^{[citation needed]} and in yet another version of the tale, he is the spirit of a drummer who deliberately failed to warn the castle of an impending attack.^[5] In all versions of the tale he was stuffed into his drum before his death.^{[citation needed]}

The most famous sighting of the drummer was in 1844, when the Lady Airlie (or in some versions, her guests) heard the noise.^[2] She would later write in a note on her deathbed that she 'knew the drumming was for [her]'.^[1]

The spirit is now thought to be dormant since in 1900 the Earl of Airlie died in the Boer War without a reported sighting.^[1]

See Also

• Cortachy Castle

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Cheung, Theresa (2006). The Element Encyclopedia of the Psychic World. Harper Element. pp. 173. ISBN 13 978-0-00-721148-7. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d} Elliott O'Donnell (1928). Confessions of a Ghost Hunter. London: Butterworth. pp. 116–. http://books.google.com/books?id=lCG7i1Qm5mIC&pg=PA116. 
3. ^ Raymond Lamont-Brown (1975). Phantom soldiers. Drake Publishers. ISBN 9780877497776. http://books.google.com/books?id=ASkvAAAAYAAJ. Retrieved 24 July 2011. 
4. ^ Whichelow, Clive (June 15, 1997). "101 Ghostly Outings". The People. pp. 31–32. 
5. ^ The New law journal. Butterworth. 2000. http://books.google.com/books?id=B8EwAQAAIAAJ. Retrieved 24 July 2011.