Ghostly Folklore for Halloween - The Headless Horseman of Butterton.

The Headless Horseman.

Deep in the bleak moorlands of Northern Staffordshire, in the United Kingdom, is the small village of Butterton.

This charming little Hamlet, and the surrounding countryside, is said to be the haunt of a frightful spectre, know locally as ‘The Headless Horseman of Butterton.’

He is said to ride from Onecote across the moors passing Butterton before finishing his journey at Warslow. Thus spreading his haunting activities between three villages in a very even handed way.

His legend is well known in the local area, with many people claiming to have seen him (we will get into that latter.) In fact, in the early 1930’s a hunt for this phantom was organised by a group of ramblers, many people learned of this expedition and they were joined in the search by lots of local folk, despite their best efforts the hunt was not a success and the devilish rider eluded them.

The origins of this terrifying folktale are a little hard to trace, but it is suggested that he is either the phantom of a knight killed in battle with the Scots, whose horse bought his master’s headless body home. Or, it is the shade of a peddler, murdered by robbers who, for a practical joke, severed his head, tide him to his horse and sent him galloping off.

There are many people who claim to have seen this terrifying entity, here are just a few of the accounts given.

'A man returning from Leek, perhaps somewhat market fresh sees before him, a little beyond Leek Edge, a neighbour on horseback, whom he hails for a request for a ‘lift’ homewards. No sooner, however, has he mounted behind him than to his horror finds that his companion is the goblin horseman. The discovery comes too late for away springs the horse, covering at a bound, fields, trees, hedges and ditches…the luckless wight at one moment feeling his feet brushing through the topmost twigs, and the next borne with whirlwind swiftness over the heath. In the upshot, he is found deposited at his own door, helpless and groaning, and so maimed and bruised that death in a few days puts an end to his sufferings.'

A Mrs Wood of Back Lane in Butterton also gave details of her encounter, when returning home one evening from the May Fair. She was walking down a lane towards her cottage when she became aware of something drawing near, she jumped over a wall and crouching down, was horrified to spy the headless horseman approaching. He turned his steed and rode through the wall of a local building, vanishing.

One local man, who saw the ghost in the 1930’s described it as, ‘a man on a horse without a yed on, an awful gory sight.’

Some have suggested that the story might be linked to that of ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.’ as apparently the tale was written in the dialect of the region, and so could hint at possible connections that have been lost to history.

Thank you for joining me on this scary Halloween journey, I will return next week with more ghostly folktales, until then, stay safe, and stay spooky my friend.