written by
Sandra Dedeyne

Most Haunted Places: Raynham Hall, Norfolk, UK

haunted locations 5 min read

At Paranormal Daily News, we regularly provide you with the best haunted places. Those of you interested in the paranormal, and like to go ghost hunting from time to time, have an increased chance of seeing a ghost in one of these places. The most haunted place we are going to discuss today? Raynham Hall!

Raynham Hall Location and History

Raynham Hall
Haunted Raynham Hall

Raynham Hall is situated in Norfolk, United Kingdom. The illustrious country house has been the home of the Townshend family for more than four-hundred years. Between 1674 and 1738, the country house was even the home of Charles Townshend, the 2nd Viscount Townshend as well as the leader of the House of Lords.

The Raynham country house is a popular destination for tourists. Not only does the mansion have some splendid architecture and paintings to enjoy, the mansion also houses its own resident ghost, the Brown Lady of Raynham Hall.

The Brown Lady of Raynham Hall

Many people travel to Raynham Hall to catch a glimpse of the Brown Lady of Raynham Hall, one of the most famous ghosts in the entire United Kingdom.

The "Brown Lady" became a phenomenon in the United Kingdom after it was photographed by a reporter for Country Life Magazine. The apparition was promptly named after its discovery by popular media, even though sightings of the Brown Lady happened well before the photograph was published.

The Ghost of Lady Dorothy Walpole

Raynham Hall

The ghost who is believed to haunt Raynham Hall is Lady Dorothy Walpole, who was the sister of Robert Walpole. Even though it is not noted as such in the history books, Robert is believed to have been the first prime minister of the United Kingdom.

Lady Dorothy Walpole was the second wife of Charles Townshend. Legend has it that Charles was a violent man. After discovering his wife had an affair with Lord Wharton, it is claimed he locked Lady Walpole in her room within Raynham Hall.

However, Mary Wortley Montagu would later claim the Countess of Wharton was the one who was responsible for Dorothy's imprisonment. Dorothy would remain in Raynham Hall until her death in 1726. She died of smallpox.

There have been numerous sightings of the Brown Lady, the first dating to Christmas 1835, when Lucia C. Stone claimed she had encountered an apparition during a Christmas gathering. The Brown Lady was also seen by a number of guests who were invited to the gathering, including Colonel Loftus and Hawkins.

A mere year after the first sightings of the Brown Lady, Captain Frederick Marryat claimed to have seen the Brown Lady. Frederick's daughter, Florence Marryat, would later pen down her father's experience.

…he took possession of the room in which the portrait of the apparition hung, and in which she had been often seen, and slept each night with a loaded revolver under his pillow. For two days, however, he saw nothing, and the third was to be the limit of his stay. On the third night, however, two young men (nephews of the baronet), knocked at his door as he was undressing to go to bed, and asked him to step over to their room (which was at the other end of the corridor), and give them his opinion on a new gun just arrived from London. My father was in his shirt and trousers, but as the hour was late, and everybody had retired to rest except themselves, he prepared to accompany them as he was. As they were leaving the room, he caught up his revolver, “in case you meet the Brown Lady,” he said, laughing. When the inspection of the gun was over, the young men in the same spirit declared they would accompany my father back again, “in case you meet the Brown Lady,” they repeated, laughing also. The three gentlemen therefore returned in company.
The corridor was long and dark, nor the lights had been extinguished, but as they reached the middle of it, they saw the glimmer of a lamp coming towards them from the other end. “One of the ladies going to visit the nurseries,” whispered the young Townshend to my father. Now the bedroom doors in that corridor faced each other, and each room had a double door with a space between, as is the case in many old-fashioned houses. My father, as I have said, was in shirt and trousers only, and his native modesty made him feel uncomfortable, so he slipped within one of the outer doors (his friends following his example), in order to conceal himself until the lady should have passed by.
I have heard him describe how he watched her approaching nearer and nearer, through the chink of the door, until, as she was close enough for him to distinguish the colors and style of her costume, he recognized the figure as the facsimile of the portrait of “The Brown Lady”. He had his finger on the trigger of his revolver, and was about to demand it to stop and give the reason for its presence there, when the figure halted of its own accord before the door behind which he stood, and holding the lighted lamp she carried to her features, grinned in a malicious and diabolical manner at him. This act so infuriated my father, who was anything but lamb-like in disposition, that he sprang into the corridor with a bound, and discharged the revolver right in her face. The figure instantly disappeared - the figure at which for several minutes three men had been looking together – and the bullet passed through the outer door of the room on the opposite side of the corridor, and lodged in the panel of the inner one. My father never attempted again to interfere with "The Brown Lady of Raynham". - Florence Marryatt

With many sightings dating back to the 1800's, Raynham Hall is undoubtedly worth a visit for anyone who would like the opportunity to see the Brown Lady of Raynham Hall. Even though sightings are now less than in the 1800's, Raynham Hall is still one of the most haunted places in the United Kingdom.

haunted haunted places