The Phantoms of Auchtertool

Auchtertool church, which was established around 1178, sits about a mile outside the village of the same name.

It is believed it was built on the site of an earlier place of worship, possibly used by early sun-worshipers.

A short distance away from the church, the ruins of Halyards Castle can be found, a once luxurious home occupied by different distinguished families over the centuries, including the Bishop of Dunkeld, and it is from this religious connection that the ghost story originates.

In the 16th century, Scotland was gripped by the Religious Reformation, with the country changing from being catholic ruled, to a protestant.

In the early 17th century, the Skene family took ownership of the castle, and following the death of one of the family members in France, the body was brought back to Halyards Castle.

This is when the difficulties arose. France was still a Catholic country, and the burial was to take place in accordance with the Catholic Rites, but this would never be permitted so early into the Reformation by the Protestant church leaders.

Possibly with the help of the Earl of Moray, a later owner of the castle, it is said arrangements were made for the body to be taken to the church at night. Even under the cover of darkness, there was a risk that the funeral may have been stopped when the body was carried through the village, and so instead it was carried in a torch lit procession across the fields to the church.

The body was successfully laid to rest in the family crypt at the church and, once the ceremony was completed, news of the burial soon spread.

With so much secrecy, little is known about which member of the Skene family was buried on that night, however, with the walk between the castle and church becoming known as Lady’s Walk, it I fair to assume it was a female member.

It is said that ever since, on the anniversary of the burial a torch lit procession can be seen making its way from the ruins of the castle, accompanied by a piper wearing the Skene family tartan, before vanishing when they reach the church.