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Ghost · Horning / Ludham

The traitor monk Essric

He sold his abbey to the Normans to become abbot. They kept their word, then hanged him.

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Ghost

The Traitor Monk

He opened the gates for a crown and got a noose.

See it clearly

What's there
Ruined gatehouse with a windmill inside, on open marsh
Legend from
Broads tradition; EDP (2024)
Best time
Midnight, from a moored boat
Tone
Dark history
MonksGhostsRuinsPunishments

Before you go

Owned by the Norfolk Archaeological Trust; FAILED FETCH of its site page. Check before you go.

  • St Benet's Abbey
  • Near Hall Common Road
  • The pin marks the spot.

A monk opened St Benet's gates to the Normans for an abbot's ring. They gave it to him, then hanged him.

St Benet's Abbey stood on the marshes beside the River Bure, and its ruined gatehouse now has a windmill built inside it. When the Normans couldn't break in, the story goes, a monk named Essric offered to open the doors if he was made abbot. He let them in and was given his reward, but the Normans then hanged him for his treachery from the abbey's bell tower. The Eastern Daily Press reports that the betrayal is replayed at midnight, and that a doctor and his crew moored there in 1928 saw the scene. The Broads Authority says Black Shuck guards treasure buried there.

Sources

  1. Hidden history of St Benet's Abbey, Eastern Daily Press (2024) —
  2. Folklore and stories, Visit the Broads (Broads Authority) —
  3. St Benet's Abbey, Wikipedia —

Legends nearby