Black Dogs
We've all heard the story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 'The Hound of The Baskervilles'. Based on Dartmoor, the story was inspired from a local legend of phantom black dogs that came to the burial of a huntsman who had died in 1677, he had sold his soul to the devil. The ghostly huntsman is said to ride with the black dogs. Perhaps a legend that could be even more ancient.
The Black Dog phantoms are of ancient origin. They were known to be the bringers of death and misfortune. To the Celts they were known as Cŵn Annwn, the Viking god Odin was pulled across the sky by dogs, collecting souls.
We've all heard the story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 'The Hound of The Baskervilles'. Based on Dartmoor, the story was inspired from a local legend of phantom black dogs that came to the burial of a huntsman who had died in 1677, he had sold his soul to the devil. The ghostly huntsman is said to ride with the black dogs. Perhaps a legend that could be even more ancient.
The Black Dog phantoms are of ancient origin. They were known to be the bringers of death and misfortune. To the Celts they were known as Cŵn Annwn, the Viking god Odin was pulled across the sky by dogs, collecting souls.
Redditch has it's own black dog, known as 'The Black Dog of Arden', the ghost of Guy de Beauchamp, 10th Earl of Warwick. It is known that Guy was dark skinned and had a 'swarthy' appearance and was nicknamed 'The Black Dog of Arden' by his enemy Piers Gaveston. Guy died in 12 August 1315 and was buried at Bordesley Abbey, his ghost is said to haunt the area.
Black Dogs have been reported all over the country since ancient times and are still being sighted today. One has been spotted in Tardebigge, near the canal. Large cats have also been reported in the area, perhaps they are not seen close up and they could be these black dogs? |