Beaulieu
Hampshire, England
Beaulieu is a small village located
on the south eastern edge of the
New Forest national park in
Hampshire, England.
It is home to both Palace House
and the British National Motor
Museum.
Beaulieu village is a favourite tourist stop for
visitors to the New Forest.
Discover phantom
monks, a grey lady,
Gregorian chants
and the smell of
incense!
© Great British Ghost Tour 2012
Palace House
The Haunting of
Palace House and
Abbey
The Monks and the Grey Lady
The Beaulieu Palace House was
originally built in the 13th century as the Great Gatehouse of
Beaulieu Abbey and has been the
ancestral home of a branch of the Montagu
family since 1538. The Montagu’s bought it
from the crown following the Dissolution of
the Monasteries by Henry VIII.
The house was extended in the 16th and
19th centuries, and today is an a elegant
example of Gothic country house architecture. It overlooks the Beaulieu River and is
surrounded by sumptuous lawns and walkways.
At Palace House, originally the Abbey gatehouse, the Gregorian chanting of monks and ghostly
footsteps are often heard. Many
people have seen their ghostly forms
in the Abbey ruins. Some have even said to have
caught a whiff of incense in rooms of Palace
House once used as chapels in the Middle Ages.
According to legend, this olfactory manifestation
signals tragedy for the people of the abbey or
Beaulieu village.
There is no dearth of witnesses will testify to
their presence, from Lord Montague to the
gypsies of the New Forest. An interesting
point is that all find these ghosts benevolent
and not at all frightening.
It is still home to the current Lord and Lady
Montagu. However, parts of the house and
gardens are open daily to the public who can
enjoy the Victorian interior and beautiful
exterior.
For more information, please visit
www.beaulieu.co.uk
The abbey is also said to have a post-Reformation ghost, a grey lady who is seen in
Palace House. She is said to be the shade of
an 18th-century inhabitant of the house,
Lady Isabella.
Beaulieu was the featured location for Most Haunted
Live!'s Halloween event in 2003.
Beaulieu Enterprises Ltd,
John Montagu Building,
Beaulieu,
Brockenhurst,
Hampshire,
SO42 7ZN.
Haunted Britain
Antony D. Hippisley Coxe
ISBN 0 09116540 7
© Great British Ghost Tour 2012
Beaulieu Abbey
A Reflection of Scale and Importance
Beaulieu Abbey was a Cistercian abbey founded in 1203-1204 by King
John and uniquely in Britain was
occupied by 30 monks sent from the
abbey of Cîteaux in France. This was
the ‘mother house’ of the Cistercian order. The
Latin name of the monastery was Bellus Locus
Regis which translates as 'The beautiful place of
the king'. During its time, the Abbey became extremely wealthy, and its buildings reflected its scale
and importance.
A great deal of the Abbey was destroyed at the time
of the Dissolution of the Monasteries. However,
there is still much to see if you visit. The groundplan of the 102 metre long church can be seen on
the lawns, and the position of the altar is marked
by a cross and flanking trees.
For
more
information,
please
visit
www.beaulieu.co.uk/attractions/beaulieu-abbey
© Great British Ghost Tour 2012