A LOCAL GHOST STORY FOR CHRISTMAS
Many places lay claim to the legend of the Mistletoe Bough including Minster Lovell near Oxford, but Bramshill House near Hook has more claim than most, and numbers the ghost of the Mistletoe bough amongst its 14 or so spectres.
One of these is the white lady who has been seen many times around the house, and who brings with her the strong fragrance of flowers – many say lily of the valley. She is said to be the ghost of a young bride married on Christmas Eve who died during her wedding party. The guests took part in a game of hide and seek around the house, and she hid herself in a heavy chest. Once in, she could not lift the lid to get out, and no-one found her.
When found,50 years later, she was clutching a sprig of mistletoe in her hand. A variation on this claims that the white lady is in fact the ghost of Genevre Orsini, a 15 year old Italian bride, and that when the chest was imported from Italy to Bramshill her ghost came with it.
The sad tale was immortalised in a Victorian song and many stories. Even the Romanian royal family are reported to have been troubled by the presence of this particular ghost. Apparently while staying there after WWII, King Michael asked for a different bedroom for his children who were being disturbed by the white lady who walked through their rooms each night.
Terri Reid MA FRSA
terrielizabethreid.com
