Borley Rectory, ‘The Most Haunted House in England’ as stated by Paranormal Investigator Harry Prince. Borley Rectory was built by Reverend Henry Dawson Ellis Bull, close by the Borley Church.

According to many, the Rectory was bound to be Haunted with what is said to have happened on the site centuries before hand, the ‘Benedictine monastery’. A nun of the Bures convent close by is said to have fallen in love with a monk of the monastery. The nun and the monk decided to run away together, only to be found out by the elders. A friend tried to help them escape by carriage, but they were all sadly caught. The Friend beheaded, the monk hung, and the nun bricked up in the vaults below the rectory.

The story of the Benedictine Monastery however has been found (Apparently) to have no historical basis, and is thought to have been conjured up by the rectors children.

Borley Rectory has much more going on, than just the story of the Monk, the Nun and the carriage Driver.
The hunting’s go back to 1863 when people reported hearing footstep’s. In July 1900, the daughter’s of the rector seen an apparition of a Nun which disappeared as they got closer, though with the story of the Benedictine Monastery being dis-guarded as having being Conjured by the Rectors Children, could this sighting of the nun be an attempt for the children to add an apparition to their story? If not could the Benedictine Monastery story hold some truth. If not, and the children did actually see this apparition it is always possible someone else has seen the nun and told the children who made up a story to go with the apparition sighting. People though have also reported seeing a coach with two headless Horsemen driving it.

Mrs Smith a resident of the rectory from 1929, is reported to have found a paper bag containing a young woman’s skull after the discovery servant bells were heard ringing, unexplained lights and footsteps occurred. Mrs Smith also claimed she seen the horse and carriage.
The Daily Mirror, after Mrs Smith’s claims, arranged for Harry Prince a paranormal researcher to Investigate. Mr Prince’s investigation included stones, a vase, and other objects being thrown, and spirit messages on a mirror.
Another resident family the Foysters, who moved into the rectory in 1935 maintained that they heard the bell ringing, stones being thrown and writing on the wall. Their daughter had also been locked in a room with no key. Marianne Foyster also told her husband she had been thrown from her bed. Some of the Foysters also said they had been attacked.

There have been many investigations into this house, and also many ‘vigils’ that are said to have come into contact with the Nun, who through these gained the name ‘Marie Lairre’. There has also been a dig, which discovered two bones of a young woman.. Could these have been the nuns? The rectory was destroyed by a fire in 1939 which was started in ‘mysterious circumstances’.

To be honest I do not know what to think, but it does seem if the ‘Benedictine Monastery’ story has no basis then the Borley Rectory shows signs of people in effect ‘piggy backing’ off the story. Should these girls have made up the story to scare each other then people are falling to a fake haunting and letting their imagination run wild.

Should however the story of the ‘Benedictine monastery’ be thought to have some truth, with the bones that were found then I’d say we have one rather annoyed Nun on our hands at the site.