Tales of the mighty warrior, Lugh of the Long Hand, who came here to lead the mystical Tuatha De Danann into battle against their enemies the evil Fomorians. At a meeting of the club in 1740, a servant is said to have spilt a drink on Thomas Whaley, who was so enraged by the accident that he had the servant doused in brandy and set ablaze. The last of the family to own Leap Castle was Jonathan Charles Darby who arrived here on 16th July 1880. Her name in life was Harriet, and one day she was sent upstairs to wash her hands. Having done so, she was playfully sliding down the balustrade when she suddenly lost her balance and plunged to her death on the floor below.

All is quiet here now. The heroes have departed. The ashes of the fires by whose glowing logs the storytellers once wove their magic have long since been raked into the hillside. The fairy folk have retreated ever further into their secret domain, driven from our consciousness by an invasion of modern technology and universal conformity that sees eccentricity where our ancestors saw enchantment. In 1210 the castle was taken over by King John who made it an administrative centre for English government, in which capacity it served for the next seven centuries. In 1811 Lady Catherine Hutchinson, wife of Thomas Bernard commissioned the present castle which, although burnt by the Republican’s in 1922, was restored and has since been transformed into the magnificent, extremely cosy, hotel whose, dark, atmospheric corridors; elegant rooms; library bar resplendent with rows of antique books upon its shelves; and sweeping stairways, provide visitors with tranquil haven far removed from the stresses and strains of the modern world. Sorley Boy MacDonnell (1505-1589), inherited the families Irish estates in 1556. He was taken prisoner by his brother-in-law, Shane O’Neill, at the battle of Glentaisie in 1565 and held captive for two years, before his kinsmen set him free, having murdered Shane during a banquet called to negotiate a truce between the two families. Yoking her chariot, she sent for the children and told them to prepare for. But Fionnuala had been warned in a dream of her stepmothers’ evil intentions and refused to go with her.Several guests have been wakened from their slumbers by the light touch of a ghostly hand caressing their faces. One morning they were woken by the sound of his oratory bell and, following its chime they landed before the holy hermit who recognised them immediately and greeted them warmly. As he did so their feathers fell away and they became human once more. Today, Samlesbury is renowned for being one of the most haunted locations in Britain. The stately home is believed to be haunted by a collection of paranormal entities including the ghost of the White Lady who is thought to be Dorothy Southworth, a former resident.

For the next three hundred years the children remained on the placid waters of Lough Deveraugh, and the people of Ireland helped ease the burden of their sentence by coming to visit them. But then Finiannola spoke out, telling him who they were and what had happened. Realising that his children were now beyond help, Lir let out a howl of anguish and collapsed weeping to the ground. Paul Torpey (2007-10-31). "Travel: Top Ten Haunted Places in the UK". Guardian. London . Retrieved 2012-06-11. Outside is the 600-year old Yew Walk, one of the few survivors from the days of the monastery. Its’ curled and entwined branches form a long and mysterious tunnel that could so easily be a gateway into another time. But, as her family go about their task, the spirits of bygone residents have begun to stir, and an abundance of ghosts now wander the what has recently been dubbed "Ireland’s spookiest castle."

A sense of genuine antiquity prevails over the sylvan landscape that cradles Ireland’s most enigmatic and impressive Gothic revival castles in a protective embrace. Rising to the challenge, Will erected a handsome tall-roofed house which was added to and lived in by ten subsequent generations of his family, until in 1957 Captain William Lenox – Conyngham bequeathed Springhill and its contents to the National Trust. On the way he met his commanding officer Robert Stewart, but since they were good friends, and given that he had similarly covered for Stewart on other occasions, he felt sure that he would understand the urgency and necessity of his quest. Over the centuries these houses came to be seen as symbols of subjugation and, with the rising tide of Irish nationalism that swept the country in the early 20th century, they became prime targets as the people rose up to free themselves from the yoke of English oppression.