The Revenant of Alnwick
A medieval chronicler wrote that a dead man rose from his grave at Alnwick and wandered the town at night, bringing sickness, until the people dug him up.
What was reported
In the 1190s, the English monk and historian William of Newburgh wrote of a man of bad character who lived near Alnwick Castle in Northumberland. After he died, it was said, he left his grave at night and roamed the streets, followed by a pack of dogs, and wherever he went, a sickness spread and people died.
The terrified townspeople, the chronicle says, dug up his body, found it swollen with blood, and burned it. After that, the sickness ended.
Explanations offered
William of Newburgh, a careful historian for his time, recorded several such stories, which are among the earliest accounts of walking dead in England. Historians see them as attempts to explain outbreaks of disease. The 'fresh' state of buried bodies, which can be caused by natural decay, often fed such fears.
- When
- Recorded in the 1190s
- Where
- Alnwick, Northumberland, England, UK
- Witnesses
- William of Newburgh, a medieval chronicler
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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