The Moddey Dhoo of Peel Castle
A great black dog was said to lie by the guardroom fire at Peel Castle each night. One soldier who mocked it went to face it alone.
What was reported
Soldiers guarding Peel Castle on the Isle of Man said that a large, shaggy black spaniel, the Moddey Dhoo, came into the guardroom every night and lay by the fire until dawn. They were careful never to swear or misbehave in front of it, and never to go alone through the passage it used.
One night, a drunken soldier boasted that he'd find out what it was, and went down the passage alone carrying the keys. Terrible noises were heard. He came back speechless and pale, and died a few days later, never saying what he had seen. The passage was walled up.
Explanations offered
The story was recorded by the antiquary George Waldron in the 1720s as a tale told by the garrison. It's one of Britain's many black-dog legends. Sir Walter Scott used it in his novel Peveril of the Peak. The castle ruins are open to visitors.
- When
- Recorded in the 1600s
- Where
- Peel Castle, Isle of Man
- Witnesses
- Soldiers of the castle garrison, in tradition
- 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.
More from Isle of Man