Royston Cave is located in Royston, Hertfordshire, 42 miles north of London, at the junction of the A10 and A505 motorways and, if not for its accidental discovery, could remain a hidden treasure in the real meaning of the term.
It is one of the least known but most mysterious places in the UK and possibly hides the location of the lost Templar treasure. The cave was discovered by accident under Melbourne Street in 1742 when a worker was digging a hole in the oil market to build the foundation for a new bench for the city's patrons and merchants. He found a millstone beneath the surface and, looking further, found a vertical shaft leading deep into the chalk surface.
After removing a lot of rubble, the cave was discovered deep underground. Remnants of religious and secular carvings were scattered along the walls. No one knows who was responsible for the digging of the cave or exactly when it was built, but some of the carvings have been identified as medieval, others clearly from the crucifixion of St. Catherine, St. Christopher and St. Lawrence.
Historians have visited the cave over the years, and many theories have been proposed, ranging from the Roman tomb, the Hermitage, and even a secret temple used by the Templars on their regular visits to Royston.
The cave was clearly made by human hands, and not formed by groundwater. It had its own ventilation system.
There is speculation that James I, a Freemason who was known to have a hunting lodge in Royston, was involved in its construction, and some believe that the cave was used for spiritual activities.
Unfortunately, the soil and pieces of bone and pottery found during the excavation of the cave were discarded as "useless" as the people of the time were looking for buried treasures. If they were more concerned with preserving the contents of the cave, we would know more about its origins today.
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The cave is owned by the city council and is open to public visits by Royston and the District Historical Society. It has limited access due to the location and is not suitable for all visitors.
MOST Mysterious
Paranormal explorers who visited the cave claimed to have seen glowing balls, heard screams, and felt "being watched." Other visitors claimed to have seen human sacrifices, a figure hanging from the roof of a cave, and some experienced a sense of horror they could not explain.
TREASURE
Royston Cave has long been associated with treasure tales. The historical fact is that on Friday, October 13, 1307, King Philip IV of France, together with Pope Clement V, ordered the arrest and trial of all the Templars for heresy. This was probably a conspiracy by the French king to erase his debts and secure some of the enormous treasures amassed by the knights. However, witnesses claim that the evening before the Great Pursuit, the Templar fleet left the harbor of La Rochelle and headed for England - possibly Scotland. Nobody saw them again, as well as the treasures of the Templars. Some researchers believe that the Royston cave was a form of a treasure map instructing future knights where to find hidden wealth when times would be safer for their order again.