Not many people know that in the depths of present-day Edinburgh there is an old underground quarter - the so-called "locked city" of Mary King. In the 17th century, when the black plague was raging in these places, there were hundreds of forcibly isolated residents of the Scottish capital.
It should be said that this area was entirely in the lowlands and was cut off from the rest of Edinburgh by a closing line of impregnable high walls. Those who today had a chance to walk the streets of this “city”, empty and dark, say that they saw ghosts and heard someone's groans, despite the fact that more than three and a half hundred years have passed since the terrible epidemic …
… And then the corpses of victims of the plague were taken out of the city and burned in the field to stop the infection. Hearing the creak of carts loaded with dead bodies, people in fright slammed shutters … All infected Edinburgh people were isolated in a special place that resembles a hospital. When in 1645. the epidemic threatened to spread to the entire city, the magistrate ordered to completely seal this quarter in order to stop the march of a deadly disease …
Who are Mary King and Ann
Mary King once owned most of the fenced-in buildings, and that's why this entire creepy quarter was named after her. And since this fateful place was sealed with all its inhabitants, it is no wonder that there are many stories about the local ghosts and just as many witnesses who claim that they saw the ghosts of emaciated, ragged people wandering between houses …
A hundred years after the epidemic, the houses of the infamous quarter were torn apart by the residents of Edinburgh, and new buildings were raised in their place. To get into the "locked city" today, you need to go deep into the Royal Mile (the heart of Edinburgh and its main street) using a special communications system …
Now the old streets are dark, quiet tunnels. Rows of light bulbs line the ceiling and walls, dimly illuminating the remains of staircases that lead nowhere. Wooden windows and doors boarded up …
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There is also a dead end, also named after Mary King, where most of the ghosts live, since it was here that all the plagued Edinburghs were brought. Among these unfortunates was the little girl Anne, who was sent to the "locked city" by her parents, having said goodbye to the baby forever. The ghost of Anne still walks in the dead end of Mary King today, eyewitnesses say …
Mary King Puffin Buildings
On the site of Mary King's dead end, a huge building was erected, and he himself turned into a mysterious dungeon. However, anyone who happened to be in this large building by the will of fate, became a witness to paranormal phenomena or simply felt the presence of something terrible, otherworldly, almost unbearable …
Since ghosts at a dead end have been seen more than one hundred times, in 2003. the city authorities have opened this place for tourists eager to get in touch with the otherworldly reality and learn the tragic history of old Edinburgh. Leading an organized tour of the famous dead end, the guide will descend with his charges into a gloomy dungeon along narrow and ancient stone stairs. The shocked sightseers seem to be transported to the 17th century, at that terrible time when the plague was raging in the Scottish capital …
By the way, a room has been restored here, where, according to legend, poor little Anne spent the last days of her life. Of course, the room has no windows, and the arched ceiling is very low and depressing the visitors. The furniture is represented by a modest wooden table, two stools and a wooden chest that served as a bed. An old lantern is burning in the room …
When you look at this wretched situation, your heart squeezes from the thought of what torments - physical and mental - the people doomed to death spent their time in. Thanks to the efforts of local residents, a corner with many dolls appeared in the dead end of Mary King, intended for the ghost of little Ann, in order to appease him.
People are convinced that the girl loves these toys, so she often grabs the hands of visitors to the dead end - as if she thanks them. The one who did not bring her a gift, she can even pinch the leg …
