CALVADOS CASTLE
FRANCE
1875
It's hard enough to classify many ghostly phenomenon as ghost, spirit, poltergeist or demon - all of which are very different and real. Even more irritating are those ghosts who only manifest for a short period of time, causing perpetual chaos when they do, and then vanishing all together forever. Perhaps these are a kind of mischievous entity that exists merely to torment the living?

The building in question - which is less of a castle than it is a chateau - was built on top of the foundation of an earlier structure and has apparently been haunted since it's initial construction - although the exact nature of the haunting was never recorded.

A man who wrote under the title of Monsieur de X in 1865 inherited the chateau. Almost immediately they began hearing strange noises, but it wasn't until 10 years later that M. De X began to take down a journal regarding the strange phenomena. The following are excepts:

"This is October 1875. I propose to note down and record every day what happened during the night before. I must point out that the noises occurred while the ground was covered with snow, there was no trace of footsteps around the chateau. I drew threads across all the openings, secretly. They were never broken.."

"A very disturbed night... it sounded as if someone went up the stairs from the ground floor at superhuman speed, stamping his feet. Arriving at the landing he gave five heavy blows to the walls, so strong that the objects suspended on the walls rattled in their places..."

"Some being rushed at top speed up the stairs from the entrance hall to the first floor... With a noise of tread that had nothing human about it. Everybody heard it... it was like two legs deprived of their feet and walking on their stumps."

Other noises that plagued the family were the sounds of a body rolling down the stairs, while chairs moved across the room of their own volition.

"...everybody heard a long shriek, and then another, as if a woman outside were calling for help. At 1:40 [am] we suddenly heard four cries in the hall, and then on the staircase..."

"...it is no longer the cry of a weeping woman, but shrill, furious despairing cries, the cries of demons or the damned.."

Doors and windows flew open, and Bibles were desecrated. Mme de X was struck violently, leaving a visible mark that did not heal for several days. Eventually the house was "shaken twenty times". Believing the house to be under demonic influence, M. de X had an exorcism performed. It didn't work until the second time.