Edinburgh’s Greyfriars Cemetery in Scotland, contains a small tomb known as the ‘Black Mausoleum,’ this tomb is located behind high walls and locked gates of an area called the Covenanter’s Prison which is said to be the home of ‘The Mackenzie Poltergeist.’
George Mackenzie, was a 17th-century Scottish lawyer responsible for sentencing 18,000 opponents of King Charles II to death, which earned him the nickname “Bluidy Mackenzie.” All was quiet until 1999, when a homeless man broke into the tomb in order to find shelter from the cold and wind, he climbed into the coffin. The coffin toppled and spilled its contents and the shocked homeless man onto the floor. Terrified, he ran for his life. Since the desecration of the Mackenzie tomb people soon started reporting unusual activity around the Black Mausoleum.
The city council closed the cemetery to the public until local tour guide Jan-Andrew Henderson set up an official ghost tour. Since then, over 350 people claimed to have been attacked by a poltergeist around the tomb. There have been stories of broken bones caused by the spirit, and 170 people have passed out during the tour.
Witnesses have reported various phenomena associated with the tomb. These include sudden hot spots, chilling cold spots, and inexplicable cuts, bruises, and burns (often concealed beneath their clothing) hair being pulled by an unseen force, legs and arms grabbed, and even claims of possession.
Numerous photographs have captured these mysterious marks, along with images of an unidentified shape within the tomb. Auditory anomalies, such as knocking sounds from beneath the ground and within the tomb itself, have also been documented. Curiously, unmarked dead animals have been discovered near the Black Mausoleum.
Despite two unsuccessful exorcisms, poltergeist activity continues to be reported in four different houses surrounding the graveyard.
