DARK EXPLORATIONS AT COLD CHRISTMAS

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November 21, 2016

Quest Number Fifteen: Hertfordshire

Little St Mary’s Church: Cold Christmas Lane Thundridge
All Saint’s Church Datchworth, near Thundridge

So another exciting night time foray found us once again in the Hertfordshire countryside. As we have learnt, so many ancient churches are to be found miles away from modern day highways and this trip was no exception; literally right off the beaten track and only accessible via grassy footpaths and byways. We had to park the car miles away, down a dead end, not knowing which path to take or which way to turn. The night was dark, which did not help and we were guided by just the light of the moon and a few torches. After one false start and driving off in a completely different direction, we gained our bearings and eventually found the site we were looking for. The site opens out beyond the trees and bushes of the byway, causing one to almost stumble upon it; but what a site to behold indeed. One walks through the open area and graveyard to reach the church, which in the cover of darkness almost looms upon one unexpectedly from the gloom. It was crisp clear night, with moonlight marred only by persistent chemtrailers dong their deeds under cover of darkness. The energies of the site are very similar to another site of an earlier quest; that of Santon Downham – almost, if not, identical; hinting at the fact that both sites are on the very same energy alignment.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thundridge

Little St Mary’s Church or Cold Christmas Church: as it is locally known, due to its proximity to Cold Christmas Lane, as said took some finding in the dark, but it was well worth all our efforts. Sadly all that is left of the building these days is the bell tower, which is now boarded up due to ‘health and safety’ reasons; so a great shame we could not get inside. A very old building indeed built in 1086 for the private use of the estate and family of Hugh De Desmaisnil. There are many rumours of the church being built on a North/South alignment instead of on an East/West. Many medieval churches were built this way which was said to be the sign of the devil, which is why it was later demolished. In fact it is known that the site is indeed used for satanic worship and gatherings, and when you view our videos you will see proof of this fact. It did in fact look very magical in the moonlight and very compelling. The original church was demolished in 1853 but much of the graveyard remains to be explored. One unusual epitaph in the graveyard for one Roger Gadiner and his wife reads:

“Roger lies here before his hour

Thus doth the Gardiner lose his flower”

Photos taken on the night, around the graveyard and tower; please click on individual images to enlarge. The last two in the sequence do show ‘Light Orbs’ and a mysterious mist.

The extensive graveyard is very much in evidence here, though i suspect that like all ancient graveyards quite a few of the headstones are no longer where they were originally placed and some have fallen into quite bad disrepair. There are even reports of a mausoleum being here and that mass buriel graves lie under where the old church once stood and indeed one of our investigation team thought he actually saw the mausoleum upon first entering the site. The most paranormal activity is said to occur in and around the old church tower; activity such as growlings coming from the old tower itself, which have been reported as recently as 2009 and a sense of an ‘evil’ presence, a figure in black has also been spotted on many occasions around the graveyard and in 1978, a report of a marching army coming out of the doorway of the tower whilst letting out a blood-curdling roar… Also ghost horses have been reported and recordings of strong EVP have been captured.

Sadly we did not manage to capture anything unusual on camera, but all of our investigation team experienced different feelings and sensations at different times and the energies, although fluctuating were indeed very strong. Some of us certainly saw Light Orbs in the trees at the boundary of the graveyard, which we have manged to just about capture on camera, albeit by mobile phone; it was certainly a feeling of being observed. Some of us picked up on more tangible happenings and one of our team, actually had physical interaction by way of her clothes and skin being touched. So all in all, extremely interesting and well worth the trip and getting lost for!

Please enjoy our video investigations via our Priory youtube channel:-

COLD CHRISTMAS CHURCH: PART ONE

COLD CHRISTMAS CHURCH: PART TWO

All Saint’s Church Datchworth: So a few miles down the road in the same Hertfordshire vincinity we found ourselves at the parish church in the village of Daxworth and this time most certainly not off the beaten track! The village of Daxworth appears in the Anglo-Saxon charter of 969 when King Edgar gave land in Daxworth to St Peter’s Church, Wesminster and when the name of Datchworth was spelt Decewrthe; the village is also mentioned in the Domesday book of 1086.

One can read more of the history of Datchworth here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datchworth

On this occasion though it was the church we were visiting; Norman in origin, it was erected within the confines of the moat and subsequently a manor house was built nearby and it is thought that an earlier church did in fact preceded the present one. The night was dark and cold but strangely on this occasion the church and surroundings seemed quite calm and with a lack of energies really; even though the village has the reputation of being the most haunted in Hertfordshire.The church was well lit with floodlights and had CCTV clearly in evidence, which would be a good thing as i imagine that many visitors and investigators visit the church and graveyard here. As said it was peaceful, cold and subdued when we were there, but an interesting experience non the less, wandering the graveyard at night and around the vincitity of the church.

See above for the video shot around the graveyard and church.

There have been several sightings of an old woman dressed in black walking with a hunch and no head. She is thought to be the spirit of an old woman whoes husband died unexpectedly and in as desperate attempt to meet her husband again she hung herself. Close to the church is a narrow lane called Rectory Lane and people wandering along this eerie hedge-lined lane at night have heard phantom footsteps and seen the ghostly apparition of a cart carrying dead bodies, which local believe to be the bodies of the Eaves family who tragically starved to death during the famine of 1762. One of the houses along Hollybush Lane is said to be haunted by the ghost of a lady with long red hair; this flame headed spirit is said to wear bright clothing and manifest at the sound of tinkling bells. These are just a few of the many hauntings of Datchworth Village.

We did manage to obtain a few night-time shots via a mobile; on two or three shots white orbs of light can be seen; however with the flood lights in the graveyard i will leave it up to the viewer to make up their own minds. As always click on an image to enlarge: