Ghost Map

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Apparitions

Phantom armies and battles

Great battles gave rise to stories that the fighting went on – at night, in the sky or in the mist above the field. Some of these accounts reached official records: King Charles I sent a commission to investigate the phantom battle of Edgehill. Others are modern reports by tourists and rangers at battlefields. Psychologists point to expectation and the power of place, meteorologists to mirages and clouds resembling lines of troops.

cases
8
years
160–2026

Unexplained: 2 Disputed: 1 Legend: 4 Explained: 1

  1. 2nd century

    1. c. 160 Phantom armies and battles · Legend The Night Battle on the Plain of Marathon Tomb of the Athenians (Soros), plain of Marathon, Attica, Greece In the 2nd century Pausanias wrote that neighing horses and fighting men could be heard nightly on the battlefield of Marathon – the oldest known phantom-battle account.

  2. 17th century

    1. 1642 Phantom armies and battles · Legend The Phantom Battle of Edgehill Edgehill battlefield near Kineton, Warwickshire, England, United Kingdom Two months after the first battle of the English Civil War, shepherds saw it replayed in the sky – and King Charles I sent officers to investigate.

  3. 18th century

    1. 1735–1745 Phantom armies and battles · Unexplained The Spectral Army of Souther Fell Souther Fell ridge near Mungrisdale, Lake District, England, United Kingdom On Midsummer Eve, people in a Cumbrian valley watched an army marching for hours along a fell ridge – in 1745 as many as 26 witnesses.

  4. 19th century

    1. 1863–present Phantom armies and battles · Legend The Ghosts of the Gettysburg Battlefield Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, United States On the field of the Civil War’s bloodiest battle, visitors report soldiers in 160-year-old uniforms – yet most of these stories are surprisingly young.

  5. 1910–1919

    1. 1914 Phantom armies and battles · Explained The Angels of Mons Mons–Condé Canal at Nimy near Mons, Belgium During the retreat from Mons, angelic bowmen were said to have appeared above British troops – a legend born from a short story by Arthur Machen.

  6. 1940–1949

    1. c. 1940–present Phantom armies and battles · Legend Huakaʻi pō – the Night Marchers of Hawaiʻi Oʻahu, Hawaii, United States On certain nights the ghosts of ancient warriors march with torches to sacred places. Anyone in their path must lie face down on the ground.

  7. 1950–1959

    1. 1951 Phantom armies and battles · Disputed The Sounds of the Dieppe Raid at Puys Puys near Dieppe, Normandy, France Two Englishwomen on holiday in Normandy heard the sounds of battle for three hours before dawn – nine years after the bloody landing at Dieppe.
    2. 1953 Phantom armies and battles · Unexplained The Roman Soldiers in the Treasurer's House Cellar Treasurer's House, York, England, United Kingdom An 18-year-old plumber saw a troop of Roman soldiers in the cellar of a York house – visible only from the knees up.