It’s a dark stormy night, and you’re walking home. Maybe you cut through a dark alley or a field; and you meet a great black dog. Do you run? Do you Scream? Either way, if you’ve been in that situation and you’re here to listen to this today you’re very lucky to be breathing. Tall tales of black dogs have been told throughout the ages and throughout the world. Though, most often in Britain and Ireland. The creature has been depicted in Harry Potter, Jane Eyre, Sherlock Holmes, and Dracula to name a few. The black dog, also known as the Black shuck, Cu Sidhe, moddey dhoo, HellHound, padfoot, gytrash, and the grim; is an omen of death or a protector. It has a very long history; going back to the three headed dog Cerberus in the underworld and anubis the egyptian god of death, and likely even earlier than that. It seems to be linked with humanity itself, and that isn’t so surprising as we do love our dogs.
The omen or harbinger of death is perhaps the most common occurence of the myth. The dog is said to be a giant thing, with glowing red eyes, long sharp teeth and claws, or occasionally headless. It may be seen alone; often in bad weather or through the fog, or it could be part of a hunt with spiritual figures riding on their horses. This fits in with many other myths, such as faerie hunting parties, and the dreaded headless horseman, an omen of death himself. These are also myths that have a strong connection with the British and celtic lands.
To see the creature brings death, and so if you hear it’s terrifying howl the advice given is to shut your eyes and wait it out. Though that depends entirely on your point of view; if it is only a messenger to forewarn you of disaster; then closing your eyes to it is the same as closing your eyes to a bill; you’ll still have to pay the consequences. Though if it is the harbinger itself, then perhaps it is for the best to close your eyes tight and not pay it any attention in the hope that it will leave you well alone. But it didn’t work for the two parishioners praying on their knees when the creature took them.
It was 1577, and an awful storm had come down on the town of suffolk. The townsfolk were at church, when a large black dog entered creating an uproar. The creature was a dark giant thing with lightning emanating from it’s paws. Both things and people were set alight, the scorch marks are still there to this day. In its reign of chaos, it killed a man and a boy before taking it’s leave.
After this it was seen at another church nearby on the very same day. Leaving those scorch marks, and killing two men who had kneeled in prayer, taking their lives despite their lack of attention to the creature, their minds focused on the lord. It seems that should the shuck wish to cause havoc, it shall. Whether you pay it attention or not.
This attack on the churches lead many to believe that these black dogs have a connection to the devil which may well link them with the dreaded hell hound. The fear of the devil has long plagued those who are religiously minded, and anything that those who are also particularly righteously minded fear or disagree with is often attributed to the devil. It can be quite easy to connect the devil to something widely considered unsavoury or even just unusual. This was likely the case for a scholar in the 13th century, who had been accused of sorcery and sent to Newgate Jail; where those who have a mind may say that the devil held the place tightly in his clutches.
You see the place was filthy. It held lice, bed bugs, disease, and could easily have been mistaken for a sewer. It was a place with a high mortality rate, that only got worse when England was hit by famine. In these dark insipid cells, with far too many people, barely any sunlight, and a severe lack of food; the human will can devolve into a more feral thing. The inmates with so little to go on turned to cannibalism.
It didn’t take long for our scholar-come-sorcerer to become a victim; ever so slight and easily overpowered. The poor man was killed and eaten - or at least one hopes it was in that order. However, this wasn’t the end for the sorcerer. A large black spectre of a dog appeared amongst the prisoners. A fear rose in those who had eaten the man; as it quickly got around that the guilty parties were being hunted down and eaten by the beast. The remaining few who had partook of his flesh plotted a prison break. Killing guards in their escape. But even so they were not safe, for the dog came for them each giving them a grisly end. The dog has since been sighted in and around the old jail over the centuries.
Most of the reported victims appear to be men; but this isn’t always the case. In Ireland the Cu Sidhe are more interested in women, particularly mothers. On a dark and stormy night you might hear a howl so loud as to rumble your floors and put the fear right into your bones. Husbands would stand with weapons over their wives, protecting them from the Cu Sidhe who were in the employ of the faeries. They would kidnap women to nurse the babes of faeries; who were never to be seen again.
Though this is but one of their jobs, as they were also omens of death leading souls onto the afterlife. The great black dogs have a deep connection with death; and not always in a negative way. Often known as the church grim, this dog was destined to protect the dead and the church. There was a belief that the first person buried in a church yard would have to stay and protect the church and help souls across to the other side, never being able to go themselves. To alleviate this person of the job, often the first to be buried in the church was a dog, who then took on this mantle.
While this might seem like just a myth, the bones of a rather giant dog were found in 2013 in an old abbey. The dog was considered to be buried around the time and location of the sighting of the black shuck that killed those men in church. Looking at the bones the dog is about 7 feet in length, and matches up with the tales of the Black shuck.
There are many stories of people being protected by the dog, having it stop them going a certain way only to later find that the way led to death. Or being followed by the beast constantly, and later finding that they were being hunted by highwaymen, only to have been put off by a great black dog accompanying them.
Though the creatures can be great protectors, it is important that you don’t get too comfortable in their presence, as was discovered by a guard of peel castle on the isle of man. The Moddey Dhoo was a giant shaggy haired spaniel that has been sighted all around the castle, and eventually took to visiting the guard chamber. Once evening came the dog would come in and lie by the fire. The guards knew the creature wasn’t right, it had an eerie presence. Once this started the guards never went alone down the passageways. They never wanted to be alone with the beast, and always kept to pairs.
One night, a guard had been drinking a bit and had become fed up with the fear instilled within the men from this dog. He found it silly, the dog hadn’t done anything to them. Sure, it was a little creepy, but nothing had happened. He declared that he was going to walk the passage alone come morning. The men pleaded with him not to, but he had made up his mind and that was that. Once he left, it didn’t take long for the screams to start. The guards wanted to go after him but found themselves too scared by the sounds, listening at the frightful wails and screams. Then the door swung open and the guard appeared, white as a sheet, eyes bulging, and unable to speak of the horrors he had seen. He died within days, unable to tell his story, and the dog of castle peel was never seen there again.
The creatures intentions are hard to pin down, but if you’re willing to risk life and limb for a bit of cash, there are stories that the creatures aren’t merely ferriers to death, but guards of hidden treasures. There have been stories of people seeing a creature and soon uncovering a treasure that the creature kept watch over. This story is more popular in scotland, so if you’re a treasure hunter willing to face the black dogs; it may be well to give the scottish highlands a gander.
These beasts lurk at crossroads, along rivers, in the woods, out in large fields, down dark alleys, and of course in graveyards. They are often seen in stormy weather and linger in the fog. Beware their howl, and perhaps close your eyes if you hear it; at the very least you might not have to see its red eyes glow before your life comes to an abrupt end.
There are many more stories of these black dogs, and I implore you to share the ones you’ve heard. Have you ever encountered an unusually large black dog that sent a shiver up your spine? Let me know, I’d love to hear your story. I am a small creator, and I’d love to be able to continue telling these stories. If you want to support me, liking this video, commenting, and sharing it would make a big difference to me. Tell a friend, or send it to a stranger. Word of mouth is so important, especially as many of these stories began as oral recounts and now hundreds of years later here I am telling you today. If you’re interested in supporting me further take a look at my website, inkantress.co.uk. For now, keep a dog treat in your pocket and hope for mercy.
https://mythology.net/mythical-creatures/black-dog/
https://medium.com/@6pets/unpacking-the-black-dog-symbolism-myth-folklore-and-culture-75d1f9b70c6e
https://allthatsinteresting.com/black-shuck
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