The Wych Elm is botanically called Ulmus glabra. The Independent, Wednesday, 18 August 1999, Phantom Bear of College Green, Worcester Cathedral. Twine made from the inner bark of the elm tied tightly at regular intervals, to form ‘hanks’ of the yarn, was used to stop a dye from reaching the wool. Part of a rural planting verse. Today the same question is asked in white paint daubed on the obelisk on top of nearby Wychbury Hill. According to folklore, if pigs’ teeth were found in a tree’s trunk, chewing a small piece of its bark could cure toothache. This was the first time that a name had been given to the grisly remains. Of the 6,000 pairs that had been sold only 6 could not be traced, all from a market in the Black Country. Mysterious Britain & Ireland © 2020. Perhaps some things are better left unknown. Our vision is of a revitalised wild forest in the Highlands of Scotland, providing space for wildlife to flourish and communities to thrive. Jack worked in an aircraft factory, not a particularly well paid job, and they were always short of money. It was decided that the eldest boy, Bob Hart, would show the police where the tree was. The narrator, Toby Hennessy, is also the main character. Along with the skull were found several human bones, a cheap wedding ring, a bottle, a pair of crepe-soled shoes and some rotten material. We know that on 18th April 1943 four teenage boys – Bob Farmer, Bob Hart, Fred Payne and Tommy Willetts from the town of Stourbridge were exploring the Clent Hills and nearby Hagley Wood. Collecting the folklore and uses of plants. brought forward other witnesses who had seen a whole range of apparitions along this rural stretch of road. The skull was still there, together with a bone sticking out of a hole in the tree. They stuffed some old rag which they had also discovered in the tree into the skulls mouth before returning it to its original hiding place by carefully balancing it on the end of a long stick. It is a story of a grizzly murder, espionage and possibly witchcraft going back over 65 years. In 2008 I received several reports of a phantom child being seen along the Oldnall Road only a few miles from the A456/Hagley Wood. In honour of #Halloween, today's theme is #SpookiestObject! His father refused point blank to talk about the incident and even denied having been involved! Describes the ecological and cultural history of Ulma glabra, the Wych or Scot's elm. Una and Jack went their separate ways when his drinking became too much, but Jack came back in 1941, ill and with something terrible haunting his mind. Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) is a very common shrub in our region that is often overlooked. It is hardier than the English elm, so is found much further north and west, and in parts of Scotland. In French folklore, the elm was considered the “tree of justice”. During the Second World War, four lads looking for bird’s nests on the grounds of Hagley Hall in Worcestershire found a skull in a hollow elm tree. Elm mythology and folklore. Investigations carried out by my group, Parasearch, uncovered other witnesses to unnerving experiences along the same stretch of road between Hagley Wood and the nearby Iron Age hillfort of Wychbury. When Anna spoke to the authorities it transpired her real name was Una. They lived near Kenilworth and Jack worked in an aircraft factory. A thorough search was made of the area, but nothing was found. Her code name was Clara. The skeletal remains were reconstructed by Professor Webster to see what could be learnt about the body. She had also given birth at least once. More recently in 2008 Mr. Klein was driving along the A456. VAT No. There are certain things we can be fairly sure can be ruled out, such as the witchcraft theory. The leaves are ovoid and the flowers are yellowish. Home Into the Forest Trees, Plants & Animals Trees Elm. Their large distinctive shapes feature prominently in many English pastoral paintings by Constable (eg his famous “The Haywain” painting) and his contemporaries. The famous Who Put Bella in the Witch Elm graffiti, which has been on the Wychbury Hill obelisk for decades, now reads Hers Put Bella in the Witch Elm. She had been married to a man named Jack Mossop and they had lived in Kenilworth in Warwickshire. As well as the Macabre, wych elm’s other conceptual concern is folklore. The file told of a German spy who been parachuted into the midlands somewhere between Kidderminster and Birmingham. And a quick search on the internet shows that the mystery surrounding the murder still generates a lot of interest. The Interesting Natural History, Folklore of Witch Hazel. WOOD, Juliette, & OATES, 1998, Caroline A Coven of Scholars, Folklore Society The main theme of Simon Holt’s ‘Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm?’ opera is the ghost of Bella returning from the beyond to tell her story. HARTE, Jeremy, Personal Coomunication, April 2009 English Wych Elm Lumber Angela Raimato 2019-03-08T08:27:21-05:00. Another theory that has become popular to explain the mystery involves wartime espionage. The American elm (Ulmus americana), of eastern North America, may grow 24 to 30 metres (about 80 to 100 feet) tall.It has dark gray, ridged bark and elliptical leaves. Where The Wych Elm Grows - Read online for free. Intermittent colours in woollen yarns (by which a weaver could more easily create a pattern in the weave) could be introduced by way of an early form of tie-dyeing. The ‘covens’ of the 1940s were more likely to be the nature covens (early versions of modern paganism) started by Gerald Gardner and certainly not black magic. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. March 2009 It was Tommy Willetts who finally gave in to his conscience. It was suggested that the Hagley Wood/Clent Hills of the 1940s was, like today, used by local practitioners of the occult arts. According to folklore, if pigs’ teeth were found in a tree’s trunk, chewing a small piece of its bark could cure toothache. The tree likes Sun to half-shade at the location and the soil should be sandy to loamy to strong loamy. It is said that some of the older members of these covens willingly gave up their lives so that the ritual would work. The following day, Professor Webster, Superintendent Sidney Inight and Deputy Inspector Williams arrived at the wood. In a hollow tree trunk of a wych elm, one of the boys found a skull but because they were trespassing on private property, the boys put the skull back and made a pact that they would keep quiet. Jack confessed that he met up with van Ralt at a pub near Hagley called the Lyttleton Arms and found his arguing with a Dutch woman. In April of 1943, in the town of Worcestershire, England, four boys stumbled across the skeletal remains of a deceased woman that had been shoved into a cavity of a large wych elm. Related birds would show their gender with their singing theme. One gentleman, Warwick Plant was a young boy during the second world war. The ‘Hand of Glory’ is largely a fiction favoured by a certain kind of popular scholarship (Montague Summers is a good example of this). This large, relatively scarce deciduous tree supports abundant insect life in the forest, but is at risk due to the spread of Dutch elm disease. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. It is interesting to note that both the yew’s and the elm’s mythology is intimately bound up with death and the transition into the Underworld, and that both woods were used to such deadly effect in mediaeval warfare. In late 1940 Jack had met a Dutchman by the name of Van Ralt. The first – “Who put Luebella down the wych–elm?” was followed by many other slight variations, such as ‘Hagley Wood Bella’ found on a wall in Birmingham. HUTTON, Ronald, 1999, The Triumph of the Moon, Oxford University Press The Coventry based indie band, ‘The Pristines’, have also released an album called ‘Who put Bella in the Wych Elm?”. brian-haughton.com/ancient-mysteries-articles/bella_in_the_wych-elm/2 Una claimed that Jack had died in 1942 in a mental hospital in Stafford. CLick Here to Buy comm. I settled neath the Wych Elm tree and watched the world at play. Who put Bella in the Wych elm? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_put_Bella_in_the_Wych_Elm? Sergeant Skerratt of Clent and P.C. The police began to check the 3,000 reports of missing women in a 1,000 square mile radius. Wych Elm Scot's Elm Dutch Elm Huntingdon Elm. Upon further investigation, local police discovered an entire skeleton along with hair, some clothing, and a gold wedding ring. GRAFFITI on a Hagley monument that has become part of local folklore has been mysteriously changed. The shoes that had been found with the body had been manufactured by Silesby’s, a company in Northampton. Major species. on Pinterest. Others, like the spy theory are intriguing, but certainly need more evidence. But it is not just cavaliers who haunt this stretch of road. Interestingly there is a report from the Hagley Wood area at the right time of a car parked by the side of the road with a man in military uniform in the drivers seat. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. 01543 682261 Closed today Pub Opening Hours Monday. In the 1990’s my wife Carolyn witnessed the apparition of a strange looking dog as she drove home one night. Before his call up papers arrived he had lived near Hagley Wood and was a Special Constable. Similarly, in a 1998 BBC/TLC/Time-Life Television documentary Juliette Wood of the Folklore Society confirmed that the cup was a wych elm mazer or food bowl, and not made of olive wood. The rest of the skeleton had probably been removed by wild animals. Is this the face of ‘Bella in the Wych Elm’? What the police discovered inside the trunk of the Wych Elm, buried beneath the skull, was the almost complete skeleton of a woman. In 1999 the journalist Richard Askwith wrote an article about the Bella mystery for The Independent newspaper. It is hardier than the English elm, so is found much further north and west, and in parts of Scotland. They are round to oval, toothed with a rough, hairy surface. His parents owned a nearby public house. WOOD, Juliette, 1999, Margaret Murray and the Rise of Wicca, 3rd Stone magazine (Issue 34, April-June) It should be said however that there is no historical evidence to support this. Trees of London Marylebone High Street. I walked the magic footpath, of folklore long ago, laughing to myself of tales of sinister romance, the evenings warm the gentle tide allowed the trees to flow, where buttercups and Elderflower performed a perverse dance. Its pliancy was also put to use in a variety of ways. It is known as the Scotch elm too because of this and has given rise to the names of Loch Leven and Loch Lomond. Like the oak, they often had very specific customs and folklore attached to individual, named trees such as the Tenor, Bass and Alto elms on Humberside, or the Dancing elms of Devon around which May Day dances were held (these trees have all sadly succumbed to Dutch elm disease). The existence of covens during the war is obviously a matter of debate rather than fact, and even if there was one in the area I cannot conceive that they would be engaged in ritual murder or the use of body parts”. The police checked the psychic information out but drew a blank. McCORMICK, Donald, 1969, Murder by Witchcraft, Arrow Books (Hutton, pers. ... After deciding to climb a tree, they stumbled across the remains of a woman inside the hollow wych elm… The Wych Elm is a lovely family pub situated in Burntwood. Who put her there? With the search for human remains over, the job of forensic investigation began. (Davies, pers. The Interesting Natural History, Folklore of Witch Hazel. He began to see Van Ralt more frequently and drink heavily. In April 2005 another twist to an already strange case was added. Their interests inevitably turned to ‘bird nesting’ – looking for birds’ eggs in trees was a popular child’s pastime 60 years ago. WYCH ELM, ULMUS GLABRA The wych elm is the only elm tree which is native to Britain and is also native to Scotland, which can only boast around twenty indigenous trees. The following edition was used to create this study guide: French, Tana. Support our work. The novel is divided into 13 chapters. 'Finish your articles re the Wych elm crime by all means. The elm was also considered the tree of justice in France; under the branches of this tree, the judges received inspiration for their sentences. HESELTON, Philip, 2000, Wiccan Roots Capall Bann And when questions go unanswered, speculation and conspiracy begin to circulate. The four names given for this one tree, the wych elm, the Scot's elm, the Huntingdon elm and the Dutch elm, illustrate one of the almost insurmountable problems with identifying trees: there are just to many varieties even within one species. is graffiti that appeared in 1944 following the 1943 discovery by four children of the skeletonised remains of a woman inside a wych elm in Hagley Wood, Hagley (located in the estate of Hagley Hall), in Worcestershire, England. Another letter to the press came from a woman calling herself ‘Anna of Claverley’. Why this should be was to lead to further macabre speculation. It looked similar enough to the European Wych Elm that the name was applied to the New World plants. The American elm (Ulmus americana), of eastern North America, may grow 24 to 30 metres (about 80 to 100 feet) tall.It has dark gray, ridged bark and elliptical leaves. It usually grows in hilly or rocky woodlands, or beside streams and ditches. Following the last ice age, as woodland became dominant, Wych Elm stood out as one of the success stories. As time passed, speculation began to grow. Due, in part, … comm), Owen Davies is a professor of Social History and author of books on witchcraft and supernatural belief. Closed Tuesday. It was supposedly held on various dates between May and August 1940 and supposedly involved Gerald Gardner and covens from the south of England. Bella as living folklore The novel is a folk horror story set in Netherton and Dudley and is loosely based around the local Bella and the Wych Elm mystery. The Bigger picture She was author of several books on witchcraft traditions in Europe. Decades later, they remain unsolved and have now become part of local folklore. The article was seen by the opera composer Simon Holt, who was immediately hooked by the story, and went on to write and compose an operatic libretto called ‘Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm?’ The opera premiered in 2003 to good reviews. Una said Jack died in a Stafford mental hospital in 1942. Major species. This was later corrupted to “witch” but possibly because so many magical properties were also attributed to it. COLEY, Joyce, 2007, Bella : An Unsolved Murder, History into Print (Harte, pers. I cannot help feel that the close proximity of all these ghostly reports to ancient sacred sites is significant. One of the boys begun climbing the tree to look for birds eggs and upon reaching the topmost branches, looked down to find the tree was curiously hollow. According to historian Professor Ronald Hutton, (Hutton, 1999) Operation Cone of Power was a magical attempt to keep the Nazi threat from the shores on Britain. She suggested that the severed hand was evidence of ritual activity by a coven of local witches. Suddenly he sprinted out diagonally across the road in front of me towards Hagley Hall. We assume you are ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. [quote] But in 1953, a rival theory – this one involving spying – arose to challenge it. Then sow barley never fear;” Gerald of Wales, a 13th century Anglo-Norman nobleman who wrote extensively on Welsh customs, noted that the archers of South Wales favoured elm for their bows. Credit: Victor George / Alamy Stock Photo. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Today there are still more questions than answers about one of Worcestershire’s most notorious murders. He estimated that she had been dead between 18 months and 2 years. No definite ritual elements were present”. First, Professor Ronald Hutton from Bristol University told me: “I know the facts of the Hagley Wood case well, and there is absolutely nothing in them to suggest the involvement of witchcraft in any form. However, it has some interesting natural history and folklore associated with it. Despite the English elm's name, wych elm is the only elm that is regarded as being truly native to the UK. Now the long hard work began. I slammed my breaks on but knew, at 60 mph, it was too late. Flowers. In 1943, four young boys, out poaching in Hagley Wood came across a large Wych Elm, a broad, spiderlike tree. This theory became the central theme in a popular book on the murder in the 1960s by Donald McCormick (McCormick, 1969). #occult #Oldham #Lancashire #Springhead #witch http://www.mysteriousbritain.co.uk/folklore/th-pob-hole-springhead/, It's going to be a quiet solstice this year, happy memories from 3 years ago when we were at #Callanish on the Isle of Lewis @atopham #Solstice, https://facebook.com/events/s/summer-solstice-at-stonehenge-/581183132524229/?ti=cl. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. 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