Encounter Atlas
The redcap is the most violent goblin of the Anglo-Scottish Border. It is said to haunt ruined peel towers and castles, especially those with a history of cruelty. It is described as a short, thickset old man with long teeth, talons, fiery red eyes, iron boots, a pikestaff and a red cap. It throws stones at travellers who shelter in its ruin and, if it kills them, dips its cap in their blood to keep it red.
Human strength is useless against it, but words of scripture or a cross are said to drive it off with a yell, leaving behind a large tooth. The most famous redcap, Robin Redcap, was said to be the familiar of the cruel lord William de Soulis of Hermitage Castle in Liddesdale. Walter Scott printed John Leyden's ballad 'Lord Soulis' in Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border in 1802, and wrote that every ruined tower in the south of Scotland was supposed to have such a spirit.
Not every redcap is cruel. One at Grantully Castle in Perthshire was a kindly little man who brought luck to those who saw him.
What witnesses report
- A squat figure in a red cap at a ruined tower
- Stones thrown from the ruins
- Iron footsteps
- A large tooth left behind
Famous cases
- 1802Ballad of Lord Soulis and his redcap printed in Scott's Minstrelsy
Hermitage Castle, Scotland
Seen the Redcap?
Tell us what happened. Every report is read by a person before it goes on the map, and you can stay anonymous.
