Ruthin Castle is a medieval castle fortification in Ruthin, Denbighshire, Wales, constructed during the late 13th century on a red sandstone ridge. The site was first used as an Iron Age fort.
###Historical Background
In 1277, King Edward I granted the land to Dafydd ap Gruffydd (brother of Prince Llywelyn ap Gruffudd) for his assistance during the invasion of North Wales. The castle was originally named Castell Coch yn yr Gwernfor ("The Red Castle in the Great Marsh"). In 1282, Dafydd rebelled against Edward and was captured, found guilty of high treason, and executed by being hanged, drawn and quartered, with his head spiked atop the Tower of London. Reginald de Grey was granted the castle and employed Edward's master castle builder, James of St. George, to make improvements. The de Grey family remained at Ruthin until 1508. In 1400, Reginald de Grey's dispute with Owain Glyndŵr sparked the Welsh rebellion. Glyndŵr attacked and burned the town of Ruthin, though the castle resisted. Between 1579 and 1580, the castle was used for the imprisonment and torture of Welsh poet Richard Gwyn, who was later executed. During the English Civil War in 1646, Parliamentary soldiers captured the castle and demolished much of the stonework. The castle was rebuilt in the 19th century as a country house. At the turn of the 20th century, it became home to the Cornwallis-West family and gained notoriety when Colonel Cornwallis-West's wife, Patsy (aged just 16 when married), began a long affair with Edward, Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII), making it "the centre of dangerous romantic intrigue." In 1923, the castle became Britain's first private hospital for the investigation and treatment of obscure diseases, closing around 1950-1960. In the early 1960s, it was converted into a luxury hotel. Prince Charles stayed at the hotel the night before his investiture as Prince of Wales on 1 July 1969.
###Lady Grey - The Primary Ghost
Lady Grey is the castle's most famous ghost. She was the wife of the second-in-command when the castle was a fortress. Upon discovering her husband, Reginald de Grey was having an affair with a local peasant girl, she murdered the woman with an axe in a jealous rage. Found guilty and in a state of madness, she was executed and buried outside the castle walls as no clergy would allow burial on consecrated ground. A sign for Lady Grey's grave can be found by the castle. She has been spotted by numerous guests and staff wandering the corridors, and witnesses report seeing a crazed woman wielding an axe through the banquet hall and battlements.
###Other Ghosts
A soldier wearing just one glove has been seen wandering the grounds. He's believed to have died defending the castle and never interacts with people. A mischievous little girl has been seen running through halls at night, knocking on doors and giggling as she turns corners and vanishes.
###Additional Paranormal Activity
Staff report taps turning on and off spontaneously, objects levitating, and unexplained whisperings in the kitchen and banqueting area. The basement (former mortuary) has sounds of crying and moaning. The Lily Langtry Suite (Room 204) is considered the most haunted room. The castle was investigated by Most Haunted in 2018, where a team member fainted in the cellar. Today, the castle offers luxury accommodations, fine dining, a spa, and medieval banquets where guests feast in the banqueting hall before dancing at the disco.