William ‘Wild’ Darrell

The Dark Legend of Littlecote House

William ‘Wild’ Darrell was the last of the Darrell line to own Littlecote House, inheriting the magnificent Tudor manor through marriage when his ancestor William Darrell wed Elizabeth de Calstone in 1415. By the 1570s, Wild Darrell had earned his notorious reputation through scandalous behaviour and a lifestyle that shocked even the relatively permissive Elizabethan court society.

Littlecote House itself provided the perfect backdrop for Darrell’s dark deeds. Built initially in the 13th century by the de Calstone family, the house had grown into a sprawling mansion with numerous chambers, hidden passages, and thick walls that could muffle screams. The Tudor additions, with their maze-like corridors and heavy oak doors, created countless opportunities for secrecy and concealment.

The Fateful Night of 1575

The most infamous chapter in Littlecote’s haunted history began on a cold autumn night in 1575. Darrell had been conducting an affair with a married woman of some standing—her identity carefully concealed in all historical accounts, though local gossip suggested she moved in court circles. When the inevitable pregnancy occurred, Darrell faced a crisis that threatened not only his reputation but potentially his life, as adultery with a married woman could carry severe legal consequences.

As the woman’s time approached, Darrell made careful preparations for a secret birth within the walls of Littlecote House. The grand Elizabethan rooms, with their rich tapestries and carved wood panelling, would witness an act so heinous that it would stain the house’s reputation for centuries to come.

Mother Barnes: The Unwilling Witness

Mother Barnes, a respected midwife from Great Shefford, received an unusual summons that fateful night. A masked rider arrived at her humble cottage, offering an enormous sum—more than she could earn in several years—if she would attend a difficult birth. The conditions were unusual: she must come immediately, ask no questions, and submit to being blindfolded for the journey.

The desperate midwife, perhaps sensing the generous payment could secure her family’s future, agreed to these strange terms. Blindfolded and bundled into a carriage, she was transported through the dark Berkshire countryside to what she would later describe as a ‘great house’ with broad stone steps leading to an impressive entrance.

Once inside, Mother Barnes found herself in richly appointed chambers lit by flickering candles. The birthing room was opulent beyond her experience—hung with silk tapestries and furnished with carved oak furniture that spoke of wealth and nobility. The expectant mother, her face concealed behind a mask, lay upon a bed draped with fine linens.

The Horrific Act

Darrell, also masked but clearly the master of the house, commanded Mother Barnes to save the mother’s life at all costs. The birth proceeded normally, and Mother Barnes successfully delivered a healthy male infant. For a brief moment, the child’s cries filled the chamber—a sound that should have brought joy but instead heralded unspeakable tragedy.

As Mother Barnes tended to the mother, Darrell seized the newborn infant. In a moment that would haunt Littlecote House for eternity, he strode to the great fireplace where logs blazed fiercely against the autumn chill. Without hesitation, he cast the innocent child into the flames and held it there with his boot until its cries ceased forever.

The midwife watched in horror as this monstrous act unfolded before her eyes. The dancing shadows cast by the firelight seemed to recoil from the scene, and the very air in the room grew cold despite the roaring fire. Mother Barnes later testified that she felt an overwhelming sense of evil descend upon the chamber, as if the house itself recoiled from what it had witnessed.

The Price of Silence

Darrell threatened Mother Barnes with death if she ever spoke of what she had witnessed. However, the traumatised midwife had the presence of mind to tear a piece of cloth from the bed curtains as evidence. As she was led blindfolded from the house, she carefully counted each step, memorising the route and noting distinctive features that might later identify the location.

Years passed before Mother Barnes found the courage to break her silence. The horror of that night haunted her dreams, and the guilt of her enforced complicity weighed heavily upon her conscience. When she finally spoke of the infanticide, her testimony contributed to the accusations that would eventually be levelled against Wild Darrell, though the full legal consequences would be delivered by supernatural rather than earthly justice.

Divine Retribution at Darrell’s Stile

In 1589, fourteen years after the infanticide, Wild Darrell met his fate while hunting in the grounds of his own estate. According to multiple accounts, as he rode through the parkland on a crisp morning, a small figure appeared before his horse—the ghost of the murdered infant, now old enough to walk had he lived.

The child’s spirit, described by witnesses as glowing with an otherworldly light, caused Darrell’s mount to rear in terror. The horse, normally sure-footed and calm, bolted as if fleeing from hell itself. Darrell was thrown violently to the ground at a spot on the estate boundary, breaking his neck instantly. The location of his death became known as ‘Darrell’s Stile’ and remains marked to this day.

Local tradition holds that Darrell’s death was divine retribution for his heinous crime. Sir John Popham, who had already purchased the reversion of the estate, inherited Littlecote immediately upon Darrell’s death and set about building the magnificent Elizabethan mansion that visitors see today, completed in 1592.

The Continuing Haunting

Wild Darrell’s spirit, it seems, found no peace in death. His restless presence continues to manifest throughout Littlecote House, particularly in the Long Gallery where his portrait once hung. Guests and staff report encounters with a menacing male figure in Tudor dress, often described as radiating anger and malevolence.

The most frequent sightings occur in the grounds near Darrell’s Stile, where witnesses describe seeing a horseman in period costume, his face twisted with fear and rage. Some have reported hearing the thundering of hooves in the dead of night, followed by a terrible cry that echoes across the parkland—the sound, locals claim, of Wild Darrell reliving his final, fatal ride for eternity.

Paranormal investigators have recorded significant electromagnetic disturbances in areas associated with Darrell’s story. The atmosphere in these locations often becomes oppressive, with witnesses reporting feelings of intense dread and the sensation of being watched by hostile, unseen eyes. Equipment malfunctions are common, particularly near Darrell’s Stile, where cameras frequently fail and recording devices produce only static.

The legend of Wild Darrell serves as a dark reminder that some crimes are so heinous they leave permanent scars upon the very fabric of a place. At Littlecote House, the luxury and beauty of the Tudor architecture cannot mask the evil that once walked these halls, and Wild Darrell’s spirit remains forever bound to the scene of his greatest sin.