Boleskine Manor

Deep in the Scottish Highlands, located just two miles east of the town of Foyers the Shelving Slopes, on the south east shores of Loch Ness stands, or what’s left of it stands, the historic Manor of Boleskine House, Taigh Both Fhleisginn (in Scottish Gaelic) allegedly constructed on the remains of a Scottish Kirk that burnt down during congregation in the 10th century by Colonel Archibald Fraser as a hunting lodge in 1760, the Manor, is one of the most culturally interesting in the entire world, from Colonels, to Occultists, to Rockers not to mention the alleged happenings of such a place, land Boleskine House on the map as one of the most interesting places on earth, sheltered away in the far Scottish Highlands…

The Manor itself, was beautiful at its inception and looked after by the Fraser family from the date of its completed construction in 1760 through to its acquisition by the infamous Aleister Crowley in 1899, surrounded by the beautiful landscape of the Scottish Highlands just off the shore of Loch Ness the Manor was situated on one floor with 4 bedrooms, kitchen, lounge, drawing room and library.

Long before the Arrival of Crowley though the Manor was perceived as strange by locals of the surrounding area, what with its turbulent past of being built on an alleged Scottish Kirk, its tunnel linking the manor to the nearby cemetery, with many of the previous owners even in Fraser family custody times reporting “bad vibes” not limited to hearing the head of executed Lord Lovat rolling on the floor, fueling local superstitions and myths.

While we can all this day and age look back on it as superstitious nonsense, this does not detract from its cultural significance, which only increased that fateful day when Aleister Crowley, The Wickedest Man on Earth, purchased the property for the intent of his Magickal operations of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage from the Fraser family in 1899, in which, if you believe the stories, all literal hell broke loose upon the Scottish Highlands.

You don’t have to be a spiritualist, or occultist to find what Crowley attempted in that place interesting from an academic point of view, in the context of history, he was attempting to undertake what in ceremonial magick is known as “The Sacred Magic of Abramelin” taken from a grimoire known simply as “The Book of Abramelin” the ultimate goal of such an operation is to invoke ones Guardian Angel, however as part of the process it includes first summoning the 12 kings and dukes of Hell, in order to bind them and remove their negative influences from the magician’s life.

So far as the ritual is concerned in a purely historical analysis perspective, it takes six months in total, and here in lies the problem in that while halfway through the ritual Crowley was summoned by the leader of the Golden Dawn to Paris and dropped his operations entirely, never banishing the demons he is alleged to have summoned.

After his final departure from the property in 1913, moving to Dennyloanhead near Falkirk, the property was sold to Major Edward Grant who in 1965 committed suicide in Crowley’s former bedroom with a shotgun to the head, leaving the place in state of disrepair until purchased by the enigmatic rocker of Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page in 1970.

Page, a long enthusiastic collector of all thing Crowley dubbed the place as an excellent place for writing music, however, despite the purchase and restoration he spent little time there trusting the safety and care of the Manor to his friend Malcolm Dent who lived there with his family.

After this the Manor enter into a period of checkered ownership from the MacGillivray family from 1992-2002, and then new Dutch private owners from 2002 – 2015 where the Manor finally, after its founding in 1760 finally met its end, by the same means on which it was founded.

At approximately 1:40pm on 23rd December 2015 a driver on the A82 road reported flames and smoke billowing from Boleskine House, while fire crews attended as fast as they could it is estimated that over 60% of the building had already been incinerated with flames reported of reached up to 20 ft high, the fire fighters focused on saving the west-wing of the Manor as everything else had already been destroyed, though there were no casualties as no one was present in the house at the time.

This historic an antique place has in every sense of the word been gutted by fire, interesting and curious when you think about the 10th century rumors of the burnt Kirk its alleged to be founded on, hopefully it is restored one day, as it is, without a doubt, one of the most interesting places in Scotland, and the world, if only for its historical significance.