10 Creepy Victorian Monsters: The Victorian era stretched from 1837 – 1901. It was a time of scientific and political reform. But it was also a time when myth and legend distorted our outlook. The Victorians told stories of witches, goblins and other mythical beasts. Today we stand on the shoulders of hundreds of years of folk tales because this is a list of 10 Creepy and Scary Victorian Monsters.
10) Tree People:
A living tree? that’s unheard of!
During the 19th century, stories of tree people started to emerge. There are tales of whole villages being surrounded and encroached upon by these seemingly harmless trees. Trees can’t move very quickly but literally within hours the villagers were astonished to find themselves being strangled to death by branches and roots.
The response to these attacks was to burn down a bunch of forests on some serious gangsta shit.
9) The Bunyip:
It’s like a big dog thing
The Bunyip is a large mythical beast that was said to lurk in swamps and rivers as it waits for it’s next prey. It was sighted throughout Australia and was first reported in the early 1800s. There were 9 reported sub-species of the Bunyip; each one looking completely different from the last.
The word Bunyip can be translated into several Aboriginal languages as meaning “evil spirit”. The legend was so popular that several Australian towns have been named after the Bunyip. Like this one: Bunyip town.
8) Spring Heeled Jack:
The famous leap!
Spring-Heeled Jack can only be described as an unknown entity. His name comes from his notorious ability to make large leaps, often clearing whole buildings. There are dozens of accounts of him attacking people as they walk through the streets of London at night.
He looked more like a man than anything else. He was tall and thin. But his eyes were like balls of fire and his fingers were like metallic claws. He wasn’t just sighted in London, but also from many other urban areas in Britain. The myth may not yet be dead as the last reported encounter with Jack was in 2012.
7) The Gargoyle:
A really fucking old one
A gargoyle is a spout engineered to redirect water away from the walls of a building. The gothic design of these features has led many to wonder if they had another purpose. Perhaps a darker… more frightening purpose.
By the 19th century, the gargoyle were strongly enshrined in European folklore. People believed that, at night, they would come to life and take on their true forms as demons and spirits. They would scale the walls of their buildings and attack anyone that came near. According to legend gargoyles would lure people into traps by mimicking human speech.
6) Jack Frost:
Jack Frost
Jack Frost is ice and snow personified. During the Victorian era he was known across Europe and North-America as a mysterious and sinister being. The only way to know whether Jack Frost has paid you a visit is to wake up in the morning and find ice or frost on your windows.
He is usually accompanied by a band of goblins who capture lesser creatures like imps and fairies and attempt to corrupt them.
5) The Hag:
The hag from Hansel and Gretel
A hag was a shapeshifting deity said to take on the appearance of an old woman who would brutally assault humans as they sleep at night. According to English folklore, the hag would approach the sleeping victim and cause them to have nightmares. To this day, many people still report encounters with the hag; these encounters are now dismissed as the result of a condition known as old hag syndrome.
Still, those affected live in constant fear of the hag.
4) Herne The Hunter:
Herne himself
In the English county of Berkshire lies Windsor Park. A park that has long been associated with a spirit named Herne the hunter. On cold nights he appears at the base of Herne’s Oak (the tree on which he was hanged to death.)
He rides through the shadowy woodland with his horse and owl, doing the only thing he can. Hunt.
Local townsfolk warned their children that if you get close enough to Herne to see the antlers on his head, he will kill you.
3) Werewolf:
Werewolf depiction from 1512
A werewolf is a folkloric human that is able to briefly transform into a wolf-man hybrid. Fables of wolves kidnapping children for food led to the widespread persecution of suspected werewolf. The last of these occurred during the Victorian era. It was said that a person would become a werewolf if they slept outside on a Wednesday or Friday during a summer night when a full moon shone down on them.
Many believed that the only cure for this affliction was execution.
2) The Hulder:
Hulder love to approach travellers
A Hulder is a shapeshifting monster found in the forests. She takes on the form of a human woman in order to lure men. Sort of like a siren. If treated with respect they will look out for you, protecting you from mischievous creatures. If disrespected, they will do whatever they can to hinder your journey through the forests of Europe. So just be nice to them.
1) The Wandering Jew:
This depiction of him was used by the Nazis for propaganda purposes
The wandering Jew is a biblical character. As a legendary figure, his story spread to Europe in the 13th century but it lived on well into the Victorian era. He was purportedly a man who taunted Jesus on his way to, and during, his crucifixion. As a penalty for this, he was cursed to walk the Earth until the second coming of Jesus. They say that wandering the world aimlessly while being plagued by visions of a crucifixion is enough to turn any man into a monster.
And that concludes our list of 10 Creepy Victorian Monsters
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