The Red Monk of Trioubry
Location: J3RF+5F Avessac, France
Undead
by @anton
At Trioubry, in the commune of Avessac, local tradition tells of the ghost of a mysterious Red Monk haunting the ruins of an ancient Templar chapel hidden among the dense pine woods. The story was told by a shepherd from Ramballay and collected in the 19th century .
According to the legend, one evening, while guarding his livestock on the heath, the shepherd sought shelter from the wind inside the sinister ruins of the chapel. Suddenly, the building became illuminated, revealing rows of skeletons attending a mass celebrated by a tall monk entirely dressed in red. When the monk noticed him, he began chasing him while shouting. The shepherd fled, and after turning around a few hundred metres away, he saw the monk disappear beneath the stones of the hillside.
The ruins of Trioubry were considered such a dangerous place that inhabitants travelling to the nearby spring would go there armed.
The Red Monk was believed to be the ghost of a former Templar. His spirit guarded the limits of the old chapel and chased away lost fishermen who entered his territory. Beyond the chapel grounds, however, he had no power.
Source :
Bulletin de la société de mythologie française, n°116.