Devil
Sir Rowland Rides Again
Five fingermarks on the porch show where the Devil missed him.
See it clearly
- What's there
- Five marks on the church porch stone
- Legend from
- Victorian; next due 2044
- Tone
- Eerie
Ahead is Odell church, where five marks on the porch are said to show exactly where the Devil lost his grip on a wicked lord.
Odell's church porch bears five odd marks that, legend says, were left by the Devil's fingers. The story belongs to Sir Rowland Alston, remembered as a wicked lord of Odell Castle and buried in All Saints. After his death his ghost rode a black horse that left hoof marks on the castle hall floor, until twelve clergymen with bell, book and candle banished him into a pond on Odell Wold. Later the Devil came after him and chased him to the church. Sir Rowland slipped through the keyhole just in time, and the Devil's grasping hand left its mark on the porch. He is said to ride out once a century, in years ending in 44.