The drummer boy of Forty Green

This hidden Chiltern pub claims eight centuries of history. Its saddest story is of a twelve-year-old Royalist drummer boy who, they say, never left.

Tucked down a lane at Forty Green near Beaconsfield, the Royal Standard of England claims to be one of England's oldest inns, first recorded in 1213 as The Ship. In the Civil War it was a Royalist mustering place, and the pub says Charles II later granted its grand name in thanks. Its own history adds a darker tale. When Roundhead troops held the area, a dozen captured Irish Royalists were killed and their heads raised on pikes outside the door, and among them was a drummer boy of twelve. His ghost, the pub says, still haunts the building. Other tales include Charles II meeting mistresses upstairs.

One sourceOnly one written account of this legend has been found so far.