#hellfire caves

Hellfire Caves, West Wycombe, UK.

Heavy inspiration for the design of the caves was taken from other systems across Europe and Western Asia. Every wall of the deeper chambers is covered runes and carvings designed to disorient trespassers and prevent them from finding the entrance. Leaving the path is, as previously stated, not a good idea. Passages appear to shift and stretch, changing the connections between rooms on a seemingly random basis.

Passing across the subterranean river, referred to as the Styx, takes visitors into the main meeting hall of the club. Leaving the approved path right now is an even worse idea than it was before. Each time the Hellfire Club has one of their Bacchanalia here it increased the unholy power of the caves and moved them ever closer to the underworld. After so many meetings with unknowable rituals being performed, the caves are almost certainly the closest place on Earth that one can get to Hell (the other possibility being the caves to Xibalba, in Belize). Such places are not to be entered and trespassed in lightly. Even the most experienced researcher into Interesting Things could be caught within the labyrinthian nexus.

Anyways, I said that because there’s this ONE man that everyone forgets about in Benjamin Franklin’s life that’s kind of bothering me a bit.

Ever thought of St. Francis Dashwood, the one dude who was close to Benjamin Franklin and owned the Hellfire Caves in London?

The Hellfire caves were excavated between 1748 and 1752 by Sir Francis Dashwood. The caves run into the hillside above West Wycombe Village and beneath St. Lawrence’s Church and Mausoleum. The caves extend 0.25 miles (400 m) underground with caves (or chambers) connected by a series of passageways and tunnels leading visitors from the Entrance Hall which was made to look like a gothic church all the way across the “River Styx” to the inner temple which lies directly underneath St. Lawrence’s Church, symbolizing one’s descent from heaven to hell.

The caves are named after the infamous Hellfire Club, which consisted of politicians, noble men, and high-ranking members of society. Though not a member of the club, Benjamin Franklin was a close friend of Dashwood and visited the caves from time to time. The club motto was “fais ce que tu voudras” which translates to “do what thou wilt”, which they did. Meetings occurred twice a month and according to legend, the members were involved in many illicit activities such as sex parties, drinking, and practiced occult rituals. In 1766 the Hellfire Club dissolved and the caves fell into disrepair, until the late 1940s and 50s when the caves were renovated by the Dashwood family. They have been used as a tourist attraction ever since. There have been many reports of paranormal activity in the caves, they were even featured on several paranormal shows such as Ghost Adventures and Ghost Hunters.

Paul Whitehead was a close friend of Sir Dashwood and served as Secretary and Steward to the Hellfire Club. When he died in 1774, he requested that his heart be placed in an urn and stored in the Mausoleum at West Wycombe. However, the heart was stolen by an Australian soldier in 1829. It is said that his spirit haunts the caves searching for his heart. Many visitors and staff claim to have reported seeing a man in period clothing wandering the passageways.

There is also the legend of the White Lady who haunts the Hellfire caves. She was an attractive young girl who worked at a local bar during the late 18th century and many sought her hand in marriage, but she refused wanting to be married into society. She started dating an aristocrat.  One night she received a letter asking her to meet him in the Hellfire caves wearing her best dress, but the note was a hoax. Three village boys were waiting for her and started teasing and tormenting her. She threw stones at them, and one of the boys, laughing, threw a rock back at her hitting her in the head killing her. Many visitors to the caves have reported seeing her spirit wandering the west side passageways, perhaps waiting for her lover. 

The Hellfire caves also have reports of poltergeist activity, where people have had stones thrown at them and hearing footsteps. Chanting is also said to have been heared emanating from the Inner Temple.