The Enigma of Hagley Wood

In the woods of Hagley Wood, near Witchbury Hill in Worcestershire, England, four young boys were engaging in a popular activity called bird nesting on April 18, 1943. This pastime involved climbing trees and collecting bird eggs, specifically focusing on blue and speckled ones. During their exploration, the boys came across a notably large witch hazel tree, which birds favored for building their nests.

Among the boys, Robert Farmer possessed the greatest climbing abilities. As he ascended the tree, he made a startling discovery: the trunk was hollow and extended several meters downward. Fueled by curiosity, he peered into the opening and was met with a bone-chilling sight—a complete human skull adorned with hair and human teeth. Overwhelmed with fear, Robert found himself in a distressing predicament.

Hagley Wood formed part of Lord Cobham's estate, and the boys were trespassing on his property. If they were to disclose what they had encountered, their parents would inevitably discover their forbidden escapade, inviting even more trouble. To avoid this, the boys swiftly departed from Hagley Wood, visibly shaken and pale, hurrying back home before arousing suspicions.

That night, Thomas Willett, one of the boys, was tormented by vivid and horrifying nightmares. In his dreams, he witnessed a woman trapped within the witch hazel tree, still alive and weeping as the tree grew around her, imprisoning her like a grotesque wooden cage. Desperate for help, she pleaded with Thomas, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't assist her. When he attempted to shout for aid, his voice became lodged in his throat, rendering him silent. Thomas woke up screaming, and upon hearing his distress, his parents entered his room, prompting him to confess everything he had witnessed.

The following day, Thomas' parents visited the nearby police station to officially report their son's remarkable discovery. Promptly, the police officers embarked on a journey to the witch hazel tree previously described by the boys. Diligently, they thoroughly inspected the hollow trunk and made an astounding revelation—a near-complete skeleton cunningly concealed within. As they continued their examination, they stumbled upon significant findings, including a gold ring belonging to the woman and fragments of clothing believed to be associated with the deceased. Undeniably, the skull itself held immense value as crucial evidence.

Mirroring the observations made by young Robert Farmer, the skull exhibited a rather comprehensive dental pattern, accompanied by scattered strands of hair that had detached from the scalp. Eager to gather more information about the identity and motives behind burying the woman's body in the cavity, the responding officers meticulously scoured the vicinity. It was during this thorough search that they uncovered the remains of a human hand discreetly concealed amidst the soil and foliage, not far from the tree's location.

It didn't take much time for the authorities to ascertain that someone had intentionally severed the woman's hand prior to placing her lifeless body inside the empty trunk. A subsequent examination conducted by forensic experts swiftly revealed that the woman had been buried within the witch hazel tree and had been deceased for approximately a year and a half, with her murder estimated to have occurred around October 1941. The examining coroner also made a chilling discovery—a fragment of taffeta found in her mouth, indicating that suffocation may have been the cause of her demise.

Considering the severed hand, the police were able to make a reasonable approximation of the woman's height. However, due to the tumultuous circumstances of World War II, which was raging during her death and subsequent discovery, there were an immense number of missing civilians as a result of German bombings. The vastness of the records made it nearly impossible to establish a proper identification. The details were meticulously cross-referenced with hundreds of missing persons reports, but unfortunately, no matches were found.

In a further attempt to uncover her identity, dentists throughout the United Kingdom were contacted in the hopes of identifying the distinct dental pattern, often referred to as the bite mark, of the woman. Regrettably, none of their records aligned with the unique dental characteristics of the unidentified woman, leaving her true identity shrouded in mystery. The police were captivated by the sinister nature of the murder, yet their quest for answers seemed to peak one year later.

In 1944, graffiti emerged on an unattractive monument nearby, not far from where the woman's body had been discovered. The graffiti posed the question, "Who placed Bella in the witch elm?" However, in the years that followed, no definitive answer regarding the murder surfaced. It is understandable that the resources of the entire British state were heavily strained in their efforts to combat the atrocities of Nazism across Europe. Consequently, the investigation into this mysterious murder was not a top priority for national or local law enforcement agencies. As a result, nearly 80 years later, we are still left pondering who placed the deceased woman's corpse inside the Witch Elm of Hagley Wood.

Numerous theories exist regarding why the body was placed there and to whom it belonged. One possibility suggests that the body belonged to a prostitute from Birmingham who was only reported missing in 1944, three years after her apparent disappearance. According to the report, her name was Lubella. This realization leads us to the unsettling conclusion that the individual responsible for the graffiti on the Hagley obelisk must have possessed prior knowledge of the victim's identity or the killer's identity before it was officially established.

Another theory involves a patient named Jack Mossop from the Stafford psychiatric hospital. Mossop frequently complained to hospital staff about recurring nightmares involving a woman staring at him from a tree. Although Jack had passed away long before the discovery of the body, his wife came forward with information ten years after his death. At that time, the story of the witch hazel tree had become well-known. According to Jack's wife, he had confessed that he and a friend encountered a heavily intoxicated woman at the Littleton Arms, a pub in Hagley. In an attempt to teach her a lesson after she vomited in their car, they dragged her intoxicated body into the woods and placed her inside the hollow of a tree, hoping to frighten her and make her realize her mistake. However, unless they had killed her outright or she perished from exposure while trapped in the hollow trunk, there is no reason to believe the delusions of a mentally unstable individual who was later institutionalized. If this account were indeed true, the question remains: why did they sever her hand in the process?

However, in 1945, an anthropologist and archaeologist named Margaret Murray from University College London proposed another theory that adds a disturbing twist to Bella's disappearance and death.

Professor Murray's theory revolves around a practice that was believed to have been eradicated through her study of witchcraft in the British Isles. She suggested that the severed hand found with Bella's body aligns with the details of a mysterious ritual known as the Hand of Glory. According to ancient European folklore, this ritual involved creating a candle from the fat of someone who died unnaturally and placing it inside their own severed hand, which acted as a candlestick. The Hand of Glory was believed to possess powerful magical properties, rendering anyone who encountered it immobile. The candle could only be extinguished with milk, and the hair of the deceased served as the wick. The candle would only illuminate the person holding it.

In conjunction with her claims about Bella's death and dismemberment, Professor Murray connected the murder to another ritualistic killing in the nearby area of Quentin. Charles Walton, a 75-year-old man, was brutally murdered in a similar manner. He had been working on pruning hedges and doing gardening tasks on Valentine's Day in 1945 when he was attacked by an unknown assailant. Walton defended himself by striking the attacker on the head with his own cane, but he was ultimately overpowered. His neck was then cut with a hook, and he was impaled on his own pitchfork, pinning him to the ground. Like Bella, Walton's left hand was severed, and despite extensive searches, it was never found.

Detective Superintendent Robert Fabian from the Metropolitan Police was assigned to investigate the gruesome murder and expressed his findings in the following manner: I strongly advise anyone who may be tempted to dabble in black magic, witchcraft, or any similar practices to remember the fate of Charles Walton. His death was undoubtedly the horrifying culmination of a pagan ritual. There is no stronger argument for keeping a safe distance from individuals who engage in swords, incense, and nonsensical beliefs. Making this prudent choice can safeguard your future peace of mind and even your life.

Fabian also claimed to have spoken with numerous residents of Clinton who believed that Walton was a witch whose powers instilled fear in some locals. It was alleged that he possessed the ability to cast the evil eye and kept toads as pets, using them to bring harm to crops and livestock in the area. Farmers, citing the failure of the 1944 harvest as an example, asserted that these alleged acts of witchcraft led to Walton's ritualistic murder. According to this theory, his blood was poured into the ground to restore fertility, and his hand was taken to perform a Hand of Glory ritual.

During his investigation into the murder, Robert Fabian collaborated with Detective Superintendent Alex Spoer, who headed the Warwickshire County police. It was Spoer who brought to Fabian's attention a book titled "Folklore, Old Customs, and Superstitions in the Land of Shakespeare," authored by Reverend James Harvey Bloom and published in 1929. This book contained a purportedly true account, sent in 1885, about a young farm laborer who was witnessed invoking a phantom black dog on consecutive nights. At one point, the dog was accompanied by a headless woman. Astonishingly, Fabian discovered that the name of this laborer was none other than Charles Walton.

Fabian later mentioned encountering a wall of silence when attempting to uncover the truth behind the murder. In 1945, he informed the press that the inhabitants of Upper and Lower Quinton, as well as the surrounding districts, were secretive by nature and were not inclined to readily accept strangers. While the connection between the two murders remains uncertain, the fact that two ritualistic killings occurred within a few years of each other and in close proximity cannot be disregarded.

Since the 1970s, some have even suggested that Bella's murder was linked to her involvement in a German spy network. However, every theory presented thus far has been subsequently disproven, except for the one involving occult practices.

It is strongly suggested that the enigmatic Bella may have met her demise as part of an ancient ritual predating Christianity, similar to Charles Walton. However, the identity of the individual who severed her hand before placing her still-warm body inside the witch elm in Hagley Wood remains an unsolved mystery.