Dragons in the Landscape (and in the flesh)
Hording Lizard
Location: Bilsdale (Yorkshire) - Exact location not known
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A dragon was said to reside in a tumulus, protecting its hoard.
The Dragon of Wantley
Location: Wharncliffe Crags (Yorkshire) - Exact location not known
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This dragon made a nuisance of itself until the local hero Moore of Moore Hall donned a suit of spiked armour and kicked the creature between the legs. The dragon left the area with tears in its eyes.
Latimer the Dragon Slayer
Location: Well (Yorkshire) - Exact location not known
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The dragon of Well was slain by a knight name Latimer who was a local landowner. A dragon is featured in the Latimer coat of arms.
Hungry Dragon
Location: Unsworth (Lancashire) - Exact location unknown
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A local dragon which feasted on the local women and children was killed by the local landlord who fired a dagger at the creature using his musket.
Dragon Attack
Location: St Osyth (Essex) - Exact location unknown
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: 09 March 1170
Further Comments: Recorded on old documents, a large dragon attacked a house in St Ostwyth, the air surrounding the creature so hot that it set the area alight.
Smith's Wyrm
Location: Deerhurst (Gloucestershire) - Exact location unknown
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: John Smith, a local hero, was rewarded with a large amount of land after killing a dragon that was trying to make a home in the neighbourhood. Smith left a large quantity of milk for the creature to consume. The wyrm drunk so much milk that kinks appeared in its scales, enabling Smith to decapitate it with an axe.
Slain Dragon
Location: Moston (Cheshire) - Exact location unknown
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A local story tells of how Sir Thomas Venables shot and killed a dragon here by shooting an arrow into the eye, just as it picked up a small child to eat.
Self-Healing Dragon
Location: Nunnington (Yorkshire) - Exact location unknown - Loschy Hill?
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The dragon which set up home near here possessed the ability to heal itself and spit poison. It was finally defeated by Sir Peter Loschy and his dog; as Sir Peter cut pieces of the monster off, the dog picked the segments up and ran away with them. Alas, the knight also died when his dog jumped up and licked his face in celebration, rubbing some of the dragon's poison on to his master.
Piers the Dragon Killer
Location: Brent Pelham (Hertfordshire) - Exact location unknown, but buried in St Mary church
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Piers Shonks is a celebrated local dragon slayer, whose tomb in the village church is decorated with his battle. One story says he died after Satan came to seek revenge for the death of his pet, another that Satan tried to claim his soul many years later when Piers lay on his deathbed; the Devil said that he would take Piers' soul whether buried inside a church or not, so the man was buried in the north wall of the local church, denying the Devil of his prize.
Dragon Slayer
Location: West Clandon (Surrey) - Exact location unknown, but woodcarving in local church
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A dragon which was given the locals a hard time was killed by an ex-soldier and his dog - the dog leapt onto the creature's face, while the man decapitated the wyrm.
Dragon of Wormenhert
Location: St Albans (Hertfordshire) - Exact location unknown, said to have been a cave within a gorge in a nearby hill
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Eleventh century
Further Comments: Abbot Ealdred of St Albans rebuilt his abbey using the ruins of Verulamium, a Roman city located nearby. During the course
of the work the Abbot destroyed the lair of the dragon of Wormenhert.
Flying Beast
Location: Dolbury (aka Dolebury) (Devon) - Exe valley between Dolbury Hill & Cadbury Hill
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Every night (reoccurring)
Further Comments: To guard the treasure buried under both hills, this beast flies between the two locations each night.
Basking Dragon
Location: Henham (Essex) - Field near Henham
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: May 1669 (or 1699)
Further Comments: The nine foot long dragon with 'eyes as big as a sheep's' once spent a few days basking in a field in this area, before taking leave (chased away by concerned villagers). The creature caused no damage and remained a popular local character until quite recently. Another version of the tale is not so dragon-friendly; the creature lived in a cave and would venture out at night to eat cattle and sheep - it only stopped when the cave roof collapsed, trapping the creature within.
Wybrant Gwiber
Location: Betws y Coed (Clwyd) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A bandit from a nearby village tried to kill the Wybrant Gwiber but failed. The bandit's throat was torn out and his body thrown into the river. What happened to the dragon is not known.
Tricked Dragon
Location: Penmynydd (Gwynedd) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Paid by a nobleman to rid the area of a dragon, a local lad dug a deep pit and at the bottom he placed a brass mirror. The creature fell into the hole and, believing it had met a rival, fought its own reflection before falling exhausted. This enabled the boy to decapitate the monster with no further problems.
Banished Wyrms
Location: Berkhamsted (Hertfordshire) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Whilst visiting Britain, St Paul, was supposed to have banished forever all snakes, dragons, and
thunderstorms. One out of three is not too bad...
Dropper of Fire
Location: Helston (Cornwall) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A large rock on the outskirts of this town is said to have been dropped by a huge dragon as it passed overhead.
Griffin
Location: Farnworth, Widnes (Cheshire) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The village blacksmith killed a griffin that threatened the safety of this community.
Cattle Eaters
Location: Runcorn (Cheshire) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Before the town's construction
Further Comments: Before the town was built here, legend says the area was home to a huge fire breathing dragon that was slain by a local blacksmith annoyed at the amount of cattle he and his friends were losing.
Tamed Dragon
Location: Padstow (Cornwall) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Saint Petroc is said to have tamed a horrific dragon by placing a girdle about its neck before taking the beast to the beach and setting it free. The dragon swam away and was never seen again.
Terror of Mull
Location: Mull (Argyll and Bute) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A fearsome dragon terrorised the island until a hero appeared and killed the beast with the inventive use of barrels with big spikes attached to them. This story and the dragon tale told of Mull are strikingly similar.
Brace of Dragons
Location: Winkleigh (Devon) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Seventeenth century?
Further Comments: Several dragons were reported to live in the area, though nothing more is known about their activities.
Hissing Creature
Location: Fittleworth (Sussex) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: 1867
Further Comments: A worm was reputed to live in this area, rushing out to hiss at anyone who passed its lair.
Choked to Death
Location: Kingston St Mary (Somerset) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A brutal fire breathing dragon terrorized this region until a champion came forth to tackle it. The hero rolled a boulder up a hill opposite the dragon's lair and shouted out to it. As the monster emerged jaws agape the champion rolled the boulder down into the dragon's maw, chocking the foul beast.
Winged Snakes
Location: Penmark (South Glamorgan) - General area
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Nineteenth century
Further Comments: An old woman claimed that her grandfather had fought and killed a winged serpent in this area. The man had skinned the creature, though the evidence had been thrown away after his death.
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