7 Scottish Stories Of The Devil – Scotland’s Folklore Traditions

Scotland has always had a complicated relationship with the Devil. In a land shaped by rugged landscapes, deep superstitions, and the long shadow of the Kirk, it’s no surprise that tales of the De’il (the Devil) run deep through our folklore.

I don’t know what it is, but I love a good Scottish story about the Devil. You might think they’re all terrifying tales of fire and brimstone, but that’s not always the case. Here a few of my personal favourites from Scotland’s many stories about the Devil!

Why the Devil in Scotland is Different

In Scotland’s stories of the Devil, he might be a powerful, menacing character, but he’s not all-powerful. At the crux of many stories, his pride and belief in his strength is his biggest weakness. Time and again, he can be outwitted by sailors, crofters, maidens or blacksmiths. While he was still a force to be feared, ridiculing the Devil in stories must have made him seem a little more manageable.

There are dozens of names for the Devil in Scotland, thanks to the superstition that saying “that word” would draw his attention. As well as De’il, you might hear Auld Clootie, Auld Nick, The Earl of Hell, Mahoun or even the Lucky Piper. In most cases, beware tall, dark, handsome men since they’re either the Devil in disguise or an equally terrifying Scottish Kelpie!

The Devil & The Drink

A long time ago, the are around Wigtown suffered terribly from an awful plague. People were dropping like flies, until Tam the Blacksmith was one of the few men left standing. After one particularly long day, he stopped by the village pub to grab a bottle of whisky for his walk home.

Before he left, he raised the bottle and shouted, “The plague might be the Devil’s work, but he’s no getting the better of me!”

As he wandered home by moonlight, he heard the sound of wicked laughter. “Tam, I hear you’ve been talking about me”, said the Devil. Big Tam wasn’t easily frightened though. “Oh it’s yourself. Fancy a drink?”

The Devil wasn’t happy about being smirked at so he snatched the bottle and drank the whole thing in one! Clearly, the Devil wasn’t used to strong Scottish whisky because he was starting to sway a little.

“Time to fight for your soul”, roared the Devil. Tam replied, “Well, if I win, then I want you to release Wigtown from the plague!” – It was a deal.

The pair began to wrestle, fighting for hours! The few sips of whisky Tam had taken filled him with confidence, but the unfortunate Devil was struggling. Just as dawn was breaking, the Devil’s hoof slipped in a patch of mud and Tam flipped Satan onto his back!

As the Devil slinked off into the shadows, Tam roared with delight before promptly falling asleep. He was awoken a few hours later to find his wife standing over him! “Oh I’ve found you, this is the second miracle today!”

The plague had lifted, but of course, nobody believed Tam’s story after finding him snoring next to an empty bottle. However, he knew that he had saved Wigtown from the plague with the help of good old Scottish whisky!

The Mermaid Of Ardvreck Castle

The ruins of Ardvreck Castle stand quietly over the icy water of Loch Assynt. Every so often, a strange splash or supernatural sob is heard while wandering around the shore. This dark loch has a tragic tale to tell.

It’s said that the chief of the Macleods of Assynt couldn’t afford to build Ardvreck Castle on his own. Instead, the Devil disguised as a tall, handsome man offered to help finance the operation. All he wanted in return, was the chief’s immortal soul.

It was a steep price and Macleod was reluctant to pay, so the Devil changed his offer to the chief’s beautiful daughter’s hand in marriage instead. To the man’s eternal shame, he agreed.

Ardvreck was built in a matter of days and now it was time to pay the Devil. The poor girl had no idea what she was getting into, until her father, overcome with guilt, came clean.

Distraught, but with no way of escaping the castle before the ceremony the next day, the girl decided there was only one thing to do. Rather than marry the Devil, she threw herself from the top tower and plunged into Loch Assynt below.

The groom was furious to discover he’d been cheated, however, the story isn’t over. People soon started hearing a gentle crying around Loch Assynt and caught glimpses of a large, flicking tail disappearing under the water.

Instead of drowning, the girl had transformed into a Scottish Mermaid, keeping herself hidden from the Devil in caves deep below the surface. The water level often rises and falls in Loch Assynt and that’s said to be the lonely mermaid, filling the loch with tears, shed for a life that she was never able to live.

Outwitting The Devil In Smoo Cave

Originally known as Donald Mackay, the Wizard of Reay studied the dark arts under the Devil himself. Payment for these lessons was the soul of whoever was last to escape the demonic classroom. As the students prepared to leave, Donald saw he was at the back of the queue.

Wise to his teacher’s plan, he shouted “De’il tak the hindmost” and slipped outside leaving only his shadow in the Devil’s grasp.

The Wizard knew he needed to conduct his business somewhere remote and hidden. Operating from Smoo Cave, legends spread of a cruel figure with no shadow. Eventually, word reached Donald’s old teacher.

After a night of evil antics, the Wizard returned to Smoo Cave with his faithful dog. His hound ran on into the chamber, but with a piercing yelp, came bounding out without a single hair on its body. Donald knew now that the Devil was waiting for him inside.

It was time to face his fate, but the Wizard of Reay had a few tricks up his sleeve. The Devil was enjoying gloating to his two witch companions, but Donald was happy to keep him talking. As the first light of day poured into Smoo Cave, the Devil was forced to flee, smashing right through the ceiling of Smoo Cave!

The Devil wouldn’t give up that easily though. One day Donald found a small casket in the cave and pulling out the stopper, a tiny figure jumped out. It grew bigger until the enormous Devil boomed “Well are you impressed with my trick?”. Reay wasted no time in replying “Getting out is the easy part. I doubt you could fit back in there.”

The Devil wouldn’t accept this kind of slight to his pride, so he quickly shrunk back down and squeezed inside. Donald just plugged the hole up and threw the casket into the river!

Playing Against The Devil In Glamis Castle

The impressive Glamis Castle might have sprawled into an enormous building now, but there’s no mistaking the old stone keep at its heart. Amongst all the stories these walls have to tell, that’s where to find the very best of them.

One Saturday night in the 15th century, a raucous group were drinking and playing cards in the lower levels of Glamis Castle. As the hour was reaching midnight, people began to get twitchy and disappear off to bed. They knew it was a terrible sin to gamble on the Sabbath.

There was one man who didn’t care. Sometimes it’s said to be Earl Beardie of Crawford, other times it’s Alexander Lyon of Glamis. Either way, in his drunken state this fool roared that he didn’t care what the others thought. He would play cards on the Sabbath. He would play until doomsday. He would even play with the Devil himself.

Suddenly, a heavy knock came at the door. It was a tall, dark stranger seeking warmth and shelter, maybe even a wee game of cards too. Common sense was out the window and he was welcomed to the table.

Once midnight passed and it was now early on Sunday morning, the stranger revealed himself to be the Devil, here to grant the man’s wish. The little room they had been sitting in had somehow been blocked up and the fool was now trapped inside, playing cards with the Devil for eternity.

It’s a strange feeling in that lower hall, and there’s a clear space in the wall where that alcove for playing cards should be. Stand on the lawn outside Glamis Castle, look up towards the old keep and you can even see an extra window, with nothing but wall on the other side.

The Legend Of The Maiden Stone

Not far outside Inverurie, in the shadow of Bennachie, looms the enormous Maiden Stone. Archeologists will tell you this Pictish Stone was carved around 700 AD. Storytellers, on the other hand, have a very different explanation.

Not far from here lived a laird and his beautiful daughter, with a view of Bennachie from their window. The laird’s daughter had been courted by every young man around and there was a collective disappointment when she eventually agreed to settle down.

Most had accepted their loss by her wedding day, but as the maiden baked bannocks, somebody new came calling. The stranger tried to convince her to call off the wedding! He was charming and handsome, but she wasn’t going to change her mind that easily.

With a cunning smile on his face, the visitor offered the maiden a bet. If he could build a path to the top of Bennachie before she had finished baking her bannocks, would she marry him then?

It was an impossible task, so to get rid of him the maiden agreed.

Within the hour, her bannocks were almost ready and she peered out the window. To her shock, there was a gleaming new path leading up the hill! The handsome stranger was running down it towards her and she realised it was the Devil in disguise.

Sprinting out the door, the maiden could see her pursuer catching up. Praying with all her might, she declared it would be better to be turned to stone than married to the Devil! Her prayer was answered, transforming into the Maiden Stone just as the Devil caught her shoulder, which explains the large chunk missing from the monument. She’s stood here quietly ever since.

The Grey Mare’s Tail Covenanters

The Grey Mare’s Tail is an elegant, tumbling waterfall in a breathtaking area of wilderness. In the 17th century, its remote location was put to good use as a hiding place for Covenanters.

The King wanted to dictate affairs within the Scottish Church, declaring all unauthorised religious services as treasonous. That didn’t discourage the Covenanters though, they just worshipped out in the wild, while trying to avoid the soldiers looking to violently shut them down.

The boggy ground and steep ravine that surrounded the Grey Mare’s Tail were perfect for these open-air services. Mounted soldiers were useless here and lookouts gave plenty of warning of troops approaching.

It wasn’t just the Covenanters who made use of the remote waterfall though. This area is famous for wild goats and two men hiding out in the ravine once heard the faint sound of hooves over the crashing water. With thoughts of a delicious supper, they quietly followed their ears to peek over a ledge.

Those hooves didn’t belong to a goat, but the Devil, busy roasting a victim on a spit. It was a horrific sight and an even worse smell, but the pair were rooted to the spot in fear. They watched in horror as the Devil spun around and stared deep into their souls.

The Covenanters’ only hope was to rely on their faith, reciting as many Bible passages as they could remember. The sound was too much for the Devil to take but he had one last trick up his sleeve.

Diving into the water, he transformed into bundles of expensive, leather hides. Lesser men would have been tempted to follow all that wealth to their doom. Fortunately, these two weren’t motivated by greed and stayed exactly where they were, living to tell the tale.

When The Devil Built A Church At Crail

Crail Parish Church has survived since the 13th century, but the original building didn’t have an easy beginning. When the church was first being built, work was slow. The master mason was struggling to find enough skilled craftsmen and so the Devil saw his chance to have a little fun.

Auld Nick appeared at the building site disguised as a young man. Strolling up to the mason, he boldly declared that he was going to solve all his problems. The mason looked this slender, boy up and down, then snorted a laugh.

The Devil wasn’t put off, claiming that he was in fact the most skilled mason in Scotland but had fallen on hard times. He wasn’t leaving without a job and the master mason knew he could do with anyhelp.

Work increased rapidly. The church was growing so quickly that the locals started to whisper that the master mason wasn’t what he seemed. Surely witchcraft or black magic must be involved. The only person that suspected this newcomer was the mason’s apprentice.

At the end of one day, he followed the strange young boy, watching as he grew and twisted into a monstrous beast. The apprentice suddenly cried out for God to protect him!

At that word, a huge thunderclap sounded and the Devil leapt all the way from Crail to the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth. He wasn’t happy though, picking up a large boulder and launching it at the church to destroy what he had built.

Thankfully it split in two and both sections missed their target. One landed on the beach and the other just fell short of the church. It still sits outside the gate with a huge devilish thumb mark pressed into it.

If you enjoyed reading Scottish Stories of the Devil, you can find lots more tales in the Scotland’s Stories book, available here!