In the 18th and early 19th centuries, a British garrison stood just off Granard’s main street. The complex no longer survives, and the layout of the town has changed over time, but local tradition places the barracks in or around Barrack Lane. It was here that one of County Longford’s most enduring mysteries unfolded — a story that has lingered for generations and eventually gave rise to Granard’s own version of the headless horseman.

Among the officers stationed in the Granard garrison was Captain Blundell, remembered in a surviving 19th-century account as honourable, precise, and highly respected. He was well regarded by both his peers and superiors, known for his immaculate uniform and strict commitment to timekeeping and discipline.

According to local lore, the garrison once hosted a grand ball. Captain Blundell attended in excellent spirits, chatting with fellow officers and even joining them on the dance floor.

The following morning, when the bugle sounded, Blundell failed to appear — something entirely out of character for him. Concerned, a small group of officers went to his quarters. They knocked repeatedly, but there was no response. Growing alarmed, they forced the door.

Inside, they were met with a scene of horror. Folklore claims that Blundell’s body lay on the floor, his head cleanly severed from his shoulders. The room was said to have been locked from the inside. The windows were barred. There was no sign of an intruder, no weapon, and no evidence of a struggle.

By every logical measure, Blundell could not have inflicted such an injury upon himself — and yet there was no proof that anyone else had been inside the room. According to the 19th-century retelling, the official military conclusion was that he had taken his own life, though no documentation of this ruling survives.

Granard locals rejected the idea of suicide. Over time, a variety of theories circulated. Some suggested that Blundell had pursued a local girl and her father had taken brutal revenge. Others questioned whether he had uncovered corruption within the garrison and was silenced, or that a personal feud within the officers’ ranks had turned deadly.

None of these claims were ever substantiated.

By the late 1800s, storytellers began linking the mysterious death to reports of a frightening apparition: a headless rider seen galloping through Granard after dark.

In the 1930s, local schoolchildren recorded the tale for the Irish Folklore Commission. By then the officer’s name had shifted slightly to “Captain Bland,” but the core legend remained unchanged. The ghost was said to race along familiar routes — Barrack Street, the Dublin Road, and other well-known stretches of the town. Sometimes he appeared on horseback. Sometimes he drove a phantom coach. But always — he was headless. Some accounts describe the faint outline of a severed head held beneath one arm.

According to long-held belief, Captain Blundell’s soul will continue to ride until the truth of his death is finally revealed – and justice is done.