A tale of murder, legend and a ghost that still haunts the Royal Mile. JOHN AMBROSE MARTIN reveals the chilling story of Johnny One-Arm
On Easter Sunday, 31 March 1689, Edinburgh was rocked by a crime of vengeance.
John Chiesley of Dalry was enraged by a court ruling that ordered him to pay money to his estranged wife.
Unhappy with the decision, Chiesley took justice into his own hands. He ambushed and murdered Sir George Lockhart in cold blood.
Lockhart was Lord President of the Court of Session and had presided over the case. It was his ruling that ultimately sealed his fate.
One evening, Chiesley stalked Lockhart as he walked along the Royal Mile.
He shot him dead beside what is now the iconic St Giles’ Cathedral.
Execution, whispers and legend
The act was swift — and so was the punishment.
Within days, Chiesley was convicted. In a brutal display intended to deter others, his right arm — the one that pulled the trigger — was severed and displayed in public.
His body was hanged at the Grassmarket, a place long steeped in execution and sorrow.
For centuries, whispers followed Chiesley’s name. Some claimed his corpse was stolen after death.
Then in 1965, during renovations at Dalry House, workers uncovered a skeleton bricked behind a hearth.
The remains were missing a right arm. Many believe it was Chiesley, hidden away in secret, his story literally sealed in stone.
Johnny One-Arm walks
Not long after his execution, tales of a ghost began to circulate.
A furious, restless figure was said to roam the wynds and closes of Edinburgh. One sleeve of his coat hung empty, earning him the name Johnny One-Arm.
Locals claimed he tugged at the clothes of passersby and brushed against their shoulders in the dark.
Parents warned their children not to stray too far at night. Johnny One-Arm had become Edinburgh’s very own — and very real — bogeyman.
Vengeance never sleeps
Though more than three centuries have passed, the legend still endures.
The skeleton found in Dalry House gave the tale new weight, but the sightings never stopped.
In a city shaped by executions and injustice, Johnny One-Arm remains a grim reminder of violent acts and the dead who refuse to rest.
He is said to haunt the Royal Mile still, pacing the cobblestones, searching for something lost — or someone to blame.
Would you walk those closes at night, knowing Johnny One-Arm might be waiting in the shadows?
