Redcap
Encyclopedia
A Red Cap or Redcap, also known as a powrie or dunter, is a type of malevolent murderous dwarf, goblin
, elf
or fairy
found in Border Folklore. They are said to inhabit ruined castles found along the border between England
and Scotland
. Redcaps are said to murder travellers who stray into their homes and dye their hats with their victims' blood (from which they get their name). Redcaps must kill regularly, for if the blood staining their hats dries out, they die. Redcaps are very fast in spite of the heavy iron pikes they wield and the iron-shod boots they wear. Outrunning a redcap is supposedly impossible.
They are depicted as sturdy old men with red eyes, taloned hands and large teeth, wearing a red cap and bearing a pikestaff in the left hand.
The tale of one in Perthshire
has him as more benign; living in a room in Grantully Castle, he bestows good fortune on those who see or hear him.
The Kabouter
, or redcaps of Dutch folklore, are very different, and more akin to brownies
.
As the familiar of Lord William de Soulis
, a certain Robin Redcap wrought much harm and ruin in the lands of his master's dwelling, Hermitage Castle
. Ultimately, he was taken to the Nine Stane Rigg, a circle of stones hard by the castle, wrapped in lead, and boiled to death. In reality William De Soulis was imprisoned in Dumbarton castle and died there, following his confessed complicity in the conspiracy against Robert the Bruce in 1320.
series by British author J. K. Rowling
.
Redcaps (properly called Powries) are one of the nine types of Shadow Fey or Arak in Ravenloft
.
Redcaps are enemies which match their original description of goblins in the MMORPG City of Heroes
.
Redcaps are one of the basic Kiths of Kithain in Changeling: The Dreaming
, the RPG by White Wolf
. They are strong supporters of the Unseelie court, often to the point of torturing their Seelie
members. The redcaps' incredible appetite also figures strongly in the game.
Red caps (aka powries) are also some of the monsters in R.A. Salvatore's DemonWars Saga
.
The Final Fantasy series, most notably in Final Fantasy Tactics
and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
, Redcaps appear and they are considered members of the goblin family, often being the weakest members of this family.
In the first Mage
graphic novel: The Hero Discovered by Matt Wagner
, redcaps serve as all-purpose henchmen to the Umbra Sprite, a powerful spirit of darkness.
Redcaps also appear in the game Dark Chronicle
. Here the creatures are dwarfed no higher than the main character's knee and wear a red cap which falls over the top of their eyes.
Redcaps also appear in the Merry Gentry
series by Laurel K. Hamilton as a powerful force in goblin society.
The popular trading card game Magic: the Gathering
features a card by the name of Murderous Redcap, in which a goblin like creature is depicted complete with a blood-covered dagger and blood-soaked hat.
Redcaps have appeared on a number of occasions in author Mark Chadbourn
's fantasy trilogies The Dark Age
and Kingdom of the Serpent
.
Redcaps also appear in a 1999 PC game published by Bethseda Softworks, Magic & Mayhem. They are one of several summonable creatures that fight alongside the main character.
Redcaps make several appearances in Mercedes Lackey
's Elemental Masters
series.
Sawney Beane, the main villain in Rob Thurman
's novel Madhouse
, is identified as a redcap, although the traditional accounts of Sawney Beane describe him as human.
Two Redcaps recently featured in the manga Arago by Arai Takahiro; their image is faithful to the original description, as is their behaviour of killing travellers.
You can summon a Red Cap in the DS
game Scribblenauts
.
Goblin
A goblin is a legendary evil or mischievous illiterate creature, a grotesquely evil or evil-like phantom.They are attributed with various abilities, temperaments and appearances depending on the story and country of origin. In some cases, goblins have been classified as constantly annoying little...
, elf
Elf
An elf is a being of Germanic mythology. The elves were originally thought of as a race of divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind...
or fairy
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
found in Border Folklore. They are said to inhabit ruined castles found along the border between England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. Redcaps are said to murder travellers who stray into their homes and dye their hats with their victims' blood (from which they get their name). Redcaps must kill regularly, for if the blood staining their hats dries out, they die. Redcaps are very fast in spite of the heavy iron pikes they wield and the iron-shod boots they wear. Outrunning a redcap is supposedly impossible.
They are depicted as sturdy old men with red eyes, taloned hands and large teeth, wearing a red cap and bearing a pikestaff in the left hand.
The tale of one in Perthshire
Perthshire
Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...
has him as more benign; living in a room in Grantully Castle, he bestows good fortune on those who see or hear him.
The Kabouter
Kabouter
Kabouter is the Dutch/Afrikaans word for gnome or leprechaun. In folklore, the Dutch Kabouters are akin to the Irish Leprechaun, Scandinavian Tomte, the English Hob or Brownie and the German Klabauter or kobold. The term kabouter was also adopted by a 1970s hippie movement in Amsterdam that sprang...
, or redcaps of Dutch folklore, are very different, and more akin to brownies
Brownie (folklore)
A brownie/brounie or urisk or brùnaidh, ùruisg, or gruagach is a legendary creature popular in folklore around Scotland and England...
.
Robin Redcap and William de Soulis
William de Soulis
William II de Soules , Lord of Liddesdale and Butler of Scotland, was a Scottish Border noble during the Wars of Scottish Independence. William was the elder son of Nicholas II de Soules, Lord of Liddesdale and Butler of Scotland, and a daughter of Alexander Comyn, Earl of Buchan...
, a certain Robin Redcap wrought much harm and ruin in the lands of his master's dwelling, Hermitage Castle
Hermitage Castle
Hermitage Castle is a semi-ruined castle in the border region of Scotland. It is under the care of Historic Scotland. The Castle has a reputation, both from its history and its appearance, as one of the most sinister and atmospheric in Scotland....
. Ultimately, he was taken to the Nine Stane Rigg, a circle of stones hard by the castle, wrapped in lead, and boiled to death. In reality William De Soulis was imprisoned in Dumbarton castle and died there, following his confessed complicity in the conspiracy against Robert the Bruce in 1320.
In popular culture
Redcaps are mentioned in the Harry PotterHarry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
series by British author J. K. Rowling
J. K. Rowling
Joanne "Jo" Rowling, OBE , better known as J. K. Rowling, is the British author of the Harry Potter fantasy series...
.
Redcaps (properly called Powries) are one of the nine types of Shadow Fey or Arak in Ravenloft
Ravenloft
Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a pocket dimension called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land pieces called domains brought together by a mysterious force known only as "The Dark...
.
Redcaps are enemies which match their original description of goblins in the MMORPG City of Heroes
City of Heroes
City of Heroes is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on the superhero comic book genre, developed by Cryptic Studios and published by NCsoft. The game was launched in North America on April 27, 2004 and in Europe on February 4, 2005 with English, German and French language...
.
Redcaps are one of the basic Kiths of Kithain in Changeling: The Dreaming
Changeling: The Dreaming
Changeling: The Dreaming was part of White Wolf Game Studio's original "World of Darkness" role playing game line. Player characters are changelings, fae souls reborn into human bodies, a practice begun by the fae to protect themselves as magic vanished from the world...
, the RPG by White Wolf
White Wolf
White Wolf is a publisher of role-playing games, notably the World of Darkness.White Wolf may also refer to:*White Wolf , a location in Yosemite National Park*White Wolf , a Canadian heavy metal band...
. They are strong supporters of the Unseelie court, often to the point of torturing their Seelie
Seelie
In mythology and folklore, fairies are classified in a variety of ways.Two of the most prominent categories, derived from Scottish folklore, are the division into the Seely Court and the Unseely Court...
members. The redcaps' incredible appetite also figures strongly in the game.
Red caps (aka powries) are also some of the monsters in R.A. Salvatore's DemonWars Saga
The DemonWars Saga
The DemonWars Saga is a series of seven novels written by R.A. Salvatore. The series is set in the world of Corona, principally in the kingdoms of Honce-the-Bear and Behren, and amongst the nomadic To-gai-ru. The Saga is separated into two trilogies bridged by a single book, Mortalis...
.
The Final Fantasy series, most notably in Final Fantasy Tactics
Final Fantasy Tactics
is a tactical role-playing game developed and published by Square for the Sony PlayStation video game console. It is the first game of the Final Fantasy Tactics series and was released in Japan in June 1997 and in the United States in January 1998...
and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
is a tactical role-playing game developed and published by Square for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance. A spin-off of the popular Final Fantasy series, the game shares several traits with 1997's Final Fantasy Tactics, although it is not a direct sequel. The player assembles a clan of characters, and...
, Redcaps appear and they are considered members of the goblin family, often being the weakest members of this family.
In the first Mage
Mage (comics)
Mage is an American superhero comic book written and illustrated by Matt Wagner. Three volumes, each of 15 issues are planned; , two have been published.-Publication history:...
graphic novel: The Hero Discovered by Matt Wagner
Matt Wagner
Matt Wagner is an American comic book writer and artist, best known as the creator of the series Mage and Grendel.-Career:...
, redcaps serve as all-purpose henchmen to the Umbra Sprite, a powerful spirit of darkness.
Redcaps also appear in the game Dark Chronicle
Dark Chronicle
Dark Chronicle , released as Dark Cloud 2 in North America, is a role-playing video game for the PlayStation 2 video game console...
. Here the creatures are dwarfed no higher than the main character's knee and wear a red cap which falls over the top of their eyes.
Redcaps also appear in the Merry Gentry
Merry Gentry
Merry Gentry is the title character of fantasy series by US writer Laurell K. Hamilton, best-known for her previous series Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter...
series by Laurel K. Hamilton as a powerful force in goblin society.
The popular trading card game Magic: the Gathering
Magic: The Gathering
Magic: The Gathering , also known as Magic, is the first collectible trading card game created by mathematics professor Richard Garfield and introduced in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. Magic continues to thrive, with approximately twelve million players as of 2011...
features a card by the name of Murderous Redcap, in which a goblin like creature is depicted complete with a blood-covered dagger and blood-soaked hat.
Redcaps have appeared on a number of occasions in author Mark Chadbourn
Mark Chadbourn
Mark Chadbourn is an English fantasy, science fiction and horror author with fifteen novels published around the world.Born in the English Midlands from a long line of coal miners...
's fantasy trilogies The Dark Age
The Dark Age (series)
The Dark Age is a trilogy by Mark Chadbourn set around the beginning of the third millennium. While the previous series was a clear fantasy story, this has strings of gothic horror and existentialism woven into it.The three books are:...
and Kingdom of the Serpent
Kingdom of the Serpent
The Kingdom of the Serpent is the third in a series of trilogies written by Mark Chadbourn. Set in modern-day Britain, it continues from The Age of Misrule and The Dark Age....
.
Redcaps also appear in a 1999 PC game published by Bethseda Softworks, Magic & Mayhem. They are one of several summonable creatures that fight alongside the main character.
Redcaps make several appearances in Mercedes Lackey
Mercedes Lackey
Mercedes "Misty" Lackey is a best-selling American author of fantasy novels. Many of her novels and trilogies are interlinked and set in the world of Velgarth, mostly in and around the country of Valdemar...
's Elemental Masters
Elemental Masters
Elemental Masters is a fantasy series written by Mercedes Lackey, about an earth where magic exists and focuses on the Elemental Masters, people who have magical control over air, water, fire, or earth. Each elemental master has power over elementals, as well...
series.
Sawney Beane, the main villain in Rob Thurman
Rob Thurman
Robyn Thurman, writing under the name Rob Thurman, is the author of the Cal Leandros Series of six novels: Nightlife, Moonshine, Madhouse, Deathwish, Roadkill, and Blackout...
's novel Madhouse
Madhouse (novel)
Madhouse is a novel by Rob Thurman, the third in her Cal Leandros Series, after Nightlife and Moonshine. Its plot centers around the vicious Sawney Beane, who has mysteriously come back from the dead, and is killing innocent New Yorkers...
, is identified as a redcap, although the traditional accounts of Sawney Beane describe him as human.
Two Redcaps recently featured in the manga Arago by Arai Takahiro; their image is faithful to the original description, as is their behaviour of killing travellers.
You can summon a Red Cap in the DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
game Scribblenauts
Scribblenauts
Scribblenauts is an emergent puzzle action video game developed by 5th Cell for the Nintendo DS published by WB Games. The game was released September 15, 2009 in North America, September 30, 2009 in Australia, and October 9, 2009 in Europe. Konami released the game in Japan under the name on...
.
See also
- BluecapBluecapA bluecap or blue cap is a mythical fairy or ghost in English folklore. They inhabit mines and appear as small blue flames. If miners treat them with respect, the bluecaps lead them to rich deposits of minerals. Like knockers or kobolds, bluecaps can also forewarn miners of cave-ins. They are...
(Northumbrian English) - BrownieBrownieBrownie may refer to:* Chocolate brownie, a baked good* Brownie , a legendary creature* Brownie * Brownie , a level in several guiding/scouting organizations* Brownies, a term used to describe fans of Chris Brown...
(English and Lowland Scottish) - Cofgod (Archaic English)
- Far darrigFar darrigA far darrig or fear dearg is a faerie of Irish mythology. The name far darrig is an Anglophone pronunciation of the Irish words fear dearg, meaning Red Man, as the far darrig is said to wear a red coat and cap...
(Irish) - KabouterKabouterKabouter is the Dutch/Afrikaans word for gnome or leprechaun. In folklore, the Dutch Kabouters are akin to the Irish Leprechaun, Scandinavian Tomte, the English Hob or Brownie and the German Klabauter or kobold. The term kabouter was also adopted by a 1970s hippie movement in Amsterdam that sprang...
(Dutch) - KoboldKoboldThe kobold is a sprite stemming from Germanic mythology and surviving into modern times in German folklore. Although usually invisible, a kobold can materialise in the form of an animal, fire, a human being, and a candle. The most common depictions of kobolds show them as humanlike figures the size...
(German) - LeprechaunLeprechaunA leprechaun is a type of fairy in Irish folklore, usually taking the form of an old man, clad in a red or green coat, who enjoys partaking in mischief. Like other fairy creatures, leprechauns have been linked to the Tuatha Dé Danann of Irish mythology...
(Irish) - Nain RougeNain RougeThe Nain Rouge, French for "red dwarf" or "red gnome" is a mythical creature that originated in Normandy, France], as a type of lutin. In the United States, it haunts Detroit, Michigan, and is feared by its residents as "the harbinger of doom."...
(French) - TomteTomteA tomte , nisse or tonttu is a mythical creature of Scandinavian folklore. The tomte or nisse was believed to take care of a farmer's home and children and protect them from misfortune, in particular at night, when the housefolk were asleep...
(Scandinavian)