She is said to wail and cry when members of certain families are about to die. It has never been established, however, why this ghostly creature follows some families (5 main families in particular). Intermarriage has since extended the select list.
The Banshee can appear in a variety of guises. Most often she appears as an ugly, frightening hag, but she can also appear as stunning beautiful woman of any age that suits her.
She may also appear in a variety of other forms, such as that of a hooded crow, stoat, hare and weasel; animals associated in Ireland with witchcraft.
Although not always seen ( the Banshee was also very shy of encountering the eye of a mortal), her mourning call is heard.
The wail of the Banshee is a peculiar sound that resembles the melancholy sound of the hollow wind, having the tone of the human voice and is distinctly audible at a great distance.
While it is on record that the Banshee has been heard at noon, night is the time generally chosen by her for her visits to mortals.
One of the strangest Banshee stories of all had its beginning in Dublin, when at 2:30 am on 6th August, 1801, when Lord Rossmore, Commander-in-Chief of the British forces in Ireland died at his home.
The evening before he had attended a party in Dublin Castle and to the people he met there, he seemed in the best of health.
Before leaving, he invited Sir Jonah and Lady Barrington to join a party he was holding in his house at Mount Kennedy, CO Wicklow.
At two o'clock in the morning, Sir Jonah awoke and heard ''plaintive sounds'' coming from outside the window. Lady Barrington and a maid heard it too.
Finally, at 2:30, Barrington heard a voice call ''Rossmore! Rossmore! Rossmore!''. And the there was silence.
The five major Irish families that the Banshee would follow were: the O'Neilss, the O'Briens, the O'Connors, the O'Gradys and the Kavanaghs.
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