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Legends say that doppelgangers (from the German term meaning “double-walker”) are supernatural replicas of living individuals. They can appear in various ways: You might catch a glimpse of them in your peripheral vision, encounter them on a deserted road, or, more terrifyingly, spot them standing behind you in a mirror. In some cases, a doppelganger might be invisible to the person it mimics but visible to others in a completely different place. They might even assist the person, help with tasks, or act as a kind of substitute body.
The doppelganger phenomenon has many interpretations. Throughout history, mystics have considered them supernatural beings: either spiritual duplicates of a person or outright demonic twins. On the other hand, scientists argue they are simply brain malfunctions or symptoms of mental disorders like schizophrenia. Two things are clear about these unsettling apparitions: They often bring misfortune, and a surprising number of notable historical figures have reported being haunted by them.
10. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) was a renowned German writer, poet, and statesman. A celebrated literary figure who significantly influenced the world of literature, his works were widely admired and respected.
One day, a despondent Goethe was riding along a path after parting ways with a woman named Frederika. Suddenly, he encountered a mysterious figure approaching him. This figure, whom Goethe claimed to see with his “mind’s eye” rather than his physical eyes, was unmistakably himself, though dressed in different attire. The apparition vanished shortly after, and Goethe, who found its presence oddly comforting, soon put the incident out of his mind.
Eight years later, while traveling the same path in the opposite direction (to visit Frederika again), he realized he was wearing the exact outfit his doppelganger had worn years earlier.
This wasn’t the only time Goethe encountered a doppelganger. On another occasion, he spotted his friend Friedrich walking down the street, dressed in Goethe’s own robe. Confused, Goethe returned home . . . only to find Friedrich there, wearing the same robe he had seen on the apparition. His friend had been caught in the rain and borrowed the robe while his clothes dried.
9. Catherine The Great
Catherine the Great, the formidable 18th-century Empress of Russia, was a commanding and fearsome leader. She was unshaken by trivial matters, even when faced with the sight of her own ghostly double occupying her throne.
Legend has it that one night, as Catherine rested in her bed, concerned servants informed her they had just seen her enter the throne room. Upon investigating, Catherine discovered her doppelganger calmly seated on the throne. Without hesitation, she commanded her guards to open fire on her spectral duplicate.
The tales do not reveal whether the bullets had any impact on the ghostly Empress. However, Catherine herself passed away shortly after the incident . . .
8. Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley was an exceptionally talented poet, though he is often overshadowed by his wife, Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein. While one might expect Mary, the horror novelist, to be the one encountering ghosts and monsters, it was actually Percy who experienced doppelgangers.
Not long before Percy’s tragic drowning in a boating accident in 1812, he confided in Mary about his repeated encounters with his doppelganger. One particularly eerie incident involved him stepping onto a terrace, only to be confronted by his double, who asked him, “How long do you mean to be content?”
Interestingly, Percy’s doppelganger was also seen by his close friend Jane Williams, who observed it passing by her window (on a path often taken by the real Percy) and heading toward a dead end, never to return. At the time, the real Percy was nowhere nearby.
7. Sir Frederick Carne Rasch
In 1906, British Parliament member Sir Gilbert Parker was attending a debate when he noticed Sir Frederick Carne Rasch, a fellow Parliament member, seated nearby. This shocked Sir Gilbert, as Sir Frederick was reportedly bedridden with severe influenza at the time. Nevertheless, Sir Gilbert politely greeted him, saying, “I hope you’re feeling better.” Carne Rasch remained unresponsive, sitting motionless with a stern, expressionless face.
When Sir Gilbert looked again moments later, the seat was empty. Confused, he searched for Carne Rasch in the lobby, only to discover no one had seen him leave. Upon discussing the incident with other parliamentarians, he learned that others had also spotted Carne Rasch.
When the real Carne Rasch, who had been confined to his sickbed, heard about the event, he was unfazed. He had been eager to participate in the debate, so it seemed logical to him that his spirit had made an appearance. His family, however, was deeply unsettled and viewed the doppelganger as an ominous sign.
To some extent, they were correct: For a while, Carne Rasch was pestered by fellow Parliament members who kept prodding him to confirm he was real. Eventually, he penned a highly sarcastic letter to a local newspaper, apologizing for not having the decency to die during the doppelganger sighting and vowing to behave more appropriately in the future.
6. Queen Elizabeth I
Queen Elizabeth I of England, who ruled from 1558 to 1603, was the final Tudor monarch. Known for her charisma, composure, and political acumen, she was not the type of ruler one would associate with the supernatural.
This makes it all the more chilling when she claimed to have encountered her doppelganger. According to the Queen, the ghostly figure lay motionless on her bed, resembling a corpse prepared for viewing. Such apparitions are often considered harbingers of death, adding to the eeriness of the event. While it might be dismissed as a momentary lapse in the mind of an aging, overburdened ruler . . . the fact that Elizabeth passed away shortly after this sighting makes it all the more unsettling.
5. Maria de Jesus de Agreda
While doppelgangers are often seen as ominous, there are tales of individuals who not only control them but also use them as a kind of second body capable of instantly “bilocating” to distant places.
In the 17th century, explorers and missionaries in the New World were amazed to discover that many Native American tribes in New Mexico were already practicing Catholicism. When asked, the tribespeople credited their conversion to a mysterious woman dressed in blue, who had taught them the faith and even provided crucifixes and other religious items.
Through careful investigation, priests traced the phenomenon to Maria de Agreda, a young Spanish nun who wore blue robes. She claimed to have spread Christianity to the Native Americans by “bilocating” across the ocean. Maria had never left her convent and only described the land as “a savage place,” yet her account convinced the priests.
Initially, the Inquisition was highly skeptical of Maria, but they eventually cleared her of witchcraft charges (possibly because her story was too compelling to dismiss). Her abilities were deemed divine, and she became an international celebrity, the head of her convent, and the author of lengthy books detailing how she gained her powers. However, later in life, she frequently changed her story, sometimes claiming she was pressured into admitting her bilocation abilities and other times affirming their truth.
4. Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln, famously known as “Honest Abe,” was quite open about his fascination with the paranormal, at least in private conversations. According to his own account, he once experienced a strange supernatural event. On the night of his first election, he decided to rest on his couch. As he lay there, he glanced into a mirror and saw his reflection—except it showed him with two faces.
A second Lincoln, pale and ghostly, appeared in the mirror beside his own reflection. Startled, he stood up . . . and the doppelganger vanished. When he sat back down, he saw it again.
While Lincoln was unsettled, his wife Mary was utterly horrified. She believed the doppelganger was an ominous sign—indicating that Lincoln would be re-elected for a second term (perhaps because two Lincolns symbolized two terms) but would not survive it (as the second Lincoln appeared deathly).
Lincoln occasionally repeated the couch experiment to see if the doppelganger would reappear. He managed to catch a glimpse of it one more time, but after that, it never showed up again. Perhaps it had fulfilled its purpose, as Lincoln indeed did not survive his second term.
Or, perhaps, someone simply repaired the mirror.
3. Emilie Sagee
Emilie Sagee never saw her doppelganger, but everyone else around her did.
Sagee worked at a prestigious girls’ school. She was an excellent teacher, but for some reason, she frequently changed jobs. Over 16 years, she had switched positions an astonishing 19 times.
In 1845, the school discovered the reason behind her frequent moves.
Sagee was reportedly at the center of some very bizarre doppelganger phenomena. Her ghostly double was first spotted during a class, with 13 students observing it standing beside Sagee and mimicking her actions. Later, it appeared behind her as she ate, copying her movements. Sagee herself was completely unaware of the apparition, even though everyone else could see it clearly. However, she often felt unusually weak and lethargic when the doppelganger appeared, and the phantom was frequently seen performing actions Sagee later admitted she had been thinking about at the time, hinting at some subconscious control over it.
Eventually, the doppelganger began appearing beyond Sagee’s immediate surroundings. On one occasion, it was seen sitting calmly in the teacher’s chair by a classroom full of students while Sagee was outside gardening. Those brave enough to approach the doppelganger found they could pass through it, though it had a texture resembling thick fabric.
As time passed, the apparition became a constant presence at the school, unsettling everyone regularly. Concerned parents began withdrawing their children from the institution. Despite Sagee being an exemplary employee in every non-paranormal aspect, the headmistress had no choice but to dismiss both her and her ghostly counterpart.
2. Guy de Maupassant
French author Guy de Maupassant is famous for what might be the most personal doppelganger encounter ever recorded. In the final years of his life, he reportedly had regular interactions with his spectral double. This ghostly twin not only spoke to him but also sat down and began dictating a short story to him. Yes, de Maupassant claimed that one of his final works was essentially ghostwritten—by his own ghost, no less.
If that isn’t unsettling enough, it gets even more chilling. The story the apparition allegedly dictated to de Maupassant was “The Horla,” a disturbing tale of a man whose sanity is gradually destroyed by an evil spirit using him as a vessel. Mirroring the story, de Maupassant’s mental health began to decline shortly after completing it.
In another account of the events, the doppelganger did not dictate the story, as it vanished when a frightened de Maupassant called for his servant. However, the apparition reappeared a few months later. It entered the writer’s room, gazing at him with a sorrowful expression before sitting down and burying its face in its hands, as if in despair. Convinced the doppelganger heralded disaster, de Maupassant’s life spiraled downward from that point. He died in an asylum a year later.
1. George Tryon
June 22, 1893, was a disastrous day for Vice Admiral George Tryon. While commanding two columns of ships off the coast of Syria, he ordered the columns to turn toward each other. What was meant to be an impressive naval drill turned into a catastrophic error, as the leading ships immediately collided, and one of them—the vessel carrying Tryon—sank rapidly. Tryon perished knowing he had just condemned 357 men to drown. His final words were tragically fitting: “It is entirely my fault.”
At the exact same moment, Tryon’s wife was hosting an extravagant party for their friends at their London home. Suddenly, to the astonishment of the guests, Tryon appeared at the gathering. He silently descended the staircase, walked solemnly through the drawing room, and opened the door as if to leave . . . before vanishing into thin air.
He was dressed in full uniform, as though he were still commanding a drill.
There are inconsistencies in the story. For example, some accounts suggest Lady Tryon was occupied with guests and never witnessed the doppelganger, while others insist she was among those who saw it. Nevertheless, the tale bears a haunting similarity to old maritime legends of a sailor’s “fetch” (another term for a spectral double) appearing to his family at the moment of his death.
