Haunted hotel guide · New Orleans, Louisiana

The Haunted Le Richelieu Hotel, New Orleans: Spanish Soldiers in the Courtyard

A small, old-fashioned hotel in the quiet lower Quarter, where guests say a column of soldiers in Spanish uniform still marches through the courtyard.

By The Haunted Rooms Team · Updated November 2026 · How we rate hotels

2.5/5Haunted Rooms Score
1969Opened as a hotel
The courtyardMost reported spot

Check availabilityMeet the ghosts

Le Richelieu in the French Quarter stands at 1234 Chartres Street, near Esplanade Avenue, in the residential lower end of the Quarter. It is a small hotel of around 90 rooms in two historic buildings around a courtyard with a saltwater pool, and it is one of the few French Quarter hotels with its own on-site parking. Paul McCartney and his family stayed here for a few months in the 1970s while recording in New Orleans.

It also has one of the Quarter’s more unusual ghost stories. Local legend says a group of Spanish soldiers was executed on this ground, and guests and staff describe men in full uniform marching through the courtyard or standing in the little bar. Other reports include small handprints on mirrors and a dark gray figure in the bedrooms. Here is what is told, what history can and cannot back up, and how to plan a stay. For more nearby, see our guide to the most haunted hotels in New Orleans.

Le Richelieu at a glance

2.5/5
Haunted Rooms Score
Haunted reputation3
History3
Ghost hunter access1
$$ · $150 to $300
  • Address 1234 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70116 (lower French Quarter, near Esplanade Avenue)
  • Opened 1969, in two historic buildings; part of The J Collection since 2019
  • Most haunted spots The courtyard and pool, the small bar, bedroom mirrors
  • Best-known ghosts Spanish soldiers in uniform, a dark gray figure, a child’s handprints, a phantom housekeeper
  • Booking the haunted room No single room is named. Ask for a courtyard-facing room.
  • Good to know Secure self-parking on site for a fee (one car per room). Saltwater pool and a cafe overlooking the courtyard.

Check availability

The ghosts of Le Richelieu

The Spanish soldiers

The story that made Le Richelieu’s name among ghost hunters is of soldiers in old Spanish military uniform. Culture Trip and SmarterTravel both report the legend that a band of Spanish soldiers was executed on this spot, and that their figures march through the courtyard and appear in the bar in full uniform.

Those who describe them say the soldiers do not interact with anyone. They simply pass through, which is why some paranormal writers call this a residual haunting, a scene replaying itself rather than spirits aware of the living.

Small handprints on the mirrors

Guests have reported child-sized handprints appearing on bedroom and bathroom mirrors, sometimes after the room has been cleaned and no children are staying. No one has put a name or story to the child.

The dark gray figure

A shadowy, dark gray shape is said to have been seen standing in guest bedrooms at night. It is the least described of the hotel’s ghosts, a figure glimpsed rather than met, and it is usually said to vanish when a light goes on.

Ellen, the phantom housekeeper

Some accounts name a female spirit called Ellen, said to be a former employee who still behaves as though she is on shift. Guests describe sheets being straightened, rooms tidied and belongings rearranged, and a woman who disappears as soon as she is noticed. It is a story with echoes of the ghostly maid at the nearby Omni Royal Orleans, and it is best treated as local lore.

The most haunted rooms and places to look

  • The courtyard: Where the column of Spanish soldiers is said to march, around the saltwater pool.
  • The bar: A small wood-paneled bar where uniformed figures are said to stand.
  • Guest room mirrors: Where small handprints are reported to appear.
  • The McCartney rooms: Not haunted, as far as anyone says, but guests can stay in the rooms the McCartney family used.

History of Le Richelieu in the French Quarter

Le Richelieu is named for Cardinal Richelieu, the French statesman who became chief minister to Louis XIII in 1624. It is made up of two historic buildings on Chartres Street. According to the hotel’s operator, the site was first used as a hospital where Ursuline nuns cared for French, Spanish and American soldiers, and the property later changed hands many times. It has been described as a row house, a public school and the state’s first macaroni factory.

The location fits that story. The Old Ursuline Convent, completed by 1753 and by some accounts the oldest building in New Orleans, is just up Chartres Street. In colonial times the convent’s hospital buildings and, beyond them, military barracks stood in this part of the Quarter. That military past is the likely seed of the soldier legend.

The execution story itself is harder to pin down. The best-known executions in colonial New Orleans came after the Creole revolt of 1768, when Spanish governor Alejandro O’Reilly had five of its French leaders shot by firing squad. Those men were rebels against Spain, not Spanish soldiers, and we have found no record that ties any execution to this block. The ghosts may be a muddled memory of that episode, or of the soldiers who once lived and were nursed in this corner of the Quarter.

In 1969 new owners renovated the buildings and opened them as the Richelieu Hotel, with nearly 90 rooms. Its most famous guest arrived a few years later, when Paul McCartney and his family stayed for several months while Wings recorded Venus and Mars in New Orleans. In 2019 the hotel joined The J Collection, the local group that also runs the Bourbon Orleans and the Dauphine Orleans.

Tips for a haunted stay

  • Sit in the courtyard late. The soldiers are said to march through it, and it is a peaceful spot once the pool closes.
  • Bring the car. On-site parking is rare in the French Quarter. It costs extra and is limited to one car per room.
  • Visit the Old Ursuline Convent. It is a two-minute walk up Chartres Street and has ghost stories of its own.
  • Head to Frenchmen Street. The live music clubs of the Marigny are just across Esplanade Avenue.
  • Walk to the other haunts. The Hotel Provincial is two blocks away on Chartres, and the Lamothe House is a few minutes’ walk away on Esplanade Avenue.
  • Want to investigate with a team? Haunted Rooms runs ghost hunts at historic venues across the US.

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Frequently asked questions

Is Le Richelieu haunted?

It has a local reputation for it. Guests and staff describe soldiers in Spanish uniform in the courtyard and bar, small handprints on mirrors and a dark gray figure in bedrooms.

Were Spanish soldiers really executed at Le Richelieu?

We have found no record of it. The best-known colonial executions in New Orleans were of five French Creole rebel leaders shot on the orders of Spanish governor O’Reilly after the 1768 revolt, and no source ties them to this site.

Did Paul McCartney stay at Le Richelieu?

Yes. Paul McCartney and his family stayed for several months while recording Venus and Mars in New Orleans, and guests can book the rooms they used.

Does Le Richelieu have parking?

Yes. It has secure self-parking on site for a fee, limited to one car per room, which is unusual in the French Quarter.

Where is Le Richelieu?

At 1234 Chartres Street in the lower French Quarter, near Esplanade Avenue and a short walk from the Old Ursuline Convent and Frenchmen Street.

Sources

Facts on this page are checked against the hotel’s own website, historic records and news coverage. Ghost stories are reported as guests, staff and local historians tell them. Read how we rate haunted hotels.

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About the authors

The Haunted Rooms Team runs public ghost hunts and overnight investigations at historic venues across the United States. We research every hotel in our guides using hotel histories, local archives, news coverage and the accounts of guests and staff, and we review each guide regularly so you are not booking a hotel that has closed or changed its name. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.

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