13 of the most chilling witch trials in Scottish history
By Rosalind Erskine
Published 27th Sep 2019, 18:00 BST
Picture: Getty
Records of Scotland’s witch trials, the majority of which stretched over a period of 200 years during the 16th and 17th centuries, shed light on a dark period in Scottish history, exposing a culture of fear and panic that cast a cloud over much of Scotland and Europe.
The passing of the Scottish Witchcraft Act in 1563 made witchcraft, or consulting with witches, capital crimes in Scotland. It is estimated that between 3,000 and 5,000 women were publicly accused of being witches in 16th and 17th century Scotland, a much higher number than neighbouring England. Here, we recount some of Scotland’s most infamous - and brutal - prosecutions for witchcraft.
Agnes Finnie was a trader in Edinburgh with a foul temper. when she was tried for witchcraft in 1642, there was no shortage of people to come forward to testify and she was found guilty of witchcraft and executed on Castle Hill.
In 1576, thirteen years after the Witchcraft Act was passed in Scotland, Bessie Dunlop was arrested due to her reputation as a healer. A jury found Bessie guilty of all the charges against her, and she was condemned to death.
The case of Isobel Gowdie was marked by the accuseds readiness to confess her crimes. Under seemingly little duress, she confessed details of meetings with the Devil and of various witchcraft practices.
North Berwick saw Scotlands first mass witch trial take place in the late 16th century, at a time where a climate of fear surrounding magic had already compelled the Scottish judiciary to put into law the Witchcraft Act in 1563.
This eerie monument is said to mark the spot where witch Maggie Wall was burnt alive in 1657. But a mystery has always surrounded the identity of Maggie - with experts of witchcraft in Scotland doubting if she existed at all.
