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VII. THE ORGANIZATION
THE cult was organized in as careful a manner as any other religious
community; each district however was independent, and therefore Mather is
justified in saying that the witches 'form themselves after the manner of
Congregational Churches'.[1]
The Chief or supreme Head of each
district was known to the recorders as the 'Devil'. Below him in each
district, one or more officers-according to the size of the district-were
appointed by the chief. The officers might be either men or women; their
duties were to arrange for meetings, to send out notices, to keep the
record of work done, to transact the business of the community, and to
present new members. Evidently these persons also noted any likely
convert, and either themselves entered into negotiations or reported to
the Chief, who then took action as opportunity served. At the Esbats the
officer appears to have taken command in the absence of the Grand Master;
at the Sabbaths the officers were merely heads of their own Covens, and
were known as Devils or Spirits, though recognized as greatly inferior to
the Chief. The principal officer acted as clerk at the Sabbath and entered
the witches' reports in his book; if he were a priest or ordained
minister, he often performed part of the religious service; but the Devil
himself always celebrated the mass or sacrament. In the absence of all
direct information on the subject, it seems likely that the man who acted
as principal officer became Grand Master on the death of the previous
Chief Occasionally the Devil appointed a personal attendant for himself,
who waited upon him on all solemn occasions, but does not appear to have
held any official position in the community.
[1. Cotton Mather, p. 160.]
Estebene de Cambrue (1567) said
that 'elle a veu au Sabbat vn Notaire qu'elle nomme, lequel a accoustumé
de leuer les defauts de celles qui ont manqué de se trouuer au Sabbat.'[1]
At the North Berwick meetings (1590), there were several officers, of whom
Fian was the chief
'Robert Griersoun being namit,
they all ran hirdie-girdie and wer angrie: for it wes promisit he sould be
callit "Rot the Comptroller, alias Rob the Rowar," for
expreming of his name.——Johnne Fiene wes ewer nerrest to the Devill, att
his left elbok; Gray Meill kepit the dur.——The accusation of the saide
Geillis Duncane aforesaide, who confessed he [Fian] was their Regester,
and that there was not one man suffered to come to the Divels readinges
but onelie hee.——[Fian's confession] That at the generall meetinges of
those witches, he was always present; that he was clarke to all those that
were in subiection to the Divels service, bearing the name of witches;
that alway hee did take their oathes for their true service to the Divell;
and that he wrote for them such matters as the Divell still pleased to
commaund him.'[2]
Elizabeth Southerns, otherwise
known as old Mother Demdike (1613), 'was generall agent for the Deuill in
all these partes'.[3] The 'eminent warlok' Robert Grieve of Lauder (1649)
'was brought to a Confession of his being the Devils Officer in
that Countrey for warning all Satans Vassals to come to the Meetings,
where, and whensoever the Devil required. . . . The Devil gave him that
charge, to be his Officer to warn all to the meetings; (as was said
before,) in which charge he continued for the space of eighteen years and
more.'[4] The evidence concerning Isobel Shyrie at Forfar (1661) is too
long to quote, but it is clear that she acted as the officer.[5] Isobel
Gowdie (1662) says definitely, 'Johne Young, in Mebestowne, is Officer to
owr Coeven', and remarks in another part of her confession that 'Johne
Yownge in Mebestowne, owr Officer, did drywe the plewghe'.[6] The only
indication of a change of personnel, is given by Janet Breadheid, of the
same Coven as Isobel Gowdie.
[1. De Lancre, Tableau, p.
123.
2. Pitcairn, i, pt. ii, pp. 219,
220, 239, 240.
3. Potts, B 2.
4. Sinclair, pp. 46, 47.
5. Kinloch, pp. 124, 129.
6. Pitcairn, iii, pp. 603, 605.]
'Johne Taylor, my husband, was
then Officer, bot Johne Young in Mebestoune, is now Officer to my Coeven.
Quhan I cam first ther, the Divell called tham all be thair names, on the
book; and my husband, than called thame at the door. . . . Whan we haid
Great Meittingis, Walter Ledy, in Penick, my husband, and Alexander Elder,
nixt to the Divell, wer Ruleris; and quhan ther wold be but fewar, I my
self, the deceassit Jean Suthirland, Bessie Hay, Bessie Wilsone, and Janet
Burnet wold rule thaim.'[1]
In Somerset (1664) Anne Bishop
appears to have been the chief personage under the Devil, in other words
the Officer.[2] At Paisley (1678) Bessie Weir 'was Officer to their
several meetings.——Bessie Weir did intimate to him [John Stewart], that
there was a meeting to be at his house the next day: And that the Devil
under the shape of a black man, Margaret Jackson, Margery Craige, and the
said Bessie Weir, were to be present. And that the said Bessie Weir
required the Declarant to be there, which he promised.'[3] In New England
(1692) it appears that both Bridget Bishop and Martha Carrier held high
rank, and were probably Officers.
One duty seems to have been
delegated to a particular individual, who might perhaps hold no other
office, or who might, on the other hand, be the chief official; this was
the manager, often the leader, of the dance. As pace seems to have been an
essential in the dance, the leader was necessarily active and generally
young. At North Berwick (1590) 'John Fein mussiled led the ring'.[4] In
Aberdeen (1596) Thomas Leyis was the chief person in the dance; 'thow the
said Thomas was formest and led the ring, and dang the said Kathren
Mitchell, becaus scho spillet your dans, and ran nocht so fast about as
the rest.'[5] Isobel Cockie of the same Coven was next in importance; 'in
the quhilk danse, thow was the ringleader nixt Thomas Leyis.'[6] Mr.
Gideon Penman (1678), who had once been minister at Crighton, went to the
Sabbaths, where the Devil spoke of him as 'Mr. Gideon, my chaplain'.[7]
The witches said that 'ordinarily Mr. Gideon was
[1. Pitcairn, iii, p. 617.
2. Glanvil, pt. ii, pp. 139, 147,
148.
3. Id., pt. ii, pp. 291, 293.
4. Pitcairn, i, pt. iii, p. 246.
5. Spalding Club Misc., pp.
97, 98.
6. Ib., p. 115.
7. Fountainhall, i, p. 14.]
in the rear in all their dances,
and beat up those that were slow'. This Mr. Gideon seems to be the same
person as the 'warlock who formerly had been admitted to the ministrie in
the Presbyterian times, and now he turnes a preacher under the devill.——This
villan was assisting to Satan in this action' [giving the sacrament]' and
in preaching."
The personal attendant of the
Devil is rare. At Aberdeen (1596) Issobell Richie was accused that 'at
that tyme thow ressauit thy honours fra the Dewyll, thy maister, and wer
appoynted be him in all tymes thairefter, his speciall domestick servand
and furriour'.[1] John McWilliarn Sclater (1656) was appointed
cloak-bearer to the Devil.[3]
The Devil's piper was also an
official appointment in Scotland, but does not occur elsewhere. John
Douglas of Tranent (1659) was the Devil's piper[4] and so also was a man
mentioned by Sinclair: 'A reverend Minister told me, that one who was the
Devils Piper, a wizzard confest to him, that at a Ball of dancing, the
Foul Spirit taught him a Baudy song to sing and play.'[5]
The Queen of the Sabbath may
perhaps be considered as an official during the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries, though in early times she was probably the chief personage in
the cult, as Pearson has pointed out.[6] It is not unlikely that she was
originally the same as the Queen of Elf hame; in Scotland, however, in the
seventeenth century, there is a Maiden of the Coven, which was an
important position in the Esbat but entirely distinct from the Queen of
Faery, while in other places a woman, not the Queen, is often the officer
and holds the highest place after the Grand Master.
Elizabeth Stile of Windsor (1579)
said that 'mother Seidre dwelling in the Almeshouse, was the maistres
Witche of all the reste'.[7] Marion Grant of Aberdeen (1597) confessed
that 'the Devill thy maister causit the dans sindrie tymes with him and
with Our Ladye, quha, as thow sayes, was a fine woman, cled in a quhyte
walicot'.[8] In France (1609) the
[1. Law p. 145.
2. Spalding Club. Misc., i,
p. 142.
3. Spottiswoode Misc., ii,
p. 67.
4. Ib., ii, p. 68.
5. Sinclair, p. 219.
6. Pearson, ii, p. 26.
7. Rehearsall, par. 26.
8. Spalding Club Misc., i,
p. 171.]
custom seems to have been
universal, 'en chasque village trouuer vne Royne du Sabbat', who sat at
the Devil's left hand during the celebration of the mass and received the
offerings of the faithful.[1] The witches called her both the Grande
Maîtresse and the Reine du Sabbat.[2] Isobel Gowdie's confession (1662)
shows that the Queen of Elthame was not the same as the chief woman of the
Coven, for she saw the Queen only on going into the fairy-howe, while the
Maiden of the Coven was at each meeting. 'We doe no great mater without
owr Maiden.——Quhan we ar at meat, or in any vther place quhateuir, the
Maiden of each Coven sittis abow the rest, nixt the Divell.'[3] In New
England (1692) Deliverance Hobbs confessed that 'the said G.B. preached to
them, and such a woman was their Deacon'.[4]
The word coven is a derivative of
'convene', and is variously spelt coven, coeven, covine,
cuwing, and even covey. The special meaning of the word
among the witches is a 'band' or 'company', who were set apart for the
practice of the rites of the religion and for the performance of magical
ceremonies; in short, a kind of priesthood.
The Coven was composed of men and
women, belonging to one district, though not necessarily all from one
village, and was ruled by an officer under the command of the Grand
Master. The members of the Coven were apparently bound to attend the
weekly Esbat; and it was they who were instructed in and practised magical
arts, and who performed all the rites and ceremonies of the cult. The rest
of the villagers attended the Esbats when they could or when they felt so
inclined, but did not necessarily work magic, and they attended the
Sabbaths as a matter of course. This view of the organization of the
religion is borne out by the common belief in modern France:
'Il est de croyance générale qu'il
faut un nombre fixe de sorciers et de sorcières dans chaque canton.
Le nouvel initié reprend les vieux papiers de l'ancien.——Les
mauvaises
[1. De Lancre, L'Incredulité,
p. 36.
2. Id., Tableau, p. 401.
3. Pitcairn, iii, pp. 610, 613.
4 Burr, p. 417.]
gens forment une confrérie qui est
dirigée par une sorcière. Celle-ci a la jarretière comme marque de
sa dignité. Elles se la transmettent successivement par rang d'ancienneté.
Il n'existe que cette différence de rang entre les sorciers et les
sorcières. Ceux-là se recrutent aussi bien parmi les gens mariés
que chez les célibataires.'[1]
The 'fixed number' among the
witches of Great Britain seems to have been thirteen: twelve witches and
their officer. The actual numbers can be obtained, as a rule, only when
the full record of the trial is available; for when several witches in one
district are brought to trial at the same time they will always be found
to be members of a Coven, and usually the other members of the Coven are
implicated or at least mentioned.
The earliest account of a Coven is
in the trial of Bessie Dunlop (1567); when Thom Reid was trying to induce
her to join the society, he took her 'to the kill-end, quhair he forbaid
her to speik or feir for onye thing sche hard or saw; and quhene thai had
gane ane lyfle pece fordwerd, sche saw twelf persounes, aucht wemene and
four men: The men wer cled in gentilmennis clething, and the wemene had
all plaiddis round about thame and wer verrie semelie lyke to se; and Thom
was with thame.'[2] Clearly this was a Coven with Thom as the Officer, and
he had brought Bessie to see and be seen. The witches tried at St. Osyth
in Essex in 1582 were thirteen in number.[3] At the meeting of the North
Berwick witches (1590) to consult on the means to compass the king's
death, nine witches stood 'in ane cumpany', and the rest 'to the nowmer of
threttie persons in ane vthir cumpany'; in other words, there were
thirty-nine persons, or three Covens, present.[4] At Aberdeen (1596-7)
sixty-four names of witches occur in the trials; of these, seven were
merely mentioned as being known to the accused, though not as taking part
in the ceremonies, and five were acquitted; thus leaving fifty-two
persons, or four Covens. Out of these fifty-two, one was
[1. Lemoine, La Tradition,
1892, vi, pp. 108, 109. The italics are in the original.
2. Pitcairn, i, pt. ii, p. 52.
3. Witches taken at St. Oses.
4. Pitcairn, i, pt. ii, p. 245.]
condemned and executed at the
assize in 1596 and twelve in 1597, making in all thirteen persons, or one
Coven, who were put to death.[1] The great trial of the Lancashire witches
in 1613 gives a grand total of fifty-two witches, or four Covens, whose
names occur in the record. This includes the three Salmesbury witches
mentioned by Grace Sowerbuts, whose evidence was discredited as being the
outcome of a 'Popish plot' to destroy the three women as converts to the
Reformed Church; but as the record shows that the other accused witches
were tried on similar charges and condemned, it may be concluded that
other causes occasioned the acquittal. Taking together, however, only
those witches who are mentioned, in these trials, as having actually taken
part in the ceremonies and practices of witchcraft in the neighbourhood of
Pendle, it will be found that there were thirty-nine persons, or three
Covens.[2] In Guernsey in 1617 Isabel Becquet confessed that——
'at the Sabbath the Devil used to
summon the Wizards and Witches in regular order (she remembered very well
having heard him call the old woman Collette the first, in these
terms: Madame the Old Woman Becquette): then the woman Fallaise;
and afterwards the woman Hardie. Item, he also called Marie,
wife of Massy, and daughter of the said Collette. Said that
after them she herself was called by the Devil: in these terms: The
Little Becquette: she also heard him call there Collas Becquet
, son of the said old woman (who [Collas] held her by the hand in dancing,
and some one [a woman] whom she did not know, held her by the other hand):
there were about six others there she did not know.'[3]
At Queensferry in 1644 thirteen
women were tried and seven executed for witchcraft.[4]
At Alloa (1658), though thirteen
persons, or one Coven, were brought to trial, the word is used to indicate
a smaller number: 'Margret Duchall lykewayis declared that ther was sex
women mair besyd hir self that was in thair cuwing' [then follow the names
of the six].——'Jonet Blak confessed severall meetings with the abowenamed
cuwing.——Kathren Renny being asked quhat meetingis scho
[1. Spalding Club Misc., i,
pp. 87 seq.
2. Potts.
3. Goldsmid, p. 13. Translated
from the French record.
4. Fyfe, p. 87.]
had with the diwell, and the rest
of hir cuwing, scho ansuered scho had severall meitingis with all tham
abowenamed.'[1] Little Jonet Howat of Forfar (1661) said, 'Ther was thair
present with the divell besyd hirselfe, quhom he callit the prettie
dauncer, the said Issobell Syrie, Mairie Rynd, Hellen Alexander, Issobell
Dorward, and utheris whoise names shoe did not know, to the number of 13
of all.'[2] The trial of Jonet Kerr and Issobell Ramsay at Edinburgh
(1661) gives the names of thirteen persons, or one Coven.[3] At Crook of
Devon (1662) there 'were tried twelve women and one man, i.e. one
Coven.[4] Isobel Gowdie of Auldearne (1662) gives the most detail
concerning the Covens: 'Jean Mairten is Maiden of owr Coeven. Johne Younge
is Officer to owr Coeven.——Ther ar threttein persons in ilk Coeven.' Her
evidence shows that there were several Covens in the district:, The last
tyme that owr Coven met, we, and an vther Coven, wer dauncing at the Hill
of Earlseat, and befor that we ves beyond the Meikle-burne; and the vther
Coven being at the Downie-hillis, we went besyd them.——[She and four
others] with the Divell, wer onlie at the making of it [a charm], bot all
the multitude of all owr Coevens got notice of it, at the next meitting .
. . all my owin Coeven gott notice of it werie schortlie.' She also notes
that each member of her Coven 'has an Sprit to wait wpon ws, quhan ve
pleas to call wpon him'. Janet Breadheid, of the same Coven as Isobel
Gowdie, gives the names of thirty-nine persons, or three Covens, who were
present in the Kirk of Nairn when she was admitted into the Society.[5] In
Somerset (1664) the number of accused was twenty-six persons, or two
Covens.[6] At Newcastle-on-Tyne (1673) Ann Armstrong stated that at the
meeting at the 'rideing house in the close on the common' she saw ten men
and women whom she knew and 'thre more, whose names she knowes not'. At
another meeting 'at Rideing Millne bridg-end she see the said Anne
Forster, Anne Dryden, and
[1. Scottish Antiquary, ix,
pp. 50-2.
2. Kinloch, p. 114.
3. From the record of the trial in
the Edinburgh Justiciary Court.
4. Burns Begg, pp. 219 seq.
5. Pitcairn, iii, pp. 603-17.
6. Glanvil. pt. ii; pp. 140 seq.]
Luce Thompson, and tenne more,
unknowne to her.——Att the house of John Newton off the Riding, the said
Lucy wished that a boyl'd capon with silver scrues might come down to her
and the rest, which were five coveys consisting of thirteen person in
every covey. At a large meeting at Allensford, where a great many witches
were present, 'every thirteen of them had a divell with them in sundry
shapes.' It is also noticeable that Ann Armstrong mentions twenty-six
persons by name as having been at various meetings to her knowledge.[1] At
Paisley (1692) thirteen persons of high position brought an action for
libel against six others for saving that they, the thirteen, had drunk the
Devil's health in the house of one of them; the libellers were punished,
but the number of persons libelled suggests that the accusation' might
have been true."'
An important part of the
organization was the system of reporting to the Grand Master everything
which had happened since the previous Great Assembly. The chief work of
the Covens was the performance of magical rites, either publicly at the
Esbats or privately in the houses of the witches and their neighbours. As
these rites, especially when performed privately, were more or less in the
nature of experiments, the results were reported and when successful were
recorded in writing for future use. The book in which the records were
made remained in the hands of the Devil, who in this way had always a
store of well-tried magical spells and recipes to kill or cure, from which
he could instruct his followers as occasion demanded.
The position of the Devil as the
instructor of the witches is to be found in most of the trials in Great
Britain. Cooper states this plainly: 'He deliuers unto his
Proselite, and so to the rest, the Rules of his Art,
instructing them in the manner of hurting and helping, and acquainting
them with such medicines and poysons as are vsuall herevnto.'[3].
Bessie Dunlop (1567) never attempted to cure any disease without
[1. Surtees Soc., xl, pp.
191, 192; Denham Tracts, ii, pp. 300-2, 304.
2. Hector, i, pp. 51-6.
3. Cooper, Mystery, pp.
90-2.]
first consulting Thom Reid, 'quhen
sundrie persounes cam to hir to seik help for thair beist, thair kow or
yow, or for ane barne that was tane away with ane evill blast of wind, or
elf-grippit, sche gait and sperit at Thom, Quhat mycht help thame?——Sche
culd do nathing, quhill sche had first spokin with Thom.'[1] Alison
Peirson (1588) learnt her craft from Mr. William Simpson, her mother's
brother's son, who lived among the fairy folk; 'the saide Mr Williame
tauld hir of ewerie seiknes and quhat herbis scho sould tak to haill thame,
and how scho sould vse thame; and gewis hir his directioune att all tymes."
Agnes Sampson, the Wise Wife of Keith (1590), always asked the Devil's
advice in serious cases; ' she had a familiar spirit, who upon her call,
did appear in a visible form, and resolve her of any doubtful matter,
especially concerning the life or death of persons lying sick.'[3] Grissel
Gairdner of Newburgh (1610) was executed for consulting with the [Devil],
and seiking of responssis fra him, at all tymes this fourtene or fyftene
3eir bygane, for effectuating of hir devillisch intentiones'.[4] Elspeth
Reoch in Orkney (1616) confessed that the fairy man, whom she met, told
her 'he wald lerne her to ken and sie ony thing she wald desyre'.[5]
Isobel Haldane of Perth (1623) also obtained all her information as to
life and death from the man with the 'grey beird' whom she met among the
fairy folk.[6] Jonet Rendall, another Orkney witch (1629), stated that
'the devill apperit to you, Quhom ye called Walliman, claid in quhyt
cloathis with ane quhyt head and ane gray beard, And said to you He sould
learne yow to win almiss be healling of folk'.[7] Sandie Hunter was only
moderately successful in curing cattle till he covenanted with the Devil,
who 'came to him in the form of a Mediciner, and said, Sandie, you have
too long followed my trade, and never acknowledged me for your Master. You
must now take on with me, and be my servant, and I will make you more
perfect in your Calling. Whereupon the man gave up himself to the
Devil. After this, he grew
[1. Pitcairn, ii, pp. 53, 54.
2. Id., ii, p. 164.
3. Id., ii, p. 230.
4. Id., iii, p. 96.
5. County Folklore, iii, p.
112; Mait. Cl. Misc., ii, p. 188.
6. Pitcairn, ii, p. 537.
7. County Folklore, iii, p.
103.]
very famous throw the Countrey,
for his Charming and cureing of diseases in Men and Beasts.' ''Reginald
Scot says that the witches were taught by the Devil to make magical
ointments, and that he 'supplied their want of powders and roots to
intoxicate withal'.[2] It was the Devil who pointed out which graves were
to be opened in order to obtain the material for working magic; and when
the bodies had been exhumed and dismembered, he told the witches how to
use the fragments.[3] It was the Devil who made[4] or baptized[5] the wax
and clay images, and who stuck the first thorn or pin into them.[6] It was
the Devil who held the mock plough at Auldearne, and taught the witches of
that place all the charms they knew. 'We get all this power from the
Divell', says Isobell Gowdie.[7] It was the Devil who instigated and
superintended the wrecking of the bridge at Cortaquhie, concerning which
Helen Guthrie said, 'shee her selfe, Jonnet Stout, and others of them did
thrust ther shoulderis againest the bridge', and Isobel Smyth confessed,
'Wee all rewed that meitting, for wee hurt our selves lifting.'[8]
The book in which the magical
recipes were recorded must have been of great value to its owner, and one
which he would not willingly allow to pass out of his hands. A volume of
this kind was known to be extant till the beginning of the last century;
it was called the Red Book of Appin. There are two stories as to how it
was taken from the Devil, but both stories agree that it was obtained by a
trick. It was in manuscript and contained charms for the cure of cattle,
and was consulted when cows were bewitched and refused to give milk. It
was also supposed to confer magical powers on the owner, who was said to
know what the inquiry would be before the inquirer opened his lips; and it
was in itself so magical that the owner had to wear a hoop of iron on his
head when turning its leaves.[9] Another Devil's-book was carried away,
apparently as a joke, by Mr. Williamson of
[1. Sinclair, p. 122.
2. Scot, Bk. III, p. 43.
3. Pitcairn, i, pt. ii, pp. 211,
2-39, 245-6.
4. Glanvil, pt. ii, pp. 293-5.
5. Id., pt. ii, pp. 137-8.
6. Id., pt. ii, pp. 293-5.
7. Pitcairn, iii, pp. 603, 605
seq.
8. Kinloch, pp. 122, 133.
9. Campbell, pp. 293-4.]
Cardrona, who took it from the
witches as they danced on Minchmoor, but they followed him and he returned
it.'
The system of reporting everything
to the Chief of the community makes it certain that he was supplied with
such current information as made his knowledge of public and private
affairs appear miraculous to the uninitiated. Even those who supplied that
information had firm faith in his supernatural power to kill or cure, and
believed with equal ardour in the charms which he taught them to make and
use.
In reviewing the evidence it seems
clear that the witches of the Covens were bound to exercise their powers
in the intervals between the meetings; they were bound to attend those
meetings, unless absolutely prevented, in order to learn new methods as
well as to make their reports; and they were bound to obey the Grand
Master's orders and to treat him with the deference and respect due to his
exalted position.
Discipline was maintained by a
system of rewards and punishments, enforced or relaxed according to the
personal character of the Chief. As a rule only the severer punishments
are recorded, but occasionally there are indications of minor
chastisements.
The contemporary writers make the
system of rewards and punishments very clear:
'Satan calleth them togither into
a Diuelish Sinagoge, and that he may also vnderstand of them howe well and
diligently they haue fulfilled their office of intoxicating committed vnto
them, and whõ they haue slaine.'[2] 'Such as are absent, and have no care
to be assoygned, are amerced to this paenalty, so to be beaten on the
palms of their feete, to be whipt with iron rods, to be pincht and suckt
by their Familiars till their heart blood come, till they repent them of
their sloath, and promise more attendance and diligence for the
future.'[3] 'Taking account also of the proceedings of his other
Schollers, and so approuing or condemning accordingly.'[4] Sometimes at
their
[1. Berwickshire Naturalists
Club, xi, p. 265. Unfortunately the author of the article gives
neither her authority for the statement, nor any indication of the date of
the occurrence.
2. Danaeus, ch. iv.
3. Gaule, p, 65.
4. Cooper, p. 91.]
solemn assemblies, the Devil
commands, that each tell what wickedness he hath committed, and according
to the hainousness and detestableness of it, he is honoured and respected
with a general applause. Those on the contrary, that have done no evil,
are beaten and punished.'[1]
The usual punishment was beating,
which was inflicted for various offences, 'chiefly disrespect or neglect
of duty. At Arras in 1460 Jean Tacquet, a rich eschevin, 'had endeavoured
to withdraw his allegiance from Satan who had forced him to continue it by
beating him cruelly with a bull's pizzle.'[2] In Lorraine (1589) the Grand
Master seems to have been peculiarly brutal:
'Jana Gerardina, Catharina Russa,
und Francisca Fellaea bezeugten, dass sie mehr als einmal schwerlich mit
harten Streichen hätten büssen müssen, wenn sie keinen Schaden oder
Unglück angestifft hätten. Und wie Nicolaea Morelia sagt, hat er sie
dermassen zerschlagen, dass ihr der Athem davon ausgeblieben, und sie bey
nahe gestorben wäre; Uber welches sich dann nicht zu verwundern sey,
sintemahl er eiserne Hände habe, mit denen er ihnen so unbarmhertzig die
Köpffe zerschlagen, dass sie deren nicht mehr empfinden.'[3]
In the Lyons district (1598) 'les;
Sorciers rendent conte à Satan de ce qu'ils ont fait dés la derniere
assemblée, estans ceux là les mieux venus qui ont commis le plus de
meschancetez. Les autres sont sifflez & mocquez de tous; l'on les fait
mettre à l'escart, & sont encor le plus soutient battus & maltraitez de
leur Maistre'.[1] According to Bodin, 'chacun Sorcier doit rendre compte
du mal qu'il a faict sur peine d'estre bien battu.'[5] De Lancre says,
'Les Sorciers le vont adorer trois nuicts durant. Ceux qui par
nonchalance, ou autre petit empeschement ne s'y trouuent, sont foüettez &
battus à l'outrance.'[6] Alexander Hamilton (1630) stated that 'thair was
ane new tryst appointed be him to be keipit wt thame altogidder within
xiii days thereftir upon the cauldbit mure Quhilk meitting was nocht
keipit be the said Alexr for the quhilk caus and breking of that tryst the
said Alexr was
[1. Pleasant Treatise, pp.
6-7.
2. Lea, iii, p. 525.
3. Remigius, pt. i, cap. xiii. p.
59.
4. Boguet, p. 139.
5. Bodin, p. 189.
6. De Lancre, Tableau, p.
398.]
maist rigorouslie strukin be the
devill wt ane battoun at ane meitting keipit betuix thame schortlie
thereftir upone gairnetoune hillis'.[1] In France (1652) two sisters were
tried for witchcraft: 'Icelle confesse n'avoir faict mourir qu'un vaulx et
d'avoir été battu par le diable, deux fois, parce qu'elle ne vouloit faire
mourir aultres personnes et bestiault.' The other sister was 'interrogée
sy le diable ne luy avoit conseillé de cracher la Sainte Hostie hors de sa
bouche, ou bien ne la point recepvoir, dist que non, mais bien que le
diable l'at une fois battue fort parce qu'elle l'avoit receu'.[1] The
girls at Lille (1661) informed Madame Bourignon that the witches 'are
constrained to offer him their Children, or else the Devil would Beat
them'.[3] Isobel Gowdie's account is, as usual, very full:
'Som tymis, among owr felwis, we
wold be calling him "Blak Johne", or the lyk, and he wold ken it, and heir
ws weill aneughe; and he ewin then com to ws, and say, "I ken weill
aneughe what 3e wer sayeing of me!" And then he vold beat and buffet ws
werie sor. We wold be beattin if ve wer absent any tyme, or neglect any
thing that wold be appointit to be done. Allexr Elder, in Earlseat, vold
be werie often beattin. He is bot soft, and cowld never defend him self in
the leist, bot greitt and cry, quhan he vold be scourging him. Bot Margret
Wilson, in Auldearne, wold defend hir selfe fynelie, and cast wp hir
handis to keip the stroakis off from hir; and Bessie Wilson would speak
crustie with hir townge, and wold be belling again to him stowtlie. He
wold be beatting and scurgeing ws all wp and downe with cardis [cords] and
vther sharp scurges, like naked gwhastis; and we wold still be cryeing, "Pittie!
pittie! Mercie! mercie, owr Lord!" Bot he vold haue neither pittie nor
mercie. When he vold be angrie at ws, he wold girne at ws lyk a dowge, as
iff he wold swallow ws wp.'[4]
The Swedish witches (1669) also
had reason to complain of their Grand-Master's cruelty: 'heretofore it was
sufficient to carry but one of their Children [to the meeting] or a
strangers Child with them, but now he did plague them and
[1. From the record of the trial
in the Edinburgh Justiciary Court.
2 Van Elven, La Tradition,
v (1891), p. 215. The names of the witches; and the place are not given.
3. Bourignon, Vie, p. 222
Hale, p. 37.
4. Pitcairn, iii, p. 613.]
whip them if they did not procure
him Children.'[1] Among the Northumberland witches (1673):
'All of them who had donne harme
gave an accoant thereof to their protector, who made most of them that did
most harme, and beate those who had donne no harme.——At the said meeting
their particular divell tooke them that did most evill, and danced with
them first, and called every of them to an account, and those that did
most evill he maid most of.——The devill, in the forme of a little black
man and black cloaths, calld of one Isabell Thompson, of Slealy, widdow,
by name, and required of her what service she had done him. She replyd she
had gott power of the body of one Margarett Teasdale. And after he had
danced with her he dismissed her and call'd of one Thomasine, wife of
Edward Watson, of Slealy.'[2]
Punishments for minor offences are
rarely recorded. At North Berwick (1590), when the witches returned after
sinking a ship, 'seeing that they tarried over long, hee at their comming
enjoyned them all to a pennance, which was, that they should kisse his
buttockes, in sign of duety to him.'[3] At Aberdeen (1597) Christen
Mitchell confessed that when the Devil asked her to join, 'thow ansuerit,
I will enter in thy band, bot I will nocht byd thairin; and thairefter
that the Devill gawe the a wisk, and thow fell on thy face one the dyk of
that yaird.'[4] Beigis Tod, who belonged to one of the North Berwick
Covens but was not tried till 1608, was late in arriving at a meeting,
'quhair the Deuill appeirit to thame, and reprovet the said Beigis Tod
verrie scherplie, for hir long tayreing; to quhome scho maid this ansuer,
"Sir, I could wyn na soner."'[5] At Lille if any witch desired to leave
the religion, 'the Devil reproves them then more severely, and obligeth
them to new Promises.'[6] Occasionally the witches kept discipline among
themselves; this seems to have been the case only when the culprit
prevented the proper execution of magical performances. At Aberdeen Thomas
Leyis 'led the ring, and dang the said Kathren Mitchell, becaus scho
spillit your dans, and ran nocht sa fast about as the rest.'[7] At
[1. Horneck, pt. ii, p. 318.
2. Surtees Soc., xl, pp.
191, 195, 197.
3. Pitcairn, i, pt. ii, p. 217.
4. Spalding Club Misc., i,
p. 165.
5. Pitcairn, ii, p. 542.
6. Bourignon, Vie, p. 223
Hale, p. 38.
7. Spalding Club Misc., i,
p. 97.]
Auldearne Isobel Gowdie described
how the witches used flint arrow-heads: 'I shot at the Laird of Park, as
he ves crossing the Burn of Boath; bot, thankis to God now, that he
preserwit him. Bessie Hay gaw me a great cuffe, becaus I missed him.'[1]
The former minister of Crighton, Mr. Gideon Penman, acted as the Devil's
chaplain; 'ordinarily Mr. Gideon was in the rear in all their dances, and
beat up all those that were slow.'[2] But a reasonable excuse for trifling
misdemeanours could be accepted: 'The devill asked at Kathrine Moore
quhair hir Husband was that he came not she answered there was a young
bairne at home and that they could not both come.'[3]
Capital punishment was reserved
for traitors, actual and potential. It must have been brought into use
only after the cult had fallen upon evil days, and then only when the
Chief himself was in danger. Beating to death, hanging, and poison were
the usual means of execution.
The earliest instance occurred in
1450, when the Church had begun to use its power systematically against
the witches. 'The Inquisitor of Como, Bartolomeo de Homate, the podestà
Lorenzo da Carorezzo, and the notary Giovanni da Fossato, either out of
curiosity or because they doubted the witches whom they were trying, went
to a place of assembly at Mendrisio and witnessed the scene from a
hiding-place. The presiding demon pretended not to know their presence,
and in due course dismissed the assembly, but suddenly recalled his
followers and set them on the officials, who were so beaten that they died
within fifteen days.'[4] Alesoun Peirson (1588) was burnt as a witch,
having gained her knowledge from the fairies, who threatened that 'gif
scho wald speik and tell of thame and thair doingis, thay sould martir hir'.[5]
The Lorraine witches (1589) took an oath of silence, 'welchen Eyd sie so
hoch und heilig halten, dass wenn sie Eydbrüchig werden, so darffir halten,
also ob sie ewig darumb musten verdampt und gestrafft seyn.'[6] Alice
Gooderidge, the Derbyshire witch (1597), was tried for witchcraft,
[1. Pitcairn, iii, p, 615.
2. Fountainhall, i, p. 14.
3. Highland Papers, iii, p.
26.
4. Lea, iii, p. 501.
5. Pitcairn, i, pt. ii, p. 163.
6. Remigius, ch. xviii, p. 83.]
'she should haue bin executed, but
that her spirit killed her in the prison.'[1] Jeannette d'Abadie (1609)
was more fortunate than most in that she was not killed, 'elle a esté
battue au sabbat reellement & corporelleme{n}t par deux sorcieres qu'elle
nomme, par ce qu'elle auoit reuelé les mysteres du sabbat.'[2] John
Stewart, the 'juglour' of Irvine (1618)——
'for his better preferring to the
day of the assys, was put in ane lockfast buith, quhair no maner of
persoun might haif access to him quhil the dounsitting of the justice
court, and for avoyding of putting violent handis on himself, was verie
strictly gairdit and flitherit be the airms, as us is, and upon that same
day of the assys, about half ane hour befoir the doun sitting of the
justice court, Mr. David Dickson, minister at Irving; and Mr. George
Dunbar, minister of Air, having went to him to exhort him to call on his
God for mercie for his bygane wicked and evil lyf and that God wold of his
infinite mercie, lowis him out of the handis of the devil quhom he had
servit thir mony years by gane. He acquiescit to their prayer and godlie
exhortation, and utterit thir wordis——I am so straithe gairdit that it
lyis not in my hand to tak off my bonnett, nor to gett bread to my mouth.
And immediately after the departing of the two ministers from him, the
Juglour being sent for at the desyr of my Lord of Eglintoune, to be
confrontit with ane woman of the burgh of Air, callit Janet Bous, quha was
apprehendit by the Magistrates of the burghe of Air, for witchcraft, to
the burghe of Irvine, purposlie for that effer. He was fund be the burrow
officers, quha went about him stranglit and hangit be the cruik of the dur,
with ane tait of hemp (or a string maid of hemp, supposed to haif been his
garten, or string of his bonnet) not above the length of twa span long,
his kneyis not being from the grund half ane span, and was brocht out of
the hous, his lyf not being so layt expellit: but notwithstanding of
quhatsomever meines usit to the contrair for remeid of his lyf, he
revievit not, but so endit his lyf miserable by the help of the devill his
maister.'[3]
Rebecca West, a young Essex witch
(1645), confessed to Matthew Hopkins that 'if shee should discover any
thing, they all told the said Rebecca, shee should endure more torments on
earth, then could be in hell: and the said Rebecca
[1. Alse Gooderidge, p. 43.
2. De Lancre, Tableau, p.
91.
3. Trial of Isobel Inch, p. 11.]
told this informant that shee
promised to keepe all their secrets; and moreover they all told her, that
shee must never confesse any thing, although the rope were about her necke,
and shee ready to be hanged'.' In Fifeshire (1640) 'ane Mistres Hendersone
(sister to Fordell Hendersone, in the presbytrey of Dumfermling),
sometymes lady of Pittahro, being delated by many to be a witch, was
apprehended and caried to Edenbroughe, wher she was keiped fast; and after
her remaining in prison for a tyme, being in health att night, vpon the
morne was founde dead. It was thought, and spoken by many, that she
wronged her selfe, either by strangling or by poyson.'[2] The Swedish
children (1670) were not spared: 'if the Children did at any time name the
Names of those that had carried them away, they were again carried by
force either to Blockula, or to the Cross way, and there miserably beaten,
insomuch that some of them died of it.'[3] Whether Deliverance Hobbs
(1692) was actually beaten, or whether her statement was made from the
knowledge of what might happen to her, cannot be certain without reference
to the records of the trial itself, as Mather's bias is apt to distort the
evidence: 'She now testifi'd, that this Bishop tempted her to Sign
the Book again, and to deny what she had confess'd. She affirm'd,
that it was the Shape of this Prisoner, which whipped her with Iron Rods,
to compel her thereunto.'[4] Elizabeth Anderson in Renfrewshire (1696)
went with her father to a witch-meeting, 'severals of them being affraid
that the Declarant would Confess, and tell of them as she done formerly on
her Grand-mother, they threatened to tear her all in pieces if she did
so.'[5] John Reid of the same Coven——
'after his Confession had called
out of his prison Window, desiring Baily Scott to keep that old body Angus
Forrester, who had been his fellow prisoner, closs and secure; whereupon
the company asked John when they were leaving him on Friday night the 21th
of May, whether he desired company or
[1. Howell, iv, 842.
2. Lamont, p. 12. For further
particulars of this lady, see Ross, Aberdour and Inchcolme, p. 339.
3. Horneck, pt. ii, p. 319.
4. Cotton Mather, p. 131.
5. Narr. Of the Sufferings of a
Yong Girle, p. xl.]
would be afraid alone, he said he
had no fear of anything: So being left till Saturday in the Forenoon, he
was found in this posture, viz. sitting upon a stool which was on the
Hearth of the Chimney, with his feet on the floor and his Body straight
upward, his shoulders touching the lintel of the Chimney, but his Neck
tyed with his own neck-cloath (whereof the knot was behind) to a small
stick thrust into a hole above the lintel of the Chimney, upon which the
Company, especially John Campbel a Chyrurgeon who was called, thought at
first in respect of his being in an ordinary posture of sitting, and the
neck-cloath not having any drawn knot (or run loup) but an ordinary
one which was not very strait, and the sticke not having the strength to
bear the weight of his Body or the struggle, that he had not been quite
dead; but finding it otherways, and that he was in such a Situation that
he could not have been the Actor thereof himself, concluded that some
extraordinary Agent had done it, especially considering that the Door of
the Room was secured, and that there was a board set over the Window which
was not there the night before when they left him.'[1]
A similar fate befell the warlock
Playfair in 1597. He was found strangled in his prison at Dalkeith with
the 'point' of his breeches tied round his neck.[2]
[1. Narr. Of the Sufferings of
a Yong Girle, p. xliv; Sadducismus Debellatus, pp. 43-4.
2. Sharpe, P 46.] |
