Scottish witches

[TheQueenOfTheNight]

mobile.twitter.com/WeirdScotland/status/1387384480344707083

In April1650, Brechin woman Catharin Walker was accused of witchcraft, for, among other things, booting a man in the balls so hard he died.

I live 10 miles from brechin!

It's obviously very sad to read about the witchcraft trials, but I thought others may like this too.

There's a stone dedicated to witches on the Forfar loch too.

Terrible what happened

@Diamondinthewoof you might find this interesting. Note that Catharin(e) didn't just have a lucky kick, she did it again. Maybe she was working on a signature move.

angusfolklore.blogspot.com/2015/04/witchcraft-in-brechin.html?m=1

Good for her.

There's a cliff near Stirling, I think, where so-called witches were thrown off. My friend was showing me pictures and it was so chilling - these details are so easily forgotten in wider society. I can hardly manage to imagine communities just deciding a woman was a witch and going through with throwing her to her death like that.

There's a statue to remember women accused of witchcraft in Prestonpans womenofscotland.org.uk/memorials/statue-alleged-witches-executed-prestonpans

Here's the Interactive Witchcraft Map. Which is sad, when you read some of the stories.

witches.is.ed.ac.uk/

Gah, forgot link.

@ArabellaScott

witches.is.ed.ac.uk/

Gah, forgot link.

Thanks, that's a really interesting link - sad to see how many there are.

I am going to blithely say that many of them are just records of trials and not necessarily led to convictions or anything, and just pretend I don't know how many women died. (And a few men and some children).

They went absolutely barmy on the witches, in Scotland. I think it was at least partly down to James 1st/6th's twisted hatred of his mother, myself.

Thanks for this, really sad but also really interesting

Witch trials have always fascinated me, I was at university in Canterbury where they still have the witching stool.

@ArabellaScott

witches.is.ed.ac.uk/

Gah, forgot link.

Thank you. That's fascinating.

A horrific one is the Witches' Stone in Forres, Morayshire. Legend has it that women suspected of witchcraft were put in a barrel studded with nails and rolled down Cluny Hill. I remember seeing it as a child on holiday.
womenofscotland.org.uk/memorials/witches-stone-marking-resting-place-barrel-containing-witch

I can hardly manage to imagine communities just deciding a woman was a witch and going through with throwing her to her death like that.
Can't you? Given how people behave on Twitter, I can well imagine what a mob mentality is like.

@DdraigGoch

I can hardly manage to imagine communities just deciding a woman was a witch and going through with throwing her to her death like that. Can't you? Given how people behave on Twitter, I can well imagine what a mob mentality is like.

Totally agree. I can 100% imagine this happening.

Some of the ways these women were killed were horrific.