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From the 1500s to the middle of the 1700s, nearly four thousand Scottish people were put on trial for witchcraft. Many were found guilty and executed.

What is witchcraft, and why were people so scared of witches?

Belief in magic has existed for thousands of years across civilisations around the world.

Magic was often seen as a part of the natural world. Some people seemed able to put magic to use. In some cultures magic was seen as a special power that only some people had. In other cultures, using magic was something that could be learned and practised.

Using magic was not seen as either good or bad but it could be put to either good or bad purposes. So someone who could perform magic was not necessarily someone to fear.

In the past, people had a much more limited idea of illness and the body than we do today. When they were ill, they might turn to a healer for help.

Healers might have made potions using herbs and other plants that did have real medical benefits, or someone might really feel better because they believed that they had been cured, but at the time it was believed that magic was responsible for healing the sick. Use of spells, talismans, charms and potions were all seen as real ways to overcome illness.

But being a healer was only a good thing if the healing worked.

Jonet Tailzour

In 1633, Jonet Tailzour was a healer near Alloa. Local people turned against her when they thought some of her cures had failed, or when illnesses seemed to transfer to other people or animals.

Jonet was found guilty of witchcraft by Stirling Burgh Court and banished from the community. She was later tried again, found guilty and executed.

Just as magic could be used to heal the sick, it was also believed that magic could be used to harm or even kill other people, or to damage their property.

If someone who was involved in an argument, or a member of their family became ill, or suffered some misfortune, it was believed that this could be the result of a curse or other harmful magic.

For example, in 1634, Elizabeth Bathgate argued with a weaver called George Sprott. Bathgate was said to have sold the family enchanted eggs, one of which caused Sprott's child to develop a egg-sized swelling and later die. She was later found not guilty.

The main signs of witchcraft were illness, or bad luck. Witches were believed to have power over the natural world, so failing crops, sick livestock, or ever bad weather could all be seen as the result of witchcraft.

At a time when most people lived off of the land, any of these problems could result in a family being unable to feed and support itself.

Whether they used magic to help or to harm someone, people who performed magic were part of their community. Witches used magic to help those they liked, or who paid them, and used it to hurt those they fell out with.

Isobel Cockie

For example, in 1597, Isobel Cockie was accused of witchcraft after a neighbour was unable to churn their milk to make butter. She was also accused of cursing a neighbour after a dispute about who owned a house.

During her trial, it was noted that she had been paid as a healer, having given a man a drink made of herbs, butter and saffron to take three times a day.

For the most part, people tried to resolve problems they had with witches. The worst punishment a witch would usually face was being banished from the community.

Beliefs about what witchcraft involved changed over time. By the 1500s, organised Christian religion had decided that witchcraft and magic were evil and that witchcraft involved making a pact with the Devil.

In Christian countries like Scotland, the Devil terrified people more than anything else.

Rulers and leaders feared for themselves and the spiritual health of their countries. King James VI of Scotland was convinced that witches had plotted to kill him.

Ordinary people feared for their own lives, their livelihoods and wellbeing.

At these events, some believed that there were animal or even human sacrifices, with innocent victims offered to the Devil.

In Scotland, children, especially those who had not been baptised, were seen as being in particular danger.