This post is part of a blog tour. Thank you to Random Things Tours and Monoray for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Mitchell, a human rights lawyer and Venditozza, writer, came together to form the Witches of Scotland campaign in 2020, seeking justice for the nearly 4000 individuals who were accused of witchcraft in Scotland between 1563 and 1736. This book is the next step in the project, bringing together their research into an accessible book which takes you step by step through the process of having a person accused and condemned as a witch. It delves into particular instances as well as discussing the broader activities of the likes of witch prickers. Most of the cases are Scotland based but they do commit a chapter to the infamous Salem witch trials, and dispel a few misconceptions along the way. The final section of the book looks at accusations of witchcraft that are still occurring around the world now, and the ways in which women continue to be the victim of misogyny - the label might have changed (in some cases) but the prejudices haven’t changed that much.
The subject of the book is dark but the writing is conversational and easy to read. They include many asides in footnotes, which do sometimes distract from the main text (there’s rarely a page without at least one footnote) but they are often informative or amusing. We learn about the horrendous treatment of those accused of witchcraft. They were tortured, forcibly kept awake for days at a time, and sometimes had their loved ones tortured in front of them to try and gain a confession. One thing that became crystal clear while reading the book is how utterly pointless forcing confessions from people with torture is. The confession is meaningless, and their contemporaries seem to have been aware of this as it was often claimed confessions were made without any coercion. Often it seems confessions were redacted as they were going to their death. There is also suspicion that some recorded confessions were entirely made up by the authorities in order to justify their horrific actions. The records of Scottish witch trials are fairly sparse, sometimes the names of the accused are not even recorded, merely that a group of witches were executed. This was not the case in the Salem witch trials in America, meaning that more research has been possible into the victims, and that it has been easier to identify those who need pardoning posthumously.
Mitchell and Venditozzi make it clear throughout that although there were a small number of men accused of witchcraft, it is largely a feminist issue. The odds were stacked against women - it was believed that God would intervene against injustice therefore if He allowed a witch to be executed surely this was a sign of guilt. There was also a belief that if a witch had a witch's mark that was undiscovered she would never confess. Belief systems made it impossible for the accused to prove their innocence, being accused in itself was practically a death sentence. Contradictions make themselves clear in approaches to investigation and proving wrongdoing, but also in the mindset which believes women are weaker creatures and therefore more likely to be tempted by the Devil while also being responsible for luring men into wrongful behaviour. Ideas that will be familiar to many a twenty-first century reader.
The book details the awful experiences of those who were accused. Being examined by witch prickers which involved being stripped and shaved and having needles or knives stuck into various parts of the body until they found any mark that could be seen as a sign of the Devil or which didn’t bleed. There was undoubtedly a sexual nature to this examination, carried out by men on women with nobody on their side. The grisly deaths that met many of the victims of this time are also described, and although they do not shy away from the horrors nor do they dwell unnecessarily on details. We are informed but it never feels gratuitous. It is clear that this period in history was an awful time of persecution. They lay out the factors that often lead to such actions, including difficult global times, insecurity, and the spread of harmful ideas. Parallels are made with the modern world.
A fascinating, well researched book that reveals the true horror behind the witch trials in Scotland, a period of history which isn’t widely taught. They give voice to the victims by naming them and highlighting their innocence. There are also short fictional sections throughout which help put you in the head of the participants, bringing to life the world they were living in.
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