[191] An Account of the Tryals, Examination and
Condemnation, of Elinor Shaw, and Mary Phillips [etc.],
London [1705]; The Northamptonshire Witches. Being a true
and faithful Account of the Births [etc.] of Elinor Shaw,
and Mary Phillips, (The two notorious Witches) That were
executed at Northampton on Saturday, March the 17th,
1705.... Communicated in a Letter last Post, from Mr. Ralph
Davis, of Northampton ... London, 1705. The first tract is
dated March 8, 1705; the second, March 18th, 1705. Both are
signed “Ralph Davis.” I have used the reprints by Taylor &
Son, Northampton, 1866. On this case, see [F. Marshall,]
A Brief History of Witchcraft, with Especial Reference
to Northamptonshire, Northampton, 1866, pp. 13-15, 16;
Notes and Queries, 7th Series, IX, 117; Northamptonshire
Notes and Queries II, 19; Eugene Teesdale, in Bygone
Northamptonshire, edited by William Andrews, 1891, pp.
114-115; Gough, British Topography, 1780, II, 46.
[192] See p. 48, above. This was the last conviction for
witchcraft, and probably the last trial, in England. Mrs.
Mary Hickes and her daughter are said by Gough (British
Topography, 1780, I, 439, II, 254, note) to have been
executed for witchcraft on July 28, 1716, at Huntingdon.
Gough cites a contemporary pamphlet as authority. The
genuineness of this case is doubted (see Notes and Queries,
1st Series, V, 514; 2d Series, V, 503-504), but Mr. F. A.
Inderwick argues for its acceptance (Side-Lights on the
Stuarts, 2d ed., 1891, pp. 177-180), and it has certainly
never been disproved. The alleged executions at Northampton
in 1712 are certainly based on a slip of the pen in Gough,
British Topography, 1780, II, 52; the cases actually
occurred in 1612, and an account of them may be found in a
tract (The Witches of Northamptonshire) published in that
year, and reprinted by Taylor & Son, Northampton, 1867.
See also Thomas Sternberg, The Dialect and Folk-Lore of
Northamptonshire, London, 1851, p. 152; F. Marshall, A
Brief History of Witchcraft, Northampton, 1866, p. 16.
[193] That is, Francis Bragge, who was also a clergyman,
being Curate of Biggleswade according to Mr. W. B. Gerish
(A Hertfordshire Witch, p. 8).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account