The Survey of Scottish Witchcraft

1563-1736

By Julian Goodare, Lauren Martin, Joyce Miller and Louise Yeoman, January 2003

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Case Details

C/EGD/34 Alesoun Pierson

name of accused
Alesoun Pierson
designated title
no information
Accused Reference
A/EGD/23
Case date start
28/5/1559
Given case date
no information
Case commission
no information
case complaint
no information
case correspondence
no information
case chronicle
no information
other details
no information

characterisation

  • folk healing (secondary characteristic)
  • maleficium (secondary characteristic)
Characterisation Notes
There is talk of healing but the main just seems to be the fairies and the mysterious Mr. William Sympson, who was either a fairy or some other kind of healer/teacher figure. Can't tell if he was a real person or not, but I made a record for him (c/la/2894). Maleficium ticked as it was said the Archbishop of St Andrews had died after she gave him the herbal tea - so it may have been failed healing rather than deliberate malefice. Although she made a pact it was with fairies therefore we did not tick demonic as a secondary since it was not clear that it was a straightforward demonic relationship.
additional persons
name involvement notes
no additional persons recorded

Qualitative information

Non-natural beings

Notes
A man came to her when she was sick and she promised to be faithful in order to get help from him. She was not allowed to speak about it or they would go away and she would go to hell. Described the fairies giving her a mark that felt no pain.
  • Female Fairy Queen of Elphane
  • Male Fairy man in Green clothes

Demonic pacts

  • Want nothing

witches meetings

  • Dancing
  • Singing
Notes
She laid down sick in the Grange-mure and a man in green clothes came to her. She described meetings with fairies that sound a lot like later descriptions of Sabbath. She asked if they were in God's name, when they weren't she left, but she eventually joined them.

Meeting places

  • Grange-more Moor

musical instruments

  • Pipe

Folk culture

  • Elphane or Fairyland
Notes
She was cured by this Mr. William sympson 'the witch', Mr. Sympson made a statement about all the illnesses of the Archbishop of St. Andrews. Said she had friends in the court of the fairies who were blood relations. She couldn't recall how long she had spent with the fairies. The good neighbours hold her under God. She claimed to go to St. Andrews to heal people.

Counter strategies

  • no information

white magic

  • no information

Elf/fairy elements

  • Queen of Fairy
  • Group of fairies
  • Good Neighbours
  • Green

Shape-changing

  • no information

Ritual objects

  • Herb

Religious motif

  • no information

Calendar customs

  • no information

Diseases or illness

  • Human death
  • Healing humans
Notes
She was to make a salve and rub it on the Archbishop of St. Andrews. She mixed herbs in a tea, the bishop drank it and died. Her cousin cured her when the power was taken from her hand and foot. She saw the good neighbours make their salves with fire.

Cause of witch's malice

  • no information

Other maleficia

Damage to property

  • no information

weather modification

  • no information

Notes
None

Other charges

  • Sorcery
  • Incantation
Notes
None

Plea

Claimed bewitched
no
Claimed possessed
no
Admitted lesser charges
no
No defence
no
Claimed natural causes
no
Notes
None
Case Notes
None
references
name notes
Books of Adjournal JC2/2 fo. 104v-105v None
Pitcairn v I, part ii, page 161-164 Same text as JC2/2, also in the High Court Record Index, no. 1 for 28/5/1588.