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Margaret Scott was one of the accused in the witch trials that took place in the late 17th century. The trials were held in North Berwick, Scotland, and were part of a larger wave of witch trials that swept across Europe during this period. Margaret Scott was an elderly woman who lived in Tranent, East Lothian. She was accused of using witchcraft to harm others and was brought before the court to face trial. Margaret Scott was one of many women who were accused of being witches during this time, as there was a widespread belief in the existence of witches and their ability to cause harm. During the trial, Margaret Scott was accused of various acts of witchcraft, including causing illness and death, as well as using spells and curses to harm others.

In traditional Pagan style, a festival wouldn’t be complete without joyous celebration – dancing, drink flowing and giving blessings to the deities for the harvest that would have ensured the safety of our community into the colder months. Beer and whisky are significant to this festival as the grains provide wheat, hops and barley for those delicious beverages. Cheers!

The term Lammas is also derived from loaf mass which is synonymous with the baking of the harvest bread that is made and shared amongst the community. The outcome for this last piece of crop was the same though it would be made in to a corn dolly to house the spirit of the fields until she could be returned when planting for the following year.

During the trial, Margaret Scott was accused of various acts of witchcraft, including causing illness and death, as well as using spells and curses to harm others. The evidence against her was largely based on testimonies from witnesses who claimed to have seen her engage in these activities. There was also a belief that witches could be identified by physical marks on their bodies, and Margaret Scott was reportedly found to have such marks.

Lammas and Corn Dollies

For as far back as people have farmed the earth, communities have honoured the cyclical nature of the year. The Celtic Wheel marks eight festivals, including summer and winter solstices and autumn and spring equinoxes. Interspersed between these are Samhain (commonly known as Halloween), Imbolc (Candlemas), Beltane (May Day eve) and Lammas or Lughnasadh.

Wheel of the Year

“These festivals, which go back to time immemorial, are part of the deep oneness with Nature that the people of olden days experienced…”

Doreen Valiente, An ABC of Witchcraft Past and Present

Lammas is traditionally celebrated on 1st August and is the festival of the first harvests of the year, specifically the grain harvest. The name Lammas is from the Anglo-Saxon meaning Loaf-mass (hlafmaesse). Lughnasadh is also celebrated at this time and is the festival of Lugh, the Celtic sun god.

There is little evidence of how Lammas was celebrated in pre-Christian times, as records are scarce, but it was certainly adopted into the Christian year with the coming of Christianity to Britain. It is also a festival that is included in the pagan calendar and celebrated as one of the eight witches’ sabbats.

What is clear is that Lammas was the start of the hardest and most important part of the year for communities reliant on their crops and that traditions and superstitions have been passed down through time.

One belief was in that of a Harvest Spirit, who lived in the fields and who retreated ever further as the crops were harvested.

“Rural people believed the Harvest Spirit dwelt in the fields, and that as the reapers cut the corn the spirit was forced to retreat in to the ever-dwindling remainder. No man wished to be the one who destroyed her refuge, so the reapers took their turns to throw their sickles at the last stand of corn. It was then plaited in to a woman’s form – known as the corn-dolly or kern-baby – which represented the Harvest Spirit. This was set in a place of honour at the harvest supper”

The Reader’s Digest Folklore, Myths and Legends of Britain

A similar story is told by Dee Dee Chainey in A Treasury of British Folklore but she adds that in Cornwall and Devon, when the last standing corn was cut, there was a tradition of “crying the neck” where the reaper would shout there times “I ‘ave ‘un” and the other farmworkers reply, “What ‘ave ‘ee?”, with him replying, “the neck” to which everyone would cheer. The outcome for this last piece of crop was the same though – it would be made in to a corn dolly to house the spirit of the fields until she could be returned when planting for the following year.

Although the account above says the corn was plaited into a woman’s form, the word corn would have meant any food grain and dolly is more likely to be from the word idol rather than a doll shape. They were actually called harvest trophies before the term corn dolly was adopted and come in a variety of shapes or forms, only one of which is the human shaped female form. Many of the shapes are regional, such as (left to right) the Suffolk horseshoe, the Yorkshire spiral and the Staffordshire knot.

I looked to see if there was a Hertfordshire speciality before attempting my own corn dollies, but as there wasn’t, I tried a simple loop and a simple female form. Once I had started, I soon became grateful that I wasn’t trying a complex regional version as the plaiting is hard to keep uniform and the stalks soon become tangled in each other.

The grain stalks I used are windblown oat stalks found along a field edge, and on the “doll” the arms are meadow grasses plaited together.

I will display the corn dollies to give harvest thanks and will keep them for luck until, as the tradition goes, I will return them to the fields for the seeds to grow once more and for the Harvest Spirit to return to her home.

Lammas is traditionally celebrated on 1st August and is the festival of the first harvests of the year, specifically the grain harvest. The name Lammas is from the Anglo-Saxon meaning Loaf-mass (hlafmaesse). Lughnasadh is also celebrated at this time and is the festival of Lugh, the Celtic sun god.

The trial of Margaret Scott was part of a larger pattern of witch trials that occurred during this period. The belief in witchcraft was deeply ingrained in society, and many people genuinely believed in the existence of witches and their ability to cause harm. The trials followed a similar pattern, with accused witches being subjected to interrogation and often tortured in order to extract confessions. Once a confession was obtained, the accused would be sentenced to death, usually by hanging. The Margaret Scott witch trials were part of a dark chapter in history, when fear and superstition led to the persecution and execution of innocent people. In recent years, there has been a growing recognition of the injustice of the witch trials, and efforts have been made to commemorate the victims and remember their stories. The Margaret Scott witch trials serve as a reminder of the dangers of unchecked fear and the importance of ensuring a fair and just legal system..

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