91Èȱ¬

Cuireadh asarlaíocht i leith agus cuireadh cúig oiread níos mó daoine chun báis, mná den chuid is mó, in Alban ná in aon áit eile san Eoraip. De réir mar a scaip na tuairimí seo go tuaisceart na hÉireann ba bhean déirce in Aontroim, nach fios cén t-ainm a bhí uirthi, a bhí thíos leis. Cuireadh asarlaíocht i leith na mná seo tar éis di bileog samhaidh a thabhairt do chailín óg mar chúiteamh ar bheoir agus ba dhaoscarshlua scanrúil a mharaigh í. Insíonn an scéal seo mar a scaipeadh eagla agus eolas míchruinn i bpaimfléid agus i leabhair faoi dheamhaneolaíocht agus asarlaíocht.

As Scottish belief in witches spreads to the north of Ireland, terrible consequences unfold for an older woman who begs for food. It's Antrim Town, 1698. We tell the horrific story of a lynch mob under the control of the local reverend, who took justice into his own hands by strangling and burning to death a local woman after she gave a sorrel leaf to a young girl, who soon became ill.

In this town, filled with recent Scottish migrants, witchcraft frenzy was at an all-time high. From 1563-1736 over 4,000 'witches’ were burnt at the stake in Scotland. In this story, a woman’s power to ‘cure’ using herbs and plant knowledge is linked to sorcery and demonic powers. Ironically a herbal cure concocted by a male healer is said to eventually cure the girl, self-promoted in a pamphlet of the time and preserved to this day.