Isobel Gowdie
Encyclopedia
Isobel Gowdie was a Scottish woman who was tried for witchcraft
in 1662. Her detailed confession, apparently achieved without the use of torture
, offers one of the most detailed looks at European witchcraft folklore
at the end of the era of witch-hunt
s.
A young housewife living at Auldearn
, Highland
, Scotland, her confession painted a wild word-picture about the deeds of her coven
. They were claimed to have the ability to transform themselves into animals; to turn into a hare, she would say:
(sych: such; meickle: great)
To change back, she would say:
She allegedly was entertained by the Queen of the Fairies
, also known as the Queen of Elphame
, in her home "under the hills".
It is unclear whether Gowdie's confession is the result of psychosis
, whether she had fallen under suspicion of witchcraft and sought leniency by confessing, or was she simply much smarter than her inquisitors. It is also unclear whether there was some truth to her remarkable confessions. Her confession was not consistent with the folklore and records of the trials of witches, and it was more detailed than most. There is no record of her being executed.
In 1955, retired English soldier Robin Green believed that he saw the ghost of Isobel Gowdie while camping alone in Auldearn.
Isobel Gowdie and her magic
have been remembered in a number of later works of culture.
She has appeared as a character in several novel
s, such as the biographical novel
s The Devil's Mistress by novelist and occultist J. W. Brodie-Innes, Isobel by Jane Parkhurst, the fantasy novel Night Plague by Graham Masterton
, and Noches Paganas: Cuentos Narrados junto al Fuego del Sabbath by Luis G. Abbadie
;
Isobel Gowdie is also the subject of songs by Creeping Myrtle and Alex Harvey
. Maddy Prior
's song The Fabled Hare is based upon the spell quoted above. The Inkubus Sukkubus
song Woman to Hare, from the album Vampyre Erotica
is based on Isobel's statement, and quotes her words at the end of the lyrics. The Confession of Isobel Gowdie
is a work for symphony orchestra by the Scottish composer James MacMillan.
Furthermore, some of her own literary works have been included in Oxford University Press's Early Modern Women Poets: 1520–1700: An Anthology, as well as World Poetry: An Anthology of Verse from Antiquity to Our Time.
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
in 1662. Her detailed confession, apparently achieved without the use of torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
, offers one of the most detailed looks at European witchcraft folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
at the end of the era of witch-hunt
Witch-hunt
A witch-hunt is a search for witches or evidence of witchcraft, often involving moral panic, mass hysteria and lynching, but in historical instances also legally sanctioned and involving official witchcraft trials...
s.
A young housewife living at Auldearn
Auldearn
Auldearn is a village situated east of the River Nairn, just outside Nairn in the Highland council area of Scotland. It takes its name from William the Lyon's castle of Eren , built there in the 12th century....
, Highland
Highland (council area)
Highland is a council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in both Scotland and the United Kingdom as a whole. It shares borders with the council areas of Moray, Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross, and Argyll and Bute. Their councils, and those of Angus and...
, Scotland, her confession painted a wild word-picture about the deeds of her coven
Coven
A coven or covan is a name used to describe a gathering of witches or in some cases vampires. Due to the word's association with witches, a gathering of Wiccans, followers of the witchcraft-based neopagan religion of Wicca, is also described as a coven....
. They were claimed to have the ability to transform themselves into animals; to turn into a hare, she would say:
- I shall go into a hare,
- With sorrow and sych and meickle care;
- And I shall go in the Devil's name,
- Ay while I come home again.
(sych: such; meickle: great)
To change back, she would say:
- Hare, hare, God send thee care.
- I am in a hare's likeness now,
- But I shall be in a woman's likeness even now.
She allegedly was entertained by the Queen of the Fairies
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
, also known as the Queen of Elphame
Álfheim
Alfheim is one of the Nine Worlds and home of the Light Elves in Norse mythology and appears also in Anglo-Scottish ballads under the form Elfhame as a fairyland, sometimes modernized as Elfland .-In Old Norse texts:Álfheim as an abode of the Elves is mentioned only twice in Old Norse texts.The...
, in her home "under the hills".
It is unclear whether Gowdie's confession is the result of psychosis
Psychosis
Psychosis means abnormal condition of the mind, and is a generic psychiatric term for a mental state often described as involving a "loss of contact with reality"...
, whether she had fallen under suspicion of witchcraft and sought leniency by confessing, or was she simply much smarter than her inquisitors. It is also unclear whether there was some truth to her remarkable confessions. Her confession was not consistent with the folklore and records of the trials of witches, and it was more detailed than most. There is no record of her being executed.
In 1955, retired English soldier Robin Green believed that he saw the ghost of Isobel Gowdie while camping alone in Auldearn.
Isobel Gowdie and her magic
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
have been remembered in a number of later works of culture.
She has appeared as a character in several novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s, such as the biographical novel
Biographical novel
The biographical novel is a genre of novel which provides a fictional and usually entertaining account of a person's life. This kind of novel concentrates on the experiences a person had during his lifetime, the people he met and the incidents which occurred are detailed and sometimes...
s The Devil's Mistress by novelist and occultist J. W. Brodie-Innes, Isobel by Jane Parkhurst, the fantasy novel Night Plague by Graham Masterton
Graham Masterton
Graham Masterton is a British horror author. Originally editor of Mayfair and the British edition of Penthouse, Graham Masterton's first novel The Manitou was released in 1976. This novel was adapted in 1978 for the film The Manitou...
, and Noches Paganas: Cuentos Narrados junto al Fuego del Sabbath by Luis G. Abbadie
Luis G. Abbadie
Luis G. Abbadie is a Mexican writer specializing in horror, paganism, pseudobibliographies and paramythologies, including horror and fantasy short stories. He has contributed frequently to the Cthulhu Mythos....
;
Isobel Gowdie is also the subject of songs by Creeping Myrtle and Alex Harvey
Alex Harvey (musician)
Alex Harvey was a Scottish rock musician. With The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, he built a reputation as an exciting live performer during the 1970s glam rock era.-Biography:...
. Maddy Prior
Maddy Prior
Maddy Prior is an English folk singer, best known as the lead vocalist of Steeleye Span.-Early life:...
's song The Fabled Hare is based upon the spell quoted above. The Inkubus Sukkubus
Inkubus Sukkubus
Inkubus Sukkubus are a British goth and pagan band formed in 1989 by Candia Ridley, Tony McKormack, and Adam Henderson.-History:Inkubus Sukkubus are a British goth and pagan band who have been releasing albums and touring since their formation as Incubus Succubus in 1989.-Incubus Succubus:Before...
song Woman to Hare, from the album Vampyre Erotica
Vampyre Erotica
Vampyre Erotica is the fifth album by British Goth rockers Inkubus Sukkubus, their fourth full-length studio album. It contains 12 original songs and a cover of "Paint It Black" by The Rolling Stones....
is based on Isobel's statement, and quotes her words at the end of the lyrics. The Confession of Isobel Gowdie
The Confession of Isobel Gowdie
The Confession of Isobel Gowdie is a work for large symphony orchestra by the Scottish composer James MacMillan.It is, according to the composer, a Requiem for one Isobel Gowdie, supposedly burnt as a witch in post-Reformation Scotland...
is a work for symphony orchestra by the Scottish composer James MacMillan.
Furthermore, some of her own literary works have been included in Oxford University Press's Early Modern Women Poets: 1520–1700: An Anthology, as well as World Poetry: An Anthology of Verse from Antiquity to Our Time.
External links
- "A Blondie bewitched": The Sunday TimesThe Sunday TimesThe Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
, 20 August 2007 - James Macmillan's "requiem" for Isobel Gowdie was broadcast by BBC Radio Three in 2010 . The composer said in an interview he believed Gowdie's confession was obtained by torture, and that she was burned at the stake for witchcraft.