Jane And Thomas Weir Trial Analysis

Witchcraft lasted for hundreds of years around the 1600s. “Between the late sixteenth and the early eighteenth centuries, Scottish courts prosecuted hundreds of women and men for the crime of witchcraft, an offence that involved alleged practice of maleficent magic and the worship of the devil.” Men and women were both guilty of witchcraft and witch-hunting, particularly from the 1640s-1670s. Witch-hunting and trials became substantially popular within the Scotland society because of the increase of suspicious men and women. Women tend to be more vulnerable towards the Devil and men tend to become the “Devil”. This is the case when it comes to Jane and Thomas Weir. There are many factors when it comes to how Jane and Thomas Weir are convicted for their crimes, how they repented, the difference between the two genders and the influence of religion. The methodologies used throughout this paper will be the analysis of gender and the discussion of local, state and religious authority, with an emphasis on religion and government officials. The Weir’s trial was very detailed through the sources when it came to the crime. The sources such as the Justiciary Proceedings, additional notice of the Weirs, the Postscript of Thomas Weir, Ravillac Redivivus, past criminal trials and the Reminiscences of Old Edinburgh will thoroughly discuss the in-depth knowledge of the early modern Scottish witch hunting and society. When it comes to the Weir Trials in April of 1670, there was a major connection with religious and government or state authority as well as the prominence of gender throughout the trials. …show more content…
The Weir Trials have had a major connection to what life is like in the modern day. Making sure that both Jane and Thomas had fair treatment, no matter the obscene, overindulgent crimes that they committed.They had to be prosecuted for their actions and the methods in which they believe are substantial to the way that things work in early modern Scotland. There were many factors that had to do with the conviction and trial of Thomas and Jane Weir. There was a gender divide when it comes to how they were treated throughout the trial period as well as the different authority members of Scotland and how they used their beliefs to further force religion as a solution rather than just a religion. Witch hunts were somewhat prominent during the time of the Weir Trials and although Jane was the only one of the two that were committed for sorcery, people had the same process of execution because of the law. The religious community and the state officials were BIG factors to the reasoning behind the infamous works of Thomas Weir and why he is still talked about today. Thomas and Jane Weir The main component of this trial is Thomas Weir. He is the person majorly responsible for the occurrence of the trial in 1670. Thomas Weir or Major Weir was accused of many crimes such as incest, adultery, fornications, and bestialities. He was a married man who committed all of the atrocious crimes and got convicted of his crimes, spent a small amount of time in jail and then went to trial. Major Weir was a radical religious member within his community. Thomas supposedly made a deal with the Devil so that he could have supernatural