The Chelmsford Witches of 1566. This trial was the first to appear in a secular court in England; it provided the first woman to be hanged for witchcraft, Agnes Waterhouse; it also provided the first chapbook, or tabloid newspaper, relating to witchcraft.
Source: Wallace Notestein
sent to me by Elaine Mathews, Emath72444@aol.com
Familiars involved in the case
From:ejackson@pobox.upenn.edu (Elizabeth Jackson) Subject:English Witches Hi! I have been doing research with James Serpell (who is on the witch list) on the familiars of English witches, and thus can help you out with information about some of the women you asked about. Joan Allen was convicted of bewitching Joan Tuttle and hanged by the Middlesex courts in 1650. A date of Oct. 3 is mentioned, but I'm not sure if that is the date she was hanged on. That is from a book by C. L'Estrange Ewen called "Witchcraft and Demonianism" published in 1933 by Heath Cranton Limited, London. It was reprinted by AMS Press, New York, in 1984. I highly recommend that book to you for further information about other women in witchcraft. Joan Waterhouse was the 18 year old daughter of Mother Agnes Waterhouse, 64 years old, of Hatfield Peveril, Essex. She called the familiar "Sathan" from out of her mother's shoes, expecting a toad. Instead, a great dog came to her, demanding what she would like. She asked him to haunt Agnes Brown, 12, who hadn't given her enough bread once. Agnes Brown said that a thing came to her like a black dog with a face like an ape, a short tail, a chain and a silver whistle around its neck and horns on its head. This is from "The Examination and Confession of Certaine Wytches at Chensford (Chelmsford)", 1566. Joan's mother was also accused of being a witch. A transcript of the pamphlet that tells about them can be found in "Witchcraft", edited by Barbara Rosen. It's a collection of pamphlets and tracts written about various witchcraft cases. It was published by Taplinger Publishing Company in New York, in 1969. The 1589 Chelmsford victims are also written about in Ewen's book. Joan Prentice lived in the Almshouse of Heddingham Sibble, Essex. She confessed that the Devil appeared to her as a dunnish colored ferret with fiery eyes and asked for her soul. She couldn't give her soul because it belonged to Jesus, but gave the ferret blood from her finger and cheek. His name was "Bidd", and when she wanted him to do anything for her, she said, "Bidd, Bidd, Bidd, come Bidd, come Bidd, come Bidd, come suck, come suck, come suck". (Bidd was a familiar, or animal kept by English witches that performed evil deeds for them and was rewarded with sucking their blood from witch teats.) Elizabeth Whale and Elizabeth Mott were also accused of being "well aquainted" with Bidd. Joan Cunny of Stisted had 9 familiar spirits including two black frogs, "Jack" (who killed men) and "Jill" (who killed women), both of whom came to her 20 years after she kneeled on the ground and prayed to Satan. When she received them, she promised them her soul if they would, in return, perform her wishes. She fed them on bread and milk and they talked with her in her own language. She also had two spirits like black dogs with toad faces who sucked on her sore leg, and two others of unknown species called "Nicholas" (who killed horses) and "Ned" (who killed cattle). Joan Upney of Dagenham, confessed that "Whitecote, Witch of Barking" gave her a thing like a mole, and is she "ought any body any ill will, if she bid it, it would go clap them". She also confessed that she had several toads, one of which she left under the groundsill at Harrold's house, where it pinched his wife and sucked her until she died; another pinched Richard Forter's wife. Margaret Cunny, also of Stisted, sent spirits to Father Hurrill. All information aboaut these 1589 witches comes from a pamphlet called "The Apprehension and confession of three notorious Witches, Arreigned and by Justice condemned and executed at Chelmesforde, in the Countye of Essex, 1589" The information is in the book by Ewen that I mentioned above, however. Please keep in touch and don't hesitate to ask if you need further information. Sincerely, Elizabeth Jackson ejackson@pobox.upenn.edu