The case
of the Warboys Witches is perhaps one of England's most well known
witch-trial cases. The details are related at length in the extensive
albeit descriptively-titled 1593 pamphlet:
The
most strange and admirable discovery of the three Witches of Warboys,
arraigned, convicted and executed at the last Assizes at Huntingdon,
for the bewitching of the five daughters of Robert Throckmorton
Esquire and divers other persons, with sundry Devilish and grievous
torments: And also for the bewitching to death of the Lady Cromwell,
the like hath not been heard of in this age.
According
to the account, when one of the daughters of Robert Throckmorton fell
ill with strange fits, the family did not at first suspect witchcraft
to be behind her illness. As his other daughters also started to
share their sister's strange symptoms however, suspicion slowly but
surely grew, and the finger was pointed at local woman Alice Samuel,
fuelled by the girls themselves naming her as their tormentor, along
with, eventually, her husband John and daughter Agnes.
The Manor House at Warboys
(With kind permission of Philip Almond)
It was
mid-March 1590 when Lady Susan Cromwell nee Weeks, entered the story.
Second wife to Sir Henry Cromwell, (who was not only an influential
man in the area but also happened to be the landlord of the Samuel
family) Lady Cromwell and her daughter-in-law visited the beleaguered
Throckmorton household to offer their sympathies for the suffering of
the children.
According
to the pamphlet, Lady Cromwell:
'...had not long stayed in the house but the children which were there fell into their fits. And were so grievously tormented for the time that it pitied the good lady's hear to see them, insomuch that she could not abstain from tears.'
It was
not long before she sent for Alice Samuel; being unable to refuse a
summons from the wife of the family landlord, Alice had no choice but
to attend, whatever her misgivings might have been. Much to her
horror, upon Alice's arrival the condition of the ill children
worsened, something that did not bode well for the Samuel family for:
'Then the Lady Cromwell took Mother Samuel aside, and charted her deeply with this work, using also some hard speeches to her.'
Being
thus accused of causing the suffering of the children, Alice was
understandably upset, denying the accusation and retorting that the
Throckmorton's accused her unjustly. It wasn't Master and Mistress
Throckmorton who accused her, Lady Cromwell reminded Alice firmly,
but the girls themselves who pointed the finger, the spirit that
spoke through the girls when they were in their fits vowing that
Alice was to blame for their pitiful condition.
Joan
Throckmorton, hearing Alice's denial, insisted that Alice was indeed
responsible despite her protestations to the contrary, and that there
was a spirit with her who was saying as much at that precise moment.
The girl professed extreme surprise to learn that no one else present
could hear the 'spirit' speak, as she herself could hear it loud and
clear. Throughout this, Alice Samuel continued to insist that she had
nothing to do with the strange illness that had invaded the
household, but Lady Cromwell, unconvinced, wished to question her
further in the presence of a visiting divine, Master Doctor Hall.
Oliver Cromwell, Step-Grandson to Lady Susan
(Wellcome Library, London)
Alice
made excuse after excuse however, and it was clear that she intended
to leave for her home without satisfying Lady Cromwell in her
questions. Thus frustrated, Lady Cromwell pulled off the kerchief
Alice wore over her head and cut off a lock of her hair. Not only
that, but she took the old woman's hair lace and gave both to the
mother of the children with the instruction to put both in the fire
to burn them in order to break Alice's power over the girls. At this
unexpected and unwarranted violation, Alice Samuel lost whatever
composure she had remaining, uttering the fateful and – some later
vowed, fatal – words:
'Madam, why do you use me thus? I never did you any harm as yet.'
What
happened next goes unrecorded, but Lady Cromwell left the
Throckmorton household that night to return home. She did not sleep
well at all, and was 'very strangely tormented' by dreams of Alice
Samuel. Her agitated state woke her daughter-in-law who was sleeping
with her, and she woke Lady Cromwell in turn, at which the older
woman described how a cat, sent to her by Alice Samuel had tormented
her in her sleep, threatening to pick the skin and flesh from her
arms and body.
Lady
Cromwell was so disturbed by the dream that she did not sleep again
that night our of sheer terror. Not only that, we are told that 'not
long after' she fell ill with a strange sickness. It might
have been brushed off as coincidence, but the fits suffered by the
lady were said to be similar in nature to those experienced by the
Throckmorton girls. The only difference was that she was perfectly
aware of the fact the whole time, unlike the girls who were
periodically unaware of others in the room with them. Throughout,
Lady Cromwell never forgot the words uttered to her by Alice Samuel,
that she had not caused her any harm – as yet. Lady Cromwell passed
away on 11th July, 1592, a year and a quarter after her
ill-fated visit to Warboys.
It was
downhill for the Samuel family from then on. In preparation, Agnes
Samuel and Joan Throckmorton were lodged together in the Crown Inn in
Huntingdon. Upwards of 500 people were estimated to have visited the
pair, attempting and failing to bring Joan out of her fits. On the
day of the assizes themselves in April 1593, John Samuel was finally compelled to
utter words he had previously refused, admitting that he was a witch
and had been party to the death of the Lady Cromwell and commanding
Joan Throckmorton to come out of her fit. He was right to have been
apprehensive about repeating the words, as the girl appeared as if
cured the moment he uttered them. Alice Samuel had also been made to
repeat the same words before this point and the same cure was
witnessed.
That
evening the judge himself along with several gentlemen and fellow
justices attended the pair and it was proved beyond doubt that the
only thing that ended Joan's fits was a charge recited by Agnes.
'As I am a witch and a worse witch than my mother, and did consent to the death of the Lady Cromwell, so I charge the Devil to let Mistress Joan Throckmorton come out of her fit at this present.'
Tragically
for Agnes, the girl recovered in full view of those in attendance.
The
following day three indictments were made against the Samuels: the
first and most damning was that they were to blame for the death of
Lady Cromwell through bewitchment, while the other two dealt with the
bewitching of the Throckmorton girls and others in the Throckmorton
household. All three were criminal offences under the 1563
Witchcraft Act, but bewitching to death carried with it the death
penalty, a crime of which, after the matter was debated for five
hours, the Samuel family were found guilty.
On the
day of their execution, Alice Samuel was asked as she stood on the
ladder in her final moments to confess again to the murder of Lady
Cromwell through witchcraft. She was guilty, she told the assembled
crowd, and, when asked why she had borne the lady so much animosity
Alice admitted it was because Lady Cromwell had cut some of her hair
and burned it along with her hair lace, and that her actions had been
carried out in the spirit of revenge. She also implicated her husband
in the murder, although right to the end she refused to involve her
daughter, trying to protect Agnes to the end. (John Samuel himself
never admitted to anything aside from the charge he was forced to recite and neither did Agnes, both going to the
noose maintaining their innocence.)
Lady
Cromwell's widower, Sir Henry Cromwell, received the goods belonging
to the Samuel family, as his right as their landlord. There cannot
have been much due to their status, but there was enough money at
least to commission an annual sermon to be preached at Huntingdon
against the detestable sin of witchcraft. This was carried out until
1812; by that point however the focus had shifted to become instead
an indictment and warning against the believing in, rather than the carrying
out, of witchcraft.
Just driven past Warboys and wanted to learn more about the infamous witches. This was very helpful- thank you. The power of hysteria and delusion--what a sad story.
ReplyDeleteHi Phil, thanks for your comment, I'm glad you found this post helpful! Yes, an incredibly tragic, and, unfortunately, not uncommon, occurrence during the period in question.
DeleteIf you'd like to know more about the Warboys Witches there is a fantastic book on the case by Philip Almond, and I also have chapter on them in my book "English Witchcraft Trials".
All the best,
Willow
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