In the austere climate of 17th century Scotland, the village of Pollokshaws near Paisley bore witness to the somber proceedings of Jon Stewart's trial. Jon, a young man of just 16 years, held a unique position within his community, largely independent and assigned an adult status that deviated from the norms associated with his age—a recognition that positioned him vulnerably amidst rising tensions and superstitions. While his father had served as an under miller—a role providing a certain level of respect within their social stratum—Jon faced grave accusations of maleficium, or harmful magic, believed to have been practiced within the confines of his own home.
The harrowing events of Jon's trial began on 14 February 1677 in Renfrew, drawing both local and centralized judicial interest, evidenced by the presence of officials dispatched from Edinburgh and documentation within the minute books of the circuit court. This meticulous yet hurried attention to Jon's case signals the gravitas and apprehension surrounding his alleged involvement in witchcraft and participation in witches' meetings. Despite the broader reach of a Privy Council commission for his trial, the proceedings culminated swiftly with a unanimous guilty verdict.
On 20 February 1677, Jon Stewart's life came to a tragic end at Gallow Green, where he faced execution by strangulation followed by burning—an ordeal marking the severe retribution of the era against the perceived threat of witchcraft. Although he was given the opportunity to confess on multiple occasions in the preceding months, as recorded on 7 January, 27 January, and notably posthumously on 10 July of that year, these confessions paint a complex picture of the young man's final days, entangled in an environment rife with suspicion and fear. Ultimately, Jon Stewart's execution reflects the darker undercurrents of 17th-century Scottish society, where the lines between justice and persecution were often hauntingly blurred.