On the 15th of April, 1597, the town of Aberdeen bore witness to the trial of Christian Reid, a woman caught in the web of one of the most turbulent periods of Scottish witch trials. Christian, described in the records as a landless vagabond, found herself enmeshed in accusations of witchcraft, a grave charge during this time. Despite her itinerant lifestyle, she was noted as possibly serving as a servant to Katherine Gerard, suggesting some connection to the community in Spalding.
Christian's trial rapidly culminated in a verdict of guilt, specifically involving charges of a demonic pact. This case reflects the intense climate of fear and superstition, especially resonant in 1597 when witch hunts surged through Scotland under the reign of James VI. Her sentence was swift and severe: execution by strangulation and burning, a common fate for those convicted of witchcraft. Details of her confession are sparse but confirmed to have been recorded early in April 1597, suggesting her admission or coerced acceptance of the charges.
Complicating Christian's narrative is her mention by another accused individual, Hellie Pennie, who labelled her as a "known witch." Whether this was a reflection of local whispers or evidence presented during her trial remains unclear. Nonetheless, such testimonies were often pivotal in sealing the fate of those accused during this era. Additional allegations of property damage to a mill, though not detailed in the record, further underscored the web of suspicion surrounding Christian. Her execution, carried out within the same month as her trial, marked the somber conclusion to her story, entwined in the tragic tapestry of the Scottish witch trials.