Margaret Hutchison was a woman of advanced years, living in the village of Duddingston near Edinburgh when she found herself at the center of one of the most harrowing episodes of her life: the accusation and trial for witchcraft in 1661. At the age of 65, she was well-known in her community, having lived there for many decades alongside her husband, who served as a reader—a position often associated with the Scottish Kirk and hinting at their household's respectable social standing. Despite this, Margaret had borne the weight of a reputation as a witch for over four decades, a reputational stain that was amplified by numerous testimonies.
Margaret's legal proceedings reveal a troubling series of events. Initially tried in Edinburgh on August 20, 1661, her original verdict was one of not guilty, as the assize, a jury made up mostly of individuals not originating from her own community, delivered their judgement. However, in an unusual turn of events, the court summoned the assize to reconvene less than a week later, resulting in the reversal of this verdict on September 10, 1661, to guilty. Additional witness statements and the merging of charges from previous trials tilted the scales decisively against her. Records indicate that the pressures on Margaret included allegations from other accused individuals, who named her as an accomplice, thus compounding her dire circumstances.
Her confession, recorded prior to her trials on July 28, 1661, perhaps under duress or torture—details not documented—underscored her case's grim narrative. Despite the initial verdict of not guilty, Margaret Hutchison was sentenced to death, with her execution carried out by strangling and burning on September 18, 1661. Her tragic fate illustrates the precarious nature of justice in the era's witch trials, where reputations, hearsay, and the socio-political nuances of the time conspired to seal the fate of those caught in their net.