The Malkin Tower, A Seventeenth-Century Witches Coven Discovered? The Archaeological and Historical Evidence Behind the British Witch Trials of 1612 Considered.

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THEMALKIN TOWER, A SEVENTEENTH‐CENTURY WITCHES COVEN DISCOVERED? THEARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL EVIDENCE BEHIND THE BRITISH WITCH TRIALS OF

1612CONSIDERED.DavidBarrowcloughABSTRACTTheJacobeanera'sinfamouswitchcrafttrialsarerecalledafterreservoirrepairsclosetoPendleHillrevealaburiedcottagewithbricked‐upcat. Interpretationsof the building as the site of Malkin Tower, recorded in court records as thevenue of awitches coven are critically evaluated in the light of archaeologicalandhistoricalevidence.KEYWORDSWITCH, PENDLE WITCH TRIALS, PENDLE HILL, MALKIN TOWER, FOLK BELIEF, MAGIC,LANCASTERASSIZES,WISEWOMEN,CUNNINGFOLK,ARCHAEOLOGY,HISTORY,SEVENTEENTH‐CENTURY, ALIZON DEVICE, SALEM WITCHES, THOMAS POTTS, LOWER BLACK MOSS,ELIZABETH SOUTHERNS, DEMDIKE, ELIZABETH DEVICE, JAMES DEVICE, ANNE WHITTLE,CHATTOX, ANNE REDFERNE, JANE BULCOCK, JOHN BULCOCK, ALICE NUTTER, KATHERINEHEWITT,ALICEGRAY,JENNETPRESTON,GUNPOWDERPLOTINTRODUCTION

‘Malkin'sTower,alittlecottagewhereReportemakescaitivewitchesmeetetoswearTheirhomagetoyedevil’.

RichardJamesc.1633(Clayton2007,273)In March 1612 Alizon Device was accused of bewitching a pedlar over somemetalpins.She,alongwithherfamily,whowereallbelievedtobewitches,livedinMalkinTower located in the shadowof PendleHill, inNorthWest England.The familywere all said to havemagical powers,which theywere accused ofusing to kill local livestock and turn milk blue. When branded a witch, sheretaliatedbyaccusinganeighbouringfamilyofinvolvementinblackmagic,andofmaking‘voodoo’dollswithhumanhairandteeth.Central to thecaseagainsther,andtheothersaccusedalongwithher,wasthealleged gathering of a witches coven at Malkin Tower on Good Friday 1612.Three wizards and 17witches were alleged to have plotted there to blow upLancaster castle in 1612, to free an 85‐year‐old woman and her daughteraccused of selling themselves to the devil. History has never decidedwhethertherewasagenuineoccult conspiracyor if terrifiedvillageherbalistsweresetuponforreligiousreasonsorbecauseoffeuds.

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By‘proving’theexistenceofthecovenatMalkinTower,theprosecutionnotonlysealedthefateofeightwomenandtwomenwhowereallhungaswitchesasaresult(anotherdiedwhileawaitingtrialandonewasfoundnotguilty),butalsoof the Salemwitches in the United States in 1692,where the case against thePendleWitchesservedasatemplate.ThetrialsbecamefamouswhentheclerkofthecourtThomasPottspublishedanaccountofwhathappenedinabookcalledTheWonderfullDiscoverieofWitchesintheCountieofLancaster.Historyhoweverfailedtorecordthepreciselocationof Malkin Tower, which has resulted in much speculation over the years,however recent archaeological excavations have claimed to have resolved thisproblemwith the ‘discovery’ of theenigmaticTower.Thispaper considers theevidence in support of the recent claim alongwith that of the other candidatesites.SITEInautumn2011waterengineersworkingforUnitedUtilitiesPLCuncoveredthesiteduringroutinesafetyworknearLowerBlackMossreservoiratPendle,inthecountyofLancashireinNorthWestEngland(Figure1).Theruin,soonidentifiedby localhistoriansasMalkinTower, causedan international sensationwhen itwaspublicisedinDecember2011(e.g.Morse2011;Wainwright2011).ThesiteatLowerBlackMossliesinthevillageofBarleyintheshadowofPendleHill (Figure 2), which for four hundred years has been a notorious centre ofwitchcraft.ThesiteliesinthegeneralareasupposedtobethelocationofMalkinTower, a ruin whose name echoes the spectral witches' cat Graymalkin inMacbeth.Excavation of the site revealed a remarkably well‐preserved stone buildingdating to the1600s,containingasealedroomintowhosewallsacathadbeensealed whilst still alive (Tozer 2011). The building was found in remarkablecondition(Figures3‐6).Theremainsofstandingwallsallowyoutowalkthroughthebuildinggivingarealsenseofhowthebuildingwouldhavelookedwhenfirstbuilt (A BBC video of the site can be found at Ravenscroft 2011.). Theseventeenth‐centurycottagehadcontinued inuseuntilat least thenineteenth‐century,astheruinscontainakitchenrangeofthatdate(Figures7and8)plusVictoriancrockery,atinbathandabedstead.In1612tenpeople,fromtwolocalfamilies,wereexecutedforwithcraftraisingthepossibilitythatthenewlydiscoveredcottagemightpossiblybethesettingforoneofEngland’smost infamouswitches’covens, themysteriousMalkinTower.Thediscoveryofamummifiedcatsealedwithinthewallsofacottage,whichhadinturnbeenburied,seeminglydeliberately,underamoundofearth,suggestedthat this was no ordinary building, but instead the remains of Malkin Tower,hometooneofLancashire’smostinfamousoccultfamiliesandsiteoftheGoodFridaycoven(Tozer2011).InordertoassessthevalidityofthisclaimweneedfirsttoconsiderthehistoricalbackgroundtotheLancashireWitchTrials.

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Figure1.LowerBlackMossReservoir(ontheleft),possiblesiteofMalkinTower.

Figure 2. Pendle Hill, long associatedwithwitchcraft and a dominant landmark inLancashire.

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Figure3.Sealedintothewalls:theruinsofthewitch'shome,wherethemummifiedanimalwasfound.Wallsofthe17thcenturycottage,whichbecameacat'stomb,atLowerBlackMoss,PendleHill,Lancashire.Centreofwitchcraft:ExpertssuspectthecottagecouldhavebeenhometothemysteriousMalkinTowercoven.Photograph:LorneCampbell/UnitedUtilities/PA

Figure4.ThecottagewasfoundintheshadowofPendleHill,theloomingLancashirelandmarkwhichfor400yearshasbeenanotoriouscentreofwitchcraft.

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Figure5.ThestonebuildingfollowingexcavationwithPendleHillinthebackground.

Figure6.Aclose‐upoftheinteriorofthebuildingafterexcavation.

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Figure 7.The nineteenth century stove. Photograph: Lorne Campbell/UnitedUtilities/PA.

Figure8.Theremainsofthenineteenthcenturystove,showingthatthebuildingwasinhabitedinthecenturiesfollowingtheseventeenthcenturywitchtrials.

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THEPENDLEWITCHES:HISTORICALBACKGROUNDThetrialsofthePendlewitchesin1612areamongthemostfamouswitchtrialsin English history, partly because they are also the best recorded of theseventeenth‐century. The publication of the proceedings by the clerk to thecourt, Thomas Potts, inTheWonderfull Discoverie ofWitches in the Countie ofLancaster,makethetrialsunusual.ThetwelveaccusedlivedintheareaaroundPendleHill inLancashire,andwerechargedwiththemurdersoftenpeoplebythe use of witchcraft. All but two were tried at Lancaster Assizes on 18–19thAugust1612,onebeingtriedatYorkAssizeson27thJuly1612(theotherdiedinprison).Of theelevenwhowent to trial,ninewerewomenandtwoweremen,ten of whomwere found guilty and executed by hanging; one was found notguilty.ManyoftheallegationsresultedfromaccusationsthatmembersoftheDemdikeand Chattox families made against each other, perhaps because they were incompetition,intryingtomakealivingasWiseWomenorCunningFolk.Inallsixof the accused came from these two families, each headed by awoman in hereighties: Demdike,whose ‘real’ namewas Elizabeth Southerns, alongwith herdaughter Elizabeth Device, and grandchildren James and Alizon Device; andChattox,whose‘real’namewasAnneWhittle,andherdaughterAnneRedferne.Theothers accusedwere JaneBulcock andher son JohnBulcock,AliceNutter,Katherine Hewitt, Alice Gray, and Jennet Preston. Together the outbreaks ofwitchcraftaroundPendledemonstratetheextenttowhichpeoplecouldmakealivingpracticingwitchcraft.The area around Pendle Hill, and Lancashire generally, was regarded by thegovernment as a wild and lawless: an area ‘fabled for its theft, violence andsexuallaxity,wherethechurchwashonouredwithoutmuchunderstandingofitsdoctrinesbythecommonpeople’(Hasted1993,5).ThenearbyCistercianabbeyatWhalleyhadbeendissolvedbyHenryVIIIin1537,amovestronglyresistedbythe local people, overwhose lives it had exerted apowerful influence.Despitethe abbey's closure, and the execution of its abbot, the people of Pendleremained largely faithful to their Roman Catholic beliefs, and were quick toreverttoCatholicismonQueenMary'saccessiontothethronein1553(Hasted1993,8–9).When Mary's Protestant half‐sister Elizabeth came to the throne in 1558,althoughCatholicpriestsonceagainhadtogointohiding,inremoteareassuchasPendletheywereabletocontinuedtocelebrateMassinsecret(Hasted1993,8–9).In1562ElizabethIpassedAnActAgainstConjurations,EnchantmentsandWitchcrafts (5Eliz. I c.16).This lawdeclared that to ‘use,practise,orexerciseany Witchcraft, Enchantment, Charm, or Sorcery, whereby any person shallhappentobekilledordestroyed’,wasguiltyofafelonywithoutbenefitofclergy(i.e.withoutbeinggivenasecondchance),andwastobeputtodeath,withlesseroffenceswerepunishablebyatermofimprisonment(Gibson2006,3–4).OnElizabeth'sdeath in1603shewassucceededby James Iwhowas intenselyinterested in the theology of witchcraft. By the early 1590s he had becomeconvinced thatScottishwitcheswereplottingagainsthim (Pumfrey2002,23).

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FollowingavisittoDenmark,heattendedthe1590NorthBerwickWitchTrials,following which, in 1597, he wrote Daemonologie, denouncing witchcraft. Onacceding to the English throne he enacted a law imposing the death penaltywhereitwasproventhatharmhadbeencausedthroughtheuseofmagic,orthatcorpseshadbeenexhumedformagicalpurposes(Martin2007,96).Inearly1612, theyearof thePendleWitch trials, every Justiceof thePeace inLancashirewasorderedtocompilealistofrecusantsintheirarea,i.e.thosewhorefusedtoattendtheEnglishChurchandtotakecommunion,acriminaloffenceatthattime(Hasted1993,7).TheJusticeforPendlewasRogerNowellofReadHall,whoinMarch1612investigatedacomplaintmadetohimbythefamilyofJohn Law, a pedlar, who claimed to have been injured by witchcraft (Sharpe2002, 1–2). Many of those who subsequently became implicated as theinvestigation progressed did indeed consider themselves to bewitches, in thesense of being folk healers who practised magic in return for payment, acommon practice in seventeenth‐century rural areas where formally traineddoctorswereararity(Lumby2002,67).The judges charged with hearing the trials were Sir James Altham and SirEdwardBromley.BromleywashopingforpromotiontoacircuitnearerLondon,whilstAlthamwasnearingtheendofhis judicialcareer,buthadrecentlybeenaccusedofamiscarriageof justiceat theYorkAssizes,whichhadresulted inawomanbeingsentencedtodeathbyhangingforwitchcraft.BothmenneededtowintheKing’sfavourbutmayhavebeenuncertainwhetherthebestwaytodothiswasbyencouraging convictions,orby ‘sceptically testing thewitnesses todestruction’(Pumfrey2002,24).AlthoughDemdike,hadbeenregardedasawitchforfiftyyears,andsomeofthedeaths the witches were accused of had happened many years before RogerNowell started to take an interest in 1612 (Hasted 1993, 11). The event thatseemstohavetriggeredNowell'sinvestigation,culminatinginthePendlewitchtrials, occurred on 21March 1612 (Sharpe 2002, 1). On her way to TrawdenForest,Demdike'sgranddaughter,AlizonDevice,encounteredJohnLaw,apedlarfrom Halifax, and asked him for some pins (Bennett 1993, 9). Seventeenth‐century metal pins were handmade and relatively expensive, but they werefrequently needed formagical purposes, such as in healing (where they wereused to treatingwarts), divination, and for lovemagic.ThismanyexplainwhyAlizonwas so keen to get hold of them, andwhyLawwas so reluctant to sellthem to her (Froome 2010, 5, 19). Whether she meant to buy them, as sheclaimed,andLawrefusedtosell,orwhethershehadnomoneyandwasbeggingfor them, as Law's son Abraham claimed, is unclear (Swain 2002, 83). A fewminutesaftertheirencounterAlizonsawLawstumbleandfall,perhapsbecausehe suffered a stroke; he managed to regain his feet and reach a nearby inn(Froome 2010, 11). Initially Lawmade no accusations against Alizon (Froome2010,23),butsheappearstohavebeenconvincedofherownpowers,andwhenAbraham Law took her to visit his father a few days after the incident, shereportedlyconfessedandaskedforhisforgiveness(Bennett1993,10).

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AlizonDevice,hermotherElizabeth,andherbrotherJamesweresummonedtoappearbeforeNowellon30March1612.AlizonconfessedthatshehadsoldhersoultotheDevil,andthatshehadtoldhimtolameJohnLawafterhehadcalledher a thief. Her brother, James, stated that his sister had also confessed tobewitching a local child. Elizabeth wasmore reticent, admitting only that hermother, Demdike, had a mark on her body, something that many, includingNowell,wouldhaveregardedashavingbeenleftbytheDevilafterhehadsuckedherblood (Bennett1993,11).WhenquestionedaboutChattox (AnneWhittle),thematriarchoftheotherfamilyreputedlyinvolvedinwitchcraftinandaroundPendle, Alizon perhaps saw an opportunity for revenge. Theremay have beenbadbloodbetweenthetwofamilies,possiblydatingfrom1601,whenamemberofChattox'sfamilybrokeintoMalkinTower,thehomeoftheDevices,andstolegoods worth about £1 (Swain 2002, 80), equivalent to about £100. AlizonaccusedChattoxofmurdering fourmenbywitchcraft,andofkillingher father,John Device, who had died in 1601. She claimed that her father had been sofrightened of Old Chattox that he had agreed to give her 8 pounds (3.6 kg) ofoatmealeachyearinreturnforherpromisenottohurthisfamily.Themealwashandedoverannuallyuntil theyearbefore John'sdeath;onhisdeathbed JohnclaimedthathissicknesshadbeencausedbyChattoxbecausetheyhadnotpaidforprotection(Hasted1993,15).On2April1612,Demdike,Chattox,andChattox'sdaughterAnneRedferne,weresummoned to appear beforeNowell. BothDemdike and Chattoxwere by thenblindandintheireighties,andbothprovidedNowellwithdamagingconfessions.Demdike claimed that she had given her soul to the Devil twenty yearspreviously,andChattox thatshehadgivenhersoul to ‘aThing likeaChristianman’, on his promise that ‘she would not lack anything and would get anyrevenge she desired’ (Bennett 1993, 15). Although Anne Redferne made noconfession, Demdike said that she had seen hermaking clay figures.MargaretCrooke,anotherwitnessseenbyNowellthatday,claimedthatherbrotherhadfallensickanddiedafterhavinghadadisagreementwithRedferne,andthathehad frequently blamed her for his illness (Hasted 1993, 17–19). Based on theevidenceandconfessionshehadobtained,NowellcommittedDemdike,Chattox,Anne Redferne and Alizon Device to gaol at Lancaster Castle, to be tried formaleficium(causingharmbywitchcraft)atthenextassizes(Bennett1993,16).Thecommittalandsubsequenttrialofthefourwomenmighthavebeentheendof thematter, had it not been for ameeting, the so‐called coven, organisedbyElizabethDeviceatMalkinTower,thehomeoftheDemdikes(Hasted1993,19),heldonGoodFriday10April 1612 (Sharpe2002,2).To feed theparty, JamesDevice stole a neighbour's sheep (Hasted 1993, 19). Friends and otherssympathetictothefamilyattended,andwhenwordofitreachedRogerNowell,hedecidedtoinvestigate.On27April1612,aninquirywasheldbeforeNowellandanotherJustice,NicholasBannister,todeterminethepurposeofthemeetingatMalkinTower,whohadattended,andwhathadhappenedthere.Asaresultofthe inquiry, eight more people were accused of witchcraft and committed fortrial: Elizabeth Device, James Device, Alice Nutter, Katherine Hewitt, JohnBulcock, Jane Bulcock, Alice Gray and Jennet Preston. Preston lived across theborder inYorkshire, so shewas sent for trial atYorkAssizes; theotherswere

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senttoLancasterCastletojointhefouralreadyimprisonedthere(Bennett1993,22).ThepreciselocationofMalkinTower,andthewitchescoven,hasbeenthesubjectofmuchdebateeversince(seebelow).Almost everything that is known about the trials comes from a report of theproceedingswrittenbyThomasPotts,theclerktotheLancasterAssizes,ontheinstructionsofthetrialjudgeswhorevisedandcorrectedthemanuscriptbeforeitspublicationin1613,declaringittobe‘trulyreported’and‘fitandworthietobe published’ (Davies 1971, xli). Although written as an apparently verbatimaccount,TheWonderfullDiscoverie isactuallyhissummaryofwhatwassaidatthe trial (Gibson 2002, 48). Nevertheless, Potts ‘seems to give a generallytrustworthy,althoughnotcomprehensive,accountofanAssizewitchcraft trial,provided that the reader is constantly aware of his use of written materialinsteadofverbatimreports’(Gibson2002,50).OneoftheallegationswasthatthePendlewitcheshadhatchedagunpowderplotto blow up Lancaster Castle. This seems somewhat unlikely, and historianStephenPumfreyhassuggestedthatthe‘preposterousscheme’wasaninventionof the examining Justices who then forced James Device to attest to it in hiswitness statement (Pumfrey 2002, 37–38). This view is supported by the factthat Potts dedicatedTheWonderfullDiscoverie to ThomasKnyvet andhiswifeElizabeth.KnyvetwasthemancreditedwithapprehendingGuyFawkesandthussaving the King from the original Gunpowder Plot, to blow up the Houses ofParliamentinanattempttokillKingJamesandtheProtestantaristocracy,onlysevenyearsearlier(Wilson2002,139).Some of the accused Pendle witches, such as Alizon Device, seem to havegenuinelybelievedintheirguilt,butothersprotestedtheirinnocencetotheend.JennetPrestonwasthefirsttobetried,atYorkAssizeson27thJuly1612(Hasted1993,23).JennetPrestonlivedinGisburn,theninneighbouringYorkshire,hencebeing sent to York Assizes for trial for the murder by witchcraft of locallandowner, Thomas Lister of Westby Hall (Lumby 2002, 59), to which shepleadednotguilty.Her judgeswereSir JamesAlthamandSirEdwardBromley(Davies1971,179).ShehadalreadyappearedbeforeBromleyin1611,accusedof murdering a child by witchcraft, but had been found not guilty. The mostdamning evidence given against herwas thatwhen shehadbeen taken to seeLister'sbody, thecorpse ‘bled freshbloudpresently, in thepresenceofall thatwere there present’ after she touched it (Davies 1971, 179). According to astatementmadetoNowellbyJamesDeviceon27thApril,JennethadattendedtheMalkinTower coven to seek helpwith Lister'smurder (Lumby2002, 60). Shewas found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging (Davies 1971, 177); herexecution tookplaceon29th July (Keighley2004, 20) on theKnavesmire, nowthesiteofYorkRacecourse(Clayton2007,149).

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Figure 9. Lancaster Castle, site of theWitch Trials.where the LancasterAssizes of1612tookplace.AlltheotheraccusedlivedinLancashire,sotheyweresenttoLancasterAssizesfortrial(Figure9),betweenthe18thand19thAugust1612,thejudgeswereonceagainAlthamandBromley.TheprosecutorwasJustice,RogerNowell,whohadbeenresponsibleforcollectingthevariousstatementsandconfessionsfromtheaccused. Nine‐year‐old Jennet Device was a key witness for the prosecution,something that would not have been permitted in many other seventeenth‐centurycriminaltrials.However,KingJameshadmadeacaseforsuspendingthenormalrulesofevidenceforwitchcrafttrialsinhisDaemonologie(Hasted1993,28). As well as identifying those who had attended the Malkin Tower coven,Jennetalsogaveevidenceagainsthermother,brother,andsister.Nineoftheaccused,AlizonDevice,ElizabethDevice,JamesDevice,AnneWhittle,AnneRedferne,AliceNutter,KatherineHewitt, JohnBulcockand JaneBulcock,were found guilty during the two‐day trial and hanged at GallowsHill, on themoorsofLancaster, close to thesiteofpresent‐dayWilliamsonPark.ElizabethSoutherns died while awaiting trial (Hasted 1993, 23) while Alice Grey wasfoundnotguilty(Davies1971,29).Chattox was accused of the murder of Robert Nutter (Davies 1971, 34). Shepleadednotguilty,but theconfessionshehadmade toRogerNowellwasreadout in court, and evidence against herwaspresentedby JamesRobinson,whohadlivedwiththeChattoxfamilytwentyyearsearlier(Figure10).HeclaimedtorememberthatNutterhadaccusedChattoxofturninghisbeersour,andthatshewas commonly believed to be a witch. Chattox broke down and admitted her

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guilt, calling on God for forgiveness, and the judges to be merciful to herdaughter,AnneRedferne(Hasted1993,27–28).

Figure 10. Two of the accused witches, AnneWhittle (Chattox) and her daughterAnne Redferne. Illustration from William Harrison Ainsworth's 1849 novel, TheLancashireWitches.Elizabeth Device was charged with the murders of James Robinson, JohnRobinson and, together with Alice Nutter and Demdike, the murder of HenryMitton.Pottsrecordsthat ‘thisodiouswitch’(Davies1971,55)sufferedfromafacialdeformityresultinginherlefteyebeingsetlowerthanherright.ThemainwitnessagainstDevicewasherdaughter,Jennet,whowasaboutnineyearsold.When Jennet was asked to stand up and give evidence against her mother,Elizabethbegantoscreamandcurseherdaughter,forcingthejudgestohaveherremovedfromthecourtroombeforetheevidencecouldbeheard(Davies1971,52). Jennetwasplacedona tableandstated that shebelievedhermotherhadbeen a witch for three or four years. She also said hermother had a familiarcalledBall,whoappeared in theshapeofabrowndog. Jennet claimed tohavewitnessed conversationsbetweenBall andhermother, inwhichBallhadbeenaskedtohelpwithvariousmurders.JamesDevicealsogaveevidenceagainsthismother,sayinghehadseenhermakingaclayfigureofoneofhervictims,JohnRobinson (Hasted 1993, 29). Elizabeth Device was found guilty (Davies 1971,55).

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JamesDevicepleadednotguiltytothemurdersbywitchcraftofAnneTownleyandJohnDuckworth.Howeverhe,likeChattox,hadearliermadeaconfessiontoNowell,whichwas readout in court.That, and theevidencepresentedagainsthimbyhissisterJennet,whosaidthatshehadseenherbrotheraskingablackdoghehadconjureduptohelphimkillTownley,wassufficienttopersuadethejurytofindhimguilty(Davies1971,65,70).Anne Redferne faced a second trial, for the murder of Robert Nutter's father,Christopher, to which she pleaded not guilty. Demdike's statement to Nowell,whichaccusedAnneofhavingmadeclayfiguresof theNutter family,wasreadout in court. Witnesses were called to testify that Anne was a witch ‘moredangerousthanherMother’(Hasted1993,33).Butsherefusedtoadmitherguilttotheend,andhadgivennoevidenceagainstanyothersoftheaccused(Bennett1993,27–28).AnneRedfernewasfoundguilty(Davies1971,108).JaneBulcock andher son JohnBulcock, both fromNewchurch inPendle,wereaccused and found guilty of themurder bywitchcraft of JennetDeane (Davies1971,131).BothdeniedthattheyhadattendedthemeetingorcovenatMalkinTower,butJennetDeviceidentifiedJaneashavingbeenoneofthosepresent,andJohnashavingturnedthespittoroastthestolensheep,thecentre‐pieceoftheGoodFridaymeetingattheDemdike'shome(Bennett1993,29).AliceNutterwasunusualamongtheaccusedinbeingcomparativelywealthy,thewidow of a tenant yeoman farmer. She made no statement either before orduringhertrial,excepttoenterherpleaofnotguiltytothechargeofmurderingHenry Mitton by witchcraft. The prosecution alleged that she, together withDemdikeandElizabethDevice,hadcausedMitton'sdeathafterhehadrefusedtogiveDemdikeapennyshehadbeggedfromhim.TheonlyevidenceagainstAliceseems to have been that James Device claimed Demdike had told him of themurder,andJennetDeviceinherstatementsaidthatAlicehadbeenpresentatthe Malkin Tower coven (Hasted 1993, 34). Alice may have called in on themeeting at Malkin Tower on her way to a secret (and illegal) Good FridayCatholic service, and refused to speak for fear of incriminating her fellowCatholics.ManyoftheNutterfamilywereCatholics,andtwohadbeenexecutedas Jesuitpriests, JohnNutter in1584andhisbrotherRobert in1600 (Bennett1993,29).AliceNutterwasfoundguilty(Davies1971,116).KatherineHewitt,knownasMould‐Heeles,waschargedandfoundguiltyofthemurderofAnneFoulds(Davies1971,124).Shewasthewifeofaclothierfromthe nearby town of Colne (Swain 2002, 75), and had attended the coven atMalkinTowerwithAliceGrey.AccordingtotheevidencegivenbyJamesDevice,bothHewittandGreytoldtheothersatthatmeetingthattheyhadkilledachildfromColne,AnneFoulds. JennetDevice alsopickedKatherineout of a line‐up,andconfirmedherattendanceattheMalkinTowermeeting(Hasted1993,36).Alice Gray was accusedwith Katherine Hewitt of themurder of Anne Foulds.PottsdoesnotprovideanaccountofAliceGray's trial, simplyrecordingherasone of the Samlesbury Witches (a second group tried for witchcraft atLancaster),whichshewasnot,asshewasoneofthoseidentifiedashavingbeen

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attheMalkinTowercoven,andnamingherinthelistofthosefoundnotguilty(Hasted1993,36).AlizonDevice,whoseencounterwithJohnLawhadtriggeredtheeventsleadinguptothetrials,waschargedwithcausingharmbywitchcraft.Uniquelyamongtheaccused,Alizonwasconfrontedincourtbyherallegedvictim,JohnLaw.Sheseemstohavegenuinelybelievedinherownguilt,andwhenLawwasbroughtintocourtAlizonfelltoherkneesintearsandconfessed(Hasted1993,37).Shewasfoundguilty(Davies1971,139).Thus foregoingsummaryofPottsaccountof the trial shows thesignificanceofthe supposed coven, ormeeting held atMalkin Tower, but says nothing of itslocation,savethatitwasinthevicinityofPendleHill.GiventhatMalkinTowerisprobablythemostwell‐knowncoveninEnglishlegalhistorymanyhavesoughtto identify its precise location. A review of the historical and archaeologicalevidencefortheMalkinTowerfowllows.DISCUSSIONTheonly firmevidence forMalkinTower’s locationcomes from theaccountofThomasPotts,whoplacesitsomewhereintheForestofPendle(aformerroyalforest).LittledefinitehelpcomesfromstudyofthenameasMalkinhasseveralpossiblederivations. ItwasafamiliarformofthefemalenamesMaryorMaud,anda term forapoororshabbywoman(Froome2010,39),whilst thesimilarmawkinwasawordusedtodescribealower‐classwomanorslut(Catlow1986,13–14).Malkinwas alsoused as a term for a cat, particularly anold cat, as ingrimalkinor greymalkin (Froome2010,39), andwasanoldnorthernEnglishnameforahare(Douglas1978,47–48),intowhichwitchesweresaidtobeableto transfigure (‘Rambles by the Ribble’, The Preston Chronicle and LancashireAdvertiser(2680),23May1863:).IthasalsobeensuggestedthatthenamewasacombinationofmalandkinasaslighttotheresidentsofMalkinTower(Catlow1986,13‐14;Douglas1978,47‐48),asuggestiondismissedbyDouglasowingtothe poor education of people in the area at that time (Douglas 1978, 47‐48).Another possibility is a corruption ofmalt kiln (Douglas 1978, 47‐48; Clayton2007,268),whichissupportedbyaclaimmadebyAlizonDevicethatthefamilyof Chattox had broken into their fire‐house (Peel and Southern 1985, 154). Afire‐housewasused in the final stageof convertingbarley intomalt foruse inbrewing, by heating it up over a slow fire. The value of goods stolen fromDemdike'sfire‐housewasabout£1,(Swain2002,80)equivalenttoabout£100today.SeveralexplanationshavebeensuggestedfortheoriginsofthewordMalkin,butwhatismorecertainisthat,despiteitsname,MalkinTowerisunlikelytohavebeenanimposingNormanpeeltower,builtasadefenceagainstScottishraiders(Fields1998,60).Itispossiblethatitwasadisusedpoacher'slookout(Clayton2007,268),butitismorelikelythatdespiteitsname,MalkinTowerwasasimplecottage (Morrison, Blake (20 July 2012), "Blake Morrison: under the witches'spell", The Guardian, retrieved 15 August 2012). Historian W. R. Mitchellsuggeststhatitwasoriginallyasmallfarmbuilding,perhapsashelterforfodder

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or livestock, which was converted into poor‐quality living accommodation(Mitchell1984,25).LifeintheForestofPendlewashard,andmostpeoplelivedinpoverty, inreality theMalkinTowermayhavebeen littlemorethanahovel(Eyre1986,13).Indeed‘Tower’mayhavebeenasarcasticnamegivenbylocalresidents to the property (Catlow 1986, 13–14). It is also almost certain thatSoutherns and Device did not ownMalkin Tower but were tenants (Peel andSouthern1985,155).ThelocationofMalkinToweristhereforeuncertain(Froome2010,39),howeverthereareseveralcandidatelocations.OneisinthecivilparishofBlacko,onthesite ofMalkinTowerFarm (Clayton2007, 286),where since the1840s claimshavebeenmadethatoldmasonryfoundinafieldwallisfromtheremainsoftheTower (Catlow 1986, 13–14; Potts 1845, xlix–l, introduction footnote). InTheLancashireWitch­Craze,JonathanLumbysuggeststhatthebuildingwassituatedon themoors surroundingBlackoHill, near to anold roadbetweenColne andGisburn(Lumby1995,19).LocalfolkloreintheparishholdsthattheremainsofMalkin Tower are buried in a field behind the nearby Cross Gaits Inn publichouse,indeedtheTowerusedtobefeaturedontheinn'ssign(Davitt2006,22).Theprimaryevidencesupportingthis locationseemstobethatahollowinthehillside east of the farm is known asMawkinHole (Clayton 2007, 279). It hasbeen suggested that this is the sameplacementioned in the sixteenth‐centuryhalmotecourtrecordsforthemanorofColneasMawkinYarde(speltvariously:Malkynyerd, Malkenyerd, Malkynyerde, Mawkyn‐yarde, Mawkin Yarde (Farrer1897, 237, 266, 241, 458, 466).), described as being ‘in the north of Colne’(Clayton 2007, 286). The main objection to this candidate is that anywhereinsidethemanorofColnewouldhavebeenoutsidetheForestofPendle,whichmust seriously undermine the claim, as does the fact that the first OrdnanceSurvey map of the area, created in the 1840s, identifies the farm as BlackoTower, not Malkin Tower (Ordnance Survey (1848), Lancashire and Furness(Map),1:10,560,CountySeries (1sted.)).Furthermore, thesite isalsoseveralmilesfromanyofthetraceablelocationsmentionedintheaccountofthetrials(Douglas1978,47–48).To muddy the waters further, in 1891 local grocer, Jonathan Stansfield,constructed a tower on the nearby summit of Blacko Hill (Fields 1998, 148).TodaythisisalsocommonlyknownasBlackoTower,andisoftenconfusedwithMalkinTower(Figure11).Althoughheclaimedatthetimethathewishedtoseeinto neighbouring valleys, historian John Clayton suggests that, aware of thestory, he may have wished to provide the area with his own tower (Clayton2007,265–266).TogetherthisevidencetendstounderminetheclaimofBlackotothesiteofMalkinTower.

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Figure 11. Stansfield Tower, Blacko, a Victorian folly often confused with MalkinTower(PeelandSouthern1985,157).AnalternativelocationliesnearthevillageofNewchurchinPendle(Fields1998,60). Douglas claims there is ‘persuasive’ evidence that an area near Sadler'sFarm(nowknownasShekinahChristianCentre)wasthesiteofMalkinTower.Numerous reports of alleged witchcraft come from the area, and it is in thevicinityofotherlocationsnamedduringthetrialsuchasGreenhead.Greenhead,nearFence,beingthehomeofChristopherNutterandhissonRobert,forwhosedeaths Anne Whittle and Anne Redferne were charged with murder (Davies1971, 34;Hasted 1993, 33). Others involved in the trialswere known to havelived in the area; alleged witches Jane and John Bulcock resided at Moss EndFarm inNewchurch, and JohnNutter,whose cowswere claimed to have beenbewitched,livedattheneighbouringBullHoleFarm.Southerns'sonChristopherHolgate also lived nearby. But neither the deeds of Sadler's Farm,which datebacktotheseventeenthcentury,norcontemporarymapsoftheregionmentionMalkinToweroranyfieldsinwhichitmayhavestood(PeelandSouthern1985,155). Historical and documentary evidence alone has therefore provedinsufficienttolocatethesiteofMalkinTower.Manyhistoriansbelievedthatthehousemayhavebeendemolishedshortlyafterthetrials. Itwascommonat thetimetodismantleemptybuildingsandrecyclethe materials. The building had accommodated Alizon Device and hergrandmother, but Alizon was hanged and her grandmother died in prisonawaitingtrial,whiletheothermembersofthefamilylivedinasmallholdingthathad belonged to John Device, Elizabeth Device's deceased husband (Froome

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2010, 38). There was therefore no impediment to its demolition, further thedestruction of the Tower may have served to eradicate the ‘melancholyassociations’of theplace (Peel andSouthern1985,156).Locating thebuildingmaythereforeneedtorelyonarchaeologicalexcavationsinthearea.Archaeological excavations have been undertaken in several locations in thePendleForestarealookingforMalkinTower.ThoseatNewchurchfoundnothing(Mitchell1984,25),howeverapotentialcandidateforthelostMalkinTowerwasannounced inDecember2011,afterwaterengineersuneartheda seventeenth‐centurycottagewithamummifiedcatsealed in thewallsclose toLowerBlackMoss Reservoir at Barley (Witch's cottage' unearthed near Pendle Hill,Lancashire,BBCNews,8December2011).Thebuildingisintheareareferredtoby Potts, whilst the inclusion of a cat points to superstitions associated withwitchcraft(Tozer2011).The cat onceprotected andworshipedby the ancientEgyptians,wasdespisedand persecuted from the Iron Age until the eighteenth century. One of theearliest records linking witches and cats concerns the ceremony of ‘CatWednesday’, which took place in the city of Metz in Northern France. Thisinvolvedhundredsofcatsbeingburntaliveinthebeliefthattheywerewitchesin disguise. Black cats in particular were believed to be agents of the devil,especiallyifownedbyanelderlywoman.TheoriginsofthesebeliefslieintheIronAge‘Celts’whobelievedthatcatshadonce been human and had been changed into cats as punishment for theirwicked ways. Later, Catholic culture mixed with Celtic beliefs, and the catbecamethewitch's‘familiar’.Inthesixteenthandseventeenthcenturiestensofthousands of witches and cats were put to death in Germany, in France thenumberwas75,000andinGreatBritain30,000.Catswereoftentortured,alongwiththeirunfortunatehumans,beforebeingburnt,orburiedalive.Catswerefirmlyestablishedinthelexiconofwitchcraftduringtheseventeenth‐century,howeverarchaeologicalevidencesuggests that thatcatsealed intothewallsofthebuildingatLowerBlackMossReservoirwasplacedthereasrecentlyas the 1800s, long after the Pendle Witch trials (Figure 12). The cat cannotthereforehavebeena‘familiar’ofanyoftheknownPendlewitches.Nonetheless,itspresenceinthewallsofthepropertystillneedstobeaccountedfor.Thepracticeofwallingupacat,sometimeswiththeanimalstillaliveatthetime,isknowntohavebeenamedievalprecautionagainstevil spirits.The traditionsurvived into later centuries in remote areas such as the high Pennines(Wainwright 2011), when the spirits of dead cats were believed to protecthouseholdfoodsuppliesfromverminsuchasratsandmice(Froome2010,161).Thismaythereforeaccountforthecat’sappearanceinthewallsofthebuilding.

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Figure12.Thewallswithinwhichthecatwasfoundsealed. Itappearsthatthecatwasprobablyalivewhenburiedinthewall,sometimeinthe1800s.CONCLUSIONThesupernaturalpowerofwitchesisnolongerpartofmainstreambelief,butinthe seventeenth‐century the belief was real. Cunning Folk and Wise Womenwereconsultedinarangeofcircumstances:theillandinjuredwouldseekherbalremedies in the form of poultices and medicines; the broken‐hearted lovepotions and spells; whilst the affronted and afraid might ask for curses andpunishments.Thisbeliefwasunderstandableinaworldwithouteithermodernmedicine or criminal justice.Within thismixwas the belief that if crossed theotherwise helpfulwisewomen could turn vengeful andwreak revenge on herenemies.ItwasagainstthisbackgroundthatthePendleWitchesweretriedandhung.WhethertheexcavationofaruinedcottageatLowerBlackMossReservoirreally represents the site ofMalkin Towermust remain an open question, thearchaeological evidence being far from conclusive. However, the internationalinterest in the preliminary publication in the media demonstrates how thesuperstitionsofthepaststillenthrallthepublic.

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