The Kirk, Satan and Salem

The core texts of this edition were first published as 'A History of the Witches of Renfrewshire' in 1809, and again in 1877 with additional material about both the Renfrewshire and Salem cases of the 1690s. In 2006, Hugh McLachlan added to these with a new, comprehensive, introduction to witchcraft in Scotland and New England. and additional material. This 2022 edition is a corrected re-issue of that work.

Central to the work is the famous outbreak of witchcraft allegations and prosecutions associated with Christian Shaw, the so-called 'Bargarran Impostor' in Renfrewshire, Scotland in the 1690s. The material from that time includes the pivotal publication 'A True Narrative of the Sufferings and Relief of a Young Girle; Strangely molested by Evil spirits and their instruments in the West: With a preface and postscript containing Reflections on what is most Material or Curious either in the history or trial of the Seven Witches who were Condemn'd to be Execute in the country.'

The parallels between this case and the prior events in Salem, New England in 1692 are explored. For instance, the remarkably similar fits that Christian Shaw and the other New England and Scottish alleged victims of witchcraft were said to have experienced. Both cases involve children as alleged victims. Clergymen play important parts in both cases. The material presented illustrates how the cases are better understood with reference to each other.