Magdalene Blair

Last updated

Magdalene Blair was accused as a witch in Stirling in the 17th century.

History

In March 1659, Magdalene Blair was tried on witchcraft-related charges alongside two other Stirling women, Isobel Bennet and Bessie Stivenson, for allegedly using charms to cure illness. [1] Depositions in the case against Magdalene Blair provided names of the witnesses in the trials. [1] Of the three women, Magdelene Blair was the only one to be acquitted and released. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Magdalene</span> Follower of Jesus

Mary Magdalene was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to his crucifixion and resurrection. She is mentioned by name twelve times in the canonical gospels, more than most of the apostles and more than any other woman in the gospels, other than Jesus's family. Mary's epithet Magdalene may be a toponymic surname, meaning that she came from the town of Magdala, a fishing town on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee in Roman Judea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary of Bethany</span> Disciple of Jesus

Mary of Bethany is a biblical figure mentioned by name in the Gospel of John and probably the Gospel of Luke in the Christian New Testament. Together with her siblings Lazarus and Martha, she is described as living in the village of Bethany, a small village in Judaea to the south of the Mount of Olives near Jerusalem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magdalene College, Cambridge</span> College of the University of Cambridge

Magdalene College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary Magdalene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Empty tomb</span> Christian tradition about the tomb of Jesus

The empty tomb is the Christian tradition that the tomb of Jesus was found empty after his crucifixion. The canonical gospels are consistent on the incident, with variations, of the visit of women to Jesus' tomb. Although Jesus' body had been laid out in the tomb after crucifixion and death, the tomb is found to be empty, the body gone, and the women are told by angels that he has risen. The gospel accounts are based on earlier oral traditions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magdalene asylum</span> Roman Catholic institution

Magdalene asylums, also known as Magdalene laundries, were initially Protestant but later mostly Roman Catholic institutions that operated from the 18th to the late 20th centuries, ostensibly to house "fallen women". The term referred to female sexual promiscuity or sex workers, young women who became pregnant outside of marriage, or young girls and teenagers who did not have familial support. They were required to work without pay apart from meagre food provisions, while the institutions operated large commercial laundries, serving customers outside their bases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linda Blair</span> American actress and animal rights activist (born 1959)

Linda Denise Blair is an American actress and activist. Known for her work in the horror genre, she first came to prominence with her portrayal of Regan MacNeil in The Exorcist (1973), for which she won a Golden Globe Award and received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. The film established her as a scream queen and she reprised her role in two sequels: Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977) and The Exorcist: Believer (2023).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stirling (council area)</span> Council area of Scotland

The Stirling council area is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and has a population of about 93,470. It was created in 1975 as a lower-tier district within the Central region. The district covered parts of the historic counties of Stirlingshire and Perthshire, which were abolished for local government purposes. In 1996 the Central region was abolished and Stirling Council took over all local government functions within the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gospel of Mary</span> Early Christian text

The Gospel of Mary is a non-canonical text discovered in 1896 in a fifth-century papyrus codex written in Sahidic Coptic. This Berlin Codex was purchased in Cairo by German diplomat Carl Reinhardt.

Níall McLaughlin Architects is an architectural firm in London, England. Níall McLaughlin established the practice in 1991. He has been described as "a favourite with Oxbridge clients"; as of 2022, McLaughlin has had commissions from 15 colleges at Oxford and Cambridge universities. In 2022, the practice won the Stirling Prize for excellence in architecture for the New Library at Magdalene College, Cambridge.

Stirling County RFC is a Scottish rugby union club based in Stirling. The club plays its home games at Bridgehaugh. It runs a number of sides. The professional men's side competes in the Super 6 as the Stirling Wolves, the women's side competes in the Scottish Womens Premiership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Mullan</span> Scottish actor and filmmaker (born 1959)

Peter Mullan is a Scottish actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his role in Ken Loach's My Name Is Joe (1998), The Claim (2000), and all three series of the BBC comedy series Mum, in which he starred as Michael.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barbara (Yakovleva)</span> Russian Orthodox saint

Varvara Alexeyevna Yakovleva, called Nun Barbara, was a Russian Orthodox nun in the convent of Grand Duchess Elizabeth Fyodorovna. She was killed by the Bolsheviks along with the grand duchess and Prince Ioann Konstantinovich of Russia, Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia, Prince Igor Konstantinovich of Russia, Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich of Russia, Fyodor Remez, Grand Duke Sergei's secretary, and Prince Vladimir Pavlovich Paley at Alapaevsk.

<i>The Magdalen Reading</i> Fragment of altarpiece painting by Rogier van der Weyden

The Magdalen Reading is one of three surviving fragments of a large mid-15th-century oil-on-panel altarpiece by the Early Netherlandish painter Rogier van der Weyden. The panel, originally oak, was completed some time between 1435 and 1438 and has been in the National Gallery, London since 1860. It shows a woman with the pale skin, high cheek bones and oval eyelids typical of the idealised portraits of noble women of the period. She is identifiable as the Magdalen from the jar of ointment placed in the foreground, which is her traditional attribute in Christian art. She is presented as completely absorbed in her reading, a model of the contemplative life, repentant and absolved of past sins. In Catholic tradition the Magdalen was conflated with both Mary of Bethany who anointed the feet of Jesus with oil and the unnamed "sinner" of Luke 7:36–50. Iconography of the Magdalen commonly shows her with a book, in a moment of reflection, in tears, or with eyes averted.

<i>Magdalene with the Smoking Flame</i> Painting by Georges de La Tour

Magdalene with the Smoking Flame is a c. 1640 oil-on-canvas depiction of Mary Magdalene by French Baroque painter Georges de La Tour. Two versions of this painting exist, one in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the other in the Louvre Museum.

The 2004 Wallabies spring tour was a series of five matches played by the Australia national rugby union team in November 2004.

Sex in a Cold Climate is a 1998 Irish documentary film detailing the mistreatment of "fallen women" in the Magdalene laundries in Ireland. It was produced and directed by Steve Humphries and narrated by Dervla Kirwan. It was used as a source for the 2002 film, The Magdalene Sisters.

The 2004 Scotland rugby union tour of Oceania was a series of matches played in May and June 2004 in Australia and New Zealand by Scotland national rugby union team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magdalene Laundries in Ireland</span> Catholic institutions in Ireland

The Magdalene Laundries in Ireland, also known as Magdalene asylums, were institutions usually run by Roman Catholic orders, which operated from the 18th to the late 20th centuries. They were run ostensibly to house "fallen women", an estimated 30,000 of whom were confined in these institutions in Ireland. In 1993, unmarked graves of 155 women were uncovered in the convent grounds of one of the laundries. This led to media revelations about the operations of the secretive institutions. A formal state apology was issued in 2013, and a compensation scheme for survivors was set up by the Irish Government, which by 2022 and after an extension of the scheme had paid out €32.8 million to 814 survivors. The religious orders which operated the laundries have rejected appeals, including from victims and Ireland's Justice Minister, to contribute financially to this programme.

Magdalene Stirling was a Scottish composer best known for Twelve Tunes Composed by Miss Stirling of Ardoch, which she had printed privately in 1796.

Bessie Stivenson or Bessie Stevenson was executed for witchcraft in Stirling, Scotland in the 17th century.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Harrison, John G. (November 1998). "Women and the Branks in Stirling, c.1600 to c.1730". Scottish Economic & Social History. 18 (2): 114–131. doi:10.3366/sesh.1998.18.2.114. ISSN   0269-5030.